the pilot-house shall be submerged to a depth of six fathoms; at which
depth we shall not only be enabled to pass clear of all ships, but shall
also, if the water be clear, be enabled to see pretty well what is
before and above us," said the professor, fixing his eyes upon a gauge
before him. "There," he continued, closing the air-cocks as the index
pointed to six fathoms, "now we shall do very well. Are you ready to
set the course, Mildmay?"
"A run of six hundred and fifty miles, upon a west-south-west course,
will take us to about the spot you have indicated," answered Mildmay.
"Which is a trifle less than five and a half hours' run, if our speed
under water is equal to what it was through the air. But I anticipate
that we shall do better than that; the resistance of water is
considerably greater than that of air to the vessel's passage through
it, I admit; but I anticipate that this will be more than
counterbalanced by the greater power of the propeller in the denser
fluid. We shall soon see."
So saying, the professor set the engines in motion, and the _Flying
Fish_ began to glide smoothly yet soon with marvellous rapidity through
the water.
"My surmise was correct, you see," said the professor some ten minutes
afterwards, as he pointed to another gauge on the wall of the pilot-
house. "We are now running steadily at a speed of one hundred and fifty
miles per hour; and we have already travelled twelve miles from our
starting-point. The gauge is, as you see, self-registering, and shows
on that piece of paper the exact distance run through or along the
surface of the water (but not through the _air_) between any two given
points. When the ship's course is altered, or you desire for any other
reason to commence the register afresh, all you have to do is, press
that ivory knob, and the instrument will draw a line across the paper
and, at the same moment, spring back to zero."
The water, at the depth at which they were travelling, proved to be
almost as transparent as crystal, of a dark olive-green tint beneath
them, merging by imperceptible gradations to a faint greenish-blue
above; the surface being discernible by the shifting lace work of gold
incessantly playing over it where the sun's beams caught the ridges of
the faint rippling wavelets raised by the languid summer breeze. Even
small objects, such as medusae, and fragments of weed floating in mid-
sea, were distinguishable at a considerable distance; and fishing-boats
could be clearly made out at the distance of a mile. A very novel and
curious effect was witnessed when objects floating on the surface (such
as ships, fishing-boats, or aquatic birds) came into view, the submerged
portions of them being as clearly defined as though they were floating
in air, whilst the parts _above_ the surface were wavering and
indistinct. A flock of diving gulls, for instance, which they passed at
no great distance, presented the curious spectacle of little more than
dark dots furnished with pairs of quickly-moving webbed feet whilst they
floated on the placid surface; but directly a bird dived its whole body
became distinctly visible, with a long stream of air-bubbles trailing
behind it.
At length it became apparent that they were approaching a large fleet of
ships making their way up channel.
A smile passed over the professor's features as he gazed out at them,
and turning to his companions he remarked:
"I feel mischievously inclined this morning. I think we will give the
crews of those ships a little surprise, and furnish them with a new
topic for conversation."
"Ah, indeed!" said the baronet. "How do you propose to do it?"
"By rising to the surface in the midst of the fleet. Our engine power
is quite sufficient, I believe, to send us to the surface or to plunge
us several fathoms deeper than we now are without our interfering with
the water chambers or altering in any way the weight of the ship. There
is a nice clear space just ahead, with ample room in which to show
ourselves and to make a downward plunge again beneath that large ship,
the barnacle-covered bottom of which seems to tell of a long voyage
through tropic seas. Now take up your stations of observation,
gentlemen, and note the consternation which our unexpected appearance
will produce."
The professor's companions placed themselves at the windows of the
pilot-house, and Herr von Schalckenberg at the same moment suddenly
pressed the end of the tiller vertically downward. Obedient to the
helm, the _Flying Fish's_ sharp snout immediately swerved upward, and
with a tremendous swirl and commotion of the water the great ship rushed
to the surface, throwing half her length out of the sea, only to
disappear again the next moment with a graceful plunging motion and a
still greater disturbance of the water by her immense rapidly revolving
propeller.
