ed the captain.

"But do you think they are safe?" asked Ralph.

"I do not see that they were in any great danger, as there was calm
weather for at least forty-eight hours after the ship went down,"
answered the captain. "I understand that all but three of the boats have
been accounted for."

"Have the submarines been doing much damage?" asked Alfred.

"Yes; they have sunk a great many ships," was the answer.

"Any American ships?" asked Ralph.

"No; but a number of Americans have lost their lives on vessels that
have been sunk."

"Where are we going?" asked Alfred.

"To Havre," was the reply.

"I wouldn't worry about father and mother now," said Ralph soothingly.

"No, indeed; the boats were perfectly safe, and I have no doubt but we
shall hear from them by the time we reach port," reassured the captain.

Ralph waited until Alfred dropped off to sleep, and then strolled up on
deck and mixed with the passengers. He was kept busy telling them about
the terrible hours on board the submarine, until he was tired and
sleepy. Then he wended his way to the cabin and was soon asleep.

The distance from the point where they boarded the ship to Havre was
about two hundred miles. Ordinarily, they would have reached port at six
in the morning, but the route during the night was a slow and tedious
one, for the reason that all ships along the channel route were
permitted to pass only during certain hours when the war vessels acted
as guides and convoys through the open lane.

Once near the zone of the nets no lights were permitted, and each ship
had to be taken through by special vessels designated for this work,
and, when once clear of the nets, extra precautions were taken to convoy
them to relative points of safety beyond.

When Ralph awoke the next morning, and saw that it was past six, he
hurriedly dressed himself, and, taking a look at Alfred, who was quietly
sleeping, ascended the deck. He was surprised to see nothing but the
open sea on all sides. Addressing a seaman, he asked:

"Haven't we reached Havre yet?"

"No; we may not get there until nine o'clock. We have had reports of
many submarines in the mouth of the channel, and they are, probably,
lying in wait to intercept steamers going to or coming from Havre,"
replied the man.

Pacing the deck he found many of the passengers excited at the news,
although it was the policy of the officers to keep the most alarming
information from them. Meeting the seco