Thinking that Dick and Carl, who had comprised the anchor watch, had been caught napping, and that the revolutionists were making an attack on the boat, he leaped up, caught the first weapon he could lay hold of, and darted for the iron ladder.
The weapon happened to be an old harpoon belonging to Speake, who had once had a berth aboard a whaling ship.
When Bob lifted his head above the rim of the conning-tower hatch, a strange scene met his eyes.
CHAPTER VIII.
CARL IN TROUBLE.
The most prominent object that met Bob Steele’s startled eyes was a big bull alligator. The creature was thrashing about in the water, now striking the sides of the Grampus with its powerful tail, and now making an attack on the pitpan, or dugout canoe.
Carl Pretzel was in the canoe, and he was wildly anxious to get back to the submarine. The alligator, however, was floundering around in the stretch of water between Carl and the Grampus.
“Help!” whooped Carl. “Der man eader vill ged me if you don’d do somet’ing.”
It had not occurred to the Dutch boy that he could go ashore—being much nearer the bank, in fact, than the submarine.
Dick had a hatchet which he had picked up from somewhere on the deck. He rushed back to the conning tower and climbed into it, thus securing an elevated position which offered some advantage in case he hurled the hatchet at the big saurian.