THE LAST OF BELLMAN'S CREW.
"Up anchor, quick!" shouted Lieutenant Selby, springing into the conning
tower. The shrill whistle of the bos'un's pipe sounded at the same
moment and in a second the ship that had been so still and inert was a
maelstrom of activity. The anchor was broken out and long before it was
landed home at the catheads the _Tarantula_, a long line of white foam
streaking aft from each side of her sharp bow, was steering through the
water in pursuit of the flying submarine.
Lieutenant Selby's first action after they were under way had been to
order the searchlight played on the chase and kept on her. Fortunately
the phosphorescent glow left on the water by the submarine, as she
dashed away, made her course as plain as day and the man operating the
searchlight had no difficulty in finding her.
As the light played about her the watchers on the _Tarantula_, made out
two forms standing on her railed-in back.
"Bellman!" exclaimed Frank as his eyes fell on the taller of the two.
"Foyashi, the scoundrel," was Lieutenant Chapin's recognition of the
shorter one.
"We'll get 'em if we blow the _Tarantula_ up," exclaimed Lieutenant
Selby tensely, as he shouted down to the engineer, "more steam, Mac."
The pace was terrific, moreover it was dangerous navigation, but
everyone aboard well knew that they would have to catch the submarine
before she got out of the waters where she did not dare to dive, and
there was not a man aboard that was not willing, in the heat of the
chase, to take the chance of running aground.
Lieutenant Selby himself had taken the wheel from the man who had held
it when the chase began and like greyhound and hare the destroyer and
the submarine raced along.
"Try them with the bow gun," suggested Lieutenant Chapin to his
associate.
"A good idea, old man," was the reply, and old Bob Adams, a seamy-faced
veteran, was called aft and promised unlimited tobacco and spending
money if he could hit the submarine and "wing" her. Old Adams was a man
of few words and didn't change his usual habit of silence, as the gun
was made ready for him. It was a Hotchkiss rapid-fire capable of
piercing steel-armor at half-a-mile and the submarine's broad glistening
back offered a good mark.
"Are you ready, Adams?" asked the lieutenant, as after a lot of
squinting and adjustment the old man stood with the firing cord in his
hand.
"Bin ready, tew minuts," was the reply.
"Go ahead then."
The Hotchkiss spat viciously, but the water spurted up a good ten feet
of the mark.
The shot had missed.
Old Adams didn't change a muscle of his face, though he knew every eye
on ship but that of the helmsman was on him. He spat over the side,
ruminatively, and then pointed the gun, once more.
By this time Bellman and his companion had seen there was mischief
behind and had ducked through the slide of their craft and screwed it
down. The lieutenant rightly interpreted this as a signal that in a few
minutes the submarine would dive. If once she did so the chances against
their getting her again would be remote in the extreme.
"Get her this time, Adams," he beseeched.
"I'll do my best, sir;" said the old salt as the gun cracked once more.
This time a cheer went up. The submarine had been hit.
"Again! Let her have it!" yelled Lieutenant Selby, carried away by
excitement.
Again and again the Hotchkiss viciously cracked and spat fire and every
time brought the _Tarantula_ nearer to the crippled diver. It was
evident that the submarine could not last much longer. Already her speed
was a mere crawl. One of Adams' projectiles must have penetrated to her
engine-room or else,--as was more likely,--her crew had mutinied.
Suddenly the slide on her back opened and through it poured a crowd of
the little brown men who had been employed at Bellman's Island. They
cried, they screamed appeals of aid to the pursuing ship, which had of
course ceased firing as human figures appeared.
"They want us to take 'em aboard, sir," said old Adams, who had served
in the far East and understood their appeals. "They say they are sinking
and that their engineer is killed."
"Lower the boats," ordered Selby, "we'll get them off. I won't see men
drown if I can help it."
A coatless man suddenly appeared among the searchlight illumined crowd
on the back of the submarine. It was Bellman. By his side was Foyashi,
also coatless and desperate.
"Back, you yellow dogs. Get back below!" yelled Bellman, flourishing a
revolver.
