A STUNNING DISCOVERY.
In an instant all was confusion!
All sorts of shouts broke from the boys; and George, leaning over the
side of his stalled _Wireless_, in the vain hope of being able to
clutch the boy who was in the dangerous waters of the inlet, came near
upsetting his tottering boat completely.
Nick had disappeared as soon as he struck the water, but such a fat
fellow could not long remain under the surface, so he speedily made his
appearance, struggling terribly, and looking badly frightened.
There had been a time when Nick could not swim a stroke; but, by
keeping heroically at it, he had managed to master the art to some
extent. Desperation assisted him in this predicament, and the way he
threshed the water was a caution. Herb afterwards declared it beat any
old stern-wheel towboat he had ever seen, charging up the current of
the mighty Mississippi.
Luckily enough, Jack had anticipated something of this sort. That was
why he had persisted in keeping as close to the speed boat as he dared,
without risking a collision. He later on said he felt it in his bones
that if the _Wireless_ had one more kink of evil in her, she was just
bound to let it out at the most critical moment. And it had proven
just so.
The first thing Jack did when he saw the head and wildly plunging arms
of his fat chum appear, was to hurl the life preserver he had snatched
up from the spot where he kept it handy.
And so well aimed was the cork buoy that it fell just in front of the
struggling Nick, who gave a half-strangled whoop, doubtless under the
impression that it was a shark, or perhaps one of those same mermaids
he had declared it his ambition to meet face to face.
"Grab hold of it, Nick!" shouted George, excitedly.
"It's a life preserver. Get a grip on it, Nick!" bellowed Jack, as he
gradually turned the nose of the _Tramp_ around, meaning to bear down
upon the imperiled boy.
Luckily Nick heard what they said, for he was seen to make a wild
clutch for the floating buoy, and catch hold of it before the
treacherous swirls carried it beyond his reach.
"Oh! look there!" shrieked Jimmy. "That must be the fin of a shark!"
It was.
And further along Jack even caught sight of several more. The fierce
creatures had heard the splash, and apparently scenting a fine dinner,
were dashing this way and that, bent upon finding the object that had
made all the rumpus.
"George, get your gun, and be ready to shoot!" said Jack, himself pale
now with sudden anxiety.
So the skipper of the _Wireless_, understanding that this was a time to
keep cool if they would save their cheery comrade, reached down under
the side of his boat. When he bobbed up a few seconds later he was
clutching his rifle, which he had brought along, in the faint hope that
before the long cruise was done he might get a deer, or even a bear,
with it.
Now the nose of the _Tramp_ was heading straight for the spot where
Nick clung to the life buoy.
"Splash as hard as you can!" shrilled Josh, who seemed to remember that
sharks can sometimes be kept away by this means.
And immediately the fat boy exerted himself at a great rate, his legs
and one arm beating the water until it sounded like a vast mill in
action.
But as Jack cast a swift glance around he saw that the nearest shark
was heading straight toward poor Nick. Jimmy had heard what was said
to George. He, too, had pulled out a shotgun, and was cowering close
by, holding the weapon in his hands, and with a grim look of "do or
die" on his freckled face.
Bang! went the rifle in George's hands.
The bullet struck the water above the advancing monster, but seemed to
do no particular damage, for they could see that he was still coming
directly on.
Now the prow of the _Tramp_ was just alongside Nick; but the shark
seemed dreadfully close, too. Dropping his hold on the wheel, Jack
bent over to clutch the shoulders of the fat boy. He knew that he
would have a tremendous task dragging him aboard, soaked as his clothes
were; but desperation causes those who try, to perform wonderful deeds,
and Jack felt equal to most anything just then.
He was still dragging Nick upward, and the other was trying to help
himself as well as he was able, when the big fish, rushing under,
seemed to turn over while opening his terrible mouth, lined with cruel
teeth.
And then Jimmy, who had been holding his fire for a good opportunity,
sent the contents of the shotgun straight into that distended mouth.
Jack pulled his chum aboard, and almost fell himself, such was the
relief that passed over him. The boat was whirling around in the mad
currents, but as Jack again took the wheel he quickly mastered its
erratic movements.
"Sure, I guv him the cowld meal, that toime, I did!" shouted the
delighted Jimmy, threatening to attempt a real jig in his excitement.
