“Get up! Get up!” begged Bob and Ned, running toward Jerry. “We’ll be swamped!”
Jerry grasped the starting lever, but, for some reason, the motor failed to respond. He shoved it back and forth and vibrated the spark adjuster. But the air-propellers refused to turn.
“Start the water-screw, and get as far off as we can,” advised Ned.
“You do it, and I’ll work at this lever,” called Jerry.
As he spoke, he glanced back, and his cry of horror caused his companions to look where he pointed. Some distance off, and coming forward with increasing speed, was the whale, headed right for the floating motorship.
“She’s going to attack us!” cried Ned. “She thinks our craft killed her calf, and she’s going to ram us! Look out!”
Maddened by the loss of her offspring, the gigantic whale, as Ned had said, was about to attack the Comet, which was almost at the mercy of the leviathan, now that the air-propellers refused to operate. It was a critical moment for our heroes.