Page:Barbour--For the freedom from the seas.djvu/314

 "'Kamerad!' muttered a shelfman disgustedly. "I'd 'kamerad' the swine if I had my way!"

Over went the boats while the cruiser, with propellers idle, sidled closer through the leaping waves. The submarine's bow rose higher and higher and it was evident that she would soon go down stern-first. Some of those on the deck, jostled by their companions, slid off into the water. Others deliberately plunged in and began to swim toward the battleship. From Number Four gun port they saw the boats halving the distance.

"I'd let 'em swim," said Garey. "They've all got life-vests on, every one of 'em."

"Every Hun of them," corrected Tip softly. He plucked at Mart's sleeve. "Let's go topside and have a look."

One of the small boats was pulling the Germans from the water, while the other went on toward the submarine on which some ten or a dozen men still maintained a precarious foothold on the forward deck. The numbers on the bow were easily read now: "U C 46"; and it was possible to pick out the officers by the tarnished gold braid on sleeves and caps. The Gyandotte's propellers churned and the cruiser stopped and swung her bow to starboard. Signals were fluttering to the Antietam, promising speedy assistance. The small 289