"How d'ye like cowld lead, me bully bhoy? Next toime take one of your
own kind, will ye, and lave our chum be. Look at the bog-trotter
kicking out yonder, would ye? Don't I hope some of his kind will ate
him up now. It's the biter bitten, fellows. Look! by the powers, if
they ain't tacklin' the gossoon, so they are!"
It was even so, for the wildest commotion was taking place out in the
quarter where the wounded shark had been struggling.
Even Nick managed to crawl to the side of the boat and gape. A look of
satisfaction took the place of the frightened expression on his round
face.
"Anyhow, he didn't get me, did he, fellows?" Nick seemed to find a
strange pleasure in repeating time and again, in a hysterical way.
The remainder of the inlet was readily passed, George managing to get a
rope to the skipper of the _Comfort_, who towed the tricky speed boat
to safety.
Jack did not mean to lose that life preserver, and he had Jimmy get it
with the boathook as they passed by. It had served Nick a good turn,
and showed the wisdom of one being always prepared for trouble.
Nick was shaking at a great rate. This might come partly from his
recent excitement, but Jack knew that the air was rather cool to one
who sat in garments saturated with salt water.
"We'd better be on the lookout for a camping ground somewhere on
Paramore Island, here," he remarked. "A fire would come in handy for
Nick; and, besides, I reckon we've done all we ought to for one day.
If tomorrow pans out as lucky, we ought to get in touch with the
lighthouse at Cape Charles."
"Well, I only hope," sighed Nick, between shivers, "that the programme
will be a bit varied tomorrow. If there _has_ to be somebody go
overboard to hunt for mermaids, let me off, won't you, fellows?"
"We'll think it over, Nick," called George, who was taking it easy now,
since his engine was dead, and the _Comfort_ drawing him along in its
wake.
They presently discovered a place that seemed to promise a certain
amount of comfort; and so a landing was made.
"Smells like oysters around here, fellows," was the first remark Nick
made, as he scrambled ashore, and started to thresh his arms about, in
the endeavor to get up a circulation--Jack had advised this as a
preventative against a cold.
"Well, I honestly believe that chap would think of eating if he heard
the angel Gabriel tooting his horn," declared Herb. "He'd say that he
wanted to be fortified again the journey across that old river Styx."
"Sure, I would!" admitted the grinning fat boy, frankly. "Anyhow,
oysters are good stuff, whichever way you take 'em, and that nobody can
deny. Get your old fire going, so I can change my clothes, and have an
hour to gather a crop. Josh said if I got enough he'd give us
scalloped oysters for supper. Yum! yum! don't that just make your
mouths water, boys? It does mine."
The fire was soon going, and beside its cheery heat Nick made the
change. His soaked garments were hung up to dry the best they could,
though it is a hard job when clothes have been in salt water.
Then, with a tin pail Nick set out to gather his beloved shellfish,
signs of which had been noted near by.
In half an hour he had deposited three pails of what seemed to be very
fair bivalves in a pile near the fire.
"Set some of the others to work opening them, Josh," Nick observed.
"My fingers are too sore for the job. Besides, I've done my part,
seems like, in getting the crop gathered."
Jack and Jimmy took hold, and with the oyster knives soon began to fill
a receptacle with the contents of the shells.
Nick was busying himself whacking a few open on the side, "just to test
them," as he said; for they noticed that he made no contributions to
the general fund.
"A trifle salty, but just prime," the judge of oysters remarked,
several times, as he devoured a fat one. "This is worth coming for,
boys. The coast for me every time, when you can get such treats as
this. Think I gathered enough? Want any more, Josh?"
"Oh! hould up!" cried Jimmy, whose fingers were getting sore from the
various cuts received from the sharp edges. "Sure, we've got enough
for a rigiment, so we have. Just ate up the balance yoursilf, and stow
your gab, Nick."
A short time later, Jack, who had been rummaging around aboard the
_Tramp_, called out:
"Anybody see my old coat lying around loose?"
At that, Jimmy uttered a startled cry and jumped up.
"Glory be!" he exclaimed. "I forgot all about that, Jack, darlint. It
must have been your coat that wint overboard in the inlet, and sank,
while I was shootin' the murderous shark. And by the powers, that is
too bad, beca'se it had that bally ould paper missage in it ye was to
deliver to Van Arsdale Spence at Beaufort!"
The other boys echoed the disconsolate cry of Jimmy, and looked at
Jack, as if they felt the greatest pity for him in his unfortunate loss.