Night Probe!
Encyclopedia
Night Probe! is an adventure novel
by Clive Cussler
. This is the 5th book featuring the author’s primary protagonist, Dirk Pitt
. Published in 1981, it is set in the near future of 1989, a date with ironic significance (see below).
is on the brink of financial disaster. Desperate to find any solution that can save the nation from national bankruptcy, the President of the United States
looks to Dirk Pitt and NUMA
to pull off an audacious double salvage operation.
oilfields at just two years away. The total worldwide demand for oil is more than 50% of estimated supplies and while nuclear and other alternative energies are trying to make up the difference they are coming up short. Canada
is now the exclusive supplier of electricity to 15 states in the northeast after investing billions in a massive new hydro-electric power plant in Quebec
. To make matters worse, a top-secret experimental sub developed by NUMA has recently discovered a stratigraphic trap, potentially the richest kind of oil deposit, which lies just across the border in the territorial waters of Quebec.
Radicals in Quebec resembling the FLQ, secretly led by Canadian MP
Henri Villon, are pushing for a referendum on independence from Canada
. Newly elected Canadian Prime Minister
Charles Sarveux fears that if Quebec declares independence Canada will disintegrate as the other provinces either follow Quebec into independence or possibly petition the U.S. for statehood.
Heidi Milligan, a U.S. Navy Lieutenant Commander
, is working on her PhD in history by researching the naval policies of President Woodrow Wilson
between assignments. She stumbles across a reference to a "North American Treaty" in a long forgotten letter and is intrigued when she finds out that all traces of the treaty appear to have been erased from the National Archives
.
The North American Treaty, it is later revealed, was a landmark agreement between the United States and the United Kingdom
. In 1914, the U.K. finds itself in economic hard times with war looming on the horizon. Fearing that the nation will not survive without a large infusion of capital, the Prime Minister, Herbert Asquith, with the cooperation of King George V
, quietly approach the United States and offer, for the sum of one billion dollars, to sell Canada to the United States. President Wilson quickly agrees and pays a down payment of $150 million to seal the deal. Tragedy strikes when, on the same day in May 1914, the American copy of the treaty plunges to the bottom of the Hudson River
when the steam locomotive Manhattan Limited attempts to cross a downed railroad bridge and the British copy plunges to the bottom of the St. Lawrence River when the liner RMS Empress of Ireland is accidentally rammed by a Norwegian
collier
. With both nation's copies of the treaty lost and the British cabinet outraged at having Canada sold off without their knowledge, Wilson orders all records of the treaty destroyed and records the $150 million payment as a war loan.
Now that knowledge of the treaty has once again emerged, the President of the United States orders NUMA and Dirk Pitt to attempt to recover the copies of the treaty, which have both lain submerged for more than 70 years. The treaty becomes the cornerstone in the President’s plan to save the United States from national bankruptcy by proposing an audacious plan, to merge the United States and Canada into one nation, "the United States of Canada."
The British see the loss of Canada to the United States as the start of the unacceptable and unthinkable disintegration of their Empire
. If Canada is allowed to leave the Empire, so too might Australia
, or even Wales
and Scotland
. The British Secret Intelligence Service
recalls one of their best former agents, Brian Shaw, from retirement and orders him to keep an eye on the American salvage efforts and to ensure the destruction of the North American Treaty at all costs.
The story was inspired by a train wreck that occurred in 1878 in the town of Bennett, Colorado
(then known as Kiowa Crossing) in which a Kansas Pacific Railway
train was swept away when a rail bridge washed out. Most of the wreck was recovered save for the locomotive. Ironically, in 1989 (the year the novel takes place) it was discovered that the Kansas Pacific Railway had secretly recovered the locomotive and placed it back into service, yet still wrote it off and therefore committed insurance fraud
. A further ironic point was that Canada would lose its dominion status with Britain in 1982, the year after the book was published.
A unique facet to the Dirk Pitt novels is that they generally feature a prologue set in an earlier period of history than when the primary action is set. This period can be anywhere from a few dozen to a few thousand years in the past and generally sets up some important element of the primary plot that will later be revealed.
In Night Probe the prologue is set in May 1914 just prior to the outbreak of World War I
. Several historical figures of the period are referenced fictionally including President Woodrow Wilson
, Secretary of State
William Jennings Bryan
, British Prime Minister Herbert Asquith, Canadian Prime Minister Robert Borden
and King George V
.
Also a common feature of the Dirk Pitt novels are references and story themes based on maritime and ecological science. In Night Probe! the introduction of advanced Side-scan sonar
technology to search for oil and other energy and mineral content below the surface of the sea is a primary plot device.
