"Pull, I tell you; pull for all you two are worth, or I'll knock your heads off with this hook. Now—GO!"
The oarsmen pulled. They were used to obeying orders, and they realized that the young coxswain of their craft was no weakling. He meant exactly what he had said. Besides the men, after all, were as anxious to save those of their own calling, now struggling in the water, as Steve could possibly be.
The bow of the life-boat sent the water spurting into the air as the craft cut through the sea. Another man was hauled aboard.
"Where's the rest of them?" demanded Rush.
"The water's full of them," gasped the rescued sailor.
"Ahoy, there, men—swim this way if you can. We're waiting for you. We'll——"
With a sickening roar that Steve Rush would never forget as long as he lived, the "Macomber" dived stern first under the surface of the water. Her engine and boiler rooms, being at the stern, were flooded instantly.
Then came a report as if the universe had been suddenly rent in twain, an explosion that seemed to rend the air, the earth and the sea.
"The ship's blowing up!" cried one of the men in the boat. He knew what the sound meant. Steve did not, but he caught his breath sharply when he heard the words.