Andy was shaky from his experience over on the east side and while Bert, Harry and Blatz went out to a show, he remained at the hotel to rest and think things over.
He was positive that he had seen Blatz go into the warehouse and the conviction grew that the German civilian observer was not all that he claimed to be. Andy felt a crisis coming, something he couldn’t exactly put into words, but a vague feeling that trouble was just around the corner. He was asleep when the others returned at midnight from the theater and they did not waken him.
Andy felt much refreshed the next morning and they decided to accompany Harry on his visit to the shipyard.
“It’s the finest tin fish I’ve ever seen,” said Bert, who had visited the Neptune the afternoon before. “They’ve got just about everything they need in it.”
“It is a wonderful boat,” admitted Harry proudly, “but I’ll have to confess that traveling in the Neptune won’t be able to compare with the Goliath. When we’re submerged the air isn’t any too good if we’re down three or four hours and we’re pretty cramped for space.”
“Let’s get under way,” said Andy. “I’m anxious to see this wonderful tin fish.”
They took a taxi across town, rolled over the Brooklyn bridge and fifteen minutes later were walking into the shipyard where the Neptune was being groomed for its polar trip.
The submarine was lying beside a stubby wharf with its main hatch open. Workmen were busy passing supplies down into its depths as Andy and his party arrived.
“My gosh,” exclaimed Andy. “I didn’t suppose you had a submarine of this type. It’s almost as big as one of the navy’s super-cruisers.”
“Just about,” agreed Harry. “As a matter-of-fact, this sub was built for naval purposes by the Seabright yards. They used it as a demonstrator in selling similar models to South American navies. It has just about every modern gadget on it that inventors could devise. As a result of this working model, the Seabright people landed contracts for about 25 million in work. The Neptune had served its purpose and they were willing to sell it to Gilbert Mathews at a very reasonable figure when he started looking for a ship in which to make the polar trip. The Seabright engineers have made all of the necessary changes for polar cruising and have just put their official approval on the Neptune, which means we’ll be starting north within a few days.”
“I’d like to see inside the Neptune,” said Blatz, adding, “I’ve never been in a submarine before.”
“All right,” agreed Harry, “but we’ll have to keep out of the way of the crew bringing in stores Let’s go.”
They scrambled down the ladder and reached the rivet-studded deck of the Neptune. There was a lull in the steady stream of boxes being carried into the interior and they hurried through the main hatch and into the conning tower, then down into the main control room.
Andy looked about in amazement at the compactness of the instruments in the “brains” of the submarine. There was not an inch of waste space in the spotlessly white interior of the steel fish.
Harry led them through the forward engine room and into the crew quarters where double-decked bunks lined the walls. Just ahead were the officers’ quarters, slightly better furnished than those of the crew and beyond this was the radio cubby where Harry would practically live from the time they left the Brooklyn shipyard until they returned from the desolate ice wastes of the far north.
They went on ahead into the room usually used as a torpedo room. This had been fitted with scientific equipment for sounding the ocean depths, and determining the material at the bottom of the Arctic. In addition to the scientific paraphernalia, the forward room contained the all important rescue chambers. In this room was located the powerful drill which was capable of boring fifty feet upward straight through the ice, opening a tunnel large enough for a man to wriggle through in case the submarine became trapped by ice. There was also an escape passage through the forward torpedo tubes.
The inspection of the forward half of the sub completed, they turned to the after quarters. Another large engine room was located after the main control room and beyond this was another room with double-decked bunks while just back of that was the galley.
“You’ve got a place to cook food,” said Bert, “but where do you eat?”
“Just about any place we find convenient,” replied Harry. “There are a number of folding tables that can be pulled out in the crews’ quarters but if the going is rough or we’re busy, we take on food when and where we can get it.”
“When you’re pitching around on the North Atlantic and trying to connect a little food with that hungry mouth of yours, just remember what a pleasant time I’ll be having on the Goliath where there’s plenty of room to stretch and plenty of room to eat,” said Bert.
“I’ll probably remember that a good many times,” grinned Harry, “but if you radio me a description of some of those nice meals of yours. I’ll refuse to answer.”
They completed their inspection of the Neptune and had climbed back to the wharf when a roadster rolled through the shipyard gate.
“Just a minute, fellows,” said Harry. “Here comes Gilbert Mathews. I’d like to have you meet him.”
The commander of the Neptune was tall and broad-shouldered. His walk was vigorous and he was hatless. His brown hair was slightly gray at the temples and he might be anywhere from 35 to 45 years old.
“Hello, Harry,” he said as he came up. “Your radio equipment all ready?”
“Everything’s tested and in fine shape,” replied the radio operator. “I’d like to have you meet my friends.”
“Delighted,” said the explorer, and he greeted Blatz, Bert and Andy cordially.
“I’ve had some very pleasant conferences with your father,” he told Andy. “Will we meet at the North pole this summer?”
“I sincerely hope so,” replied Andy. “Bert is chief radio operator on the Goliath and I will make the trip as assistant to Captain Harkins.”
“Then I am sure that we will meet again,” replied Mathews. He turned to Harry.
“Did the orders reach you at your hotel before you left this morning?” he asked.
“No sir,” replied Harry.
“Then this will come as somewhat of a surprise,” smiled Mathews. “We’ll leave at sunrise and every member of the crew has been ordered on board tonight.”
“It certainly is a surprise,” gasped Harry, “but I’ll be aboard ship tonight.”
“You’re leaving almost two weeks earlier than you had first planned,” said Andy.
“Conditions in the Arctic are more open than they have been for a number of years,” replied the explorer, “and I am anxious to get the Neptune into the ice as soon as possible.”
“We probably will not see you again,” said Andy, “but we wish you every good fortune and we’ll see you at the North pole.”
“Thank you for your good wishes,” replied Mathews. “In return, I wish the Goliath a fair voyage and a fast one.”
The explorer left them and hurried down the ladder to supervise the final preparations for the departure of the Neptune.............