“Do you think they’ve been trapped under the ice?” asked Bert anxiously.
“No,” replied Andy, “for they have the ice drill to cut a path to safety. But a submarine has so many things that can go wrong.”
Late the second day Andy’s father returned from Washington and they informed him of the gravity of the situation.
“How long would it take to get the Goliath ready for a polar trip?” he asked Andy.
“Not much more than six hours,” Andy replied.
“Better warn the crew to stand by. If we don’t hear from the Neptune in another 48 hours we’ll start north in an attempt to locate them.”
Two hours later the Canadian station at Montreal broke in with an urgent message.
“Amateur operator at Hopedale, Labrador, has just messaged that submarine Neptune is disabled and caught in ice. Crew safe. Approximate position: latitude 82° 21′ longitude, east 9° 31′. Ask relief expedition.”
Bert copied the message with a hand that shook so much the words were little more than a scrawl.
“Tell Montreal to stand by,” said Andy, “while I rush this over to Dad and Captain Harkins.” Andy found his father and the commander of the Goliath at the hotel where he burst in on their conference, the message in his hand.