"To a Briton, yes!" assented Captain Restronguet. "But Karl von Harburg had no compunction. He had a spite against his Government, he had a grudge against me; and whatever the issue he had nothing to lose by being the means of a terrible conflict between Great Britain and Germany. Thus he impersonated me, and by committing these outrages upon the German fleet and harbours he very nearly provoked the war he wished to engineer. "It was time for me to dissociate myself with the authorship of these acts of piracy. Although I have registered a solemn oath never to hand my ’Aphrodite’ over to the British Government (yet there are times when I feel tempted to perjure myself) I am still an Englishman. Should the Empire require my aid I for my part will do my best. And thus, having succeeded in demonstrating that I could not possibly be responsible for the work of destruction at Wilhelmshaven, Kiel, and elsewhere, I mean to lay in wait for the ’Vorwartz’ and destroy her as ruthlessly as I would a venomous reptile. For this purpose, Mr. Hythe, is the ’Aphrodite’ now cruising off Cape Ushant, for according to fairly reliable information the ’Vorwartz,’ with Karl von Harburg on board, has passed through the straits of Dover bound west." CHAPTER XII. THE "VORWARTZ" IS SIGHTED. "Then there is a great possibility of a scrap, sir?" asked Hythe, his face flushing and his eyes glistening at the prospect. "Undoubtedly von Harburg will do his best to annihilate the ’Aphrodite,’" replied Captain Restronguet. "Perhaps, after all, I ought to have landed you. It is hardly fair to expose you to danger on my account. But it is not too late. We can put you aboard one of those fishing-luggers." "I am not afraid, sir," exclaimed Hythe, rather indignantly, for the suggestion was not one that he could bear without more than a formal protest. "I never for one moment had that idea," remarked Captain Restronguet. "The point I raised is that it would hardly do for me to place you in a dangerous situation while you are my guest on board. It is also unfair to your employers--the Admiralty. Good, bad or indifferent though a naval officer may be he has cost the country a large sum for his professional education, and it seems inconsistent that you should be given a chance of being knocked out in a petty feud." "From what you have just told me the business is more than a private feud," objected the sub. "In order to carry out my part and learn all I can about the vessel it is only reasonable that I should see her under every possible condition. Therein I am doing my duty to My Lords. If I am to be killed in action, well, there’s an end of it." "A bit of a fatalist, eh?" "In a limited sense. I believe in taking care of myself. For instance----"