There was no denying the fact that the French fleet was superior to that of the Austrians, but it was still something of a mystery to naval authorities why the Austrians did not venture forth to give battle. True, they had done this once in the earlier stages of the war, assisted by four Zeppelin dirigibles, but they had been driven back after several of their most powerful ships had been sunk and the dirigibles hurled into the sea. After that the Austrians made no more attacks in force, but confined their operations to raids by single ships, one or two of which had been successful enough to dispose of one or two French battleships, or cruisers. But, for weeks, now, there had been a dearth of active operations in the Adriatic. This, then, was the situation there when the D-16 moved in to spend a quiet day among the French men-of-war. It soon proved that the day was not to be a quiet one. In fact, the D-16 had hardly time to let go her anchor, close under the lee of the French flagship, before she was engaged. Lord Hastings, once the D-16 had anchored, went aboard the French flagship to pay his respects to the French admiral. The latter greeted him warmly, for the two, before the war, had been close friends. "Pretty quiet, eh, admiral?" was Lord Hastings' greeting. "Well, it has been, Hastings," was the reply, "but my nose tells me there is something in the wind. It is too all-fired quiet to suit me. This stillness spells trouble, or I miss my guess." "Where do you get that idea?" asked Lord Hastings. "It seems to me that you have these fellows bottled up so tight that they won't make another break." "Well, it would look that way. I suppose I base my prediction on the fact that in the Austrian admiral's place, I should take some sort of action. I know I couldn't remain bottled up like that without chafing a bit." "Nor I," Lord Hastings admitted, "but you must remember that the Austrians are of a different breed." "Still they have been known to fight," mused the admiral. "Oh, yes, they have been known to fight; but, to my knowledge, they have never been known to beat anyone and I don't think they ever will." "I have learned," said the admiral, "they have completed several submarine vessels, and I fear that they may attempt a raid beneath the water. Of course, I have my own submarines, but the enemy may get by." "In which case," said Lord Hastings, "it is a good thing, perhaps, that I arrived just when I did." "I fail to see," said the admiral, "how your vessel can hope to discover the enemy any easier than my own." "Well, I'll tell you," and Lord Hastings went into a detailed account of the capabilities of the D-16, laying particular emphasis upon her huge searchlight compartment, separated from the water only by thick glass, and upon her ability to remain indefinitely under the water.