CHAPTER XIII.--A TWENTIETH-CENTURY RESCUE.
As he flew his craft in the direction of the feeble beacon of distress,Dr. Perkins once more switched on the searchlight. Its comforting beamshot across the sea, and finally ceased its swaying and centered on astrange sight. As a dark scene in a theater is illumined at one singlepoint by the calcium light, so the search rays concentrated themselveson a striking picture of distress at sea.
Framed in the circle of white light the boys could see a small gasolenecraft, apparently up to the rails in the water. At any rate nothing ofthe hull but a narrow white strip could be seen, while, on the top ofthe raised deck cabin crouched the figures of three men. One of thesehad been swinging the lantern, but he ceased as the bright light fromthe _Sea Eagle_ bathed the group in its rays. One single mast arose highabove the pitching hull, and from it could be seen wires strung down tothe cabin top. Evidently this was the wireless apparatus which had beenthe means of bringing the Boy Aviators and their friend to the rescue.
The yacht could not have been more than fifty feet in length--a verysmall craft to be equipped with wireless; but her owner, if he was onboard, must have been congratulating himself at that very moment on hiswise precaution.
It was but a few minutes after the searchlight had first revealed the_Wanderer_ and her distressed company that the _Sea Eagle_ was swingingin a graceful, birdlike circle in the air above the sinking craft.
Frank seized up a small megaphone, which formed part of the sea and skyship's equipment.
"Ahoy! Aboard the yacht!" he cried.
"Ahoy!" came back the cry, with a note of incredulous wonder in it, aswell there might be, considering the extraordinary circumstances.
"Are you the folks we talked with by wireless?" called Harry.
"The very same," was the shouted reply, "but who are you? Can you get usoff this? The ship won't last much longer."
"We'll get you off all right," exclaimed Frank comfortingly, and as hespoke Dr. Perkins allowed the _Sea Eagle_ to glide down to the surfaceof the waves, alighting on the water about five hundred feet from thecastaways. He at once headed the _Sea Eagle_ round, and calling forreduced speed made for the sinking yacht.
"Slow down! Stop her! Reverse!" he shouted in rapid succession, as theybore down.
"On board the yacht!" hailed Frank, as they glided up alongside, "throwus a line."
The desired rope came snaking through the air, falling across the _SeaEagle's_ bow. Harry bounded forward and made it fast.
"Now haul in," ordered Dr. Perkins, as soon as the propellers had ceasedto beat the air; "easy now; we don't want to foul the wings."
His order was obeyed; and before long the _Sea Eagle's_ bow was scrapingthe side of the _Wanderer_. Fortunately, the sea was smooth, or themaneuver would have been impossible of execution. As it was, however, onthe easy swell that was running it was made with comparatively smalldifficulty.
"Well, great Caesar's ghost!" blurted out a stout, blond man in yachtingcostume, who occupied, apparently, the position of owner of the yacht,"if this isn't the twentieth century with a vengeance. Just think of it,Griggs--rescued by an aeroplane!"
The man addressed, a good-natured-looking man, almost as corpulent asthe first speaker, nodded appreciatively.
"We don't really know how to thank you folks," continued the stout man;"we haven't much longer to stay above water, as you see. We hit aderelict at dusk, and stove in our port bow. The water came rushing inso fast that I had barely time to flash that wireless that you soprovidentially caught."
"It was feeble enough, I can tell you," Frank assured him; "fortunately,we were not far off, and so managed to catch your appeal for help."
The stout man was again warmly thanking his rescuers, when Dr. Perkinsinterrupted.
"Suppose you come on board," he said; "by the looks of your craft she islikely to take a plunge at any minute. I'd like to be able to cut loosefrom her before that happens."
Taking this hint, the stout man clambered on board the _Sea Eagle_ withmore agility than might have been expected from a man of his heavybuild. This done he extended a hand to his friend, and then came theturn of the third occupant of the cabin roof to disembark. This thirdman was evidently, from his costume, a paid hand on board the _SeaEagle_. He was slight and dark and foreign looking, with beady blackeyes, and a not over-prominent chin.
Directly all were on board, Dr. Perkins ordered Frank to "cast off" fromthe sinking yacht. It was well this order was obeyed promptly, forhardly had the _Sea Eagle_ been disengaged from the other craft's side,than the _Wanderer_ gave a sudden plunge, bow downward, under the waves.For one instant her stern upreared itself vertically, showing the rudderand propeller, and then, as if by magic, the whole craft vanished, tofind a grave in the ocean bed.
All this was seen by the searchlight, which Dr. Perkins had keptconcentrated on the yacht while the last act of this ocean drama wasbeing consummated. As the yacht vanished a deep sigh broke from thestout man.
