As soon as he had gone Lawless gave orders that a constant watch was to be kept on the smack's riding-light throughout the night. If it was extinguished or was seen to move towards the harbour mouth the fact was to be reported to him immediately. It was between three and four o'clock on the following morning when the Lieutenant was wakened from a sound sleep by Trent. "Hullo, what's the row?" he asked, drowsily. "That blessed smack has skedaddled during the night." "What!" ejaculated the Lieutenant, now fully awake. "It's a fact." Lawless sprang out of his bunk and began hurriedly to pull on his garments. "I gave strict orders that she was to be watched all night," he said. "How is it they've been disobeyed?" "They haven't; come on deck and see for yourself," answered Trent. On reaching the deck Lawless saw at a glance how he had been outwitted. On the spot where the smack had been anchored floated a barrel with a tall spar stuck in it and, at the top of this, glowing dimly in the morning light, was a lantern. "I see," he murmured. Taking advantage of the darkness--for there had been no moon--the skipper of the smack had fixed up this dummy riding-light in order to deceive the watchers aboard the destroyer and then extinguished the real one. This done, he must have got a row-boat with muffled oars to tow him out of the harbour, thus obviating the necessity for using the engines and so warning the _Knat's_ men of his manoeuvres. It was an ingenious trick, cleverly carried out. "We must get under way at once," said Lawless. "We may catch up with the rascal and collar his pal Mahoney before he has time to warn him. Evidently that's his dodge." Half an hour later the _Knat_ was steaming in a westerly direction with the Lieutenant on the bridge, scanning the coast-line through his glasses. Presently a smudge was seen against the horizon and this gradually resolved itself into a destroyer steaming at full speed towards them. As she approached the _Knat_ a signal hoist broke at her masthead, and when within hailing distance the two vessels slowed down. The newcomer was the _Kite_ and her commander stood on the bridge with a megaphone in his hands. "D'you happen to have sighted a fishing smack, ketch-rigged?" he inquired. "Seen a whole fleet of them," answered Lawless. "The one I'm after had her number painted out and when last seen was using a brown mainsail and a staysail half brown and half white." "Phew!" whistled Trent softly and added in a whisper to Lawless, "it's the hooker that slipped her cable last night." The Lieutenant nodded. "What about her?" he asked, addressing the commander of the _Kite_. "Why she's a gun-runner skippered by a ruffian called Mike Mahoney. We've just learnt that she took on a cargo of guns and ammunition from a German submarine yesterday and landed them early this morning in some creek near Galley Head." "And got clear away?" asked Lawless in well-simulated astonishment.