her I could picture him--walking his lonely bridge and his ship
plugging away at her 7 or maybe 7-1/2 knots across the lonely ocean.

Three times torpedoed and taking it all as part of his work! Some day
they may get him and he not come back; and when they do the world will
hear little about him. Hero? He a hero? Why a shore-going flunky had him
bluffed for smoking a surreptitious cigarette in high quarters! 'Ero?
Not 'im. Why 'e don't even wear a uniform.

So there they are, the wheezing old cargo boats and their officers and
crew. British, French, Italian, American, but mostly British.

No heroes, but the Lord help their people if they hadn't stayed on the
job.

FLOTILLA HUMOR--AT SEA

We were a group of American destroyers convoying twenty home-bound
British steamers. There was one ship, a _P. & O._ liner, a great
specimen of camouflaging.

She was the only ship in the convoy that was camouflaged, and she rode
in stately style two lengths out in front of the others. All of which
made her a prominent object. Our officers felt like telling her to dress
back; but she had a British commodore aboard, and for an American two or
three striper to try to advise a British commodore--well, it isn't done.

All day long she rode out in front of the column, and all day long our
fellows kept saying things about her.

"Isn't she the chesty one!"

"Look at the big squab with all that war-paint on--how does she expect
any U-boat to overlook her?"

"That big loafer, she'd better watch out or she'll be getting hers
before the day's gone!"

U-boats were thick around there. One of them must have come up, looked
the convoy over, and said, "Well, there's nothing to this but the big
one!" and, Bing! let her have it, for it was not yet quite dark when
those who were looking at her saw a column like steam go into the air, a
black column like coal follow it, and after that a column of water
boiling white.

One of our destroyers hopped to twenty-five knots, dumped over a
300-pound "ash-can," and got Mister U-boat. At least, the British
admiralty later gave her 100 per cent on the circumstantial evidence.
Two other destroyers--the 396 and the 384, we will call them--went at
once to the job of taking off passengers from the sinking ship.

That was at five minutes to six, just before dark. It had interrupted
dinner on our ship; but by and by we went back to the ward-room to
finish eating. It is always good business to eat--