dear broadmayne,—i suppose by the time you receive this you will have had a hand in sending the alerte to her long, last home. really, i don't envy your job, but it will be interesting to hear how it happened when you return home, which i suppose will be before very long.
"we—old primmer and i—had quite an exciting time at mousehole. we found porthoustoc's swag, but hanged if the customs and police didn't butt in, and we spent a night in the cells at penzance before the admiral at devonport got us released! i'll tell you all about it in due course.
"i've received the insurance money for the poor old ibex, and i'm in treaty with a fellow at burnham for the purchase of a smart little motorcruiser—paraffin engines this time, so perhaps you'll find an opportunity and help me bring her round.—cheerio, yours ever,
"rollo vyse."
sub-lieutenant broadmayne smiled as he replaced this missive in his pocket. the alerte affair had already seen rollo twice under arrest. ... perhaps old vyse would have a third similar experience in connection with the pirate... hardly likely, though. the alerte was finished and done with. his chum was wrong in his surmise. the unenviable job had been carried out without any direct action on the part of h.m.s. canvey.
the decoy-ship was homeward bound. she had put into the canaries to pick up her mails and had proceeded. already the famous peak of teneriffe was dipping beneath the southern horizon. broadmayne, leaning over the taffrail, was in a pensive mood as he watched the water froth in the ship's wake.
even as he looked, the ship began to circle to starboard. there was nothing very unusual about that. possibly she was giving way to an approaching craft. but when the turning movement continued, the sub began to show an interest in the matter. still more did he—as did a hundred others—when the canvey, having turned sixteen points, steadied on her helm and began to retrace her course to the south'ard.
leaving the deserted poop, broadmayne went for'ard. groups of curious ratings were discussing the seemingly unaccountable turn. several of the officers off duty, who were smoking on deck after "seven-bell tea," were also in a state of perplexity over the business.
it was not long before the secret was out and had spread the length and breadth of the ship.
a wireless message had just been received, stating that, since nothing had been reported of the s.s. bronx city following her account of the destruction of the alerte, the canvey was to proceed in search of the american vessel, keeping a sharp look-out on the coast as far south as the fifteenth parallel.
"rotten stunt," grumbled the engineer-lieutenant, who was eagerly looking forward to the canvey's return to devonport—to an event that would result in, amongst other things, the hoisting of a garland between the ship's masts. "we were sent out here to chase a pirate, not to act as nurse to a yankee tramp."
"well, why didn't she show up at teneriffe or funchal?" demanded allerton. "'sides, something must have happened to her, or she'd have wirelessed again."
"bows stove in by the collision," suggested the paymaster-lieutenant.
"but she reported she was proceeding," rejoined the engineer officer. "proceeding where? that's what i want to know."
"you'll probably find out, if we're here long enough," said broadmayne chaffingly. "it'll take six months or more to carry out orders. we can't examine the coast in the dark. that means we'll have to stand off every night and close the land at the same spot at daybreak. 'sides, there are hundreds of little harbours we'll have to explore——"
"oh, shut up, do!" interrupted the exasperated engineer-lieutenant.
for three days and nights the canvey ran south, speaking several vessels, none of which could give any information concerning the sought-for bronx city.
during the morning of the fourth day, broadmayne, who was officer of the forenoon watch, received a report that a vessel's smoke was to be seen on the port bow.
this was somewhat unusual, for off this part of the african coast shipping gave the land a wide berth on account of the dangerous and unlighted lazarus shoal. the canvey was, in point of fact, standing in closer than prudence demanded, although in order to carry out her instructions to watch the coast in the event of the bronx city having run aground, she had to run a certain amount of risk.
"what do you make of her?" asked broadmayne of the yeoman of signals, as the stranger's hull drew above the horizon.
"flying yankee colours, sir," replied the petty officer, after a prolonged look through his telescope. "there's a double-barrelled tally on her bows, though i can't make it out yet. she ain't 'arf 'opping it."
a few minutes later, for the two vessels were approaching each other at an aggregate speed of twenty-eight knots, the yeoman of signals exclaimed:
"crikey, sir! she's the bronx city!"
dispatching a messenger to inform the captain, broadmayne levelled his binoculars upon the approaching vessel. as far as he could make out, there was nothing wrong with her outward appearance. her bows were certainly not stove-in; which, considering she had claimed to have rammed and sunk the alerte, was what the sub had a right to expect. her wireless aerials were in position.
just as lieutenant-commander raxworthy gained the bridge, a three-flag hoist rose to the foremast head of the bronx city: inm—chased by a privateer. then, before the canvey could display the answering pennant, the code flag over the letter e, signifying that the following words were in plain spelling, fluttered in the breeze.
"ale——"
there was no need to complete the name.
"sound off 'action stations'!" ordered the owner.
raxworthy formed a shrewd idea of what had occurred, but he was too wary a skipper to leave much to chance. the approaching vessel bore the name bronx city. it might or might not be her rightful tally. if, as might possibly be the case, the alerte had captured the yankee vessel, it was quite likely that the pirate submarine had turned over her crew and armament to her prize. or the bronx city might be the alerte disguised.
on the latter point broadmayne was able to inform his skipper that such was not the case. the alerte, however cleverly camouflaged, could not assume the length and lofty superstructure of the approaching craft.
in double-quick time the canvey was cleared for action. the guns were unmasked and trained upon the bronx city. "present use" ammunition was brought up on deck and placed beside the quick-firers, while the torpedo-tubes on the port side were charged with their deadly missiles, ready at the first sign of aggression to deliver a mortal blow at the huge target presented by the stranger's hull.
the bronx city was still a mile off when a second vessel was sighted a good five miles astern of her. although she, too, was evidently travelling fast, there was a noticeable absence of smoke from her funnel.
borrowing the signalman's telescope, broadmayne had a good look at her. he was bound to admit that the second stranger resembled the pirate submarine. there were a few trifling alterations in her appearance since the sub had last seen her.
