286 WANDERINGS AND MEMORIES 



(station), old chap, and book our luggage to 

 Christiania." On giving these directions the two 

 spies at once smiled, whispered together for a 

 moment, sprang into the carriole and went off, 

 doubtless to the station to send a telegram. 



" What fool business are you up to now ? " quoth 

 my friend when he came up on deck. " Well, it 

 is just this," I replied. " Those fellows are up to 

 no good, and if we go by the Bessheim we shall 

 probably find ourselves in a mess. I for one am 

 going to Bergen." Argument is easy with normal 

 creatures, but my friend was about to be married, 

 and so in his case it required some very urgent 

 reasons to make him see the point, but at last he 

 gave in and went south by the slower route. Three 

 days later we steamed into Bergen, and the first 

 news that met us was that the Bessheim had been 

 stopped in the Christiania Fjord — a pretty good 

 piece of impudence — by a U-boat, and the Captain 

 requested at once to deliver up two Englishmen 

 whose names and appearance coincided exactly 

 with our own. The Captain shouted that no such 

 persons were on board, and as he was in territorial 

 waters he refused to allow his ship to be searched. 

 The Hun officer, however, would take no refusal, 

 and threatened to sink the ship unless his orders 

 were obeyed, and so when an examination of the 

 passengers was being made, an unfortunate English- 

 man, who must have borne some slight resemblance 

 to one of us, was ordered on board the U-boat and 

 taken to Germany. He was detained there in 

 prison for six months, and then released as not 

 being the person wanted, and if ever he reads this 

 will, I fear, bear us no special affection. All this 



