Luis Philip Senarens - Frank Reade Jr.'s Submarine Boat The Explorer; or, to the North Pole Under the Ice

Frank had looked for a heap of gold and silver.

But the chest was empty.

Likewise was the next.

Only one out of the whole contained anything, and this was half full of gold coins.

It contained perhaps four or five thousand dollars’ worth of gold coin. However, this was better than nothing.

While it could not be said that a great treasure had been found, yet Frank was well satisfied.

Nothing more of value was found aboard the ship.

The young inventor, with Pomp’s aid, carried the chest of gold out of the hull.

It was quite a heavy lift, but they succeeded in carrying it to the platform on the side of the Explorer, when a startling thing happened.

Suddenly Pomp made a frantic gesture.

At the same moment Frank saw a dark object coming through the water from above.

As it dropped upon the bottom and into the full glare of the search-light, the young inventor was astounded.

It was a human being.

A man in sailor’s garb it was.

He was gasping and apparently drowning before their eyes.

“My God!” thought Frank, with horror. “He must be saved!”

With the young inventor to think was to act.

He leaped down upon the sands and rushed to the man’s side.

In a twinkling, with Pomp’s aid, he was carried over the rail and into the vestibule.

Frank pulled the compressed air valve and the water was quickly pumped out of the compartment.

The man lay limp and helpless in Frank’s arms.

He was apparently dead.

But the young inventor knew that prompt action might save him.

Accordingly, he adopted every known method for bringing the victim to.

With Pomp’s aid the fellow was worked over until Frank detected a beat in the heart and brought a sigh from the white lips.

“Golly, we’se gwine to fetch him out ob it, Marse Frank!” cried Pomp, excitedly.

They took occasion now to remove their diving suits.

Then the half drowned man was put into a warm bunk, and in half an hour was able to tell his story.

He opened his eyes and looked about, somewhat dazed at his surroundings.

“W--where am I?” he muttered, in a bewildered way.

“You’re all right, my friend,” cried Frank. “You’re on board the Explorer, a submarine boat.”

“Thunder!” gasped the astonished sailor. “Did you pull me out of the water?”

“Yes.”

“But I thought I went down.”

“You did go down. We picked you up from the bottom.”

The sailor looked astonished.

He was recovering quickly. In a few moments he was able to rise.

“You don’t mean to tell me that we’re on the bottom of the ocean this minute?”

“That is true.”

A more astonished person was never seen. He went to one of the bull’s-eyes and looked out.

“Well, I’ll take my ‘davy!” he cried. “You weren’t born to be drowned, Matt Williams, and that’s sure. Who’d ever have dreamed of a thing like this?”

Then he saw the inquiring faces of his rescuers, and said:

“Well, friends, I suppose you would like my story. I will tell it to you, and you will agree it is a queer one.”

With this, Matt Williams dropped into a chair.

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