CHAPTER VIII Uncle Sam Calls

SOME fellows are pursued by luck no matter where they turn in life. Others of evil design seem to be able to get away with anything they attempt solely on their nerve. Carl Weddigen was one of this class. Not one chap in a thousand, caught as he had been with stolen diamonds, would have breasted it out and escaped so cleverly by use of his nimble wits. Criminologists' records show that the average thief trapped as Weddigen was either surrenders abjectly or makes a break for it in an effort to escape. The crafty minority stand their ground and worm their way out by subterfuge.

"I'll say he's got the nerve, all right," remarked Dick Monaghan. The Nemo had returned to Bridgeford and the members of the crew were enjoying a few days' rest after their arduous and successful trip in exploration of the sunken Dominion.

"Nerve!" retorted Larry Seymour. "Why, if that guy had been sent into Germany by General Pershing he could have dragged the Kaiser out of Berlin and made those dazed Fritzies think he was only kidding them."

Jay Thacker smiled at that. He was feeling much better after his experiences; in fact, a couple of good nights' sleep and recreation had put him back in good trim again. Two years at sea in the U. S. Navy will toughen the bone and muscle of any lad.

Dick and Larry had been wanting Jay to go to Captain Austin to relate the whole story of what had happened on the bottom of the sea in the cabin of the Dominion. Magnanimously, Jay had spurned the proposition.

"They might think I was jealous because Weddigen fished up the diamonds while all I got was a handful of deck railing that well-nigh finished me," was his answer.

"Yes, but you owe it to yourself and to the company," argued Dick. "Think how that bird may clean out the bunch again."

Larry was shaking his head.

"Never on your life. Remember, I'm always on deck when he's working below, and you can bet your bottom dollar I'll put him under my nice little X-ray every time he comes up again. No, sir-ee, fellows, I'm wise to that gink for all time. He may think he's slippery, but he'll find I'm the original slippery elm."

Deep down Jay resented this big diver's bold audacity and cunning. Never had he seen anything so brazen as the way Weddigen had smoothed over the matter of the diamonds that he had carried in his diving trousers' pocket. Nervily he had sought out Captain Austin and explained the whole thing several times over. The captain had seemingly been pretty well convinced that Weddigen was on the square in the matter, and this had only strengthened Jay's determination to keep silence.

"But I'll get him in the long run, for he's a crook of the deepest dye and murder is sure to out," he had told himself.

For some days the two Brighton lads and their friend Larry Seymour remained inactive about the big shipyard at Bridgeford awaiting the call to further service. Captain Austin had told them to take things easy. Superintendent Brown and the higher officials of the company were elated at the success of the Nemo's crew in bringing up some of the treasure of the Dominion and had decreed that as part of their reward they were to loaf a while. Eventually, each lad knew, he would come in for a slice of the huge "divvy" that was sure to be tendered the company for salvaging the lost diamonds. The Brighton boys were delighted with the prospect, for it meant the money would go a long ways toward payment of their tuition for the new school year. They had expected to be assigned to the job of bringing up the gold bullion from the Dominion, but more urgent work awaited them.

Great secrecy was attendant upon the fitting out of a special ship in the yard that the boys had heard was to be used in salvage work later in the summer. With it the Bridgeford officials contemplated using some of their new apparatus and employing some of their lately developed processes for deep-sea salvage.

The ship, which they had heard referred to as the Jules Verne, was denied to everybody except the chosen men employed in putting the finishing touches on her. She was roped off in a portion of the big wet basin all to herself and armed guards kept prying eyes at a distance.

"We're apt to know sooner or later," Dick remarked as they discussed the new venture one afternoon.

"And as for me, I'm getting tired of laying around this way," said Dick. For two years they had had so much to do while serving in the Navy that inaction now palled upon them.

They had not long to wait, for one morning, a few days later, just after they had checked in the shipyard, there came a summons to them to appear in the office of Superintendent Brown. They hurried over at once, finding that official awaiting them with Captain Austin.

"Morning, boys," called out the superintendent cheerily. "I hope you are feeling in good shape again after your tussle with the old Dominion."

To which they answered they preferred getting down again into the danger zone rather than to sit around cooling their heels.

"That's the spirit, all right," remarked the official with a grin. "We are proud of you fellows who compose the crew of the Nemo for what you have already done, and we sure are going to take care of you."

Jay tried to explain that one man alone had recovered the diamonds and that he was in no sense to be credited with any of the glory.

"Just the same, you were there trying hard, and what's more you endangered your own life in an unfortunate accident while in the act of duty."

And then the superintendent began telling them why he had summoned them to headquarters.

"You chaps doubtless know that the Jules Verne will be ready for her maiden trip within the next two weeks," he began.

The boys perked up at this when it seemed likely they were to be let in on the big secret that had every man in the yard guessing.

"I can only say at this time," continued Mr. Brown, "that the Jules Verne combines our latest improved method of searching the ocean bottom and has facilities that will greatly expedite deep-sea salvage work. You will know in due time, for you chaps will be among the first batch of divers sent out on the Jules Verne. We shall want to thoroughly acquaint you at first with the operation of the new diving bell before you will actually engage in salvage work."

The yard official paused to draw several times on his cigar.

"In the meantime, I need you for a diving expedition of tremendous importance to Uncle Sam. Are you game?"

