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Page 40
"Oh, we must expect accidents," declared Mr. Swift with a
smile. "This is nothing."
But it proved to be more difficult than he had imagined
to re-establish the connection between the pumps and the
tanks. The valves, too, had clogged or jammed, and as the
pressure outside the ship was so great, the water would not
run out of itself. It must be forced.
For an hour or more the inventor, his son and the others,
worked away. They could accomplish nothing. Tom looked
anxiously at his parent when the latter paused in his
efforts.
"Don't worry," advised the aged inventor. "It's got to
come right sooner or later."
Just then Mr. Damon, who had been wandering about the
ship, entered the engine-room.
"Do you know," he said, "you ought to open a window, or
something."
"Why, what's the matter?" asked Tom quickly, looking to
see if the odd man was joking.
"Well, of course I don't exactly mean a window," explained
Mr. Damon, "but we need fresh air."
"Fresh air!" There was a startled note in Mr. Swift's
voice as he repeated the words.
"Yes, I can hardly breathe in the living-room, and it's
not much better here."
"Why, there ought to be plenty of fresh air," went on the
inventor. "It is renewed automatically."
Tom jumped up and looked at an indicator. He uttered a
startled cry.
"The air hasn't been changed in the last hour!" he
exclaimed. "It is bad. There's not enough oxygen in it. I
notice it, now that I've stopped working. The gage indicates
it, too. The automatic air-changer must have stopped
working. I'll fix it."
He hurried to the machine which was depended on to supply
fresh air to the submarine.
"Why, the air tanks are empty!" the young inventor cried.
"We haven't any more air except what is in the ship now!"
"And we're rapidly breathing that up," added Captain
Weston solemnly.
"Can't you make more?" cried Mr. Damon. "I thought you
said you could make oxygen aboard the ship."
"We can," answered Mr. Swift, "but I did not bring along a
supply of the necessary chemicals. I did not think we would
be submerged long enough for that. But there should have
been enough in the reserve tank to last several days. How
about it, Tom?"
"It's all leaked out, or else it wasn't filled," was the
despairing answer. "All the air we have is what's in the
ship, and we can't make more."
The treasure-seekers looked at each other. It was an awful
situation.
"Then the only thing to do is to fix the machinery and
rise to the surface," said Mr. Sharp simply. "We can have
all the air we want, then."
"Yes, but the machinery doesn't seem possible of being
fixed," spoke Tom in a low voice.
"We must do it!" cried his father.
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