Quick as thought Billy and Lathrop ripped off the waterproof cover and Frank jerked the lanyard. Luckily the gun had been loaded with the idea of firing salutes as they left Galveston, but the idea had been forgotten in the excitement.
"Bang!"
Even above the storm the report sounded loudly, and the flash at least was visible.
Would the steamer notice their signal?
There was a moment of agonizing suspense—in which the boys saw death at sea in its ugliest form loom up in front of them.
[Illustration: "A moment of agonizing suspense.">[
The towering black bows seemed to be imminent above the Bolo when there was a sudden flashing of lights on the lofty foredeck, and a voice hailed through the night:
"Motor-boat ahoy!"
The adventurers shouted back at the top of their lungs.
Suddenly the black form of the great vessel, pierced by scores of lighted portholes, seemed to glide away from the Bolo, and, with a rush and roar as the waves smashed against her lofty steel sides, the big vessel raced by.