Chapter 8 Holenberg's Knife

Chatterton looked at the plate found on the submarine. The swastika swastika on it made him feel as if he had traveled back in time and space, arousing his infinite imagination.Many people may spend their entire lives studying Nazi submarines, but the information they get is only superficial.These plates are heavy.The corner of the cross on the badge was rough to the touch, but even with closed eyes one could tell it was the infamous badge.No one has ever identified or even touched the plates since the submarine sank.These plates flew through time and space from Hitler's Third Reich directly to Chatterton's room.Even on a fireplace, the plates still look menacing, menacing.

If there were still some in the diving world who hadn't heard of the mysterious submarine after Feldman's death, everyone in the diving world did after Chatterton's discovery of the plates.The sub is now the talk of nearly every dive store on the East Coast.Chatterton and Legge knew that the public attention to them would surely bruise Bilanda's ego, and that the "Lord of the Deep" would tolerate no offense to his authority.While he doesn't know where the submarine sank right now, they're sure it's only a matter of time before he finds it.He will use his connections with the Coast Guard to do whatever it takes to get his way.Under normal circumstances, the Explorer would go back to survey the sub the next week—Legg and Chatterton agreed that one or two more dives would clarify the sub's identity.But now that hurricane season is approaching, going out to sea is too risky, and Legg decided to wait until the next diving season before going out to sea.So Chatterton began to immerse himself in his research work. If he couldn't get results from the sea, then he had to drill results from history.

While other divers scoured the library for clues about the wreck, Chatterton continued his research the way he had done before—he wrote to the Washington-area Center for Naval History, asking for it.Chatterton hopes that the expertise at the Naval Historical Research Center, home to the largest collection of naval warfare history, will help him determine the true identity of the submarine.But it took several weeks for the reply to arrive, and there was only an outline of relevant materials in the letter.If Chatterton wanted to study relevant historical materials, he had to visit the research center in person.

Chatterton isn't alone in his investigations; Kohler rummages through his extensive collection of submarine books at his New Jersey home.Even though the company asked him to come to work the next morning, he kept flipping through the catalog until midnight.In the morning, while shaving, he continued to browse the catalog of the United States Naval Institute Press.He got in touch with a German-American club in Burlington, told them about the mysterious submarine, and asked for someone to translate the German book he had bought into English. One day he called the captain of a dive charter boat who had said he knew a former crew member of a German submarine.He asked the captain to help him find the crew member and see if he could help identify the submarine.The captain called the veteran and told Kohler:

"Find the boots," said the captain. "what?" "Look for their boots. Look in them if you can find them on the wreck. The guy said they like to write their names on the inside of their boots so other people don't wear them wrong, They don’t like other people wearing their boots. They also put watches and jewelry in their boots, which may have their name on them as well.” Kohler decided to look for the crew's boots, and other divers certainly wouldn't think to peek inside a tattered boot, and they'd swim through it looking for more plates or manufacturer's tags or some other fascinating wreck.Kohler will not let go of every boot he finds if he can.

Then another idea popped into Koehler's head, and it was probably the best he could think of.He heard about Herbert, a retired German submarine captain.Werner lives in the United States.Werner was not only a submarine captain, he also wrote a book called "The Iron Coffin", which is a classic memoir in this field.Kohler rummaged through the library and finally found Werner's information.He lives in the United States, and in New Jersey.Kohler dialed the number of the "ace captain" with trembling hands. A man with a slight German accent answered the phone. "Hi, I'm looking for Herbert. Mr. Warner," Kohler said.

"I am Herbert Werner." Kohler's heart almost jumped out of his chest, and he might be able to figure out the secret of the submarine before hanging up the phone. "Sir, my name is Ricky. Kohler, I'm a diver. My colleagues and I have spotted a submarine off the coast of New Jersey. The reason I'm calling you, sir, is—" "Everything I know is already stated in my book," Werner replied in a flat, rhythmic tone. "I have nothing more to say." "But can I ask you—" "Goodbye," Werner said cheerfully, before hanging up. Kohler held up the phone, not recovering from it for a long time.

It has been several weeks since Chatterton salvaged the plate from the wreck.Divers spent a lot of time researching, but there was only one result: There was no record of a submarine ever sinking within a hundred miles of the wreck.In Chatterton's view, the Naval History Center's material even set back his research.At the same time, he and Legge seemed to hear the roar of Bilanda's engines as he launched the Wahoo.Chatterton had a new idea: why not announce the discovery of the submarine to the world?There must be historians, experts, or some government who knows the identity of this wreck; why not include those who might have knowledge in the research? The Explorer would still have the credit for finding the sub, and would have completely eliminated Bilanda's chances of stealing the wreck, since the mystery of the submarine was ultimately revealed through the Explorer's investigation.The idea was a little risky—the honor of identifying the submarine would be ceded to someone else.But Chatterton thinks he'll handle the situation when the time comes.He offered to write a press release, and Legg was very much on board with the idea. "Leave my name and phone number under the press release," he told Chatterton.

Chatterton found a format for writing a press release at his local library.At home that evening, he wrote the following press release: Emergency Announcement - October 10, 1991 Divers spot mysterious submarine off New Jersey coast Bill, captain of the New Jersey dive charter boat Explorer.Legg and the divers on board found a sunken German submarine during World War II 65 miles off the coast of New Jersey, at about 40 degrees north latitude and 73.3 degrees west longitude.The submarine sank vertically on the bottom of the sea, and the hull was basically intact, but there were obvious signs that the submarine had been attacked by depth charges.

The submarine is 230 feet deep on the seabed, and only a very few good wreck divers can dive down to investigate.The submarine was discovered on Labor Day, as the Explorer searched for new wrecks.During the subsequent exploration of the submarine, the crew of the "Explorer" John.Chatterton found two plates inside the wreck, each with the swastika emblem and the words "1942" printed on it. These two plates initially proved the identity of the submarine. Items recovered from the wreck suggest it was a WWII German submarine, but which one?There is no record of a German submarine being sunk within a 150-mile radius, nor is there any German record of a submarine being lost off New Jersey. Explorer divers will continue to carefully investigate the identity of the wreck and why it sank here, possibly rewriting a small piece of naval history.

