Argosy, Vol. 85, No. 3 — page 171: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

WHAT HAPPENED BELOW. a slam. He straightened up to rest his aching back. He threw back his shoul- ders, and as he did so a tremendous ex-. plosion shook the ship. Her bow lifted high into the air. The stokers in the grimy pit slid scrambling, across the tilted metal deck, straight for the heated fronts of the furnaces. Egan thrust out his shovel and saved himself. He reached out with one long arm and grasped Fisher jusf as the man was about to fall against the hot metal. The ship rolled back, and the stokers made a dash for the ladder. The trim- mers darted from the bunkers, and in a mad, fighting group they tried to force their way to the only escape. | Egan’s heart was pounding rapidly. For a moment he almost joined the rush. Then he saw a stream of dirty water trickle through a crack in the bulkhead. He thought of the boilers that would explode if the water reached them. With a leap he reached the frightened men at the foot of the ladder. He flung them aside and stood with his back to the only escape from the pit. “Get back!’ he shouted. an’ pull your fires!” | They pushed toward him. Fisher made a leap for the ladder. Egan struck him in mid air with his powerful fist. He crumpled up and sprawled out on the floor. The others crowded forward, ter- ror showing in their eyes. Egan swung his arms like flails, batter- ing their flesh as they advanced. In their fear they made no effort to return his blows. They halted, staring wide- eyed at the demon in front of them. He advanced a step. “Pull them fires!” he bellowed, shak- ing his huge fists in the air. “ Pull ’em, damn you, pull ’em!”’ Keeping a wary eye on every man be- fore him, Egan reached for his long- handled rake. He pushed the uncon- scious Fisher aside with his foot. For a moment the others watched him, sheeplike. One started suddenly for the ladder. Egan stepped back and struck “ Get back 513 him. The man staggered, his mouth bleeding. He looked at Egan for an in- stant. Then he turned and opened the furnace doors. The others did the same. The burning coals tumbled from the grates and hissed into the water that washed about the floor. . It grew deeper forward. Egan paused for a moment. to haul the still unconscious Fisher onto a pile of coal. The fires were ptiled, and still the men hesitated. Steam was filling the dingy place. The water continued to rise. Fumes from the coals on the floor all but strangled the men. ‘Break the water-gages!” roared Egan. Groping in the darkening pit the men reached for shovels and rakes. They broke the glass gages. Steam and scald- ing water poured into the place. ‘Now beat it!” shouted Egan. The men swarmed rapidly up the lad- der. Egan waited until they disappeared in the steam. The water had risen to his knees. He straqde through it to the pile of coal on which lay Fisher, moaning now amid the choking fumes and steam. Egan picked him up. The electric lights sud- denly went out. The inrush of water had lessened, but the steam was awful. Egan gasped for air and_ splashed through the blackness. He groped for the ladder in the dark. For a moment he could not find it. A terrible fear gripped him. Then his outstretched hand grasped a rung. With Fisher on his shoulder he started to climb. He tried to hold his breath against the gases and the steam. He reached a land- ing, gasping, and fell against another lad- der. This he clutched and climbed again. Sunlight streamed through a com- panionway. Wearily he walked out onto the listed deck and let Fisher slip gently from his shoulder. He saw a British de- stroyer standing by, its thin bow twisted. ‘‘ She rammed ’em,”’ said some one be- side him. “ That’s where they went down.” Egan looked and saw, a little distance comicloool C©