"Too late! The code is lost to the United States for good, and those rascals have escaped!"
But Jack suddenly sprang forward. His cheeks were aflame with excitement.
"Senator," he cried. "There is still a chance."
"I fail to see it," said Mr. Rivers.
"Get the line on the wire again, sir, and find out if the _Southern Star_ has a wireless."
"But what--Jove, boy! I see your plan now."
Eagerly the Senator s.n.a.t.c.hed up the receiver again. Before long connection was again established.
"The _Southern Star_ has a wireless," he exclaimed. "Her call is S. X.
A., and now for your plan, my boy."
"Show me to your wireless room, will you, Ned?" said Jack, subduing the excitement in his voice with a struggle.
"Oh, Jack, I see what you"re going to do now," cried Ned. "Come on. We don"t want to lose a minute."
The boys dashed up the stairs three at a time. The Senator followed at a more discreet pace. They entered the wireless room with a bang and a shout.
Jack fairly flung himself at the key and began pounding out the _Southern Star"s_ call. In reality it was only ten minutes, but to those in that room it seemed hours before he got a reply. When he did, he summoned the captain through the operator.
"Have I got authority to use your name, Senator?" asked the boy while he waited for the announcement that the captain was in the wireless room.
"You have authority to use the name of the most powerful inst.i.tution in the world, my boy, the United States Government," said the Senator solemnly. Then, as if he had suddenly thought of something, he hurriedly left the room. Downstairs he once more applied himself to the telephone, but this time he talked to the Secretary of the Navy.
Fifteen minutes after Jack had spoken to the Captain of the _Southern Star_ that craft was anch.o.r.ed in the Chesapeake River waiting the arrival of a gunboat hastily detailed by government wireless to proceed at once up that river and take three prisoners off the _Southern Star_.
This latter order was the result of Senator Rivers" call to the Navy Department.
Jack"s happy task was then to break the good news to Captain Simms, which he lost no time in doing, and the captain"s deep grat.i.tude, which was none the less because he expressed it in few words, may be imagined.
"I declare," he said, "you boys have been my good angels all through.
You have helped me as if your own interests had been at stake. I don"t know how to thank you."
The code was yielded up by Judson without a struggle, which procured him some leniency later on. But both he and Jarrow met with heavy punishment for their misdeeds. Donald was allowed to go free on account of his youth and the government"s disability to prove that he had actually anything to do with the theft of the code. After the news of his arrest spread, the long threatened disaster to Judson"s company happened and it went into bankruptcy. Donald, the pampered and selfish, had to go to work for a living. The boys heard that he had gone west. They were destined to meet him again, however, as they were Thurman.
One of Jack"s proudest possessions is a framed letter from the Secretary of the Navy thanking him for his great aid and that of his friends in the matter of the Navy Code, but he values the friendship of Captain Simms as highly. Not long after the successful tests of the detector, there was a joyous gathering on board the old _Venus_, to which queer home Uncle Toby had returned. All our friends were there and Jack was able to announce a joyous surprise. He had been able to secure, through Captain Simms" influence, the command of a fine new sailing ship for Captain Dennis. She was a full-rigged bark, plying between New York and Mediterranean ports.
Tears stood in the veteran captain"s eyes, as he thanked Jack, and Helen cried openly.
"Oh, Jack, I--I"d like to hug you!" she exclaimed, whereupon everybody laughed, and the emotional strain was over.
After a while, Captain Dennis began to tell of some of his adventures.
Not only had he gone through many experiences on the sea, but also on land, and especially during the great Civil War.
"One time," said Captain Dennis, "while on a foraging expedition, our men were surprised, and before I knew what had happened I was a prisoner. I was taken to an old building and put in the upper story of it.
"Of course, I wanted to escape. So, after a while, I began to try my luck with the rope tied around my wrists. To my joy I found that I could move them. Half an hour later my wrists were free.
"I peered out of the window. It was a very dark night, and the guard set around the building was close and vigilant. I felt that my chances to escape were very small.
"Still, I determined to try. After listening many hours, I thought I learned the exact position of the sentries. The s.p.a.ces between them were very short, but it would be quite possible, I thought, to pa.s.s by them noiselessly and without being perceived. I may as well state that the watch would have been even more strict had not the Confederates regarded the struggle as virtually at an end, and were, therefore, less careful as to their prisoners than they would otherwise have been.