Adventure novel
The adventure novel is a genre of novels that has adventure, an exciting undertaking involving risk and physical danger, as its main theme.-History:...
by Clive Cussler
Clive Cussler
Clive Eric Cussler is an American adventure novelist and marine archaeologist. His thriller novels, many featuring the character Dirk Pitt, have reached The New York Times fiction best-seller list more than seventeen times...
. This is the 5th book featuring the author’s primary protagonist, Dirk Pitt
Dirk Pitt
Dirk Pitt is a fictional character, the protagonist of a series of bestselling adventure novels written by Clive Cussler. The name Dirk Pitt is a registered trademark of Clive Cussler.-Character information and the supporting cast:...
. Published in 1981, it is set in the near future of 1989, a date with ironic significance (see below).
Plot introduction
The world is in the throes of an energy crunch and the United StatesUnited States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
is on the brink of financial disaster. Desperate to find any solution that can save the nation from national bankruptcy, the President of the United States
President of the United States
The President of the United States of America is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president leads the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United States Armed Forces....
looks to Dirk Pitt and NUMA
Numa
Numa may refer to:* Numa Pompilius, legendary second king of Rome* Numa Morikazu, Meiji era Japanese politician* Numa, Iowa, U.S. town* The Numa Numa Internet meme* The Northern Paiute people...
to pull off an audacious double salvage operation.
Explanation of the novel's title
A Night Probe is an old diving term for exploring the darkness of underwater caves.Plot summary
It is 1989 and the United States is in an economic freefall caused primarily by the world’s dwindling supply of energy. CIA estimates put the depletion of the Middle EastMiddle East
The Middle East is a region that encompasses Western Asia and Northern Africa. It is often used as a synonym for Near East, in opposition to Far East...
oilfields at just two years away. The total worldwide demand for oil is more than 50% of estimated supplies and while nuclear and other alternative energies are trying to make up the difference they are coming up short. Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
is now the exclusive supplier of electricity to 15 states in the northeast after investing billions in a massive new hydro-electric power plant in Quebec
Quebec
Quebec or is a province in east-central Canada. It is the only Canadian province with a predominantly French-speaking population and the only one whose sole official language is French at the provincial level....
. To make matters worse, a top-secret experimental sub developed by NUMA has recently discovered a stratigraphic trap, potentially the richest kind of oil deposit, which lies just across the border in the territorial waters of Quebec.
Radicals in Quebec resembling the FLQ, secretly led by Canadian MP
Member of Parliament
A Member of Parliament is a representative of the voters to a :parliament. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, the term applies specifically to members of the lower house, as upper houses often have a different title, such as senate, and thus also have different titles for its members,...
Henri Villon, are pushing for a referendum on independence from Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
. Newly elected Canadian Prime Minister
Prime minister
A prime minister is the most senior minister of cabinet in the executive branch of government in a parliamentary system. In many systems, the prime minister selects and may dismiss other members of the cabinet, and allocates posts to members within the government. In most systems, the prime...
Charles Sarveux fears that if Quebec declares independence Canada will disintegrate as the other provinces either follow Quebec into independence or possibly petition the U.S. for statehood.
Heidi Milligan, a U.S. Navy Lieutenant Commander
Lieutenant Commander
Lieutenant Commander is a commissioned officer rank in many navies. The rank is superior to a lieutenant and subordinate to a commander...
, is working on her PhD in history by researching the naval policies of President Woodrow Wilson
Woodrow Wilson
Thomas Woodrow Wilson was the 28th President of the United States, from 1913 to 1921. A leader of the Progressive Movement, he served as President of Princeton University from 1902 to 1910, and then as the Governor of New Jersey from 1911 to 1913...
between assignments. She stumbles across a reference to a "North American Treaty" in a long forgotten letter and is intrigued when she finds out that all traces of the treaty appear to have been erased from the National Archives
National Archives and Records Administration
The National Archives and Records Administration is an independent agency of the United States government charged with preserving and documenting government and historical records and with increasing public access to those documents, which comprise the National Archives...
.
The North American Treaty, it is later revealed, was a landmark agreement between the United States and the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
. In 1914, the U.K. finds itself in economic hard times with war looming on the horizon. Fearing that the nation will not survive without a large infusion of capital, the Prime Minister, Herbert Asquith, with the cooperation of King George V
George V of the United Kingdom
George V was King of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions, and Emperor of India, from 6 May 1910 through the First World War until his death in 1936....
