Suspicion!

The UBXV lay under board of the "Gua." It was in the Bocce our mother-ship. We had received a new periscope. That is, it was not new but the periscope of the XVII that had been repaired. Actually, they received the new one. Two "specialists" came along to install the periscope. They said they were both from Vienna but we looked at them from a funny angle because they spoke with a suspicious Viennese dialect.

One of them would have very much liked to get inside the boat but that was strictly forbidden. When it did not work simply, he tried it with the pretense that he had to check something. While still talking he jumped down the tower hatch, but oh woe! The Torpedo Master was on the spot and snarls to him with the words, "What do you think you are doing down here?" But that one did not get scared that easily and said calmly, "Just looking a little. I have never seen such a submarine from the inside." "And it isn't necessary either!" roars the Torpedo Master, enraged over the persistence of the intruder. "Get yourself up there and fast, otherwise you will be missing a leg, Understood?" Grumblingly the "specialist" climbed back unto the mother-ship.

Since the XVII, with the new periscope, became blind again and had to return the second day, we did not trust the specialists from Vienna anymore. Particularly the one who was so inquisitive. He tried the same scheme to board the XVII. He absolutely wanted to see the inside of the boat but they too showed him the way out.

We were supposed to go out on action again but the Commander did first want to make a few dives in port. Lo and behold we went blind again. Immediately we went in tow again at the Gua. We were so angry that if we had seen one of the specialists he would have flown overboard without a second thought. Lehar happened to catch one of them and it was the persistent one as we called him. Lehar smacked him loudly on his face and hark! He could speak Czech. And how he cursed. He thought that nobody would understand him but too bad. Lehar himself came from the Czech-Bohemian border and understood everything. To make things worse, Drzmicek, who was a Czech, came by but that did not hold him back. The next day the persistent one was gone.

Our periscope was taken out once more and then we really did receive a new one. Now we did not leak and go blind anymore.