Contact: Bill.Captain Legg Kevin.Brennan took a photo of Legg and Chatterton with the plate and attached it to the press release.Chatterton listed the names of all the news outlets he knew, ten in all, including local papers, the Associated Press, UPI, and dive magazines.He sent a press release to each news outlet, each accompanied by a photo. A day passed without any reply.Days passed, and Chatterton kept checking Legg's phone.They called the telephone company and asked them to check Legg's phone line, but there was nothing wrong with the line.Finally, Chatterton called Legg. "It seems that this method is not working," he said. "It seems so," Legge said reluctantly. A few days later, Legg's phone rang.He put Chatterton on the phone, and it was a reporter from the Newark Star, an influential daily in New Jersey.The caller's voice was tired and lifeless, his questions filled with disbelief, as if he had been forced to interview another Billy who claimed to have spotted a spaceship in his backyard.Same as Bob. "You mean, you may have discovered a mysterious German submarine, huh?" the reporter asked. Chatterton said they had indeed spotted the submarine, and the reporter asked him some more questions.Chatterton gave detailed answers to each question.At the end of the conversation, the reporter asked whether it was possible to visit Chatterton's home.The next day, he came to Chatterton's house for an interview and saw the two plates.The story should make headlines, he said. The next morning Chatterton took the Newark Star-Date from his mailbox in his bathrobe and slippers.The paper carried a prominent headline: "German Submarine Wreck Found Off New Jersey Shore," next to a photo of Legg and Chatterton inspecting the plate.Chatterton ran into the house and hurried to call Legge.The report summarizes their experience: the dangers of wreck diving, the threat of submarines to American waters, the death of Feldman, and the unsolved mystery of the submarine's identity.The report also cites submarine expert and author Henry.Comment by Professor Keats. "They did find a German submarine," Keats told the newspaper. "The mystery is how it sank in the spot where it is now... There is no record of a submarine being sunk here." The Newark Star Report set off a storm in the media world.That night, Legge's and Chatterton's phones rang non-stop, and they were being interviewed by radio, television, and newspaper reporters.International media also reported on the mysterious submarine found off the coast of New Jersey. CNN sent a team to interview them.When television reporters interviewed Legge and Chatterton aboard the Seeker, they held up their plates with swastikas facing the camera.Even the Weekly World News, a newspaper devoted to legendary stories, reported on the front page: U.S. Navy captures Nazi submarine!Their reporting is legendary.They said that this is not a simple submarine, this is the second submarine that sailed out of Germany and appeared today through the tunnel of time and space.On the same submarine discovered before, the young crew always believed that Hitler was still ruling Germany.They also quoted a so-called "naval officer stationed in Washington": "I don't know anything about space-time tunnels, but it seems that this is the only explanation at present." Chatterton's phone went silent for two weeks after sending out the press release, and it never stopped ringing after that, even while he was eating and sleeping.His mailbox was filled with letters, some of which were addressed simply as "John Chatterton - Diver - New Jersey." Many people wrote letters claiming that they knew the identity of the submarine, and some people speculated about the reason for the sinking of the submarine.Many sons, mothers, brothers and grandchildren of veterans have sworn that their loved ones sank a German submarine on a secret mission that the government has consistently denied.Others called and claimed to have secret information on submarines, and others said they had seen submariners land on American shores to buy bread or attend dances.An old man called and said that when he was fishing in his teens, he met an old German guy, "The guy looked at our chart and pointed to where we were fishing and said that's where his submarine sank. ’ The man told Chatterton, ‘Where we were fishing is where you found that sub. deserved rewards.A man who sounded like an academic called him and told him that all he needed to do to solve the submarine mystery was wipe the mud off the conning tower, since all the submarine numbers were clearly marked on the side of the conning tower. A man with a thick German accent called him. "I'm looking for the diver who found the submarine," the man said. "I am," Chatterton said. "Can you tell me what the dead diver looked like?" "He was a very good diver and the accident