knew
it--some of them would have told him what they thought of his rapid-fire
action. But it was no time for canoodling--it was war, and they were all
rated as grown men and so able to stand a few little painful touches.

One terribly wounded patient gave him worry. On him Doc worked with
great care. He was working on him, all the others being attended to,
when the 352's deck officer came to say that he was going back to the
destroyer to report. "The captain of this ship wants to abandon her,"
said the deck officer.

"Abandon ship and we will never be able to get this man I got here now
off her--not in this sea, sir," said Doc. "And if he's left alone for
two hours, he'll sure die."

"I'll signal what the skipper says." The officer went off with his crew
in the whale-boat, leaving a hospital steward and a signal quartermaster
to stay with the doctor.

Doc was working away on his hard case when his quartermaster came to say
that the 352 had signalled that they were to stay aboard and that the
steamer was to get under way and steer a course south half east
magnetic.

The doctor, without looking up, said: "All right."

"Shall I tell the steamer's captain, sir?"

This time Doc looked up. "Why, of course, tell him. Why not? Why do you
ask me that?"

"You are the ranking naval officer aboard here, sir. I take orders from
you now, sir."

For about four seconds Doc neglected his patient. That was so; so he
was.

"Yes, tell the captain."

The quartermaster ran up the bridge ladder. Doc gazed over the
chart-rail down to the deck, up and around on the ship. "Doggone!" he
breathed. "I am the ranking--I'm the only naval officer present." Then
he shook his head and bent to his patient. He might have the rank, but
the last thing he was going to do was to butt in on any regular ship's
officers.

The disabled ship went on to her new course, south half east magnetic,
with the destroyer steaming twenty-knot circles around her. And late in
the afternoon they made the convoy. By night she was tucked in the rear
of twenty other ships, the doctor and his emergency staff still aboard.
They were to remain aboard until the steamer made port.

That same night something happened. On the steamer they did not know
just what it was. They saw a column of white, a column of black--those
who happened to be looking--another column of white, from the big ship
of the fleet. And then dark came. There were radios flying about, but
they wer