Just before noon on the following day the _Pintail_ passed close to a water-logged ship's boat. Kept under observation by means of telescopes and binoculars, the derelict told its own tale. There were evidences that it had been hastily lowered. A gaping hole on one side and a shattered gun-wale on the other, together with traces of fire, showed that the boat had been shelled. There were distinct signs that the perpetrators of the outrage had sought to obliterate all traces of their dastardly work: the name of the ship had been scraped off the boat's bows, her air-tight tanks had been stove in, yet in spite of this precaution the boat still remained awash. For once, at least, the policy of _Spurlos versenkt_ had failed. Cold-blooded murder had undoubtedly been committed on the high seas. The _Gosport_ was not in time to prevent this particular crime--but she had avenged it.