A single swift glance around them was all that the travellers were able
to obtain of the state of affairs above water; but that sufficed to show
them that their appearance, sudden though it was, had attracted a
considerable amount of notice. They saw that the _Flying Fish_ had
broken water in the very centre of a large fleet of ships, most of which
were making their way up channel under every stitch of canvas they could
spread before a very light westerly air. Many of these ships were
evidently, from their weather-beaten appearance, traders from far-
distant foreign ports; and their crews, taking advantage of the
beautifully fine weather and smooth water, were either occupied on
stages slung over the sides in giving the hulls a touch of fresh paint
to brighten up their appearance previous to going into port, or aloft,
scraping, painting, and varnishing the spars, or tarring down the
rigging, with a similar object. All eyes seemed to be directed toward
the apparition which had made its sudden appearance in their midst; and
the shouts of astonishment and dismay evoked by that sudden appearance
were distinctly audible to the occupants of the _Flying Fish's_ pilot-
house. The hurried way in which the crew of the large ship immediately
ahead of them sprang to their feet and scrambled in over the bulwarks
from the stages on which they were working, or slid down the freshly-
tarred backstays to the deck as they saw the immense object rushing
directly toward them, was particularly amusing, and drew a hearty laugh
from the beholders on board the _Flying Fish_. Another moment, and the
cause of all this commotion was plunging fathoms deep beneath the keel
of the last-mentioned ship, to reappear on the surface a minute later,
beyond the farthest outskirts of the fleet. A judicious manipulation of
the helm kept the _Flying Fish_ this time on the surface for perhaps a
quarter of a minute, just long enough, in fact, to satisfy the wondering
beholders that their eyes had not deceived them, when she once more
disappeared, this time finally, from the view of the fleet.
"That escapade of ours will produce a tremendously sensational paragraph
for the newspapers, and we must keep a look-out for it," said the
colonel. "I wonder what they will make of it!"
Sure enough, the paragraph appeared in due course, to the following
effect, as copied from a cutting which is still preserved in the
professor's scrap-book:--
Appearance Of A Gigantic Sea Monster In The English Channel.
Extraordinary Story.
"On Wednesday morning last, the 27th instant, a fleet of some hundred
and fifty sail of vessels was off the Start and about in mid-channel,
making its way to the eastward before a light westerly air, the weather
at the time being fine, the water smooth, and the atmosphere perfectly
clear. A portion of the crews belonging to several of the craft in
question were at work in the rigging when their attention was attracted
by a curious commotion which suddenly appeared on the surface of the
water at a considerable distance to the eastward. The disturbance was
in the form of a long wedge-like ripple, the appearance being very
pronounced and distinct at its forward or pointed extremity, but less so
at its rear end, where it spread widely out and became gradually merged
and lost in the gentle ripple caused by the wind. It was travelling
directly towards the fleet at a speed far exceeding that of the fastest
express train, and it bore all the appearance of being the `wake' of
some enormous body moving at no great distance beneath the surface.