was just horrific." "Is his name Feldman?" "yes." "How to spell it?" "FELDMAN." "Oh, Feldman, is he Jewish?" Chatterton dropped the phone. Another day, he got a call from someone with a German accent. "You disturbed these sleeping warriors," he said before hanging up. Chatterton pored over all the stories he heard, some of which sounded incredible.Stories about submariners infiltrating American society are scary.Submarine crews set foot on U.S. soil only on rare occasions, one of which is when they infiltrate American society to sabotage or serve as espionage.The submarine's serial number is indeed marked on the conning tower, as evidenced by many pictures of the submarine.But those numbers were erased or covered in paint after the start of World War II, so Chatterton found nothing of value that would help him solve the submarine mystery. Kohler also got a lot of calls because his name was mentioned in some newspaper stories.Like Chatterton, he received calls from people claiming relatives had sunk a submarine 50 years ago, and he received calls from collectors. "Are there any bones of the crew on the submarine?" one person asked on the phone. "We don't know yet," Kohler said. "I want to buy a Nazi skull." "I don't do this." "I paid two thousand dollars for a skull." "I told you, I'm not doing this." "What the hell do you mean? We won. Are you a Nazi fanatic?" Kohler found that these so-called collectors were quick to irritate him, so he learned to hang up on them before they got angry. In addition to these letters and phone calls, Chatterton also received a letter from the German embassy in Washington.The letter was from a man named Dieter.From Lieutenant of the German Navy of Leonhard.The beginning of the letter was very sincere. He admitted the fact that Chatterton had discovered the submarine and offered to help them in their research.But at the end of the letter, Leonhard clearly stated the position of the German government: The Federal Republic of Germany retains ownership of submarines, regardless of their current location within its territory or sea.Sunken submarines are in principle regarded as "burials of fallen naval martyrs."Therefore, under no circumstances should anyone dive or explore a wreck without the consent of their own government.In order to preserve the remains of martyrs, the Federal Republic of Germany strictly prohibits any form of infringement on World War II submarines.In case of violation, we will take necessary legal measures. Chatterton called the phone number on the letter, and the phone was transferred to Leonhard.Chatterton told Leonhard he had heard from them and thanked them for any help they could provide.Leonhard said he would be happy to help, before Chatterton addressed his top concerns. "Do you know the exact identity of this submarine?" In similar situations, Leonhard said, the German government usually turns to Horst of the Kux-Altenbruch submarine archive.bredo.He told Chatterton the way to get in touch with the man.Then, Leonhard reiterated his request in the letter-the German government would not allow them to continue their investigation on the sunken submarine. "Which submarine are you referring to?" Chatterton asked. "The one you found," Leonhard replied. "Okay, please tell me the specific name of that submarine." "I have no idea." "Then tell me exactly where it is," Chatterton went on. "I don't know that either." "With all due respect," Chatterton said, "I would very much like to respect your opinion. But you don't know the identity of the submarine, so you can't make such a request. My purpose is to find out the identity of the submarine." , Find the name that should have been engraved on the tombstone. I will continue to investigate until I figure it out." "Hope you understand our position, Mr. Chatterton. We don't want any divers on board the submarine again. There may be crew members on it. We don't want their bones to be violated. We don't want the wreck to be desecrated. "Leonhard said, "We must not tolerate or allow such a thing to happen." "I can understand your position, and I will never allow such a thing to happen," Chatterton said. "I will definitely consider it carefully and fully respect the dignity of the submarine. I can guarantee this." Now that Chatterton had fully understood Leonhard's position, it was impossible for him to formally agree to the divers' investigation of submarines regarded as war graveyards.But Chatterton knew that Leonhard—whose tone was calm and cheerful throughout—wouldn't bother them, as long as they were respectful enough when they surveyed the submarine.The two thanked each other and ended the call. A week after Chatterton heard the first story, Chatterton began to put together several valuable leads.The first clue comes from Harry.Cooper, founder and chairman of Shark Hunting International.Based