"I prepared for escape by tearing up the sheet on the bed, and knotting the strips into a rope. I opened the window, threw out this rope, and slipped down to the ground. So far I was safe.
"It was dark and foggy, and very difficult to see two feet in advance. I soon found that my observations as to the places of the sentries had been useless. Still, in the darkness and thickness of the night, I thought that the chance of detection was small.
"Creeping quietly and noiselessly along, I could hear the constant challenges of the sentries around me. These, excited by the unusual darkness of the night, were unusually vigilant.
"I approached until I was within a few yards of the line, and the voices of the men as they challenged enabled me to ascertain exactly the position of the sentries on the right and left of me. Pa.s.sing between these, I could see neither, although they were but a few paces on either hand. Suddenly I fell into a stream running across my path.
"Of course, in the darkness I had not observed it. At the sound of my falling there was an instant challenge. Then a shot was fired!"
"Oh! How thrilling!" exclaimed Helen.
Jack and Ned laughed.
"Well," resumed Captain Dennis, "I struggled across the stream, and clambered out on the opposite side. As I did so, a number of muskets were fired in my direction by soldiers who had rushed up to the point of alarm. I felt a sharp, twitching pain in my shoulder, and I knew that I had been hit. But fortunately the other shots fired whizzed harmlessly by. At top speed I ran forward.
"I was safe from pursuit, for in the darkness it would have been absolutely impossible to follow me. So, in a few moments, I ceased running. What was the use of taking chances? All was quiet behind me, but I could no longer tell in what direction I was advancing.
"So long as I heard the shouts of the sentries, though the sounds seemed far off, I continued my way; and then, all guidance being lost, I lay down under a hedge and waited for morning."
"Oh, dear!" Helen cried sympathetically, "did you have to sleep in that cold, moist night?"
"Quite so," replied Captain Dennis, smiling good-humoredly; "and in the morning it was still foggy. After wandering aimlessly about for some time I at last succeeded in striking a road. I decided to take a westerly course.
"My shoulder was stiff and somewhat swollen. But the bullet had pa.s.sed through its fleshy part, missing the bone; and although it cost much pain I was able, by wrapping my arm tightly to my body, to proceed. More than once I had to withdraw from the road into the fields or bushes when I heard a straggling number of Confederates coming along.
"I came upon a house, and although I was hungry and tired, I was cautious. Instead of going to the door I made for the window. But I had my trouble for nothing. I looked in and saw a number of Confederate soldiers there, and knew that there was no safety for me. To add to my dismay, one of the soldiers happened to cast his eyes up as I glanced in the room and he at once gave a shout of warning.
"Instantly the others sprang to their feet and started out to pursue me.
I fled down the road. A few shots were fired, but fortunately I was not hit again.
"At last I came to a small village. I wondered why I had not reached my camp. But you must remember that I was attached to a small number of men only, and that we always were many miles ahead or in the rear of the army, as occasion called for.
"The village was deserted, for it was late at night again. I made myself comfortable in a sort of stable warehouse, climbing over a number of bales of cotton, and laid myself down next to the wall, secure from casual observation.
"When I awoke the next morning, I nearly uttered a cry of pain a sudden movement had given to my arm. I, however, suppressed it, and it was well that I did so, for I suddenly heard voices right near me. Darkies were moving bales of cotton but, being well back, I had little fear of being discovered.
"The hours pa.s.sed wearily. I was parched and feverish from pain of my wound. Yet I was afraid to move. So I sometimes dozed off into s.n.a.t.c.hes of fitful sleep. Perhaps I moaned, or I was accidentally discovered. At all events, when I awoke a mammy was bending over me, her voice fully of pity. And--well, to make a long story short, I had blundered again, for the village was being occupied by the Federals, and the cotton the darkies had been taking away was going North. There is no need to add that I was well fed and well taken care of."
Captain Dennis paused, and thoughtfully smoked his pipe. His little audience sat very quietly, their eager faces and shining eyes plainly showing their rapt interest in the modestly told story.
"Well, well," said Captain Dennis, at last breaking the silence, "some day you, Jack and you Ned will be able to tell very many far more thrilling stories."