When the engines of the Dipsey had stopped, and she was quietly floating
upon the smooth surface of Lake Shiver, Mr. Gibbs greatly desired to
make a connection with the telegraphic cable which was stretched at the
bottom of the ocean, beneath him, and to thus communicate with Sardis,
But when this matter was discussed in council, several objections were
brought against it, the principal one being that the cable could not
be connected with the Dipsey without destroying its connection with the
little station near the pole; and although this means of telegraphic
communication with regions which might never be visited again might well
be considered as possessing no particular value, still it was such a
wonderful thing to lay a telegraph line to the pole that it seemed the
greatest pity in the world to afterwards destroy it.
The friends of this exploring party had not heard from it since it left
the polar sea, but there could be no harm in making them wait a little
longer. If the return voyage under the ice should be as successfully
accomplished as the first submarine cruise, it would not be very many
days before the Dipsey should arrive at Cape Tariff. She would not
proceed so slowly as she did when coming north, for now her officers
would feel that in a measure they knew the course, and moreover they
would not be delayed by the work of laying a cable as they progressed.
So it was agreed that it would be a waste of time and labor to stop here
and make connection with the cable, and preparations were made for
a descent to a safe depth beneath the surface, when they would start
southward on their homeward voyage. Mrs. Sarah Block, wrapped from head
to foot in furs, remained on deck as long as her husband would allow her
to do so. For some time before her eyes had been slowly wandering around
the edge of that lonely piece of water, and it was with an unsatisfied
air that she now stood gazing from side to side. At last Sammy took her
by the arm and told her she must go below, for they were going to close
up the hatchways.
“Well,” said Sarah, with a sigh, “I suppose I must give 'em up; they
were the warmest and most comfortable ones I had, and I could have
thawed 'em out and dried 'em so that they would have been as good as
ever. I would not mind leavin' 'em if there was a human bein' in this
neighborhood that would wear 'em; but there ain't, and it ain't likely
there ever will be, and if they are frozen stiff in the ice somewhere,
they may stay here, as good as new, for countless ages!”
Of course everybody was very happy, now that they were returning
homeward from a voyage successful beyond parallel in history, and even
Rovinski was beginning to assume an air of gratified anticipation. He
had been released from his confinement and allowed to attend to his
duties, but the trust which had been placed in him when this kindness
had been extended to him on a previous occasion was wanting now.
Everybody knew that he was an unprincipled man, and that if he could
gain access to the telegraph instrument at Cape Tariff he would make
trouble for the real discoverer of the north pole; so it was agreed
among the officers of the vessel that the strictest watch must be kept
on him and no shore privileges be allowed him.
The southward voyage of the Dipsey was an easy one and without notable
incident; and at last a lookout who had been posted at the upper
skylight reported light from above. This meant that they had reached
open water southward of the frozen regions they had been exploring,
and the great submarine voyage, the most peculiar ever made by man, was
ended. Captain Jim Hubbell immediately put on a heavy pea-jacket with
silver buttons, for as soon as the vessel should sail upon the surface
of the sea he would be in command.
When the dripping Dipsey rose from the waters of the arctic regions, it
might have been supposed that the people on board of her were emerging
into a part of the world where they felt perfectly at home. Cape Tariff,
to which they were bound, was a hundred miles away, and was itself a
lonely spot, often inaccessible in severe weather, and they must make a
long and hazardous voyage from it before they could reach their homes;
but by comparison with the absolutely desolate and mysterious region
they had left, any part of the world where there was a possibility of
meeting with other human beings seemed familiar and homelike.
But when the Dipsey was again upon the surface of the ocean, when the
light of day was shining unobstructed upon the bold form of Captain
Hubbell as he strode upon the upper deck--being careful not to stand
still lest his shoes should freeze fast to the planks beneath him--the
party on board were not so-well satisfied as they expected to be. There
was a great wind blowing, and the waves were rolling high. Not far away,
on their starboard bow, a small iceberg, tossing like a disabled ship,
was surging towards them, impelled by a biting blast from the east, and
the sea was so high that sometimes the spray swept over the deck of the
vessel, making it impossible for Captain Hubbell and the others with him
to keep dry.