While the seamen were still watching it in wonder and perplexity,
mingled with no little alarm, it had reached the fleet, the rippling
swell spreading out on each side and curling over into a breaker which
dashed against the sides of the several vessels, causing the smaller
craft to rock and toss perceptibly. It clove its irresistible way to
the very centre of the fleet, where there happened to be a large open
space of water, and here there suddenly shot into view above the surface
a gigantic fish, the length of which is variously estimated by those who
saw it as from four hundred to eight hundred feet, with a girth of
between one and two hundred feet. The creature, apparently startled at
finding itself in the midst of so many vessels, immediately dived below
the surface again, passing directly beneath the keel of the barque
_Olivia_, of London, from Bangkok, William Rogers master. The crew of
this ship had a most distinct view of the monster, as it broke water at
not more than half a cable's length (or some three hundred feet) from
them, and immediately afterwards shaved the keel of the ship so closely
as almost to touch it. Captain Rogers, who was on deck at the time,
describes the creature, and his description tallies perfectly with that
of the other witnesses, as being somewhat like a saw-fish, without the
saw, in general shape, but with a proportionately longer and more
sharply pointed head, in which _four_ eyes, two in the upper and two in
the lower part of the head, were distinctly seen. The body was a
beautiful silvery white, glistening in the sun like polished metal. On
the back of the immense fish was a curious flat protuberance, above
which rose another in the form of a dome-shaped hump, with, if we may
venture to repeat so incredible a story, eyes all round it, and
surmounted by an object having a very marked resemblance to a silver
crown. This extraordinary creature had no fins so far as could be seen,
but propelled itself solely by its tail, which it moved with such
wonderful rapidity as rendered it utterly impossible to detect the shape
of it. The creature was evidently an air-breather, for it had no sooner
completely cleared the fleet, which it did in about one minute, the
distance travelled in that time being fully three miles, than it rose
once more to the surface, remaining there for perhaps half a minute,
evidently for the purpose of getting a fresh supply of air, when it
again dived and was seen no more."
CHAPTER SIX.
IN SEARCH OF A SUBMERGED WRECK.
To return to the _Flying Fish_. It was exactly two o'clock p.m. when
Lieutenant Mildmay announced that, according to his "dead reckoning,"
they were now on or very near the spot indicated on the chart by the
professor, and that, if there was no objection, he should like to rise
to the surface in order to obtain the astronomical observations
necessary to verify the ship's position. The engines were accordingly
stopped, and the water being ejected from the water chambers, the
travellers once more found themselves above water, advantage being taken
of the opportunity to throw open the door of the pilot-house and step
out on deck.
The first discovery made by them was that a moderate breeze was blowing
from the westward, with a corresponding amount of sea and a very long
heavy swell, which, however, to their great gratification, affected the
_Flying Fish_ only to a very trifling extent. When end-on to the sea
she pitched a little, it is true, but when broadside-on she simply rose
and fell with the run of the sea, being as completely free from rolling
motion as though she had still been on the stocks.
Their next discovery was that a large steamer was in sight, some seven
miles distant; and, whilst they stood watching the way in which the
craft plunged along over the heavy swell, pitching "bows under"
occasionally, she suddenly altered her course and steered direct toward
them, her crew having apparently only that moment sighted the _Flying
Fish_, and being evidently in great perplexity as to what she could
possibly be.
"Be as quick as you can with your observations, Mildmay, and let us get
under water again," said the baronet. "We shall perhaps be expected to
explain who and what we are if that steamer gets within hail of us, and
I am not particularly anxious to do that."
The sights were taken, and, whilst the steamer was yet some five miles
distant, the _Flying Fish_ quietly sank once more beneath the waves;
doubtless to the intense astonishment of those who were making such
haste to get alongside her.
Rapidly, yet steadily, and with a perfectly level deck, the craft sank
lower and lower, the light diminishing momentarily, until it at length
vanished altogether, and the darkness became so intense that it was
impossible for the occupants of the pilot-house to discern each other;
whilst the silence which prevailed around them was first oppressive and
then awe-inspiring in its intensity.
Suddenly a light shuffling sound arose within the pilot-house, and in
another moment the inky depths through which they were descending became
brilliantly illuminated with a clear white penetrating light, in which
every detail of the ship's hull fore and aft stood out distinctly
visible, whilst here and there, above, below, and on either side of
them, a momentary gleam revealed the presence of some startled and
hastily retreating denizen of the deep. The professor had lighted up
the electric lanterns, the especial purpose of which was to illuminate
the sea around the ship, leaving the interior of the pilot-house still
in darkness, in order that its occupants might enjoy, to the fullest
extent, the novelty of the scene thus suddenly revealed to them, and
also that, on reaching the bottom, they might the better be able to
distinguish external objects.
Lower and lower sank the _Flying Fish_, and at length, after what seemed
to the travellers an almost interminable descent, she reached the
bottom.