He looked from one face to the other, eying the boys with a roguish smile.

They nodded their heads eagerly. "If it's for Uncle Sammy, lead us to it!"

"Well, listen," said Superintendent Brown, as the boys sat wondering what was coming. "An executive officer from the Bureau of Naval Operations in Washington is here on a mission of great importance. It seems the Navy Department has been watching our salvage work, and read about what you boys were doing in the hold of the Dominion. They want us to do a piece of work for them that demands speed as well as secrecy."

And then he explained in detail. During the war, at the time when a fleet of German submarines had escaped the allied fleets in the North Sea and come to this side of the Atlantic to attack shipping, and particularly supply ships bound for Europe, one of the U-boats had been sunk off Cape May, N. J., at the mouth of the Delaware River. Submarine chasers putting out hurriedly from the inlet had dashed up in time to drop depth bombs on the submerging U-boat.

That the U-boat, badly crippled, had been sunk had been established beyond all doubt by navy divers who had located it on the bottom. The Navy Department had intended salvaging the U-boat at once but had been prevented by reason of the fact that the war kept the department busy sending troopships to Europe, guarding them en route and combating the Hun "mosquitoes" that threatened Atlantic ports and coastwise shipping.

When the Navy Department had eventually set about the salvage of the U-boat they had found it by this time so nearly imbedded in the floor of the ocean that only the conning tower remained above ground. The Navy was now ready to dig the U-boat out, but had decided to ask the Bridgeford Company to co-operate with them in the venture.

"And now we come to the meat of the whole thing," confided the superintendent. "The men who are to engage in this work must be of the most trustworthy character, for reasons I will now explain. We have selected you fellows to get in on this because you are naval veterans and we know you can be trusted to the limit."

The superintendent motioned the boys closer and resumed in an undertone,

"Deep down in that sunken U-boat are plans of United States fortifications, ship and munition designs and highly valuable scientific formulas that must be recovered at whatever cost. They were stolen from the archives of the department at Washington by adroit tools of the German espionage system. I am not at liberty to tell you how they were stolen, for it is one of the secrets of the department. But we are told that those plans are on that submerged U-boat. The Germans were smuggling them out of the country, and it was a lucky shot from the 'ash-cans' of our chasers that laid that particular U-boat low."

"Naturally, we are elated that the Department has come to us in such an important matter, and it is needless for me to say that we are more than anxious to make good, not alone for the sake of our company, but, and very much more to the point, for the sake of the dear old country that we love so much."

"And we—" began Jay.

"Yes, I rather fancied you two fellows would enjoy getting in on a project of this kind," interrupted the superintendent. "I don't suppose it is necessary for me formally to ask you whether you would like to look up this unlucky U-boat."

"Well, hardly." Almost in unison they had leaped to their feet to answer in the affirmative.

"Bully! You are assigned forthwith, with our hearty good wishes, and here's hoping you succeed in putting over another neat piece of work for Uncle Sam just as you did over there in the North Sea. If you fellows had laid that mine curtain before those U-boats escaped this Cape May job never would have happened. But now we've got to get those plans back. They are of immense value to our government."

"They wouldn't be of much value to Germany now!" interrupted Dick with a grin.

"Right!" laughed the superintendent. "Germany doesn't look very formidable, with her surrendered navy, and her surrendered iron and coal fields, and her surrendered stores of munitions. But you never can tell. Besides, there are scientific secrets in that collection that, even if the defeated Huns couldn't use them, could be sold for sums that would make you gasp if I mentioned them."

The boys whistled.

"This is the information I have from the naval officer. You can see how urgent the job is. That sunken U-boat is guarded night and day by American war vessels ever on the alert. The exact spot where she lies on the bottom is known and guarded like the gold in the United States Treasury vaults.

"And now I wish you 'bon voyage,'" concluded the superintendent as he shook hands with the two lads. "You will go out this afternoon with Captain Austin on the Nemo; and, don't forget, when you come back the Jules Verne will be waiting for you."

Elated with the prospects of a new venture of such an important character, Jay and Dick arose to go, telling Captain Austin they would report immediately aboard the Nemo and make ready to depart for the trip down the coast to Cape May.

"Better luck to you this time, Mr. Thacker," called out the yard superintendent.

"Thanks, Mr. Brown. I sincerely hope so," the youth replied.

Jay turned and opened the door of the superintendent's office. As he stepped into the hallway he came face to face with Carl Weddigen. For an instant the latter seemed embarrassed, but quickly regained his composure.

"How are you, fellows! Is Captain Austin in there with the superintendent?" he asked imperiously.

Dick replied that he was, whereupon Weddigen coolly declared he would wait where he was until the captain came out.

The boys hurried along leaving the diver still standing outside the superintendent's office.

"Funny thing how he happened to be standing around like that," remarked Dick as they let themselves out of the administration building.

"Funny is right," countered Jay. "Looks as though he might have been spying around or trying to horn in where he hadn't been invited. I've seen enough to know what kind of a chap he is and I'm here to say I don't think he wanted to see Captain Austin at all. That was only a bluff. I'll bet he was listening in on us while 'Montey' Brown was giving us the dope on that U-boat."

"So!" whistled Dick. "All right, we have his number right now. If he is going along to Cape May—look out!"