"Good-by, poor old _Wanderer_," he said, "there's an end of thiscruise."
"I am sorry that she was not in a condition to tow to Brig Island,"remarked Dr. Perkins.
"My dear sir, so far as the actual monetary loss is concerned it wasfully covered by insurance," responded the stout man; "my only regret isto see a craft I was very fond of end her days in such a fashion. Also,I am afraid my friend Griggs here will be disappointed at the failure ofour cruise."
"Good heavens!" cried Mr. Griggs, who appeared to be a highly nervousindividual, "I'm glad to have my life, Sterrett--glad to have my life. IfI don't catch my death of cold over this I'll be fortunate indeed."
"In the meantime," struck in the man addressed as Sterrett, "we areforgetting in our own troubles the debt of gratitude we owe to ourfriends here. In the first place, let me introduce ourselves. I am PaulSterrett, late owner of the _Wanderer_. This is my friend, SamuelGriggs, and yonder," indicating the foreign-looking third man, "isFrancis Le Blanc, our cook and general handy man. We left New York on acruise up the coast sometime ago, and up till to-night experienced nomishaps. However, as my friend says, we must not repine; we shouldconsider ourselves fortunate indeed to be onboard your remarkable craftinstead of being in a watery grave, as we must have been had it not beenfor your opportune arrival."
"We consider ourselves fortunate to have been of service to you,"responded the inventor, and then went on in his turn to introducehimself and his party, and also give a brief explanation of the _SeaEagle_, which had, as may be imagined, excited the liveliest curiosityon the part of the rescued castaways.
"But as we shall now get under way without further loss of time," heconcluded, "you will be able to see for yourselves just how the _SeaEagle_ is controlled, and what she can do."
As he finished this speech, Dr. Perkins extinguished the searchlight,which had still been playing on the oil-streaked waters which marked theburial spot of the ill-fated _Wanderer_. This done, he gave Frank the"come ahead" signal. Obediently, as usual, the motor began its song, andthe propellers took up the whirring, buzzing refrain. Mr. Sterrett andhis companions sat perfectly still in the positions in the stern whichhad been assigned to them. Had it been light enough to read theexpressions on their faces one would have said that they were absolutelydumbfounded.
Of course both Mr. Sterrett and his friends--as well informed men--knewthe wonderful capabilities of the modern aeroplane. They had witnessedmany flights, and in common with the generality of progressiveAmericans, knew the general principles of aerial locomotion. But whenthe _Sea Eagle_ from a "boat" turned suddenly into a hydroplane, theyexchanged swift expressions of the utmost astonishment. Only theircompanion, the paid "hand" from the yacht, sat sullenly unimpressed. Infact, since he had boarded the _Sea Eagle_, he had not uttered asyllable, only mumbling his thanks when Mr. Sterrett and his companionhad finished expressing their gratitude for their rescue.
Under the skillful guidance of Dr. Perkins, and the constant attentionthat Frank paid to the whir
ring motor, the _Sea Eagle_ made a quick runback to the island, being guided, when she was still some distance away,by the ruddy glare of a big beacon fire lighted by Ben Stubbs. It was aninstance of the veteran adventurer's thoughtfulness and resource that hehad thought of doing this, for in the hurry of the departure, no suchinstructions had been given him. But on his own responsibility he hadkindled the blaze which materially aided the swift return of the _SeaEagle_ to her eyrie.
Reaching the island, the aerial wonder was sent swinging in decreasingcircles, till Dr. Perkins was sure of a safe drop to the workshop on thesummit of the little spot of land, and then, with a breath-catchingrapidity, the helmsman sent his wonderful vessel earthward, bringing itto a stop within the ruddy glow caused by the blazing bonfire which hadguided them.
As the _Sea Eagle_ settled to the earth the party that had been leftbehind on the adventurous night flight pressed to the side of the novelcraft. A glance showed them that the mission of Dr. Perkins' craft hadbeen crowned with success, and Billy and Pudge began plying the returnedvoyagers with eager questions. Ben Stubbs was slightly in thebackground, and it was not till Mr. Sterrett and his companions hadstepped out on to the ground that he got a good look at them.
When he did, he gave a deep-drawn gasp of surprise. An expression ofsupreme amazement overspread his weather-beaten countenance. But hiseyes did not fix on Mr. Sterrett or his companion, Griggs. Instead theytraveled beyond the nattily clad yachtsmen and rested on the slim figureof the paid "hand."
"Raoul Duval, as sure as there's a north star!" choked out Ben, half tohimself, "waal, if this ain't a small bit of a world!"