in Florida, the organization's mission is "devoted wholeheartedly to the preservation of German history."Chatterton received their newsletter, densely packed with articles and high-pitched appeals—a self-made publication that contained a wide range of content: interviews, histories, editorials, reviews, and even a few advertisements here and there.Although the newsletter may seem crude, the group's membership is diverse: American historians, former submarine captains and crew members, professors, U.S. Navy veterans, and other experts.Cooper invited Chatterton to participate in the International Shark Hunting Organization. He said that this organization has maintained in-depth ties with various fields and will definitely be able to help solve the mystery of submarines.Cooper asked a question no one had asked before: Do submarines have saddle fuel tanks?Does the submarine have one or two torpedo tubes in the stern?These answers are easy to find while diving, Cooper explained, from which information can be used to determine the type of submarine and the approximate age when it began sailing.Chatterton decided to look for these answers on his next dive and tell Cooper. One day a man called Chatterton, who said he had sunk a German submarine in a blimp in 1942.If it was a month ago, Chatterton would have thought this statement was absurd.But according to his recent research, airships are likely to be powerful weapons for sinking submarines, and airships are often used to escort ships on the eastern coast.At some point in World War II, there were more than 1,500 pilots flying airships.Equipped with sophisticated anti-submarine equipment, the blimp was even able to fight subs that surfaced, and in one such battle, the blimp fell from the sky and severely damaged a submarine.So Chatterton listened carefully to the phone. "I'm old and my mind isn't very clear," said the man. "I can't remember too many details, but I remember sinking a submarine with an airship." "Go on, sir, I am listening, and I am very interested in what you have to say." "We were stationed in Lakehurst, NJ and that's where I attacked the sub and I sank it with depth charges. Sorry, that's all I can remember, I hope it helps you .” Chatterton recorded what he had said on a post-it note, and then went to the Naval History Center to find all the records that the airship had sunk the submarine in this area. One morning Chatterton drove to Naval Weapons Station Earle in Monmouth County, New Jersey.He gave footage of the wreck to munitions and explosives experts there.They studied the footage over and over, discussed with each other, and used all kinds of jargon, and finally they came to a consensus: - the damage to the submarine's control room appears to have been caused by an explosion rather than a collision; - the shape and orientation of the damage to the submarine indicated that the explosion came from the outside of the submarine; - The weapons that cause submarine trauma are far more powerful than depth charges, which are often used by the Allies against submarines. Chatterton took careful notes.He asked the experts to speculate on what kind of weapon caused so much damage. "We can't be sure," said one of the experts. "If we had to speculate, we think it may have been caused by a direct torpedo attack." Direct torpedo attack?Chatterton turned the possibility over in his mind on the drive home.So who fired the torpedo?If an American sub sank a German sub, it should be in all the history books, and there was never such a thing near the sinking ship.Could it be that another German submarine accidentally injured its own people?This has happened before, but generally only when wolf pack tactics are used - multiple submarines attacking enemy ships at the same time - and there is no record of wolf pack tactics being used in this area.One thing is now clear, however: The notion that the submarine escaped after being damaged — a view held by Legg and some divers — has been ruled out.Chatterton believes that the place where the submarine is currently sunk is the place where it was attacked in the first place. A week after the Newark Star-Diagram reported the story, Chatterton had collected a great deal of information from various sources.But no single piece of information could lead to a breakthrough in the investigation. At Legge's house, Legge and Chatterton host Gregory.Major Weidenfeld, Civilian Air Patrol historian.He got in touch with Legg through a newspaper reporter.Chatterton had heard of the Civilian Air Patrol, which was established in 1941 by New York Mayor Fiorello.pull.A team of pilots organized by Gordia and other civilian pilots who fly small private jets to assist in the defense of sailing ships.There were clerks, accountants, or dentists flying patrols over the coast of New York or New Jersey nearly