CHAPTER XXVIII.
AN UNDERWATER EARTHQUAKE.
From Santiago the Holland XI. ran southward and then eastward.
A rainy season was now on, and it was cloudy nearly all the time, while showers were frequent.
A sharp lookout was kept constantly, but for several days nothing was sighted but a few peaceable fishing smacks.
At Santiago the young commander had received news that many of the foreign nations were growing tired of the war.
Out of sixteen naval battles they had won but four and out of twenty-two contests on land only three stood to their credit.
In the meantime Uncle Sam had not been idle.
An army of invasion, numbering forty thousand soldiers, had been landed on the coast of England and had taken possession of two forts and one city located there.
Another army was on its way to Japan and a third had just left the Philippines bound for China.
More than this, the Boers of South Africa had thrown in their fortunes with the United States and Cape Colony had followed. Four small South American republics had likewise declared for our country and were willing to do whatever Congress and President Adams wanted of them.
"Things are coming our way fast," declared Andy, when talking the matter over with the young naval captain. "I reckon those foreigners who have combined against us are heartily sick of their job. I can't understand why they went in at all."
"It's the capitalists who forced the war, Andy. The United States is taking the trade of the world fast, and they had to do something."
"Then why didn't they stop buying our goods?"
"Because the common people won't stand that—not if they can buy our goods cheaper than they can their own. When you touch a man's pocketbook you touch his heart."
"But after this war is ended, what then?"
"We'll have to adjust commercial matters with them, that's all. Congress will come to some sort of a friendly agreement. After all, you must remember that our enemies are really our fellow human beings. While we have the power to do so, it's not right for us to drive them too far into a corner."
"I agree with you, Oscar. 'Live and let live' is my motto. But I must say I've got no use for the Chinese."
"Nor I—especially for the fellows who abducted Miss Adams."
"I see you can't get her out of your head. Well, I don't blame you. She's a fine girl, no two ways about it."
The Holland XI. was now out of sight of land, and no shore came to view until some hours later.
In the meantime the air grew strangely hot in spite of the heavy rain which was falling.
"Gosh, but the Holland XI. is getting to be a reg'lar sweatbox!" panted George Dross, as he came out of the engine room and to the trap-door to get a whiff of fresh air.
Oscar examined the thermometer.
"Great Scott!" he ejaculated.
"How high?"
"A hundred and eighteen in the shade!"
Dross could not believe it and examined the glass for himself.
"Right you are, captain. No wonder I was getting ready to keel over down there from the heat."
"We will sink to the bottom of the sea," answered Oscar. "It must be cooler there than up here."
A fresh supply of air was taken on board and soon the submarine craft was slowly descending.
At this point the bed of the Caribbean Sea lay a quarter of a mile below the surface and was broken up by a series of ridges and several hilltops, which looked as if in years gone by they might have been islands.
"It is cooler here," said Andy, while they were resting on the bottom. And then, glancing out of the window, he continued: "What beautiful seaweeds and trees! Oscar, do you suppose this part of the ocean was ever an island?"
"More than likely, Andy."
"What caused it to sink—an earthquake?"
"Either that or else a volcanic eruption, such as they had on Martinique years ago."
"That was a terrible thing. I was told it wiped out 30,000 lives at the city of St. Pierre."
"Yes, and it was followed by the sinking of four small islands in that vicinity and the appearance of the island now known as Gromley, after Professor Gromley, the geologist, who discovered it."
"Those must have been trying times down here."
"They were—so my father told me. And a few years later, when they had that little earthquake in New York city, and the whole mass slipped two inches toward the Battery and the bay, folks got scared out of their wits. My father told me that downtown people left New York with a rush, and some of them didn't go back until several months later."
"I don't blame them. Imagine the whole city, with its enormously high buildings, coming down with a crash and sliding into the bay. It's enough to make a fellow shiver from head to foot."
"Something is bound to happen there some day—if they keep on putting up those skyscrapers. Just before we left I heard of a party who was going to erect a building one hundred stories high and three blocks long, the streets between the blocks to be bridged over."
"Gosh! That fellow must have money!"
"It was a stock company building, and the shares were to be held by the tenants. But I wouldn't want to live or do business on the hundredth floor, I can tell you that."
At this moment word came in from the lookout that he desired to see Captain Oscar at once.
The young captain lost no time in hurrying forward.
"What is it?" he asked.
"Look there, captain. What do you make of that?" questioned the lookout, in return.
Captain Oscar looked in the direction indicated, which was the top of a small hill.
From this hilltop sand was pouring, accompanied by a peculiar something which resembled smoke.
For several minutes both gazed at the extraordinary phenomena in silence.
"That is something new," said Oscar. "I would not mind going a bit closer to investigate."
The words had hardly left his lips when the sand began to shoot up into the air. Then followed something that looked like smoke and steam, and soon the plate glass of the lookout window became hot.
"It's a volcano!" cried Oscar. "I reckon we had better leave this vicinity."
Through the speaking tube he gave orders to George Dross to back the Holland XI.
The screw was just beginning to turn when a dull explosion came to the ears of all on board.
A rush of sand, mud, steam and fire followed and stones beat a steady tattoo on the steel plates of the Holland XI.
Some of the mud and stones became entangled in the screw of the submarine craft and in their hurry to get away from the vicinity the boat was run into a forest of seaweed and marine brushwood.
The whole bottom of the sea was moving and they realized that an earthquake was at hand.
They were caught in the very midst of the awful disturbance and it was a question whether or not they would get out of it alive.