OUT OF A LIVING TOMB.
Everybody on board looked to the young captain regarding what move was
to be attempted next.
"We are stuck," muttered Andy Greggs.
"We must get out," returned Captain Oscar. He turned to one of the men.
"How much air in the reservoir, Marney?"
"Two hundred and fifteen feet, captain."
"Humph! Enough for two hours."
"And after that?" put in Andy Greggs.
Oscar shrugged his shoulders. "We must get out before that time, old
chum."
And this meant that if they did not they would all die of suffocation!
Truly their peril was extreme.
The weight of the wrecked French cruiser was so great that she was
slowly but surely sinking deeper and deeper, sending down the Holland
under her.
In another hour the windows would be buried in the sand so that nothing
of the outer world could be seen.
"We'll be in a living tomb," muttered old George Dross.
"If I could get outside I would inspect the situation," said the young
captain.
"If we could get out we might all save ourselves," muttered one of the
men.
"And leave the Holland XI.?" returned the inventor. "Never! I'll never
desert her!" Oscar would no more have thought of leaving his treasure
than would a young mother her child.
"The torpedo hole," suggested Andy Greggs.
"Right!" ejaculated Oscar Pelham. "I'll do it, if it costs me my life."
With all speed he donned one of the diver's suits with which the
submarine craft was provided.
What he intended to do, or rather try to do, was indeed perilous.
This was nothing more than to leave the Holland through the chamber in
which were stored the torpedoes the craft carried.
He would have to pass through two trap-doors, and then to the outer
sea, providing he could get out.
His preparations were carefully made and he went out provided with
several instruments by which he might measure the hollow and figure out
how best to start the submarine craft.
It was with great difficulty that he squeezed himself out into the
water, which here represented a pressure of many pounds to the square
inch.
The first thing that his eyes rested upon was the torpedo which had
failed to go off.
The clockwork was still in position, and what had caused it to cease
moving was a mystery.
"But it's a good thing it didn't go off," he mused, as he began his
inspection of the situation.
He soon found out why the Holland could not move from her position.
In coming down the keel of the French cruiser had split into two parts,
and these now held the top of the Holland fast, as a pair of ice tongs
holds fast a cake of ice.
Had the ends of the cruiser been allowed to settle a foot more, the two
grips of the keel must have crushed in the sides of the Holland like
the shell of an egg.
Oscar examined the ends of the keel with interest and soon felt certain
that the Holland could be moved only after great labor to liberate her.
"And that will take time," he muttered sadly. "And time is what we
cannot afford."
Slowly and painfully he made his way back to the hole through which he
had emerged into the ocean.
The bow of the submarine craft was just gained, when suddenly a
concussion occurred which hurled him flat on his back and for some time
to come deprived him of all sense of hearing.
One of the powder magazines which had not been touched by water on the
Republique had blown up, creating something like an earthquake under
the sea.
Sand and wreckage flew in all directions, and when Captain Oscar
recovered he found his body covered with a mass of stuff difficult to
remove.
As soon as able he stared about him, and to his utter amazement saw
that the Holland had disappeared!
"What can it mean?" he asked himself. "Is it possible she has been
blown up?"
The vicinity of the wreck was now dangerous, with so much loose matter
still floating about, and as soon as able he left the spot, mounting a
sand hill several hundred feet away.
The Holland was nowhere to be seen, nor was any wreckage belonging to
her about. This gave him a little comfort, for he concluded that she
must have escaped.
But he must now pay attention to his own safety, for his supply of
fresh air was limited, and with the weight of the diver's outfit it was
impossible to ascend to the surface of the ocean.
What should he do?
He knew the coast of Cuba was near, but in what direction?
"I must move," he told himself. "Anything is better than staying here."
He moved on, slowly and painfully, to where he thought the bottom of
the ocean ascended gradually. Soon it grew lighter, telling him that he
was getting closer to the surface.
But now the fresh air was almost gone and a sleepy sensation stole over
him. But he must not sleep, or it would be the slumber of death!
On and on he went, now climbing a rugged hill, covered with sand, rocks
and moss, the home of innumerable fish and strange looking crabs.
The fish rushed past him, hitting him often with their tails, while
the crabs spit at them spitefully, their beady eyes bulging from their
heads.
He was almost to the top now, but his air was gone, and with it his
strength. There was a strange flicker before his eyes and a roaring in
his head.
Once he stumbled headlong, but quickly picked himself up again.
Half a dozen steps more and his head came out of the water. Then he
dragged himself to a higher point and with nervous hands unscrewed his
air-and-water-tight helmet.
Oh, how good the fresh air tasted! It was fairly intoxicating, and he
filled his lungs repeatedly.
He was saved!
Looking around, he found a small jut of land not a dozen yards distant,
fringed with a series of overhanging bushes and trees.
It was on the Cuban coast, two miles west of the city which the
Tien-Tsin had been bombarding.
He dragged himself to the shore, and finding a safe place in the
bushes, threw himself down to rest.
From a distance he heard the booming of cannon, telling that the Cuban
city was being bombarded still by other vessels of the foreign foe.
But to this booming he gave no attention, for he was dead tired.
Soon he dropped into a doze in spite of himself, from which he did not
awaken until early the next morning.
He awoke with a start, and then a noise in the bushes beside him caused
him to leap to his feet.
He gave a cry of dismay, for, looking inland, he beheld at least a
thousand Japanese troops marching in his direction!
The advance guard was on him and in a moment more he was discovered and
surrounded!