A beseeching cry went up.
"We'll go to the bottom together," shouted Bellman, apparently beside
himself. The next instant his revolver cracked and two of the little
brown men fell across the steel plates. What happened then was like a
nightmare to the boys who stood watching in horrified amazement. The
whole swarming crowd of panic-stricken men seized Bellman and Foyashi
and paying no attention to their despairing cries hurled them overboard.
In vain the wretches tried to clasp the sides of the wounded submarine
and haul themselves back on deck. They were knocked off each time by
their crazed followers. Before the boats from the _Tarantula_ could
reach them they both had disappeared. In the submarine's engine-room Job
Scudder, too, lay dead--killed beside his engines at Adams' first
successful shot.
The _Tarantula_ anchored there for the night and the boats rowed about
seeking for the lost men but their bodies did not reappear and doubtless
the swift current swept them out to sea. Early the next day the boys and
the officers rowed over to the submarine, whose crew was now installed
on board the _Tarantula_ and searched her thoroughly. She had settled in
shallow water and access to her was easy through the top plate.
Their diligence was rewarded by the discovery in a steel bound chest,
that evidently had belonged to Bellman, of the long missing formula of
Chapinite. They found, too, unmistakable proofs that the government
which the authorities had suspected all along had really been the man's
employer. How he drifted into their service, was, of course, only
surmise. The submarine was laden with four gross of straw-wrapped boxes
containing enough of the explosive to have blown up the navies of the
world, if mixed with the right quantity of gunpowder. At Lieutenant
Selby's suggestion the boxes were weighted and sunk to the bottom of the
Gulf of Mexico the next day where they still lie. It was too dangerous a
cargo to carry in the form the daring Bellman had packed it.
As for Pork Chops and Quatty, before the _Tarantula_ sailed their hearts
were made glad by presents of rifles, revolvers and ammunition and
permission to take possession of the canoes and all the duffle the boys
had left at Camp Walrus. Pork Chops had been so fascinated by Quatty's
tales of life among the Seminoles that he had decided to cast in his lot
with him and, on condition that Quatty gave him a proper introduction to
the tribe, to go shares on the _Carrier Dove_ with him after they
fetched her from her anchorage.
Ben Stubbs and the boys, in the _Tarantula's_ launch, early the next day
went back to the sand-spit where the _Golden Eagle II_ had been beached
and dismantled her, as soon as the inspection of the submarine was
completed. Packed in sections she was placed aboard the destroyer
together with the field wireless which was fetched from Camp Walrus, by
Lathrop and the negroes.
That evening just as the group of herons, to which the boys had grown so
accustomed, were circling above their roosting-places, the _Tarantula_
with a long blast of her siren, swung out of the channel into the
shimmering gold of the Gulf. Behind them lay the black outlines of the
half-submerged submarine. Forward on deck, squatted the little brown men
who were to be set ashore at the first convenient port, as they all had
plenty of money to get back to their own country.
The _Tarantula's_ destination was Hampton Roads, from where the boys and
Lieutenant Chapin were to hurry to Washington and relate the whole
story. As for Billy Barnes, he was already busy writing out what he
called "The biggest beat of the ages, the recovery of Lieutenant Chapin
and the Loss of the Mysterious Submarine."
"It's good for a whole front page," he declared, "with pictures of all
of us and 'by William Barnes,' at the top."
"What are you thinking of, Frank, old boy?" asked Harry as the destroyer
plunged steadily forward through the night,--homeward bound.
Frank laughed, although his thoughts had been grave.
"That we have earned a holiday," he said, "let's go on a hunting trip,
some place."
"Where?" inquired Harry.
"Oh, anywhere--what's the matter with Africa?"
"Great! hunting by aeroplane!" exclaimed Harry, "and we'll take the
bunch along. Hurray! for the BOY AVIATORS IN AFRICA; or, ON AN AERIAL
IVORY TRAIL."
THE END.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
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OAKDALE ACADEMY SERIES
Stories of Modern School Sports
By MORGAN SCOTT.