"she's the alerte, sir," he declared confidently. lieutenant-commander raxworthy was on the horns of a dilemma. should the bronx city prove to be manned by a piratical crew and he allowed her to go on her way while he headed off her supposed pursuer, the opportunity of laying the former vessel by the heels would be lost. on the other hand, if he stopped to examine the craft flying american colours, the presumed alerte would seize the opportunity of turning tail and disappearing. again, he was not justified in ordering a united states ship to heave to, for it might result in an unpleasant international incident between the government of great britain and that sitting at washington. having been once tricked completely by the alerte, he was doubly cautious lest there be a repetition of the ruse that had succeeded almost beyond belief.
at the captain's orders, a signalman taking up a conspicuous position on the roof of the chart-house semaphored to the bronx city, suggesting that for her protection the american vessel should turn sixteen points to port and follow the canvey at a distance of ten cables astern.
to this the bronx city replied by the single word "sure."
the two ships were now abeam of each other. the stranger in the offing had turned and was retracing her course—additional evidence that she was not an honest craft.
the lieutenant-commander of the canvey immediately rang down for full speed. the chase—a stern one—had commenced.
"bronx city turning to port, sir," reported the officer of the watch.
"good!" ejaculated the skipper. "we'll drop her, of course, but it shows she's jonnick. ask her what she's been doing, mr. broadmayne."
the sub told off a signalman to semaphore the bronx city, which, having completed her turning movement, was dead in the canvey's wake. for nearly half an hour the exchange of messages was maintained at high pressure. captain adams told briefly all that was necessary—the capture of the bronx city by the alerte, and cain's considerate treatment; the detention in bahia arenas and the alerte's broken promise in plundering the ship.
"was cain in command?" inquired broadmayne, through the medium of the hand-flags.
"guess not," replied the yankee skipper. "a mutiny, possibly. pengelly was in command when we were ransacked."
the sub returned to the bridge and reported events. by this time the alerte was less than three miles away, thanks to the superior speed of the canvey; while, on the other hand, the bronx city, unable to keep station, had dropped nearly that distance astern of the british decoy-ship.
raxworthy could have sunk the pirate submarine by gunfire with the greatest ease, but he refrained. he wanted to head her into shallow water before delivering the coup de grâce—unless she surrendered first. he therefore ordered speed to be reduced to that of the chase, the guns to be secured, and piped all hands to dinner.
two bells in the afternoon watch found the relative positions of the canvey and her chase unchanged. the bronx city, in spite of the canvey's reduced speed, was still dropping astern.
realising that no useful purpose would be served by the yankee ship attempting to keep in company, the canvey signalled for her to resume her former course, with the additional intimation that as the bronx city's wireless was disabled, the canvey would report her position to teneriffe station.
almost immediately upon receipt of the signal, the bronx city starboarded helm and dipped her ensign. twenty minutes later she was hull down away to the nor'ard.
the canvey now increased speed. there was no need for disguise. bravely her battle-ensigns streamed in the breeze, while her guns were again manned and trained as far ahead as possible, ready, if need be, to hurl their deadly and destructive missiles upon the already doomed pirate submarine.
it was now a foregone conclusion that the alerte was doubling back to her former anchorage in bahia arenas. she could not submerge outside without going to the bottom, and since the depth without the bar is everywhere not less than sixty fathoms, such a manoeuvre would result in the submarine being crushed like an eggshell under the terrific pressure of water. it was extremely doubtful whether she would fight. her solitary six-inch gun would be hopelessly outmatched against the superior ordnance of her pursuer. short of taking to the boats and scuttling the alerte, the pirates had no alternative but to endeavour to reach the sandy bay and evade detection by submerging.
raxworthy was playing his own game. apart from destroying the alerte by gunfire or torpedo, he could have headed her off-shore by reason of the canvey's superior speed and carried her in the good old-fashioned way by boarding. such a measure, involving a certain risk of casualties amongst the canvey's ship's company, would have appealed to most of the men; but the lieutenant-commander had other plans. he meant to compel the alerte to surrender if it were possible. in any case, he wanted to take as many of the pirates as possible prisoners. to slay ruthlessly was against his principles. prisoners, even if they were pirates captured red-handed, were entitled to a fair trial, and in that event the onus of dealing with them was removed from raxworthy's shoulders.
at seven bells (3.30 p.m.) the canvey gained sufficiently to enable one of her guns to fire a few yards wide of the chase. simultaneously, she hoisted a signal summoning the alerte to surrender.
by the aid of glasses it was easy for the canvey's officers to see most of what was going on on the deck of the pirate submarine. pengelly and the gunner could be discerned crouching on the bridge. on the poop were several of the crew clamouring and arguing. some of them were evidently advocating taking to the boats. most of them had brought their personal belongings on deck, so that it looked as if they had no intention of offering resistance.
at length the alerte starboarded helm in order to take the deep and narrow passage over the bar. as she did so, broadmayne noticed a tall burly figure ascend the bridge, grasp the cowering pengelly and literally boot him down the ladder.
"now, we'll have a run for our money, sir," remarked broadmayne, to the lieutenant-commander. "cain's got his spoke in again!"
