British "limey." Over the decks of the latter clambered several score
German seamen who had been fished from a watery grave.

A stiff wind had come up out of the southeast and was kicking the sea
into rollers with whitecaps. However, the men of the _Dewey_, armed
with life preservers, steadied themselves on the turtle-back deck of
their craft, and started the hunt for swimming Germans.

Ted had joined Jack forward, carrying a coil of rope, and they were
scanning the sea, when their attention was diverted by the gesticulations
of Bill Witt standing well forward. He was pointing off to port.

"Look---a floating mine!" he shouted. Almost at the same moment Jack
spied another mine closer up off the starboard quarter.

In a mine field! The retreating German warships had strewn the sea
with the deadly implements of naval warfare, and the _Dewey_ had come
up almost on top of a number of the unanchored explosives!




CHAPTER VIII

A RESCUE


"If one of them pill boxes bumps us on the water line it's all day with
your Uncle Sam's U-boat _Dewey_," vouchsafed Bill Witt as he stood
surveying the mine field into which they had stumbled.