every night, attacking submarines with small emergency bombs strapped under their wings.Since their weapon systems were improvised and very unstable, they generally could not land with bombs strapped to the wings lest the vibrations cause the bombs to explode.Instead, they dropped bombs regardless of whether they spotted the sub or not, avoiding carrying them on the plane.Civilian air patrols spotted 150 submarines during World War II and dropped depth charges on some of them, Weidenfeld said. "We sank two German submarines," Weidenfeld said, "but we never got any credit for it." "I've seen reports of these incidents," Chatterton said. "You think the Navy doesn't want to reward civilians." "That's the way it is," Weidenfeld said. "The Navy doesn't want to admit it because they're afraid of causing public panic, and they're afraid of the public knowing that they need to use ordinary people to repel the submarine, and they're afraid of the public knowing that the submarine is actually approaching the shores of the United States. Whatever Well, one of the subs we sank was off the coast of Florida and the other off the coast of New Jersey." Chatterton took out his pen, and Weidenfeld began to tell the story. "On July 11, 1942, two of our pilots at Grumman Werzing spotted a German submarine 50 miles north of the Atlantic coast. They tracked it for four hours until it rose to periscope depth. Finally , it finally surfaced, and they dropped a 325-pound depth charge, and the bomb went off—they saw streaks of oil where the sub sank. They dropped another the depth charge that killed the sub. Both pilots are now dead, but I've been hoping for years to get the credit back for us guys. I think you've found It's the submarine they sank." Chatterton was completely lost in his narrative.Weidenfeld came up with a specific date, and mentioned a location just 25 miles from the wreck.If Chatterton could find a list of German submarines that disappeared in American waters in July 1942—even if the recorded submarine was some distance away from theirs—he might be able to explain why the submarine moved to its present location, and thus solve the problem. Unravel the mystery.He thanked Weidenfeld and promised to do his best to find out if the submarine was the one they had sunk 50 years ago.A day later, Professor Keats told the New York Post, "This is the most plausible explanation I have heard so far. They are probably the same submarine." Almost at the same time, an unusual call came in.The caller was a collector of Nazi memorabilia, but he wasn't calling to buy wreck items. "I have a lot of stuff, including pictures of German submarine captains," the man told Chatterton. "I have contacted many of them. One of the captains is Karl Friedrich Mortan. He was an 'ace captain' with outstanding military exploits during World War II. He saw your story in a German newspaper, He is very interested in this, and he wishes to give you some information, and wants to know your address so that he can write to you." "Great," Chatterton replied. A few weeks later, he received a letter from Germany.In the letter, Mortan thanked Chatterton and the other divers for their efforts.Then, he also told one thing in the letter: His colleague Hanas.Wiengartner was also an "Ace Captain", but like Mortan he was also promoted to train the captain of the destroyer fleet. This is a higher position, but the work place is mainly on land superior.But by 1944, Weingartner still had war in his heart, and despite his age, he left his desk and re-boarded the submarine.His mission at the time was to command the IXD2 submarine (a submarine specially designed for long-range patrols) U851 to the Indian Ocean to deliver supplies to German bases stationed in the Far East and to deliver cargo to the Japanese Navy. According to Morten, this is not the kind of assignment that Weingartner was looking forward to.He considers Weingartner a "natural submariner," meaning that the desire in his body to go to war—to attack and destroy enemy ships—has never faded. "I get the impression that Weingartner saw little difference between submarine warfare at the time and the last one he commanded in September 1939," Mortain wrote. "I don't know the order of his patrol routes, But what is certain is that U851 did not go to the Indian Ocean, but to the coast of the United States." In Mortan's view, it's likely that Weingartner decided his mission was too easy and sent the submarine to New York. "I'm personally pretty sure that the wreck you've found is U851," Motan wrote. The word "I" leaped off the paper and caught Chatterton's eyes, causing him to ponder.Mortan's messenger gave him first-hand internal information provided by an "ace captain", which bypassed textbooks and history books and went straight to the topic.Mortan knew his friend, and now that Chatterton