Still the captain kept his post and roared out his orders, still the
Dipsey pressed forward against wind and wave. Her engines were strong,
her electric gills were folded close to her sides, and she seemed to
feel herself able to contend against the storm, and in this point she
was heartily seconded by her captain.
But the other people on board soon began to have ideas of a different
kind. It seemed to all of them, including the officers, that this
vessel, not built to encounter very heavy weather, was in danger, and
even if she should be able to successfully ride out the storm, their
situation must continue to be a very unpleasant one. The Dipsey pitched
and tossed and rolled and shook herself, and it was the general opinion,
below decks, that the best thing for her to do would be to sink into
the quiet depths below the surface, where she was perfectly at home, and
proceed on her voyage to Cape Tariff in the submarine fashion to which
she was accustomed.
It was some time before Captain Hubbell would consent to listen to such
a proposition as this, but when a wave, carrying on its crest a lump of
ice about the size of a flour barrel, threw its burden on the deck of
the vessel, raking it from stem to stern, the captain, who had barely
been missed by the grating missile, agreed that in a vessel with such
a low rail and of such defective naval principles, it would be better
perhaps to sail under the water than on top of it, and so he went
below, took off his pea-jacket with the silver buttons, and retired into
private life. The Dipsey then sank to a quiet depth and continued her
course under water, to the great satisfaction of everybody on board.
On a fine, frosty morning, with a strong wind blowing, although the
storm had subsided, the few inhabitants of the little settlement at Cape
Tariff saw in the distance a flag floating over the water. The Dipsey
had risen to the surface some twenty miles from the Cape and now came
bravely on, Captain Hubbell on deck, his silver buttons shining in the
sun. The sea was rough, but everybody was willing to bear with a little
discomfort in order to be able to see the point of land which was the
end of the voyage on the Dipsey, to let their eyes rest as early as
possible upon a wreath of smoke arising from the habitation of human
beings, and to catch sight of those human beings themselves.
As soon as the Dipsey arrived in the harbor, Sammy and most of the
officers went on shore to open communication with Sardis. Sarah Block
stayed on the vessel. She had been on shore when she had arrived at Cape
Tariff in the Go Lightly, and her disgust with the methods of living
in that part of the world had been freely expressed. So long as she had
perfectly comfortable quarters on board the good ship she did not wish
to visit the low huts and extremely close quarters in which dwelt the
people of the little colony. Rovinski also remained on board, but not
because he wanted to do so. A watch was kept upon him; but as the Dipsey
was anchored some distance from the landing-place, Mr. Marcy was of the
opinion that if he attempted to swim ashore it might be well to let him
do so, for if he should not be benumbed in the water into which he would
plunge he would certainly be frozen to death as soon as he reached the
shore.
The messages which came from Sardis as soon as news had been received of
the safe return of the explorers were full of hearty congratulations
and friendly welcome, but they were not very long, and Sammy said to Mr.
Gibbs that he thought it likely that this was one of Mr. Clewe's busy
times. The latter telegraphed that he would send a vessel for them
immediately, and as she was now lying at St. John's they would not have
to wait very long.
The fact was that the news of the arrival of the Dipsey at Cape Tariff
had come to Sardis a week after Clewe's descent into the shaft, and he
was absorbed, body and soul, in his underground discoveries. He was
not wanting in sympathy, or even affection, for the people who had been
doing his work, and his interest in their welfare and their achievements
was as great as it ever had been, but the ideas and thoughts which now
occupied his mind were of a character which lessened and overshadowed
every other object of consideration. Most of the messages sent to Cape
Tariff had come from Margaret Raleigh.