By eleven-thirty every member of the crew selected for the rescue trip was aboard, including two mail clerks. There would be no transfer of the mail to the Neptune but the postoffice department had rushed a special cancellation from Washington and letters already aboard would be carried into the Arctic. At the scene of the rescue of the Neptune’s crew the postal clerks would cancel the letters with the special stamp.
When the Goliath started out of its hangar at midnight on the second of July, there were 62 men aboard, including the two postoffice clerks. The crew had been reduced to a minimum for they would pick up the 31 men from the Neptune.
A typical July heat wave had gripped the nation for three days and they were glad to soar into the cooler heights. A thin moon peeped down at them as the great silver airship climbed into the sky and started north on its mission of rescue.
Lights of Bellevue vanished in the night. They went up to eight thousand feet and headed for Montreal. Bert, in the radio room, advised the Canadian station of their start and asked that the news be sent on to the Neptune, via the station at Hopedale.
Andy made a thorough trip over the Goliath while Serge remained in the control room as first assistant to Captain Harkins. In the last month Serge had proved invaluable. He was thoroughly capable of handling the Goliath and had the ability to size up an emergency in an instant and make the right decision.
A little more than an hour after leaving Bellevue, the lights of Pittsburgh appeared to their right. Tongues of flame from the steel furnaces along the Monongahela shot into the night as though in greeting to the king of the skyways.
The sky was brightening with the rose of a summer dawn when they passed over Buffalo and headed down Lake Ontario.
Captain Harkins, who had been at the controls, complained of a severe abdominal pain and retired into the main lounge, leaving Andy in charge. As they neared Montreal, the commander’s suffering became more intense.
“I’m going to radio ahead and have a doctor meet us at Montreal,” said Bert. “Captain Harkins is a mighty sick man and unless I miss my guess, the trouble is acute appendicitis.”
Andy agreed and told Serge to make preparations to land the Goliath when they reached the airport outside Montreal. Fortunately there was a mooring mast that had been used by British dirigibles in their trans-Atlantic flights.