knew Mortan again, Chatterton felt a thrill he had never felt before. All the information Chatterton gathered was never brought up to Koehler.Although he admired Koehler's enthusiasm on the boat, he always thought of Kohler as an outsider diving with him, only interested in shipwreck objects, and knew nothing about history and art.But he shared his findings with Yuga, who has been relentlessly working on the core technology of designing and building submarines.Whenever Chatterton had a new idea, he would back it up with strong scientific evidence. After these investigations, an exciting idea began to take shape in Chatterton's mind.During these two weeks, he successively got in touch with the "ace captain", the airship pilot, the historian and the chairman of the submarine club.The information they provide is not in the history books, and sometimes even contradicts the history books.Chatterton has always been trying his best to find the most reasonable answer for the unknown, and the knowledge that extends beyond the history books is undoubtedly an important inspiration for him. While Chatterton was busy making phone calls with various people, Kohler, like a student about to face a final exam, was studying books related to submarines.He spent all his spare time studying the submarine—its structure, evolution, command system, and everything related to it.Dominating his research work was a strong motivation: to recover valuable items from shipwrecks himself.In his entire diving career, the most emotional moment for him was the moment when he saw the Nazi plate in Chatterton's hand.As he held the plate in his hand, he had a sense of being above everything else.He couldn't express the feeling at that time in words, but he could clearly feel it himself.This is not a simple piece of porcelain, history, symbolism, beauty and mystery can be seen in it, all of which make it exude an alluring brilliance. As the days passed and Kohler delved into the submarine books, he found himself paying more and more attention to the personal lives of the crew members on board.He was taken aback by this realization, since his mission now was to identify the submarine.Kohler doesn't feel like he's doing research when he reads about sailors.He felt as if he were in a submarine, which to him was not just a machine, but the background of the lives of the crew.He could even sense their noisy, crowded environment, and it was in this environment that these soldiers waged a war that caused panic throughout the world.He could feel the chill from the torpedoes placed next to the faces of sleeping soldiers, the unpleasant smell of clothes that hadn't been changed in six weeks, the spittle splashing on each other's faces when the crew members were too close to each other, the cold Condensation dripped down the necks of the six-hour crew.Koehler was interested in technical information, but technology did not resonate with him emotionally—whenever he imagined the bombs of the Allies passing through the water and approaching the submarine, and the helpless expressions on the faces of the sailors, he would feel the same. Feel your heart beating violently.The ominous bang... bam... sound from Allied sonar heralded the imminent explosion.For years, Koehler believed that submarines were invincible.But now he began to experience the "embarrassing moment" of the submarine. During this period, the flexible tactics, advanced technology and abundant supplies of the Allied forces completely broke the advantage of the submarine in the war.Sometimes the submarines were unable to sink an enemy ship for weeks at a time, and the hunters became the hunted.Someone once commented that in the history of war, there has never been an army that has suffered such a large number of casualties like the submarine force and is still fighting.As October passed, Koehler wondered whether the remains of the sailors were still on the wreck, and whether their families knew they had died at the bottom of the ocean. While Chatterton was busy with various calls and letters, he got bad news.Bilanda got the exact location where the submarine sank: the latitude and longitude numbers, and he plans to go to sea one day to find the sunken ship.Worst of all, it is said that Legge revealed the location of the wreck. Chatterton heard that Bilanda had organized a diving team to find Feldman's body at the wreck site.With captains providing their own boats for fuel delivery, Bilanda would pay divers who took part in the search for the bodies.Chatterton suspected that Bilanda and the other divers were just putting on a show when they went to find the body.It has been a month since the accident happened, and the waves are very fierce. Feldman's body must no longer be in the place where the submarine sank.He called Legg's house and heard the sound of ice hitting the glass. "Damn it, John, I gave the location," Legge admitted. Legg explained what happened.He got a call late at night from the captain of another dive charter boat, an old friend of his.