“Hello! Hello!” yelled Jack, at the top of his lungs. “Anybody on board? Hello!”
Jack had scarcely uttered the call when from below the deck came a pandemonium of sounds that fairly made the two lads jump. There were roars and moans, and a shrill chattering that made their hair feel as if it would stand on end.
“My stars, Jack! what kind of a boat is this?” gasped Randy, as he clutched his cousin by the arm.
“I don’t know,” was the short reply, and Jack looked at his cousin curiously. Had their extreme hunger and thirst affected their minds and were they simply imagining things?
They looked back to the wreckage they had left, and to their satisfaction saw that it was less than half as far away as it had been when they had left it to swim over to the steam yacht.
“Thank fortune, it’s coming this way!” breathed Randy. “I hope it does—that may save us a lot of trouble.”
“Provided we want to stay aboard this ship,” answered Jack.
“Why, what do you mean by that? Don’t you think it’s safe?” asked his cousin, in alarm.
“I don’t know what to think, Randy. Either we’re bewitched, or this boat has got the queerest cargo aboard I ever heard of. Just listen to that roaring and moaning and chattering! Did you ever hear anything like it in your life?”
“Hi! Hi! Can’t you throw us a line?” came suddenly from the wreckage, and now they saw that it was floating still closer.