ust where a great quantity of powder was stored, and held his
breath as he waited to see "whether he was going up or going down."

[Sidenote: Warnings of U-boats.]

Captain Rice has since died, and among his papers now in my possession
are many of the warnings of the presence of U-boats sent to his ship by
the British Admiralty during 1916, when every vessel approaching the
British coast was in danger from those assassins of the sea.

[Sidenote: _Mongolia_ sails in spite of German edict.]

After February 1, 1917, when the Huns made their "war zone" declaration,
the question with us at home whether the _Mongolia_ would continue to
sail in defiance of that edict of ruthless warfare became a matter of
acute anxiety. The ship completed her eighth voyage on February 7, when
she reached New York and found the whole country discussing the burning
question, "Would the United States allow the Imperial German Government
to dictate how and where our ships should go?" There was never but one
answer in the mind of Captain Rice. At home he simply said, "I shall
sail on schedule, armed or unarmed. Does any one suppose I would let
those damned Prussians drive me off the ocean?"

In the office of the International Mercantile Marine he expressed
himself more politely, but with equal determination, to the President of
the company, P. A. S. Franklin, to whom he said, "I am prepared, so are
my officers, to sail with or without arms, but of course I would rather
have arms."

[Sidenote: Arms slow to get.]

But the arms were slow to get, and the _Mongolia_, loaded with her
super-dangerous cargo, cleared from New York on February 20, the first
one of our boats to reach England after the "war zone" declaration, I
believe. Captain Rice arrived in London about the time when Captain
Tucker of the S. S. _Orleans_ reached Bordeaux, the latter being the
first American to reach France in safety after the same declaration.

[Sidenote: Spies try to learn sailing dates.]

Early in February of 1917 we became aware that German spies were making
a persistent attempt to get into our home to find out when the
_Mongolia_ was sailing, and if the ship was to be armed. The first spy
came up the back stairs in the guise of an employe engaged in delivering
household supplies. He accomplished nothing, and the incident was
dismissed from our minds, but the second spy came up the front stairs
and effected an entrance, and this event roused us to the dangers ar