莱格当时已经喝醉了。那个人说他手上有三组数字，其中一组肯定是潜艇的准确位置，莱格听他背了这三组数字。那个船主说的是真的——其中一组数字是正确的。莱格有些迟疑了，即使他现在醉得晕头转向，他也知道比兰达已经从他安插在海岸警卫队的亲信那里知道了沉船的大概位置。他让这个船长在数字书上查出相近的地点，然后打电话给莱格套取确切地点。一般情况下，莱格会将有这种企图的人的脖子拧断，但是，他喝了很多酒，而且一直对费德曼的死感到愧疚。他不知道自己说了些什么，只隐隐约约记得可能说过类似于第二组数字“可能对”之类的话。 “一放下电话，我就知道我闯祸了，”莱格告诉查特顿。 查特顿结束了和莱格的通话后，他的电话又响起来。打电话的是比兰达，他告诉查特顿他组织了一支潜水队去打捞费德曼的尸体，他邀请查特顿一同前往。 查特顿心里一阵冲动，他几乎就要答应比兰达的邀请了，但他知道比兰达肯定会跳过打捞尸体的步骤，允许潜水员直接进入潜艇内部寻找沉船物品。查特顿问比兰达真正的目的何在，比兰达坚持称潜水队此行就是为了打捞费德曼的尸体。查特顿追问道，“瓦胡”号准备在哪里寻找尸体。比兰达说他们会在沉船周围寻找。至此，查特顿已经完全弄清了比兰达的意图，比兰达的唯一目的就是勘查潜艇。他质问比兰达，但比兰达拒不承认。查特顿根本不相信比兰达的辩解，他大声咒骂，告诉比兰达不要幻想他能够参加所谓的救援队，然后狠狠地挂断了电话。 几天以后，比兰达和其他几名潜水员出海了。有些潜水员确实仔细寻找了费德曼的尸体，而其他人直接进入潜艇勘查，没有人找到尸体。一名参加了此次航行的潜水员说，很多人回家后脑海中都萦绕着同一个想法：这艘沉船太危险了，这是一艘能吃人的沉船。 一天以后，查特顿和柯勒听说了救援队出海的情况。他们都提出了同一个问题：是否有人查出了潜艇的确切身份？但似乎大家都没有找到任何有用的线索。查特顿和柯勒对此都不感到吃惊，但是他们都推测比兰达很可能还会再次出海。只要莱格和“探索者”号继续受到公众的关注，比兰达只会继续高举他的强盗大旗。 11月的一个星期一，比兰达带领的救援队已经返回岸上。这天天气晴朗，整个新泽西都沐浴在明媚的阳光之中。怡人的天气令莱格神清气爽，他给查特顿打了电话。 “我们得再去潜艇勘查一次，”莱格说道，“我们可以星期三去，你去不去？” “我哪次没去？”查特顿反问道。 莱格和查特顿分别打电话和其他潜水员联系。出海定在1991年11月6日。费德曼遇难后，几名参加过第一次潜水的潜水员都决定不再去勘查潜艇了。除此之外，剩下的潜水员都决定一同前往。“探索者”号上还剩下两个人的位置，莱格又邀请了其他两名优秀的潜水员。 Tom.帕克和史蒂夫。加托可能是东部海岸最有实力的沉船潜水组合。在一次比赛中，潜水员要两人一组避开可能遇到的危险，帕克和加托行动起来就像一个有机体，他们凭直觉判断另一人的行动和想法，就像是心意相通的双胞胎。帕克曾参加过莱格寻找“多利安”号船钟的那次潜水，而几年以后，加托找到了“多利安”号的船舵。对他们来说，如果找不到他们想在沉船上找到的东西，他们决不会放弃这艘沉船。他们告诉莱格他们会一起去勘查潜艇。 将近午夜的时候，潜水员们到“探索者”号上集合。柯勒还是穿着他的标志性服装——棉布夹克、骷髅十字和“大西洋沉船潜水员”标志。查特顿看到后，不以为然地摇了摇头。柯勒回视过去，眼神中挑衅地暗示：“谁他妈有意见？”船上一个人都没有说话。费德曼遇难的压抑氛围仍然笼罩着“探索者”号。点名的时候，每个被叫到名字的潜水员只是简单地回答一句“到”，然后就转身回到艇舱中，完全不像以往那样喧闹。 查特顿和柯勒的铺位分别位于艇舱的两头，他们躺在床铺上，脑海中不断推敲自己制定的潜水计划。查特顿准备在第一次潜水中实现两个目标，首先他会按照亨利。库柏的建议寻找鞍式副燃料箱，这是一种悬挂于潜艇外部的燃料箱，主要用于为VII型潜艇供应燃料，VII型潜艇是最常见的德国潜艇。如果有时间，他还会检查一下潜艇后部有一根，还是两根鱼雷发射管。库柏曾说如果潜艇后部配有两根鱼雷发射管，那么就属于形体稍大的IX型潜艇，如果只有一根的话，就可能是VII型。 而柯勒的兴趣在于那个由鹰和曲十字组成的徽章。六个星期来，柯勒每天都想象着自己找到纳粹盘子的那一刻，他无法容忍再次一无所获空手而归。他这次的目的很明确，就是要去找那些盘子。 第二天一早，查特顿就装备完毕。他、帕克和加托将会负责下船锚，先行下水。他们下水时的能见度应该很好，但是他们的动作会搅浑水底的淤泥，影响后面下水的潜水员，这会使寻找沉船物品更加困难。柯勒知道潜水顺序后气冲冲地冲到舵手室中，查特顿正和莱格在里面聊天。 “比尔，这个家伙到底要干什么？”柯勒指着查特顿问道。 “怎么了，瑞奇？”莱格问道。 “他会把水搅得看不见的，我要去找那些盘子。这次不能让他先去了，今天我要先下水。” “约翰要在水底录像，”莱格说，“你在他后面下水，不要先下去，那样会影响他的视线，他录像的时候海水必须清澈。” “什么？为什么每次他都要先下去？每次好的视线都留给他，我们其他人就得跟着他看那些泥巴，这对我们公平吗？” “听着，瑞奇，”查特顿这时插了进来，“你还不清楚底下是怎么回事——” “说得太对了，”瑞奇打断了他的话，“没人知道底下是怎么回事，因为我们从来没有在视线好的时候下去过。我本来打算今天去找那些盘子，但是比尔却让我到没有盘子的地方去。你不觉得这很不公平吗？” “约翰先下去，他是船长，”莱格说道，“潜艇很大，瑞奇，你第一次潜水的时候先去别的地方看看吧。” 柯勒摇了摇头回到甲板上，他嘴里不住地咒骂，句句都针对查特顿。他虽然不赞成莱格的决定但是他会尊重船长的意见，他只好去沉船其他的部位勘查。 查特顿和帕克、加托下水的时候，海面非常平静，天空有点多云。他们将锚绳系在受创的控制室上，对彼此做了一个“祝你好运”的手势，然后分头行动。查特顿沿着潜艇的侧面游动，仔细寻找库柏提到的鞍式副燃料箱，但是没有找到。这就证明这艘潜艇不是VII型，以后的研究中就可以排除这个可能性了。接下来他本计划去观察鱼雷发射管，但是要游到那个位置会消耗过多的潜水时间。于是他决定从身体下方的控制室中进入艇舱，并用摄像机录下他进入前部鱼雷舱的过程。 查特顿要进入艇舱时，他看到帕克和加托仍然在控制室的上方盘旋。他可以看懂他们的肢体语言，他们两人在商量应对沉船内部危险状况的办法，他们并不打算立即进入船内。“聪明的家伙，”查特顿想道，然后他进入控制室。至少眼下，帕克和加托不会急于弄清沉船的身份。 虽然控制室的地板全部损坏，但查特顿对里面的环境还是轻车熟路。他像足球教练研究比赛录像一样一遍遍地研究了上次潜水拍摄的录像。他在脑海中仔细记下了每个部位的结构和出口的位置，他还设想出各种方法避开那些层出不穷的障碍物。虽然距他上次进入潜艇已经六个星期，但是潜艇中的一片混乱在他看来还是井然有序，这都归功于他对录像不懈的研究。 查特顿穿过控制室向前滑行，他在摇摆的电缆中穿梭，绕过废旧的机器，将四周的情况一一摄入画面，他穿过左舷侧的艇长室以及声纳和电报室，来到潜艇的右舷侧。他轻松地穿过厨房来到军官住舱，上次他就是在这里找到了那两个盘子。现在他准备向艇首鱼雷舱前进了，它位于潜艇的最前端。但是他上次潜水拍摄的录像已经到此为止了。前面是他从未去过的地方，如果他要继续前进的话，他只能依靠自己的直觉来判断周围的环境。 查特顿高举摄像机，一点一点地向前移动。一块木板挡住他，封住了通往鱼雷舱的去路。查特顿向前游近了一点，等到周围的海水平静以后，他慢慢举起右臂，身体平衡后，他慢慢张开手掌，然后保持这个姿势一动不动，就像等待捕食猎物的大蟒。当艇舱中恢复平静后，他猛地出手打向木板，腐烂的木板应声而碎，木屑和碎片漂满了整个艇舱。查特顿站在原地等着所有的木屑和碎片慢慢落到地上。视线稍微清晰一点之后，他看到了通往潜艇最前端鱼雷舱的圆形舱门。他又开始慢慢移动蛙鞋前进。 现在他进入了军士住舱，引航员、轮机军士长和高级报务员都住在这个艇舱中。上次到芝加哥参观潜艇后，查特顿知道这间艇舱中应该有盘子或者其他物品。他仔细寻找在左侧地板上的碎片，希望能够找到白色的瓷器。他看到了白色的物体，他慢慢游近，但这种白色和瓷器的白色有所不同。他又游近了一点，这个白色物体上渐渐显现出眼窝、颊骨、鼻腔和上颚的形状，这是一个头骨。查特顿停下来等着淤泥渐渐落下去。在头骨旁边有一根长骨，可能是前臂骨或胫骨，再过去是一些小骨头。查特顿回忆了一下潜艇顶端打开的舱门，如果艇员们要逃出潜艇，那么肯定会有人因为来不及逃走而葬身海底。 查特顿面临着一个选择，很多人曾建议他仔细查看在潜艇中找到的衣服、靴子和其他私人物品——这些地方最有可能藏有银质手表或钱包，上面可能写有艇员的名字，也可能会有打火机或烟盒，有些艇员可能会让银匠在上面刻上潜艇的编号。查特顿知道衣服和其他私人物品通常都在尸骨附近，但他没有动，如果他翻看那些私人物品就会冒犯这些尸骨，他不愿这样做。在找到盘子之后，他也曾设想过，潜艇上可能会有艇员的尸骨。经过反复思量后，他还是决定不去惊扰这些遗骸。这是战争留下的坟墓，里面埋着阵亡战士的尸骨。他曾亲眼目睹过战士们阵亡的过程，也知道阵亡战士的宝贵生命在一个充满战争的疯狂世界里是多么脆弱不堪。他曾亲眼看到过为保卫国家而牺牲的年轻生命，也知道无论发动战争的国家出于政治目的还是为了维护正义，阵亡的士兵都是应该得到尊重的。他知道将来有一天他很可能要面对这些阵亡士兵的家人，他不希望到时告诉他们自己为了弄清一艘沉船或为了自己一点微不足道的荣誉而亵渎了他们亲人的尸骨。 查特顿将目光从头骨上移开。他继续前进，让这些尸骨渐渐消失在他身后的黑暗中。不一会儿，鱼雷舱的形状渐渐出现在他的视线范围内。查特顿慢慢游近，他看到了鱼雷舱的圆形舱口——艇员就是从这个圆形的舱口里进出——舱门打开着，但是门口被一些机器碎片挡住了。查特顿将障碍物搬到一旁，游进了鱼雷舱。里面放着两颗鱼雷，上次劳动节潜水时，查特顿从潜艇上方看到过其中的一颗。鱼雷水平放置在地面上，头部指向前端，还维持着二战时整装待发时的样子。舱内一共有四根鱼雷发射管，查特顿只能看到上面的两根，其余两根都插入底部的淤泥和碎片中。查特顿知道鱼雷发射管的盖子上一般都有显眼的标记。他还听说，鱼雷手经常会把自己的外号或自己女朋友或妻子的名字写在盖子上。他希望能够在上面找到一些痕迹，但是发射管的盖子已经被海水严重侵蚀，没有留下任何可以辨认的痕迹。 查特顿慢慢转动镜头将舱内所有的细节拍摄下来，以备日后研究之用。曾经悬挂在左舷和右舷之间的吊床已经不复存在，曾经位于鱼雷手床边的食物补给箱也无影无踪，曾经可以将大批鱼雷传送至鱼雷管中的传送装置也已经残破不堪。一个白色亮点引起了查特顿的注意，他将头灯灯光照向那里，光亮所及之处，海鱼急忙躲藏到破裂的机器里面。在灯光的照耀下，他看到一具遗骸，然后又看到一具，一共有十几具尸骨。很多人在这个艇舱中丧生了，但这个是距离发生爆炸的控制室最远的艇舱。“上帝啊，这艘潜艇到底遇到了什么情况？”查特顿通过调节器喃喃自语道。他想离开这里，但一转身一根大腿骨出现在他面前，他赶紧移开视线，慢慢游了过去，退出鱼雷舱。 查特顿进入艇舱时将舱内的海水全部搅浑了，他退出时能见度几乎为零。如果要离开沉船，他只能依靠脑海中记忆的地图。查特顿开始在艇舱中摸索前进，脑海中反复思索着进来时的路径和可能遇到的障碍。