ne war on merchant shipping continued with little abatement.
Seeing that her armies could thwart the Allies' offensive efforts, but
were unable to crush any one of the larger powers, Germany turned
longing eyes to the sea. There was much talk of risking a major
engagement. The kaiser's naval advisers worked feverishly with figures
and plans. An echo of this scarce suppressed excitement crept into the
German press, and was duly noted in London and Paris.

One of the principal German journals came out with a frank discussion
of the elements involved and the chances of success. It was said that
three possibilities lay open. The first contemplated an attack upon
the Allies' flank in Flanders, made from the sea, to coordinate with a
drive on land. Another section of the fleet would try to hold off the
British until the action was over or, failing that, combine forces
with the first squadron and stake the Empire's fortune on the result
of a general battle.

The second plan provided for a dash to sea with the purpose of running
the blockade and effecting a junction with the Austrians in the
Mediterranean, to be followed by an attack upon the Suez Canal. A land
attack was to take place at the same time. The third scheme called for
minor raids on exposed points by the two fleets and relentless
submarine activities.

This estimate was not far short of the actual plans before the German
naval authorities. Their realization of the pressing need for action,
the tightening blockade, and the desperate possibilities of defeat,
made them a trifle unwary. News was flashed abroad many times that
revealed this state of mind. For instance, on February 20, 1916, it
was announced that cooperative action at sea had been settled upon in
accord with the proposals of Archduke Charles Stephen and Prince Henry
of Prussia, the kaiser's brother. Such information, whether genuine or
not, could only make the Allies redouble their watch.

Early in February, 1916, it was established that 70,000 naval
reservists had been gathered at Kiel and Helgoland ready for duty on
auxiliary vessels and cruisers of newly-formed squadrons. Many facts
that pointed to Germany's resolution in the face of odds never reached
America. The Ally censors kept Germany's secret well. But the whole
world expected that a big engagement would be fought any day. The
intervening hours, almost the minutes, might be counted.

[Illustration: Kiel Canal.]

Then Germany changed her