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[Illustration]
BEN STONE AT OAKDALE.
Under peculiarly trying circumstances Ben Stone wins his way at
Oakdale Academy, and at the same time enlists our sympathy, interest
and respect. Through the enmity of Bern Hayden, the loyalty of Roger
Eliot and the clever work of the "Sleuth," Ben is falsely accused,
championed and vindicated.
BOYS OF OAKDALE ACADEMY.
"One thing I will claim, and that is that all Grants fight open and
square and there never was a sneak among them." It was Rodney Grant,
of Texas, who made the claim to his friend, Ben Stone, and this story
shows how he proved the truth of this statement in the face of
apparent evidence to the contrary.
RIVAL PITCHERS OF OAKDALE.
Baseball is the main theme of this interesting narrative, and that
means not only clear and clever descriptions of thrilling games, but
an intimate acquaintance with the members of the teams who played
them. The Oakdale Boys were ambitious and loyal, and some were even
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OAKDALE BOYS IN CAMP.
The typical vacation is the one that means much freedom, little
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it a scene of lively interest.
THE GREAT OAKDALE MYSTERY.
The "Sleuth" scents a mystery! He "follows his nose." The plot
thickens! He makes deductions. There are surprises for the reader--and
for the "Sleuth," as well.
NEW BOYS AT OAKDALE.
A new element creeps into Oakdale with another year's registration of
students. The old and the new standards of conduct in and out of
school meet, battle, and cause sweeping changes in the lives of
several of the boys.
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------------------------------------------------------------------------
DREADNOUGHT BOYS SERIES
Tales of the New Navy
By CAPT. WILBUR LAWTON
Author of "BOY AVIATORS SERIES."
Cloth Bound. Illustrated. Price, 50c. per vol., postpaid
[Illustration]
THE DREADNOUGHT BOYS ON BATTLE PRACTICE.
Especially interesting and timely is this book which introduces the
reader with its heroes, Ned and Herc, to the great ships of modern
warfare and to the intimate life and surprising adventures of Uncle
Sam's sailors.
THE DREADNOUGHT BOYS ABOARD A DESTROYER.
In this story real dangers threaten and the boys' patriotism is tested
in a peculiar international tangle. The scene is laid on the South
American coast.
THE DREADNOUGHT BOYS ON A SUBMARINE.
To the inventive genius--trade-school boy or mechanic--this story has
special charm, perhaps, but to every reader its mystery and clever
action are fascinating.
THE DREADNOUGHT BOYS ON AERO SERVICE.
Among the volunteers accepted for Aero Service are Ned and Herc. Their
perilous adventures are not confined to the air, however, although
they make daring and notable flights in the name of the Government;
nor are they always able to fly beyond the reach of their old
"enemies," who are also airmen.
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------------------------------------------------------------------------
BORDER BOYS SERIES
Mexican and Canadian Frontier Series
By FREMONT B. DEERING.
Cloth Bound. Illustrated. Price, 50c. per vol., postpaid
[Illustration]
THE BORDER BOYS ON THE TRAIL.
What it meant to make an enemy of Black Ramon De Barios--that is the
problem that Jack Merrill and his friends, including Coyote Pete, face
in this exciting tale.
THE BORDER BOYS ACROSS THE FRONTIER.
Read of the Haunted Mesa and its mysteries, of the Subterranean River
and its strange uses, of the value of gasolene and steam "in running
the gauntlet," and you will feel that not even the ancient splendors
of the Old World can furnish a better setting for romantic action than
the Border of the New.
THE BORDER BOYS WITH THE MEXICAN RANGERS.
As every day is making history--faster, it is said, than ever
before--so books that keep pace with the changes are full of rapid
action and accurate facts. This book deals with lively times on the
Mexican border.
THE BORDER BOYS WITH THE TEXAS RANGERS.
The Border Boys have already had much excitement and adventure in
their lives, but all this has served to prepare them for the
experiences related in this volume. They are stronger, braver and more
resourceful than ever, and the exigencies of their life in connection
with the Texas Rangers demand all their trained ability.
