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For six more days after the storm lessened we still had fairly rough weather; nor
did the sun once show himself during all that time. For the season--it was now
the middle of June--the storm was unusual; but being from southern California, I
was accustomed to unusual weather. In fact, I have discovered that the world
over, unusual weather prevails at all times of the year.
We kept steadily to our westward course, and as the U-33 was one of the fastest
submersibles we had ever turned out, I knew that we must be pretty close to the
North American coast. What puzzled me most was the fact that for six days we
had not sighted a single ship. It seemed remarkable that we could cross the
Atlantic almost to the coast of the American continent without glimpsing smoke
or sail, and at last I came to the conclusion that we were way off our course, but
whether to the north or to the south of it I could not determine.
On the seventh day the sea lay comparatively calm at early dawn. There was a
slight haze upon the ocean which had cut off our view of the stars; but conditions
all pointed toward a clear morrow, and I was on deck anxiously awaiting the
rising of the sun. My eyes were glued upon the impenetrable mist astern, for
there in the east I should see the first glow of the rising sun that would assure me
we were still upon the right course. Gradually the heavens lightened; but astern I
could see no intenser glow that would indicate the rising sun behind the mist.
Bradley was standing at my side. Presently he touched my arm.
"Look, captain," he said, and pointed south.
I looked and gasped, for there directly to port I saw outlined through the haze the
red top of the rising sun. Hurrying to the tower, I looked at the compass. It
showed that we were holding steadily upon our westward course. Either the sun
was rising in the south, or the compass had been tampered with. The conclusion
was obvious.
I went back to Bradley and told him what I had discovered. "And," I concluded,
"we can't make another five hundred knots without oil; our provisions are
running low and so is our water. God only knows how far south we have run."
"
There is nothing to do," he replied, "other than to alter our course once more
toward the west; we must raise land soon or we shall all be lost."
I told him to do so; and then I set to work improvising a crude sextant with which
we finally took our bearings in a rough and most unsatisfactory manner; for when
the work was done, we did not know how far from the truth the result might be.
It showed us to be about 20º north and 30º west--nearly twenty-five hundred
miles off our course. In short, if our reading was anywhere near correct, we must
have been traveling due south for six days. Bradley now relieved Benson, for we
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