limned a strange picture. Two men were
struggling in the water, while beside them the outline of a boat showed
for an instant and then vanished forever.

At top speed the _Peacemaker_ was rushed to the scene. She reached it in
time for those on board to see one of the two men struggling in the
water throw up his arms. The next instant, with a shuddering cry, that
might have been either defiance or agony, he vanished as had the boat.

The other man was picked up. He was an old man, seemingly, and almost
exhausted from his struggle with the waves. But, as he was being dragged
on board, a strange thing occurred. The salt water, with which he was
drenched, had likewise soaked his beard and hair. As he was hauled over
the sloping deck of the submarine his beard and hair slipped away, and
there before them lay Berghoff, seemingly dead or dying.

As soon as they had recovered from their amazement, he was carried below
and made as comfortable as possible; for it was found that he was
shockingly burned. The chart was consulted, and it was reckoned that
Bellport was the closest place at which to land. And so it came about,
that Berghoff--or the wreck of the man--was brought back to the very
spot from which he and his ill-fated companion had set out on their
diabolical trip.

Under close police guard the injured man was carried to the local
hospital, and with his first conscious breath he cried aloud for
Karloff. He was told of the man's fate, and then made a full confession
of the plot to blow up the submarine. As for the accident that had
destroyed their own craft, he explained that Karloff, stooping to light
a cigarette, had ignited some leaked gasoline in the bilge. In a flash
the flames had reached the fuel tank, and an explosion that ripped the
boat apart followed.

For days the man lingered in the hospital, apparently contrite and
suffering great pain. But one night a drowsy nurse and an open window
aided him in a plan of escape that must have formed itself in his mind
some time before. In a weak voice he begged his police guard to get him
a drink of water. When the man came back, Berghoff had gone. Nor was he
ever heard of again. Whether he managed in some way to communicate with
his friends, or whether he gained financial resources to aid his escape
by robbery or other means, will never be known.

"Wa'al, I'm glad I stuck to that thousand," said Lem Higgins, when he
heard of the escape. "I'll git another boat now."