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------------------------------------------------------------------------
BUNGALOW BOYS SERIES
LIVE STORIES OF OUTDOOR LIFE
By DEXTER J. FORRESTER.
Cloth Bound. Illustrated. Price, 50c. per vol., postpaid
[Illustration]
THE BUNGALOW BOYS.
How the Bungalow Boys received their title and how they retained the
right to it in spite of much opposition makes a lively narrative for
lively boys.
THE BUNGALOW BOYS MAROONED IN THE TROPICS.
A real treasure hunt of the most thrilling kind, with a sunken Spanish
galleon as its object, makes a subject of intense interest at any
time, but add to that a band of desperate men, a dark plot and a devil
fish, and you have the combination that brings strange adventures into
the lives of the Bungalow Boys.
THE BUNGALOW BOYS IN THE GREAT NORTHWEST.
The clever assistance of a young detective saves the boys from the
clutches of Chinese smugglers, of whose nefarious trade they know too
much. How the Professor's invention relieves a critical situation is
also an exciting incident of this book.
THE BUNGALOW BOYS ON THE GREAT LAKES.
The Bungalow Boys start out for a quiet cruise on the Great Lakes and
a visit to an island. A storm and a band of wreckers interfere with
the serenity of their trip, and a submarine adds zest and adventure to
it.
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------------------------------------------------------------------------
BOY INVENTORS SERIES
Stories of Skill and Ingenuity
By RICHARD BONNER
Cloth Bound. Illustrated. Price, 50c. per vol., postpaid
[Illustration]
THE BOY INVENTORS' WIRELESS TELEGRAPH.
Blest with natural curiosity,--sometimes called the instinct of
investigation,--favored with golden opportunity, and gifted with
creative ability, the Boy Inventors meet emergencies and contrive
mechanical wonders that interest and convince the reader because they
always "work" when put to the test.
THE BOY INVENTORS' VANISHING GUN.
A thought, a belief, an experiment; discouragement, hope, effort and
final success--this is the history of many an invention; a history in
which excitement, competition, danger, despair and persistence figure.
This merely suggests the circumstances which draw the daring Boy
Inventors into strange experiences and startling adventures, and which
demonstrate the practical use of their vanishing gun.
THE BOY INVENTORS' DIVING TORPEDO BOAT.
As in the previous stories of the Boy Inventors, new and interesting
triumphs of mechanism are produced which become immediately valuable,
and the stage for their proving and testing is again the water. On the
surface and below it, the boys have jolly, contagious fun, and the
story of their serious, purposeful inventions challenge the reader's
deepest attention.
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------------------------------------------------------------------------
FRANK ARMSTRONG SERIES
Twentieth Century Athletic Stories
By MATHEW M. COLTON.
Cloth Bound. Illustrated. Price, 60c. per vol., postpaid
[Illustration]
FRANK ARMSTRONG'S VACATION.
How Frank's summer experience with his boy friends make him into a
sturdy young athlete through swimming, boating, and baseball contests,
and a tramp through the Everglades, is the subject of this splendid
story.
FRANK ARMSTRONG AT QUEENS.
We find among the jolly boys at Queen's School, Frank, the
student-athlete, Jimmy, the baseball enthusiast, and Lewis, the
unconsciously-funny youth who furnishes comedy for every page that
bears his name. Fall and winter sports between intensely rival school
teams are expertly described.
FRANK ARMSTRONG'S SECOND TERM.
The gymnasium, the track and the field make the background for the
stirring events of this volume, in which David, Jimmy, Lewis, the "Wee
One" and the "Codfish" figure, while Frank "saves the day."
FRANK ARMSTRONG, DROP KICKER.
With the same persistent determination that won him success in
swimming, running and baseball playing, Frank Armstrong acquired the
art of "drop kicking," and the Queen's football team profits thereby.
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------------------------------------------------------------------------
MOTOR MAIDS SERIES
Wholesome Stories of Adventure
By KATHERINE STOKES.
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[Illustration]
THE MOTOR MAIDS' SCHOOL DAYS.