"Now, gentlemen," exclaimed the professor, with some slight evidences of
excitement in the tones of his voice, "look around you, and see if you
can discover anything unusual in our neighbourhood."
The persons addressed did as they were requested, the professor himself
also peering eagerly out of each of the pilot-house windows in turn, but
without result; the electric lamps, though they brilliantly illuminated
the scene on all sides for fully fifty yards, and rendered objects
distinguishable for at least three times that distance, revealed nothing
but a plain completely covered with rocks and boulders, some of which
were of enormous size, and all thickly overgrown with sea-weed.
"What is it you expected to find down here, professor?" asked the
colonel, when it had become perfectly evident that nothing but rocks lay
within their range of vision.
"The hull of a ship," answered the professor. "She foundered on or near
the spot indicated by me, and cannot be far off; unless, indeed, we are
out in our reckoning. Have you worked out your calculations, Mildmay?"
"Not yet," answered the lieutenant, "but I soon will do so if you will
oblige us with a little light inside here."
"Ah, true! I had forgotten," murmured the professor apologetically, and
he lighted the lamp which hung suspended above the table in the pilot-
house.
The lieutenant sat down and rapidly worked out his observations, with
the resulting discovery that they were exactly two miles north-east of
the spot they were seeking, having doubtless been swept that much out of
their proper position by the tide. The _Flying Fish_ was accordingly
raised some fifty feet from the bottom, her engines were once more set
in motion, slowly this time, however, and the ship's head laid in the
proper direction, the occupants of the pilot-house stationing themselves
at the windows and peering out eagerly ahead on the look-out for the
object of their search.
The engines being set to work dead slow and stopped at intervals when
the speed became too high, the speed of the _Flying Fish_ was kept down
to about twelve knots per hour, at which rate she would occupy ten
minutes in traversing the required distance. She had been under weigh
exactly nine minutes when Mildmay exclaimed:
"Sail ho! That is to say, there is a large object of some kind dead
ahead. Port _hard_, professor, or we shall be into it."
The professor, who was not absolutely ignorant of nautical phraseology,
promptly ported his helm and at the same moment stopped the engines, by
which manoeuvre the _Flying Fish_ glided close past the object so slowly
that it was easily distinguishable as a huge pinnacle of rock.
They were now on the exact spot indicated by the professor on the chart,
but nothing in the slightest degree resembling the hull of a ship was in
sight. Rocks in the form of pinnacles, huge fantastic boulders, and
boldly-jutting reefs appeared all round, as far as the powerful lamps of
the ship could project their rays, but no ship was to be seen. They
rose some fifty feet higher, in order to see over the more lofty rocks,
some of which intercepted their view, but with no more successful
result.
"There is no ship here, professor," at last remarked the baronet, after
all hands had carefully inspected the whole of the ground within their
ken. "Are you quite sure of the accuracy of your information?"
"My information has reference only to an _approximate_ position; the
ship is hereabout--within a few miles of this spot--and I considered
that our best chance of discovering her lay in coming here first, and,
if necessary, prosecuting our search with this position as a starting-
point."
"Very good. Then, as the object of our quest is manifestly not here, I
propose that we proceed with our search at once."
By way of reply the professor put the helm hard over, and once more set
the engines slowly in motion, thus causing the ship to travel in a
circle about the spot; all hands going, as before, to the windows of the
pilot-house on the look-out.
The circle described by the _Flying Fish_ was a very small one--not more
than two hundred feet in diameter--and the inmates of the pilot-house
were therefore able to carefully examine every inch of ground within its
circumference. One complete circuit having been accomplished without
result, the helm was very slightly altered, and the ship then went on in
a continually widening spiral which must necessarily at length take her
to the object of her search, if indeed it actually existed.
That it did so was ultimately demonstrated, the professor himself being
the first to make its discovery.
The wreck, when first sighted, was distant about one hundred yards on
their starboard hand, and only just within range of the circle of
electric light. The ship's head was at once turned in that direction,
the engines being at the same time stopped, to permit of a very gradual
approach.