, quietly approach the United States and offer, for the sum of one billion dollars, to sell Canada to the United States. President Wilson quickly agrees and pays a down payment of $150 million to seal the deal. Tragedy strikes when, on the same day in May 1914, the American copy of the treaty plunges to the bottom of the Hudson River
Hudson River
The Hudson is a river that flows from north to south through eastern New York. The highest official source is at Lake Tear of the Clouds, on the slopes of Mount Marcy in the Adirondack Mountains. The river itself officially begins in Henderson Lake in Newcomb, New York...
when the steam locomotive Manhattan Limited attempts to cross a downed railroad bridge and the British copy plunges to the bottom of the St. Lawrence River when the liner RMS Empress of Ireland is accidentally rammed by a Norwegian
Norway
Norway , officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic unitary constitutional monarchy whose territory comprises the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, Jan Mayen, and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard and Bouvet Island. Norway has a total area of and a population of about 4.9 million...
collier
Collier (ship type)
Collier is a historical term used to describe a bulk cargo ship designed to carry coal, especially for naval use by coal-fired warships. In the late 18th century a number of wooden-hulled sailing colliers gained fame after being adapted for use in voyages of exploration in the South Pacific, for...
. With both nation's copies of the treaty lost and the British cabinet outraged at having Canada sold off without their knowledge, Wilson orders all records of the treaty destroyed and records the $150 million payment as a war loan.
Now that knowledge of the treaty has once again emerged, the President of the United States orders NUMA and Dirk Pitt to attempt to recover the copies of the treaty, which have both lain submerged for more than 70 years. The treaty becomes the cornerstone in the President’s plan to save the United States from national bankruptcy by proposing an audacious plan, to merge the United States and Canada into one nation, "the United States of Canada."
The British see the loss of Canada to the United States as the start of the unacceptable and unthinkable disintegration of their Empire
British Empire
The British Empire comprised the dominions, colonies, protectorates, mandates and other territories ruled or administered by the United Kingdom. It originated with the overseas colonies and trading posts established by England in the late 16th and early 17th centuries. At its height, it was the...
. If Canada is allowed to leave the Empire, so too might Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
, or even Wales
Wales
Wales is a country that is part of the United Kingdom and the island of Great Britain, bordered by England to its east and the Atlantic Ocean and Irish Sea to its west. It has a population of three million, and a total area of 20,779 km²...
and Scotland
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
. The British Secret Intelligence Service
Secret Intelligence Service
The Secret Intelligence Service is responsible for supplying the British Government with foreign intelligence. Alongside the internal Security Service , the Government Communications Headquarters and the Defence Intelligence , it operates under the formal direction of the Joint Intelligence...
recalls one of their best former agents, Brian Shaw, from retirement and orders him to keep an eye on the American salvage efforts and to ensure the destruction of the North American Treaty at all costs.
Characters in "Night Probe!"
- Dirk PittDirk PittDirk Pitt is a fictional character, the protagonist of a series of bestselling adventure novels written by Clive Cussler. The name Dirk Pitt is a registered trademark of Clive Cussler.-Character information and the supporting cast:...
– Special Projects Director for the National Underwater and Marine Agency (NUMA) - Admiral James Sandecker – Chief Director of NUMA
- Al GiordinoAl GiordinoAlbert Cassius Giordino is a fictional character in a series of adventure novels by Clive Cussler; he first appears in The Mediterranean Caper . He is described as being of Italian ancestry, 5'4" in height, 175 lb, with dark curly hair, swarthy skin, dark Etruscan eyes, and a Roman nose. He...
– Assistant Special Projects Director for NUMA. - Rudi GunnRudi GunnRudi Gunn is a fictional character in the Dirk Pitt adventure novels by acclaimed novelist Clive Cussler. He is played by Rainn Wilson in the movie Sahara....
– Director of Logistics for NUMA. - Heidi Milligan – U.S. Navy Lieutenant Commander working on her PhD. in history in her spare time. Milligan discovers the first evidence of the North American Treaty and sets the plot in motion. Heidi Milligan also appeared as a supporting character in the previous Dirk Pitt novel Vixen 03Vixen 03Vixen 03 is an adventure novel by Clive Cussler. This is the 4th book to feature the author’s primary protagonist Dirk Pitt.-Plot introduction:...
. - Brian Shaw – Former officer from the British Secret Intelligence Service who was forced to retire when he became so well known to the Russians that he could not operate in the open without drawing attention from SMERSHSMERSHSMERSH was the counter-intelligence agency in the Red Army formed in late 1942 or even earlier, but officially founded on April 14, 1943. The name SMERSH was coined by Joseph Stalin...
assassination teams. Shaw is pulled from retirement to work against the Americans in the quest for the North American Treaty. Shaw is strongly hinted, and explicitly noticed in his last conversation with Pitt, to be James Bond living under an assumed name. - Foss Gly – An American expatriate who leads a team of assassins he terms “specialists” doing the dirty work for the radical Free Québec Society. Gly is also a master of disguise and impersonation.
