The Mystery Ship: A Story of the 'Q' Ships During the Great War
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CHAPTER XXIII
"PREPARE FOR IMMEDIATE ACTION"
THE Admiral's secretary at Auldhaig stood at the Commander-in-Chief'selbow. It was close on lunch-time, and the Admiral had still a bulkythough fast diminishing pile of documents either to sign or initialbefore he could complete his morning's work. But, being mortal, eventhe Commander-in-Chief was hungry, and consequently short-tempered.
"What is it, Elphinhaye?" he demanded tartly. "Can't you deal with ityourself?"
"'Fraid not, sir," replied the secretary, still proffering thenewly-arrived telegram.
"What is it?" asked the Admiral again. "Who's it from?"
"Entwistle? Never heard of him."
The secretary coughed deprecatingly. He was slightly surprised andpained to think that his worthy chief had not heard of the famousSecret Service agent.
"Oh, yes; now I do," corrected the Commander-in-Chief. "He wasbarging about down in Cornwall over that von Gobendorff case, when Iwas Senior Officer at Trecurnow. Well, what is it now?... By Jove!"
The telegram had been dispatched from York. It read as follows:--
"To S.N.O., Auldhaig. For your information and necessaryaction:--Discover Captain Fennelburt, R.A.F., to be Leutnant Karl vonPreussen (_vide_ dossier 445). He has dispatched the followingcablegram to Admiralty, Berlin: 'Q-boat disguised as U 251 left Leithon 9th for Hoorn Reefs."
"Someone's let the cat out of the bag," declared theCommander-in-Chief. "It's an absolute mystery to me how intelligencedoes leak out. Now, what's to be done, Elphinhaye? What Q-boat doesthe message refer to?"
"Q 171, sir," replied the secretary, never at a loss to supply therequisite information. "She was the old _Tollerdale_, and was adaptedat Leith in January last."
"Who's her commanding officer?"
Elphinhaye had to consult a current Navy List.
"Morpeth, sir. George Morpeth, an R.N.R. officer with the D.S.C."
"By Gad! Morpeth! I knew him at Trecurnow," exclaimed the Admiral."Smart fellow, but a bit of a rough diamond. I've no doubt that hecan take care of himself, but all the same----"
"We could wireless him, sir."
"And warn every Fritz on this side of Germany," declared theCommander-in-Chief. "No, no, Elphinhaye. We must think of a betterplan--one that, with luck, will entail a clean sweep of every Fritzwho dares to poke his nose outside his kennel."
Twenty minutes later the joyful signal was received by the Nth LightCruiser Squadron and the Z Destroyer Flotilla:--
"Raise steam for thirty knots and prepare for immediate action onclearing harbour."