CHAPTER VII
En Route for Adrianople
"And now, gentlemen, to discuss our route," said Mr. Andrew Provost onceLondon was left behind, with its gaping and wildly-cheering crowds, amidwhich Carl Reitberg had a place, and the rascally Adolf Fruhmann also."We are hovering at this moment over the Straits of Dover, and since, ifour tour of the world is to be complete, we must waste no time, it willbe as well if we map out a course without further delay."
In his practical manner he had provided himself with a huge globe, whichnow stood in the centre of the saloon table, with those who were to tourthe world on the giant airship seated about it.
"Gentlemen," he went on, "the earth--or, rather, I should have said, theair--the air is before you and around you. Choose your path. To me andto my nephew the course we take is immaterial, with just this onereservation. We wish to take a path which will give us facilities forpicking up both water and fuel. Now!"
Looking round the brightly-illuminated saloon he invited first theCommander, then Alec, and then Dick to give an opinion. But all in turnshook their heads.
"No, no," said the former eagerly. "To me it matters not a jot whichcourse we take. Choose yourself. Or, if you merely ask for a suggestion,let us take the all-red route. Let us fly so as to pass over and call inupon as many British possessions as possible. There! That is a pleasantscheme. Why not?"
"Why not, indeed? Excellent!" cried Andrew. "Now, let us trace theroute. But wait; there is one other to be consulted. I refer to MajorHarvey, who came aboard just before we started. Perhaps he has somespecial wishes; let us consult him."
Sergeant Evans was at once sent to summon the latest guest aboard, andwithin a few minutes there entered the saloon a tall, well-set-up man ofperhaps forty years of age, well groomed, spruce, and of activeappearance, with features which might be described as prepossessing,while there was a firmness about the chin and a steadiness of the eyeswhich showed that the newcomer was possessed of courage. In short and infact he was the beau ideal of a soldier, while his manner was easy anddistinctly friendly. Nodding to all, for he had been introduced somethree hours before, he sat himself down and looked across at Andrew.
"You sent for me," he said crisply, in a matter-of-fact way, even morebusinesslike than that of his host. "What is the question? Can I be ofservice?"
"Certainly, Major. There is a globe; you know already that we havebeen, as it were, challenged to tour the world, to make a completecircle of the globe. Well, then, choose a route for us. CommanderJackson suggests an all-red route, which shall take us over Britishpossessions. If that meets with your approval, well and good. If not,then where shall we go--what course shall we steer?"
For answer the Major slowly rose from his seat, and, crossing to thetable, carefully and critically examined the globe. Then he drew apacket of papers from his pocket, and, selecting one, handed it toAndrew.
"For me all courses are the same," he said with a smile; "but since Itake it that from here to the centre of Europe is but a step for thismagnificent vessel, I should be glad of the opportunity of visiting onepart comparatively but a stone's throw from here. I speak of theBalkans. Please read that letter."
Andrew slowly opened the envelope, drew out the contents, and thendonned his glasses. Adjusting them at the correct angle upon his nose,he held the letter up and read aloud.
"Adrianople, Thursday evening, 16 January, 1913."
"Adrianople!" cried the Commander. "That's the city now besieged for solong by the Bulgarian armies."
"Quite so; closely besieged," admitted the Major. "Very closely."
"Ahem!" Andrew cleared his throat. "You wish me to read it aloud?" heasked, waving the letter at the Major.
"Certainly."
"Then here it is. 'Dear Harvey, I write to inform you that I am heldhere in Adrianople, and should the siege continue much longer, the valueof the information I have gained will be lost. But I cannot dispatch itin this letter. This must pass the scrutiny of both friends and enemies.Therefore it but announces my presence here, where I live as best I can.Please explain my continued absence to our mutual friends. Yours,Charlie.'"
Andrew took his glasses from his nose slowly, glanced sideways at theletter, and then direct at the Major. There was a puzzled look upon hisface, a polite enquiry as much as to say, "Well, my dear sir, I don'tunderstand. What has your friend Charlie to do with us? He's inAdrianople; so are scores of others. There's a British consul there, nodoubt. Why should we go to this besieged city?"
Commander Jackson coughed; similar thoughts were passing through hisquick brain also, though he gave his soldier friend credit forastuteness and common sense. "Must be something behind this letter," hesaid aloud.