Billie Campbell was just the type of a straightforward, athletic girl
to be successful as a practical Motor Maid. She took her car, as she
did her class-mates, to her heart, and many a grand good time did they
have all together. The road over which she ran her red machine had
many an unexpected turning,--now it led her into peculiar danger; now
into contact with strange travelers; and again into experiences by
fire and water. But, best of all, "The Comet" never failed its brave
girl owner.
THE MOTOR MAIDS BY PALM AND PINE.
Wherever the Motor Maids went there were lively times, for these were
companionable girls who looked upon the world as a vastly interesting
place full of unique adventures--and so, of course, they found them.
THE MOTOR MAIDS ACROSS THE CONTINENT.
It is always interesting to travel, and it is wonderfully entertaining
to see old scenes through fresh eyes. It is that privilege, therefore,
that makes it worth while to join the Motor Maids in their first
'cross-country run.
THE MOTOR MAIDS BY ROSE, SHAMROCK AND HEATHER.
South and West had the Motor Maids motored, nor could their education
by travel have been more wisely begun. But now a speaking acquaintance
with their own country enriched their anticipation of an introduction
to the British Isles. How they made their polite American bow and how
they were received on the other side is a tale of interest and
inspiration.
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------------------------------------------------------------------------
MOLLY BROWN SERIES
College Life Stories for Girls
By NELL SPEED.
Cloth Bound. Illustrated. Price, 60c. per vol., postpaid
[Illustration]
MOLLY BROWN'S FRESHMAN DAYS.
Would you like to admit to your circle of friends the most charming of
college girls--the typical college girl for whom we are always looking
but not always finding; the type that contains so many delightful
characteristics, yet without unpleasant perfection in any; the
natural, unaffected, sweet-tempered girl, loved because she is
lovable? Then seek an introduction to Molly Brown. You will find the
baggage-master, the cook, the Professor of English Literature, and the
College President in the same company.
MOLLY BROWN'S SOPHOMORE DAYS.
What is more delightful than a re-union of college girls after the
summer vacation? Certainly nothing that precedes it in their
experience--at least, if all class-mates are as happy together as the
Wellington girls of this story. Among Molly's interesting friends of
the second year is a young Japanese girl, who ingratiates her "humbly"
self into everybody's affections speedily and permanently.
MOLLY BROWN'S JUNIOR DAYS.
Financial stumbling blocks are not the only things that hinder the
ease and increase the strength of college girls. Their troubles and
their triumphs are their own, often peculiar to their environment. How
Wellington students meet the experiences outside the class-rooms is
worth the doing, the telling and the reading.
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------------------------------------------------------------------------
GIRL AVIATORS SERIES
Clean Aviation Stories
By MARGARET BURNHAM.
Cloth Bound. Illustrated. Price, 50c. per vol., postpaid
[Illustration]
THE GIRL AVIATORS AND THE PHANTOM AIRSHIP.
Roy Prescott was fortunate in having a sister so clever and devoted to
him and his interests that they could share work and play with mutual
pleasure and to mutual advantage. This proved especially true in
relation to the manufacture and manipulation of their aeroplane, and
Peggy won well deserved fame for her skill and good sense as an
aviator. There were many stumbling-blocks in their terrestrial path,
but they soared above them all to ultimate success.
THE GIRL AVIATORS ON GOLDEN WINGS.
That there is a peculiar fascination about aviation that wins and
holds girl enthusiasts as well as boys is proved by this tale. On
golden wings the girl aviators rose for many an exciting flight, and
met strange and unexpected experiences.
THE GIRL AVIATORS' SKY CRUISE.
To most girls a coaching or yachting trip is an adventure. How much
more perilous an adventure a "sky cruise" might be is suggested by the
title and proved by the story itself.
THE GIRL AVIATORS' MOTOR BUTTERFLY.
The delicacy of flight suggested by the word "butterfly," the
mechanical power implied by "motor," the ability to control assured in
the title "aviator," all combined with the personality and enthusiasm
of girls themselves, make this story one for any girl or other reader
"to go crazy over."
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