ruggled bravely to show interest in
the sight that half-cheered the others, but she could not. She was too
far gone, and her eyes closed again.

"Keep your wife awake, sir, if you have to begin to pull her hair from
her head!!" It was a command. "See how near that craft is getting. Jove,
sir! I believe it is one of our own Yankee ships!"

"But they will not come close enough to see us," objected Captain Kennor,
with the practiced eyes of the veteran seaman. "They are not using their
searchlight, and we have no way of signalling to them."

Without speaking Darrin tried a desperate hope. In one of his hands
something gleamed out into the night.

"What is it?" demanded the Dane. "Himmel! Der flashlight! Vere or ven did
you by dat come?"

"I found it in the locker of our sleeping cabin, and hid it in my
clothes," Dave answered, as he again tested the light. "I did not want to
speak of it unless there should come some hope to us. This light was
evidently left by some German who had used that cabin. It's waterproof,
too. When I found it I had a hope that it might come in handy before I
got through with this adventure. And now!"

Waiting only a minute or two longer, Dave, clinging to the spar with one
arm, held the other hand as high aloft as he could.

"Help!" he signalled by flashes in the Morse code. "Help!"

"It is such a tiny glow, to carry so far!" sighed the Englishman.

"Maybe id vill seen be," said Captain Kennor.

Dave continued to signal until, to his great joy, there came an
answering signal from a blinker light which asked:

"Who are you?"

"Four castaways, clinging to a spar. Help before we freeze!" Dave flashed
back, desperately.

"If only the commander of that boat does not suspect us of being a German
submarine springing a trap!" cried the Englishwoman.

A searchlight flashed up, then its broad beam stretched across the waters
as the operator tried to pick up the floating ones.

Dave threw the flash into a continuous light while the searchlight beam
continued groping. Then, in a blessed instant, the beam struck almost
blindingly across the spar and the four human beings held up by it.

"Now, they've spotted us," Dave cried, exultingly. "They won't run away
and leave us without a look-in."

Holding the spar with the searchlight beam, the destroyer changed its
course, bearing down rapidly upon them. Then it stopped and a motor
launch was lowered from davits.

With a burst of speed the launc