Jimmie recognized a note of alarm, of suffering, in the voice of his chum and dropped headlong into the black pit of the submarine. Ned heard him snap the catch of a searchlight, and then, dimly, heard his voice:
"Gee!" the voice said. "What's comin' off here?"
The round face of the electric searchlight showed at the end of a cylindrical shaft of light which rested on Ned's face, but the boy did not realize what was going on until he felt a gust of wind and a drizzle of rain on his forehead.
Then he opened his eyes to find himself on the conning tower of the submarine, with the boys gathered about him, anxiety showing in their speech and manner. It was too dark for him to see their faces.
"You're all right now," Jimmie said. "What got you down there?"
Then Ned remembered the sudden extinction of the lights as he moved down the stairs, the stifling, choking odor below, and the deadly grip of suffocation which had brought him to the floor.
"Go back into the boat," he said, gaining strength every moment. "I am anxious about Lieutenant Scott."
"We've just come from there," Frank said. "We've done all that can be done for him."
"What do you mean by that?" demanded Ned, moving toward the hatch which sealed the submarine.
"The poison which keeled you over got him!" Jack said.