"Certainly; Charlie knew that many eyes would see it before I receivedhis hurried lines," said the Major. "But let me explain what it is thatI gather by the reading of that letter. First, that Charlie is hemmed inin this besieged city. Next, that he has information which he cannotsend through the post, or by means of a runner escaping from orpermitted to leave the city. In fact and in short he has information ofvalue, value to our mutual friends, who, I may further explain, happento be the Government."
"Ah, I suspected something of the sort! What next?" asked Andrew.
"I will be frank," came the answer. "For the past three years Charlieand I have been engaged in some extremely delicate and importantinvestigations in and around the Balkans. Pardon me if I am not moreexplicit on this matter. I left for London some two months ago, havinglost all trace of Charlie. Now I know him to have obtained theinformation which we sought, information which, owing to the suddenonset of war and the siege of Adrianople, he is unable to impart. Well,Mr. Provost, that information is wanted by the Government at once. Delayis positively dangerous. I ask you in the name of this country to risk avisit to Adrianople and there attempt to pick up my friend and fellowinvestigator."
There was silence for perhaps two minutes, while the various peoplepresent in the saloon glanced at one another curiously, to see ifpossible what their fellows thought. Then Andrew spoke briskly and withmarked decision.
"There will be guns about Adrianople?" he asked; "guns capable ofsending shells high into the air? Mortars, in fact?"
"Precisely; there will be siege batteries. The Bulgars are wonderfullyequipped. The Turks also, hemmed in in Adrianople, have some marvellouspieces."
"Any one of which, by exploding a shell within distance of us, couldwreck the ship?"
The Major nodded. "True enough," he said coldly. "The risk would begreat. If you are seen, a thousand rifles will be pointed at you. Ahundred guns will be manoeuvred so as to aim into the sky. The riskwill be very great; I do not deny it."
"And the service will be equally great. You tell us that this matter isof urgent importance for England?"
Andrew asked his question sharply, as if he were cross-examining theMajor. "You tell us that England has great need of this service? I askfor no details. Anyone can see that we are discussing a delicate matter.I merely ask again as to its importance."
"And I reply that the service is of the greatest. More than that, I willexplain that the War Office had appointed another officer to this ship,and only changed their selection at the last moment. I was given preciseinstructions to bring this request before you at the earliest instant.You ask me how great is the importance of this matter, and I replywithout hesitation that, even if this wonderful ship and her crew weredestroyed in the successful effort to gain this information, then great,overwhelming as the loss would undoubtedly be, it would be but a smallprice to pay for the news which Charlie has gathered. As for Charlie,that is but a _nom de plume_. The writer happens to be an officer highup in the British army."
The Major slowly surveyed his comrades, while he spoke deliberately.Then he drew a cigarette from his case, placed it between his lips andset a flaring match to it, with a nonchalance one had perforce toadmire. For obviously enough Andrew's decision was of the utmost momentto him. Equally clearly it was bo
rne upon the minds of those wholistened that this mission, the barest details of which could bediscussed, was of unusual importance. If Andrew and his nephew refusedto jeopardize the safety of the airship by taking her into such a dangerzone, then one could guess that particulars of the utmost moment wouldbe lost entirely, or, what amounted to the same, their delivery would beso delayed that they would be useless.
"Well?" asked the Major, puffing out a cloud of smoke. "Your answer. Iask no favour. I have pointed out the risk."
"And I thank you heartily," cried Andrew. "Gentlemen, we will take theall-red route for this world tour, looking in at as many dependencies ofthe British crown as possible. And we will willingly take the risk of avisit to Adrianople. If there are any here who have no desire for thisadventure, then we will set them down wherever they wish. Now, let us bemoving."
It may be readily imagined that not one of those present in thebrightly-lighted saloon had any qualms as to this projected visit, forto all of them was promised a novel situation. The Major and theCommander might hope, indeed, to witness a modern siege in actualoperation, while no doubt the successful manoeuvring of this finevessel would be of sufficient interest to Joe and Andrew. For Dick andAlec there was, of course, a decided attraction in the suggestion.
"Who knows, there might be a rumpus of some sort," declared the former."We might get to see a bit of the fighting. How'd you like that?"
"How'd you?" Alec grinned back at him. "You're the one to answer, foryou're a man of war. You're in the Navy."
