pirate, led as straight as a magnet to the
pole by the radio information constantly being sent from the light
passenger steamers that were pursuing. If the naval fleet included a
destroyer with a thirty-knot speed, where would your pirate get off at?"

[Illustration: FOAM--THE DERELICT'S ONLY TOMBSTONE.

Courtesy of U.S. Coast Guard.]

[Illustration: MINING A LURKING PERIL.

A submerged derelict, waterlogged, scarcely visible, for which a diver
must be sent down to place the mines.

Courtesy of U.S. Coast Guard.]

"He wouldn't have a show. I see," continued Eric, regretfully, "I'll
have to give up the hope of being able to join in a real pirate chase."

"Of course," the young engineer said thoughtfully, "a pirate in a
submarine might be able to do something."

"Now there's a real idea," exclaimed Eric. "Maybe there's a chance yet!"

"I'm afraid not, even there," answered the other, smiling at his
friend's eagerness, "mainly because of that same question of fuel. The
captain of the submarine would have to be in cahoots with some supply
station, and with the howl that would be made all over the world by
modern piracy, it would be hard for the fuel contractor to hide his
output. The only way that I can see would be for such a pirate to watch
out for ships loaded with what was most needed, run up and threaten to
torpedo the craft with everybody on board unless they took to the boats,
put a prize crew aboard and run that steamer to a lonely beach on an
uninhabited island and start a supply depot of his own there."

"But a submarine couldn't carry a large enough crew to conquer a
steamer."

"They wouldn't need to," said Homer. "It would be enough to send one man
aboard to demand the treasure."

"Well?"

"The submarine could lie to, with her submerged torpedo tubes pointing
full at the vessel. If within a given space of time the treasure was not
shipped and the pirate lieutenant returned safe, a torpedo would be
fired which would send the steamer to Davy Jones with all hands. As a
captain is more responsible for the lives of his passengers than for
their gold, he would have to consent. One might easily get half a
million dollars from one of the larger vessels. Three or four cruises of
that kind would be quite enough, and our friend, the imaginary pirate
captain and all his crew, could retire from the profession."

"But do you really think such a thing is possible?"

"It's very unlikely," his friend rep