All eyes were of course intently fixed upon the strange object; and they
had neared it to within about one hundred feet, when Lieutenant Mildmay
exclaimed in a low, awe-struck voice:
"Just as I suspected! It is the _Daedalus_!"
"Yes," replied the professor very quietly; "it is that most unfortunate
ship. And now, gentlemen, with your permission I will anchor the
_Flying Fish_, and pay a visit--unaccompanied--to the wreck."
It was evident, from the extreme gravity of the professor's demeanour,
that his proposed visit was prompted by some other motive than that of
mere idle curiosity; his companions therefore simply bowed in token of
acquiescence, and permitted von Schalckenberg to follow undisturbed the
bent of his own inclinations.
The _Flying Fish_, meanwhile, had been caused to descend to the bottom,
to which she was at once secured by her four grip-anchors; immediately
after which the professor, with a somewhat hurried and incoherent
apology, left his companions and descended to the diving-room.
Left to themselves, the trio occupying the pilot-house had ample leisure
to note the position and surroundings of the ill-fated steamer.
She had settled down upon a flat ledge of level rock, and rested, keel
downwards, in a perfectly upright position, having apparently recovered
herself whilst settling down. She was greatly damaged, both in hull and
rigging; the spar-deck and forecastle being swept away, and her main
deck blown up in midships, very possibly through the explosion of her
boilers. Her bowsprit and mizzen-mast were gone, as was also her fore
topmast; and the mainmast, with topmast and all attached, was leaning
aft, and so far over the side that the observers would not have been
surprised to see it fall at any moment. Loose ropes were trailing in
all directions; and the tattered remains of sails still hung from some
of the yards and stays, swaying occasionally in a slow, weird, ghostly
manner, with the mysterious intermittent under-currents of the sea.
The trio were still discussing the particulars of the sad disaster,
which, on a stormy September night, had resulted in the drowning of
nearly five hundred people, and the plunging of the ship herself to the
depths wherein they had so strangely found her, when the figure of the
professor, clad in his suit of diving armour and dwindled in apparent
dimensions by his great distance below them, was seen to emerge from the
black shadow of the _Flying Fish's_ hull and make his way slowly and
laboriously over the rocky bottom toward the wreck. A couple of minutes
sufficed him to perform the short journey; and; scrambling up the side
by the aid of some of the dangling gear, he entered the poop cabin and
disappeared.
The party in the pilot-house finished their chat; and then sauntered
down into the music saloon, of which they had seen nothing since the
night of their departure from London--actually only two nights before,
but they had since then been so satiated with novel sights and
experiences that it really seemed as though at least a month had elapsed
since they last passed the threshold. Here they beguiled the time so
effectually with music, vocal and instrumental, that it was not until
George appeared announcing dinner that it occurred to either of them
that the professor had been out of the ship nearly three hours.
"Where can the man be? Surely some accident must have befallen him!"
exclaimed the baronet, starting up in alarm.
"Not necessarily," replied the colonel. "The professor is pretty well
able to take care of himself. It is much more probable that he has
discovered some object of exceptional interest on board the wreck, or
has fallen into a scientific reverie as to the actual cause of the
disaster--the cause, I mean, from a _scientist's_ point of view. Sound
the gong, George; water is a good conductor, and he may possibly hear it
and be awakened to a consciousness that time flies."
The gong was accordingly struck, and the three companions hastened to
the pilot-house to watch for results. The call proved effectual, for in
less than five minutes afterwards the professor made his appearance on
the deck of the wreck, soon afterwards rejoining his friends on board
the _Flying Fish_ in the vestibule outside the saloons. He carried in
his hand a small compact package, which he deposited carefully on the
sideboard, and then, with a much more cheerful mien than he had worn
when setting out upon his solitary journey, took his accustomed place at
the table, apparently quite prepared to do full justice to the meal
which was about to be served.
The soup and fish were discussed in silence; a glass of wine was then
imbibed with much apparent enjoyment, and this unlocked the professor's
lips.