"I'll tell you. If there's just the merest chance of getting down intothe city I mean to take it," said Dick. "Then there's no knowing whatmay happen. How is the Major going to find this fellow Charlie? That'swhat beats me, for Adrianople is a big city. And how is he to bring himor his news aboard without descending? I tell you this ship'll have tobe steered right over the armies. She'll have to drop to easy distanceof the city, and then--supposing a shell did happen to come ourway--well----"
"You'd find yourself in the city precious quick, and so have yourdearest wish fulfilled in a minute," laughed Alec. "We'd blow up, eh!There'd be a fine old crash on the roofs of Adrianople."
Joking apart, the danger was not likely to be small and the risk run bythe crew of the airship was perhaps greater than had been anticipated.But Andrew and his nephew made light of any trouble, and indeedundertook this work with a keenness that did them credit. It followed,therefore, that within a dozen hours the airship floated high up abovethe besieged city. It was night-time, clouds floated thickly in the sky,while not a light showed aboard the vessel. Down below a few flickeringlamps could be seen in the direction of the city, though the greaterpart was plunged in darkness. But away to the north and south, and oneither hand, there were rows and rows of tiny blazing circles, the campfires of the investors.
"Holding every outlet," said the Major. "Not a man can enter or leavethe city. If they could, Charlie would have bade farewell to it longago. But entrance from the air is another question altogether."
"And you propose to descend to the city?" asked Andrew.
"With your help, certainly. There is a huge mosque in the heart ofAdrianople, and that is the place I shall aim for. There, or in theimmediate neighbourhood, I shall find Charlie."
"And--and supposing anything should happen to prevent your returning,supposing you were apprehended by the Turks," suggested Andrew.
"Then the airship goes on her way again. It will be a misfortune, ofcourse, but that is all. You have risked all to bring me here, and Ishall not grumble if I am discovered."
In the darkness of the engine-room it was impossible to observe theMajor's face, but at that moment it was stern and peculiarly determined.For without a shadow of doubt the descent into the city would beexceedingly dangerous. If he were seen by one of the besieged as likelyas not he would be shot down on the instant. If not that, then he wouldbe apprehended as a spy, perhaps; and short shrift was given, he knewwell enough, to men of that description. But there was not so much as atremor about him as, an hour later, he stepped upon the platform fromwhich the lift ran, sat himself in the sling by which Commander Jacksonhad descended to the water on the occasion of Dick's misadventure, andwhispered to his friends to let him go.
"Adieu!" he called gently. "Watch for a flare amongst the buildingsto-morrow night. If you do not see one, then return again the followingnight. If still there is no sign, sail on and leave me. Adieu!"
The motor above hummed a low-pitched song, the sling at the end of therope bearing this gallant officer upon it dropped from the platform andwent shooting down under the airship.
"Good luck!" whispered Andrew. "Ah! There goes a very gallant fellow.Now, gently with that tackle. The barometer places us five hundred feetabove the city. We shall have to lower very carefully when we have letout four hundred feet of the line."
In the inky darkness of the night the ship had slowly descended till shewas suspended at the height mentioned above this besieged city. And nowthose aboard her slowly paid the rope out over the motor, letting it gofoot by foot once they guessed that the burden they were lowering wasnearing the ground. Perhaps ten minutes had passed before they foundthat the line hung slack. A pull upon it disclosed the fact that theMajor must have left it.
"Haul in!" commanded Andrew. "Now, we will rise again, and sail rightaway from the city. Let us hope that our plucky friend will besuccessful."
The following morning found the ship hovering at a great height over adeserted stretch of country, where she lay inert in the air, as ifresting after her long trip from England. But that night the motorshummed again, and presently she was back over Adrianople.
"Now, all hands set to work to watch for a flare," Andrew commanded."We'll divide the city into various portions, and so make sure by givinga different part to each one of us that the Major's signal cannot goundetected."
But though the eyes turned upon the dark surroundings of the beleagueredcity never left their object, there was no flare to attract theirattention, and presently the first signs of dawn warned Andrew and hiscomrades that the time had come to depart. A loud detonation in the fardistance, and a streaming flame of fire, hastened their decision, andthey rose at once and headed away from the city followed by the noise ofartillery in action. In fact, a fierce attack had begun upon Adrianople,and though the huge airship put many miles between her and thecontending armies, the dull muffled roar of guns still reached them onoccasion. But towards evening the battle slackened, and that night, whenonce more over the city, there was not a sound to disturb the silence;not a note came to the ears of the listeners above to tell them of thearmies beneath them.