- Henry Villon – Liberal Party member of the Canadian House of CommonsCanadian House of CommonsThe House of Commons of Canada is a component of the Parliament of Canada, along with the Sovereign and the Senate. The House of Commons is a democratically elected body, consisting of 308 members known as Members of Parliament...
and the secret head of the Free Québec Society. - Alan Mercier – United States National Security AdvisorNational Security Advisor (United States)The Assistant to the President for National Security Affairs, commonly referred to as the National Security Advisor , serves as the chief advisor to the President of the United States on national security issues...
- Charles Sarveux – Newly elected Prime Minister of CanadaPrime Minister of CanadaThe Prime Minister of Canada is the primary minister of the Crown, chairman of the Cabinet, and thus head of government for Canada, charged with advising the Canadian monarch or viceroy on the exercise of the executive powers vested in them by the constitution...
Allusions and References
(See also: Bennett, Colorado#Kiowa Crossing and train wreck)The story was inspired by a train wreck that occurred in 1878 in the town of Bennett, Colorado
Bennett, Colorado
The town of Bennett is a Statutory Town in Adams and Arapahoe counties in the U.S. state of Colorado. The United States Census Bureau estimates that the town had a population of 2,536 in 2005...
(then known as Kiowa Crossing) in which a Kansas Pacific Railway
Kansas Pacific Railway
The Kansas Pacific Railway was a historic railroad company that operated in the western United States in the late 19th century. It was a federally chartered railroad, backed with government land grants. It operated many of the first long-distance lines in the state of Kansas in the 1870s,...
train was swept away when a rail bridge washed out. Most of the wreck was recovered save for the locomotive. Ironically, in 1989 (the year the novel takes place) it was discovered that the Kansas Pacific Railway had secretly recovered the locomotive and placed it back into service, yet still wrote it off and therefore committed insurance fraud
Insurance fraud
Insurance fraud is any act committed with the intent to fraudulently obtain payment from an insurer.Insurance fraud has existed ever since the beginning of insurance as a commercial enterprise. Fraudulent claims account for a significant portion of all claims received by insurers, and cost billions...
. A further ironic point was that Canada would lose its dominion status with Britain in 1982, the year after the book was published.
A unique facet to the Dirk Pitt novels is that they generally feature a prologue set in an earlier period of history than when the primary action is set. This period can be anywhere from a few dozen to a few thousand years in the past and generally sets up some important element of the primary plot that will later be revealed.
In Night Probe the prologue is set in May 1914 just prior to the outbreak of World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
. Several historical figures of the period are referenced fictionally including President Woodrow Wilson
Woodrow Wilson
Thomas Woodrow Wilson was the 28th President of the United States, from 1913 to 1921. A leader of the Progressive Movement, he served as President of Princeton University from 1902 to 1910, and then as the Governor of New Jersey from 1911 to 1913...
, Secretary of State
United States Secretary of State
The United States Secretary of State is the head of the United States Department of State, concerned with foreign affairs. The Secretary is a member of the Cabinet and the highest-ranking cabinet secretary both in line of succession and order of precedence...
William Jennings Bryan
William Jennings Bryan
William Jennings Bryan was an American politician in the late-19th and early-20th centuries. He was a dominant force in the liberal wing of the Democratic Party, standing three times as its candidate for President of the United States...
, British Prime Minister Herbert Asquith, Canadian Prime Minister Robert Borden
Robert Borden
Sir Robert Laird Borden, PC, GCMG, KC was a Canadian lawyer and politician. He served as the eighth Prime Minister of Canada from October 10, 1911 to July 10, 1920, and was the third Nova Scotian to hold this office...
and King George V
George V of the United Kingdom
George V was King of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions, and Emperor of India, from 6 May 1910 through the First World War until his death in 1936....
.
Also a common feature of the Dirk Pitt novels are references and story themes based on maritime and ecological science. In Night Probe! the introduction of advanced Side-scan sonar
Side-scan sonar
Side-scan sonar is a category of sonar system that is used to efficiently create an image of large areas of the sea floor...
technology to search for oil and other energy and mineral content below the surface of the sea is a primary plot device.
Release Details
- 1981, USA, Bantam Books ISBN 0-553-05004-4, August 1981, Hardback
- 1984, USA, Bantam Books (Reissue Edition) ISBN 0-553-27740-5, June 1, 1984, Mass Market Paperback
- 1988, USA, Bantam Books ISBN 99941-54-53-2, July 1988, PaperbackPaperbackPaperback, softback or softcover describe and refer to a book by the nature of its binding. The covers of such books are usually made of paper or paperboard, and are usually held together with glue rather than stitches or staples...