When the Navy Department had eventually set about the salvage of the U-boat they had found it by this time so nearly imbedded in the floor of the ocean that only the conning tower remained above ground. The Navy was now ready to dig the U-boat out, but had decided to ask the Bridgeford Company to co-operate with them in the venture. "And now we come to the meat of the whole thing," confided the superintendent. "The men who are to engage in this work must be of the most trustworthy character, for reasons I will now explain. We have selected you fellows to get in on this because you are naval veterans and we know you can be trusted to the limit." The superintendent motioned the boys closer and resumed in an undertone, "Deep down in that sunken U-boat are plans of United States fortifications, ship and munition designs and highly valuable scientific formulas that must be recovered at whatever cost. They were stolen from the archives of the department at Washington by adroit tools of the German espionage system. I am not at liberty to tell you how they were stolen, for it is one of the secrets of the department. But we are told that those plans are on that submerged U-boat. The Germans were smuggling them out of the country, and it was a lucky shot from the 'ash-cans' of our chasers that laid that particular U-boat low." "Naturally, we are elated that the Department has come to us in such an important matter, and it is needless for me to say that we are more than anxious to make good, not alone for the sake of our company, but, and very much more to the point, for the sake of the dear old country that we love so much." "And we--" began Jay. "Yes, I rather fancied you two fellows would enjoy getting in on a project of this kind," interrupted the superintendent. "I don't suppose it is necessary for me formally to ask you whether you would like to look up this unlucky U-boat." "Well, hardly." Almost in unison they had leaped to their feet to answer in the affirmative. "Bully! You are assigned forthwith, with our hearty good wishes, and here's hoping you succeed in putting over another neat piece of work for Uncle Sam just as you did over there in the North Sea. If you fellows had laid that mine curtain before those U-boats escaped this Cape May job never would have happened. But now we've got to get those plans back. They are of immense value to our government." "They wouldn't be of much value to Germany now!" interrupted Dick with a grin. "Right!" laughed the superintendent. "Germany doesn't look very formidable, with her surrendered navy, and her surrendered iron and coal fields, and her surrendered stores of munitions. But you never can tell. Besides, there are scientific secrets in that collection that, even if the defeated Huns couldn't use them, could be sold for sums that would make you gasp if I mentioned them." The boys whistled.