"Fine and clear, but dark enough for our purpose," said Joe, straininghis head over the rail of the observation platform of the vessel. "Letus hope that we shall see the signal this evening, for I confess that Ishall be glad to get away from those guns. Did you see the shellsbursting as we left in the morning?"
"Guess I did," came Andrew's emphatic answer. "And a nice little messthey'd make of this ship if one hit us."
"Or came within a hundred yards of hitting us," said Joe decidedly. "Ifa shell were to burst within easy distance, the chances are that theconcussion would break the framework and cause the gas to explode. Solet's hope we shan't be long in such an unpleasant neighbourhood."
But the night passed again without so much as a flicker from the city.Major Harvey made no sign of his presence. Was he captured, or shot? orhad he merely failed to discover Charlie?
"Captured or shot," said Andrew promptly, when they began to discuss thematter. "If he had merely failed to discover his friend he would havesent us a signal, and on returning to us would have made other plans torecover this information. There is no signal. That means that the Majorcannot make it. In fact, he is dead, or he is a prisoner."
"While we are left helpless above the city," Joe added. "What's to bedone? We'd never think of leaving the place till we are quite sure whathas happened."
"Never," declared An
drew with energy. "Besides, there's anotherimportant matter to consider and to keep us here. The Major distinctlytold us that Charlie possessed information of vital importance to theBritish Government. Then we have two reasons for remaining, one beingthe safety of our friend the Major, and the other being the need todiscover Charlie. That seems to me to present unheard-of difficulties.For Charlie is merely a name. We haven't even a description of thisofficer incarcerated in Adrianople. Come, Commander, help us. This is areal difficulty."
It was more than that. It was a dilemma, for how could Andrew and Joeand his friends help the Major, seeing that they were high in the air?And how could they discover a man in the city of Adrianople of whoseappearance they had no knowledge?
"Might be tall or short, broad or thin, dark or fair," said Dick. "It'sa conundrum."
"Unless," began Alec.
"Unless what?" Dick snapped.
"Well, unless we were to investigate personally. For instance, thisCharlie's an Englishman, eh?"
"Certainly!" cried Andrew.
"Then there aren't enough of our countrymen in the city to make itdifficult to pick out our man. He's a soldier, that we know. It isn't sohard as a rule to tell when one looks at one of that profession. As forthe Major, if he's alive, why, seeking might find him."
"But--but you forget. We're up here, a thousand feet in the air," criedAndrew testily.
"Quite so, sir," came the respectful answer. "But the Major descended.We could do the same."
"Bravo! It's the only course open," cried the Commander. "Mr. Provost,our duty is clearly before us. We must follow the Major, seek him out,and discover his friend Charlie. Come, I volunteer. It would never dofor you or your nephew to make the attempt, for you have this tour tomake, and you must be successful. For me it is different. I am in theservice of my country; this is a question of duty."
"Hear, hear, sir!" chimed in Dick. "I'd like to come in support. May I?"
"While I suggested the movement and claim a place also," said Alec, withan eagerness foreign to him. "Why not, Mr. Provost?"
Why not? What one man could do, others could also. Besides, how couldthe crew of this vessel honourably retreat from this beleaguered cityand leave a comrade in the lurch, to say nothing of losing something ofa secret nature which they had been assured was of vital importance totheir country? No--they must stay. They must go to the Major since hecould not return to them.
"I agree," said Andrew, after some few moments' consideration. "Youthree shall be lowered, and to-morrow night we will return and look foryour signal. But let me beg of you all to use the utmost discretion. Onemisfortune is enough without inviting others."
It was perhaps an hour later when three figures muffled in short, thickcoats stepped upon the lift platform.
"Goodbye!" whispered Andrew and Joe. "A safe return!"
"_Au revoir!_" sang out Dick, in the seventh heaven of happiness. "Now,hold on, Alec! We don't want you to get tumbling over and so announcingour coming."
Hearty hand-grips were exchanged, and then the motor hummed its tune.The Commander and Dick and Alec sank out of sight and were at onceswallowed up in the darkness.
The Great Airship: A Tale of Adventure. Page 7