“Which will be as soon as possible,” said Dr. Perkins. “Our trip has taken us longer than I anticipated, and there is a strong chance that Duval may have got ahead of us.”
“There’s another reason for hurrying,” declared Billy, who had just wired to his paper a long account of the Sea Eagle’s trip; “they say that the river is rising. There have been unprecedented rainstorms and the levees are weakening. Negroes are at work on them all along the line, but they doubt if they can make them hold if the river keeps rising.”
CHAPTER XXVII.—CAPTURED BY AËROPLANE.
During the short time that they had been in the city Ben Stubbs and his two young companions had done wonders in the way of collecting equipment for the purpose of rifling the treasure which it was expected lay in the submerged hulk of the Belle of New Orleans. A diving suit with pumping apparatus of the latest type, blocks and tackles and hand spikes were among the things laid in stock. Ben had also invested in a new device, a submarine searchlight. The choice of this last was warmly approved by Dr. Perkins.
“I was wondering how it would be possible to find one’s way about the sunken ship without some such article,” he said approvingly, and old Ben’s rugged face glowed with satisfaction.
“Trust an old timer, sir, for remembering those things,” he said.
“Indeed, nobody could have selected a more complete outfit,” rejoined Dr. Perkins.
The inventory of the goods was taken the next morning, and hiring a boat the stuff was transported to Algiers, where the Sea Eagle had been looked after over night by a couple of darkies.
As they crossed the river in a hired boat they noticed how swiftly the current ran and how discolored it was. The negro who rowed them commented on it, too.
“Dey be po’ful big flood befo’ long, genelmen,” he opined, “an’ when ole man Mississip’ git up on his hind lags ain’t nuffin’ kin stop him. Dem lebees dey go jes lak so much straw er hay.”