ult thing
than to evade or stand off half a dozen U-boat attacks. No fleet of
ships can be put beyond all danger of submarine attack, but the danger
to the subs can be made so great that it won't be worth the price the
attacking force will pay.

I do not know how many U-boats were in that attack. The official figures
will no doubt be given out in time. Our moderate estimators here put it
down as three, with one transport ramming and sinking one U-boat. Two
honest lads of one of our own forward gun crews say that our ship bumped
over another. They felt the bump. Perhaps they did, but bluejackets at
twenty years of age are apt to be optimistic, as witness:

The day after that U-boat fight the skipper, first officer, chief
engineer, and myself were trying our French on a waiter in a cafe
ashore, but not quite putting it over; we had to resort to a little
English to get action for one important item of our meal. A party of
American bluejackets--gun crews--were at another table. They heard us
speak English, whereat one of them called over: "Say, you guys comprong
English? Wee, wee? Then you oughter been where we were yesterday. Yuh'd
seen something. Fighting U-boats we were. Comprong? U-boats--wee, wee,
U-boats. Thirty-six of 'em came after us an' we sunk twelve. Whaddyer
know about that?" We did not know, so we opened up a bottle of the
ordinary red wine of the country, price deux francs, and drank to their
enthusiastic health.

CROSSING THE CHANNEL

To get out of France after getting in, a man has to go to Paris, see the
prefect of police, various consuls, and so on. It was all interesting--the
life in Paris--but it had nothing to do with U-boats. I had to go to
England, and to make England, I had to go to Havre.

And I was in Havre. Looking out the window at a roof across the narrow
street was a sign which read Hotel of the Six Allies. The Six looked as
though it had been painted over. The head waiter told me later that it
had. It had begun at three, then it became four--five--now six. But
there were more than six now--did not the great United States count? Oh,
yes, truly yes--but the paint and painters! They were growing more
scarce. The war--yes. Everything was the war.

The head waiter was a little old fellow with a round back, a quizzical
eye, and the hair of a first violin. After I beat my way by main
strength through three table-d'hote meals with him he let me know that
he could talk English. Why hadn