Down Among the Dead Men by S Read online

  submarine by no chance of fate. Nor would he go without leaving a terrible mark behind—a mark that would spell life or death either to one John MacGregor, or to the smiling face that taunted him behind the plate glass of the turret.

  The shark’s rush had torn the

  threadlike wires of the telephone from my helmet, but I did not mind that. As the gray form melted away I seized the cable and sprang with it to the bow of the submarine. In the great pressure of the water my own weight and that of the hawser were nothing.

  Twice I passed the cable round the

  bottle neck of the sunken craft, doubling it Blankly I kept my eyes raised to it as it back on itself, and finally making the great passed between the air-hose attached to my hook at the end fast to a huge ring-bolt in the helmet and the air-hose that rose from the bow. Once the powerful engines of the ship sunken ship, swishing both lines with its fail.

  above strained on that cable, the submarine A voice filtered evenly and coldly into the would go to the top, nose first, as easily as I receivers in my helmet, startling me.

  myself could bound from the bed of the ocean

  “Better watch out for that shark, Mr.

  back to the turret on top of her.

  Murderer. He’ll beat you at your own game if Once there, a bitter pang struck me. I he takes a bite out of that rubber hose!”

  could no longer taunt the officer inside, defy It was Lieutenant Gerald talking, but him and dare him to the duel in the depths that somehow the man’s voice affected me my mad brain had evolved. But he seemed to differently than before. The tone of command understand. I saw him glance down at his had gone out of it. It was not that the man was crew—God forgive me for forgetting them, afraid; he was just waiting for what fate would but in my madness I had. When he looked up bring forth. I heard him say something: again, his face was pale, but I could make out

  “It is on the knees of the gods,” it that he was smiling, as before. He was sounded like.

  watching the scourge of the sea—and me.

  It carne to me with a shock, and it

  “Ah, you understand?” I exulted, as if maddened me, too, that this man—knowing he could hear me.

  him for what he was—should trust himself to He was a sailor, as I was a diver, and the hands of Providence. Then, suddenly, the he knew. Sooner or later that terrible curiosity most terrible thought of all came to me, and I that impels those monsters of the deep to return to that which they cannot understand,

  Munsey’s Magazine

  8

  would turn to rage. Twice the great shark had when I’ve taught the likes of ye many times to returned already, nosing and swishing aside keep off! Take that, and that, and that!”

  the thin lines of the air-hose as if in contempt.

  A horrible red mist filled the waters, The great hanging cable attracted him, and he and a blow sent me rolling over on the bed of nipped it. I must have been mad, but I turned the sea. I braced myself for the rush of salt to nod to the watching officer.

  water in the air-tube, but it never came. I gave

  “There’s judgment for ye!” I gibed.

  the signal to the top, and began to stagger up

  “He’ll tear one o’ them apart before he goes, I the rope ladder.

  know, for I’ve seen them nip a ship’s cable as It must have been a fearful blow that a woman nips a thread!”

  next struck the armored back of my diving-

  “Two against one!” he taunted.

  suit. It threw me clean to the foot of the Whether I heard it, or sensed it from ladder, and as I recovered myself and caught the movement of the man’s lips, I’ll never at the bottom rung I saw the submarine slowly know, but the words that came from the man rising by the nose from the sea, hooked like a in the turret were as plain to me as if I had great fish on the derrick of the battle-ship heard them. Another word came, too:

  above. We were both going up top!

  “Coward!”

  It struck me like a blow in the face; but V

  it was true! To the shark I had left the choice of destruction. The parting of those trailing I WOKE from unconsciousness with the lines of hemp and hose meant the destruction hoarse chorus of sailors’ voices in my ear.

  of one or both of us.

  “Down went McGioty to the bot-tom

  I have said that I was mad, and the

  of the sea!” they were singing.

  thrashing demon above us was even madder Then an officer spoke in a tone of

  than I. He had seized the cable in his great authority.

  jaws, champing on it, but foiled by its wire

  “Keep those fellows from the

  core. His madly swishing tail threw the air-submarine quiet, can’t you?” he said. “They hose into a tangle of white water.

  ought to be saying their prayers—praying for Suddenly he turned, in his own length, Diver MacGregor, at that!”

  snapped, and missed the dangling air-hose of The officer was beside me, and his

  the ship. In my ears I heard that taunting cry: hand on my breast when I struggled up. I saw

  “Two against one!”

  that I was still in diving dress, save for the Such cowardly odds never should smothering helmet. Some one behind me was stand in favor of John MacGregor! Besides, holding my head; and that made me angry, to the madness in my brain was clearing.

  he treated like a child, though the hands were The lunge of the shark brought his

  soft and coo!. The officer laughed.

  great side within a foot of me. I staggered, and

  “Didn’t know me, dad, did you? I

  felt the sawing rasp of his sandpaper hide could see that the pressure had floored you, tearing across my diving-dress. A great black down at the turret, when you talked all that fin flapped against me, and I flung out my arm queer stuff. Steady! Hold him fast, Jeanie.

  to save myself, stabbing, stabbing, stabbing You’d think we were murdering the man!”

  with the long diver’s knife that I snatched It was Lieutenant Gerald—my own

  from my belt.

  lost lad, Jerry MacGregor, speaking. Did I

  “Ye black fiend!” I roared. “Ye’ll know him now, outside that awful turret in the come spoiling the work o’ John MacGregor, deep? God’s mercy, yes; and Jeanie, his sister,

  Down Among the Dead Men 9

  looked in my eyes, and laughed, and cried.

  “When you took me from the dead

  “Jeanie,” I mumbled, gasping for men, with your good MacGregor courage, in breath with the wonder of my discovery, spite of an attack of diver’s madness,” said my

  “why-why didn’t ye tell me?”

  son.

  “Tell you, when ye hated him, dear,

  Our eyes met, and we gazed long into cruel, stupid daddy! You would have cursed each other’s faces, with a look of

  Jerry; and maybe the curse would have understanding.

  counted against him. I’m sorry I ran away, but

  “’Twas you proved the blood of the

  he sent for me to see him take his first MacGregors, and mastered your old mad dad, command. Lieutenant Gerald MacGregor—

  son o’ my heart!” I said. “Man, man, there’s isn’t it grand, daddy dear, after all these years no fool like an old fool. Aye, my lad, ’tis a apart? We were coming home, when—

  grand place for madness—down among the when—”

  dead men!”