A Lively Bit of the Front

s for the

e Pintail formed part. If the liner were in wireless touch with the transports the fact was never communicated to the troops on boa

ers awaiting her. Having coaled, the three vessels, u

e west was maintained, until the vessels ported helm and Stood north, it being th

you?" enquired an Australian, addre

cks for the boat. We only had ten minutes before the old hooker sank. The boys had a high o

arboard bow!" shoute

ope or churning up the water in its vicinity, in order to make it impossible for the U-boat to discharge a torpedo with any degree of accuracy. Simult

red course, but, owing to the Pomfret Castle being in her li

liner approached the spot where

t a U-boat had been sent to the bed of the Atlantic,

a bird known as a diver. The Pomfret Castle look-out had mistaken the unfortunate fowl for the per

nsport official, the man, if he were on board, had not come under their observation. At every available oppo

Fortescue to Malcolm, shortly after the diver incident. "I The fellow, if he is on board, couldn't lie doggo all t

when I first met Te Paheka

ntil you are certain of something that never occurred. I've known a fellow pitch an altogether impossible yarn befor

he alteration of course. The cruiser found that she was in the track of an unknown vessel that, although invisible, left a tell-tale track by throwing overboard ashes and other deb

refuse overboard, except at specified times, in order to baffle the hostile submarines' quest. Day and night a guard of riflemen stood to arms on dec

ndly bets as to their chances of arriving at Plymouth without bein

d of dreams last night, Malcolm,"

t? I plead guilty to the in

for the C.O., and he turned out the guard. Every part of the ship was visited, but without success, for the dead-lights were in position over every scuttle. Then,

importance to the incident. Not only was a light showing from the Pomfret Castle; it was blinking

ere's a call for volunteers fo

tumbled out of a comfortable attitude on a locker

crease speed--we're about to cross the intensive z

aid his question

he volunteers, and after breakfast twenty men p

y and polished perpendicular ladder, one of many that gave access to No. 2 stokehold. "It's all right for the nov

--" began one of the Anzacs, b

ergy for elbow grease," he exclaimed. "Now th

, stripped to the waist like the rest of the Pomfret Castle's fi

f South Africans who had just completed their two-hours' voluntary task. "They've stuc

ng the narrow passage between the huge boilers. Amongst them was Jan van Eindhovengen

, the "trimmers" being specially instructed to remove the coal in a methodical manner, so that there was slight possibility of the remaining contents being thrown out by the roll of the vessel. Others, armed with long-handled shovels, fed the capacious furnaces so frequently that the place reverberated to the cl

l. In spite of every precaution, masses of black, shiny fuel would clatter down from the steadily-diminishing heap. Since he

closely wedged that the only way to attack the slopin

mouth of the bunker. Back sprang the lad, crouching the while to prevent bringing his head in contact with a low girder. Even then he w

e time astonished, that nothing of the sort occurred. Beyond a few slight grazes, he was

d Fortescue. "Keep the pot

ed the huge mass. He could lift it with the utmost eas

mp to Fortescue. The latter, prepared to receive a we

d, "that's a mighty

red Selwyn, glad of an

escue. "The thing, whatever it is, is still leaking. Chuck it

ked the leading hand. "Chauvin' ye

mplaisantly. "But cast your opti

lump of coal afore

ne," said Fortes

uttering an unintelligible ejaculation, si

find!" exclaimed Selwyn

l pocket-book, bl

Must have belonged to one o

the book into the pocket of his over

s than ten minutes the leading hand returned

g Carr and his chums, "are to knock

ducted to a cabin on the lower bridge, their protests abo

Engineer of the ship, while in two pie

quired the "Old Man" brusquel

rolled on my foot, and, finding it

r to anyone--had that thing been thrown into the furnace, the chances are that the ship would have been blown up. No. 7

ressed consulte

-hold were bunkered at Cape Town. They hadn't

lab of wet gun-cotton, while to make up the deficiency of weight the hollow was filled with water. Fortunately the bomb must have been cracked in contact with lumps of g

ers were dismissed. "In due course your conduct will be reported to the