Owing to the dangerous vicinity of the islands it was unlikely that any vessel would pass within several miles of it during the night, so the _Pelikan_ stood a chance of remaining at the anchorage without fear of detection.
"We are not far from the Rufigi River, are we?" asked O'Hara. "Do you think that the _Pelikan_ is going to run for there?"
"Hardly," replied Denbigh. "With the _Königsberg_ as a warning I think she'll give the Rufigi a wide berth. It's my opinion that she'll have a show at getting into the Mohoro River. It's fairly close, and once we can pass the bar there's deep water for nearly twenty miles. I'm curious to know what we are doing off Latham Island, however. I think I'll try the Stirling trick and have a prowl round on deck during the night."
"Only don't leave me in the lurch, old man," protested the Irishman, with an assumed look of consternation.
"I won't," replied Denbigh laughingly. "So don't lock me out."
Just before midnight the sub set to work with the screw-driver and succeeded in opening the door. Fortunately there was no sentry on the aft-deck on this occasion. Overhead there was a considerable amount of noise going on. It conveyed the impression that there were scores of men hard at work and trying to perform their various tasks with as little noise as possible.
Unseen and unheard, Denbigh gained the deck and mingled with the throng. There were seamen and reservists all hard at it, buckling to in the starlight. Cautiously the sub looked about for a place of concealment, where he could hear and see everything that was going on in his vicinity without much risk of detection.
He glanced up. Overhead were the boats swinging inboard on davits. Side by side with them, and resting on the booms or transverse steel girders, were some larger boats which could only be hoisted out by means of derricks. Between were several planks and spars lashed to the girders.
Awaiting a favourable chance, Denbigh nimbly ascended the iron ladder on the funnel casing that led to a platform just below the siren. After climbing a few rungs, he was able to swing himself across to the nearest boat, which was almost as large as a battleship's pinnace. It was roughly forty feet in length, and weighed nearly four tons.