通过军士住舱时，他将身体紧紧贴在右侧的墙上，以免碰到进来时看到的艇员尸骨。在这个伸手不见五指的环境里，查特顿却可以穿梭自如，这全都归功于他勤奋的研究。他将重点放在观察潜艇上，而非只顾着寻找沉船物品。他之前所做的准备工作使他一次次避免将自己置于危险的境地。查特顿从控制室离开沉船。他游到了绑在锚绳上的闪光灯旁，然后开始了历时九十分钟的上升。 由于查特顿的行动降低了潜艇前部的能见度，柯勒决定到潜艇的尾部去勘查。他记得潜艇尾部有一处创伤，他认为可以从那里进去。他的直觉非常敏锐。这处创伤是受外力攻击后造成的——他能确定这一点是因为潜艇的外壳受损后，向内凹陷——虽然裂口并不像控制室上的那么大，只要有勇气，也足以容纳一个潜水员的身体。柯勒在裂口上方观察了一阵，然后将浮力调解器中的空气放出一部分，慢慢向潜艇内部沉去。 柯勒进入潜艇后，借着朦胧的灯光他看到两根鱼雷发射管。他立刻知道了自己所处的位置，并根据看到的鱼雷发射管做出了重要的判断：他进入的是艇尾鱼雷舱，这很可能是一艘专门为远程巡逻建造的IX型潜艇。虽然查特顿打算自己亲自检查后部鱼雷发射管，但却被柯勒抢先了。在短短半个小时内，两名潜水员先后解决了神秘潜艇的两个最重要的技术问题。 柯勒用手电在艇舱内照了一圈。他在地上的一堆碎片里发现一个金属标签和一个逃生设备。这个逃生设备既可以用作救生衣也可以用作呼吸器，是艇员们用来逃离潜艇的工具。柯勒的心跳加快了，这些东西上经常刻有标志性的印记。他将这两样东西凑到面镜前，发现标签上的字迹已经被完全腐蚀了。逃生设备虽然是个重要的工具，但上面也是无迹可寻。柯勒将这两样东西放到背包中，然后向后部游去，想观察一下鱼雷发射管。他和查特顿一样，都知道发射管的盖子上可能会有标记或艇员的至爱的名字。 但柯勒没有游到发射管旁边。在前进的过程中，他看到地上的碎片堆里露出一个白盘子的边沿。awesome!他终于可以找到盘子了。他慢慢向盘子的位置潜行过去，小心翼翼地避免搅浑海水。盘子上有没有鹰和曲十字？这次是不是自己有史以来最重要的发现？柯勒拼命抑制住自己冲过去抓起盘子的冲动。慢点、慢点、再慢点，他终于游完了这漫长的十英尺。他向前伸出手轻轻地捏着盘子，盘子松动了，柯勒松开手，盘子倒在地上，露出完整的形状。但看了一眼后，柯勒知道自己发现的是一个一次性盘子，这种盘子的发明日期比最后一艘潜艇出海的日期还要晚30年。有些新手潜水时很奇怪会在古老的沉船上找到现代物品。但是柯勒是个有经验的潜水员，他甚至在有百年历史的沉船上见过百威啤酒罐、塑料药瓶、高洁丝卫生棉，甚至印着恐龙图案的气球。他知道这些东西是从过往的船只上扔下来的，它们在海底漂浮，直到落到沉船上。柯勒将盘子拿起来放到背包中，他这样做就像在公园的地上捡起热狗包装纸一样，是为了保护环境。淤泥不断从盘子留下的洞中渗出，柯勒在淤泥中又看到另一个白色物体。这次不是纸盘子，而是一根大腿骨。 柯勒浑身发冷，他不像查特顿，他从没想过能在潜艇上看到艇员的遗骸，在此之前他也从没在沉船上见过人的尸骨。他也从未在海底230英尺深处、在氮醉症状的侵袭下做过这种道德上的抉择。他很清楚：他不是盗墓者，他不会为了找寻沉船物品而去惊扰这些尸骨。但是他能在尸骨的周围挖掘吗？这就完全不同了，他盯着那根大腿骨，身体越来越冷，他的呼吸开始加速。 柯勒下意识地后退了几英尺，他的动作带起了脚底的淤泥，浑浊的海水迅速将大腿骨遮住。在过去的六个星期中，他一直在研究有关潜艇艇员的书籍。他可以感受到他们工作的辛苦、单调，他们巡逻中的危险以及战争后期他们内心的绝望，但所有这些都只存在于他的脑海中。现在在他面前的是一根大腿骨，是人体上最强壮的一根骨头，这根骨头以前曾长在一个活生生的人的身上，这根骨头像桥梁一样将书本和现实联系起来，这根骨头让柯勒一动不动。很快，他寒冷的感觉就被一阵沮丧所代替。他想道：“我并不想打扰你们。”他空洞地盯着大腿骨原来所在的地方。他决定返回“探索者”号，柯勒艰难地向前走，直到回到他进来的那个裂缝下。他在浮带里充了一点气，然后升出潜艇。 几分钟后，他沿着锚绳开始了九十分钟的上浮。起先，他一直在思考到底发生了什么样的事故能让远离潜艇爆炸中心的艇员丧命。但后来他再次感受到了查特顿给他造成的强烈挫败感，他不能容忍他以拍摄录像为借口，每次都要在视线最好的时候进入那个遍地是瓷器的艇舱。潜艇里到处都是瓷器，他却要拍录像！ 柯勒上船后，潜水员们都围着观看他打捞上来的标签和逃生设备。有人告诉他查特顿到过前部的鱼雷舱，柯勒听不下去了，他决定要和莱格谈谈。 柯勒来到舵手室，他的干衣还在往下滴水。柯勒向莱格解释了“大西洋沉船潜水员”的宗旨，他们组成团队互相配合，所做的一切都是出于团队的整体利益，而不是像查特顿那样只会一个人逞英雄。查特顿随后走了进来，柯勒翻了个白眼，查特顿关上门悄声说道： “我在船头看到了头骨，”他说道。 “我在船尾看到一根长骨，是大腿骨，”柯勒答道。 “船头有很多骨头，”查特顿说。 “你把头骨录下来了吗？”柯勒问道。 “没有。什么骨头我都没有录。” “什么？你没有把骨头录下来？你要在视线最好的时候下去录像，然后你看到了人骨头，结果你没有把它录下来？那你到底在那儿干了些什么？” 查特顿一言不发。莱格摆了摆手，好像在说：“别把我卷进去。” “我是故意没有录，”查特顿说道，“我要尊重这些战士的遗骸。” 柯勒勉强地点了点头，离开舵手室。回到艇舱后，他用花生酱和果酱给自己做了一个三明治，然后开始放松。他还要等三个小时才能将体内的氮气全部排出，开始第二次潜水。几分钟后，查特顿走了进来，他将录像带放到录像机中开始研究第一次拍摄的录像。两人一句话都没有说。 查特顿第一个返回水中，这次他的目的是勘查厨房和军士住舱周围，他要寻找可能放有航海日志、地图或其他文字材料的橱柜，他曾在芝加哥的潜艇上看到这些材料都储存在一个木质橱柜中。他打算避开军士住舱，以免惊扰了里面的尸骨。 查特顿毫不费力地抵达了他的目标地点，他开始在低洼的地方挖掘，希望能发现橱柜模样的东西。他没有找到，但是他的手摸到一个像盒子一样的东西。不一会儿，他把这个东西从泥里挖了出来，看上去是一个放银器的盒子，大约11英尺×8英尺见方，里面有专门放置刀、勺和叉的格子。盒子外面裹着一层粘糊糊的黑泥，抽屉里的东西被泥巴封在里面。查特顿凑近观看，发现其中一个格子里有一柄汤匙。他将银器盒子放到自己的背包中，然会返回锚绳附近。盒子里面的餐具上可能会刻有日期。 查特顿离开潜艇不久，柯勒就进去了。这次他直接游向船的前部，找到上次查特顿发现盘子的地方。即使他必须应付被查特顿搅浑的海水，他也决定要去。他一定要找到东西拿上岸去。 能见度并不像柯勒想象的那么糟，他可以看见地标，对“大西洋沉船潜水员”来说，看见地标就意味着生命。他凭借模糊的视线进入军士住舱，只有查特顿和柯勒才敢在一艘从未有人来过的沉船上这样穿行。他将手伸进地上的碎片和渣滓里，寻找圆形的白边或摸起来光滑的物体，对有经验的潜水员来说，摸到了光滑的物体就意味着找到了瓷器。他找到一个四英寸高的古龙水瓶子，上面印着一个德语单词“Glockengasse”，他猜测可能是一个品牌的名字。他知道潜艇上的艇员有在身上喷古龙水的习惯，他们用古龙水掩盖身上的异味。由于他们在酷热的潜艇上一呆就是一百多天，而且没有足够的水洗澡，他们身上不可避免会产生难闻的气味。但是他到这儿不是为了找古龙水的瓶子，而是为了找盘子。他继续积极地寻找，双手在淤泥中摸索，就像小孩子玩沙盒一样，但他什么都没有找到。他向远一点的地方挖过去，他发现一些东西，当他把表面的淤泥清理掉以后，他发现自己好像到了坟场，四处都是人骨：头骨、肋骨、大腿骨、胫骨还有前臂骨。寒意再次袭遍了柯勒的全身，“我跑到了一个大坟墓里！”他对自己说，“我必须得离开这里。”柯勒将古龙水瓶放到背包中，然后转身离去。被搅起的淤泥使能见度更低了，柯勒深吸了一口气，将眼睛闭了一会儿。只要你还能呼吸，就不会有事。他记得来时的路，他在脑海中又回忆了一遍，他按原路走出了潜艇，“大西洋沉船潜水员”给了他很好的锻炼。 快接近水面时，查特顿将背包夹到系在船上的一根绳子上——他不敢带着这么脆弱的东西冒着海中的大浪爬上船梯。上船后，他脱去潜水服，擦干身体后，将背包从海水中拽了上来，潜水员们围上来观看。查特顿将银器盒子从包中拿出来，将上面的淤泥去掉，一阵臭鸡蛋和沼气的味道扑面而来，引起围观人的一阵咒骂。 首先拿出来的是一摞叠起来放置的镀银叉子。这些叉子由于电解作用已经变得像纸一样薄了，只剩下了叉子的形状而已。莱格走上前来，他以前曾经遇到过这种情况，他知道就连轻微的晃动都会使这些叉子碎成齑粉。他从桌子对面伸过手来，想把叉子拿在手里仔细看一下。由于多年的酗酒和艰苦的工作，他的手颤抖得很厉害。他停了下来，打起精神屏住呼吸，好像希望他的身体赏他一个脸。他的手停止了颤抖，他伸出手接过叉子，屏住呼吸将叉子一个一个分开放在桌面上。每个叉子上都印着鹰和曲十字的徽章。莱格小心地翻转着叉子，看看还有没有其他的标记。他发现没有后，就转过身去恢复了呼吸。他的手开始剧烈地颤抖，迫使他不得不把手叉进口袋里。 盒子的第二个格子里放着一些不锈钢汤匙，这些汤匙还很结实，完全可以用来吃早餐。他们将汤匙摆在桌子上仔细观察，但上面没有任何标记。现在抽屉里只剩下一个格子了：放餐刀的格子。查特顿凑近观看，格子里只有一件餐具，是一把木柄钢刃的餐刀。他剥去剩下的泥巴，将刀取了出来。 餐刀上也沾满了黑泥，查特顿将刀子浸到一桶清水中，然后用拇指和食指搓着刀柄，希望把泥搓下去。刀柄上的黑泥开始剥落，他的拇指在刀柄上摸到了一些字母的印记。他又将餐刀在水中浸了一下，然后接着用力搓刀柄，他的拇指摸到了更多的字母。查特顿非常激动，其他的潜水员也都围了上来。刀柄上的泥终于完全剥落了，他拇指下面是刻在刀柄上的手写体字迹：霍伦博格，这是一个人的名字。 船上的人沉没了半晌。终于布拉德。舍尔德，那名宇宙航空工程师，走上前来，拍着查特顿的后背。 “伙计，”他说道，“你终于弄清了潜艇的身份，你所要做的就剩下找出那个叫霍伦博格的艇员了，祝贺你。” “这可能是我所有找到的沉船物品中最有价值的一件了，”查特顿对其他潜水员说道，“这显然是刻在上面的名字，不像出厂时刻的商品标签，这是艇员自己留下的印记。我所要做的只是找出这个霍伦博格，然后就可以知道沉船的身份了。” 这时，柯勒也回到了船上。他和其他潜水员轮流观看这把餐刀，然后向查特顿表示祝贺。虽然每个人都表现得处之坦然，但每个人心里多少都有些失望，因为找出沉船身份的那个人不是自己。“如果你找到霍伦博格是谁的话，明天一定要给我打电话，告诉我这到底是哪艘潜艇，”潜水员们对查特顿说道。帕克和加托在第二次潜水时只进入了船的尾部，他们和查特顿握手，表示祝贺。 “探索者”号返航时，查特顿走进舵手室从莱格手中接过船舵，两人一起讨论今天的收获。几分钟以后，柯勒走了进来。莱格递给他一杯啤酒让他加入他们的谈话。柯勒又向查特顿说了一遍祝贺之词，但莱格可以感觉出柯勒仍然对让查特顿先行潜水的决定非常介怀，他可能还对查特顿找到的餐刀心存嫉妒。几杯啤酒下肚后，莱格就想在他们两人之间引起冲突，而且用的是莱格惯用的方式。 “瑞奇，如果你不喜欢约翰先下水，可以在那里安个栅栏把他锁在外面，”莱格一边说着，一边咯咯地笑个不停，“然后你可以在栅栏上给他留个信儿，比如'关门盘点'什么的。” 莱格咧着嘴坏笑着，柯勒和查特顿都清楚他唯恐天下不乱的习性，两人都不想上他的圈套。但是他提到了“安德亚。多利安”号那次事件，自从柯勒加入“探索者”号后，查特顿一直感到很不舒服。现在莱格特意提到这件事，两人之间的矛盾一触即发。 “我们还是把话挑明了吧，”柯勒说道。 “太好了，”查特顿回答道，“我告