FREE BOOKS

Author's List




PREV.   NEXT  
|<   89   90   91   92   93   94   95   96   97   98   99   100   101   102   103   104   105   106   107   108   109   110   111   112   113  
114   115   116   117   118   119   120   121   122   123   124   125   126   127   128   129   130   131   132   133   134   135   136   137   138   >>   >|  
is experience of the last hour. "By Jove! Doc, some guts, eh?" said Sally in a low tone, as he moved away. CHAPTER IX SUBMARINES, BULLPUPS, AND OTHER THINGS A long, weird blast from the fog horn, followed by two short, sharp toots, recalled Barry from his morning dream. "Fog," he grumbled, and turned over to re-capture the enchantment of the Athabasca rapids, and his dancing canoe. Overhead there sounded the trampling of feet. "Submarines, doc," he shouted and leaped to the floor broad awake. "What's the row?" murmured the M. O., who was a heavy sleeper. For answer, Barry ripped the clothes from the doctor's bed. "Submarines, doc," he shouted again, and buckling on his Sam Brown, and seizing his lifebelt, he stood ready to go. "What! your boots off, doc?" In the orders of the day before had been an announcement that officers and men were to sleep fully dressed. "Oh, the devil!" exclaimed the doctor, hunting through his bedclothes in desperation. "I can't sleep in my boots. Where's my tunic? Go on, old fellow, I'll follow you." Barry held his tunic for him. "Here you are! Wake up, doc! And here's your Sam Brown." Barry dropped to lace the doctor's boots, while the latter was buckling on the rest of his equipment. "All right," cried the doctor, rushing from the room and leaving his lifebelt behind him. Barry caught up the lifebelt and followed. "Your lifebelt, doc," he said, as they passed up the companion way. "Oh, I'm a peach of a soldier," said the doctor, struggling into his lifebelt, and swearing deeply the while. "Stop swearing, doc! It's a waste of energy." "Oh, go to hell!" "No, I prefer Heaven, if I must leave this ship, but for the present, I believe I'm needed here, and so are you, doc. Look there!" The doctor glanced out upon the deck. "By Jove! You're right, old man, we are needed and badly. I say, old chap," he said, pausing for a moment to turn to Barry, "you are a dear old thing, aren't you?" The deck was a mass of soldiers struggling, swearing, fighting their way to their various stations. Officers, half dressed and half awake, were rushing hither and thither, seeking their units, swearing at the men and shouting meaningless orders. Over all the stentorian voice of the sergeant major was vainly trying to make itself understood. In the confusion the cry was raised: "We're torpedoed! We're going down!" There was a great rush for the near
PREV.   NEXT  
|<   89   90   91   92   93   94   95   96   97   98   99   100   101   102   103   104   105   106   107   108   109   110   111   112   113  
114   115   116   117   118   119   120   121   122   123   124   125   126   127   128   129   130   131   132   133   134   135   136   137   138   >>   >|  



Top keywords:

doctor

 

lifebelt

 

swearing

 

buckling

 

Submarines

 

shouted

 

needed

 

rushing

 

orders

 

dressed


struggling

 

companion

 

understood

 

vainly

 

soldier

 

energy

 

deeply

 

stentorian

 
sergeant
 

passed


confusion

 
equipment
 

torpedoed

 

raised

 

caught

 

leaving

 

soldiers

 

fighting

 

glanced

 
pausing

stations
 

prefer

 

Heaven

 

shouting

 
moment
 
meaningless
 
seeking
 

thither

 
present
 

Officers


recalled

 

morning

 

grumbled

 

dancing

 

Overhead

 

sounded

 

rapids

 

Athabasca

 

turned

 

capture