“What do you mean, sir?” Stan asked, wondering at the officer’s smile and twinkling eyes.
“Well, the story has to go very far back in history,” the Captain said, “back when the earth was mostly covered with water and the only living creatures were in the water. There had to be something that crawled out of the water and learned how to live on land. That was Kamongo.”
“How did he do it?” March asked. “Did he have lungs?”
“Maybe a Momsen Lung,” Stan suggested with a laugh.
“Not quite.” Captain Sampson smiled. “We don’t know that it was Kamongo itself that did the crawling out, but it must have been something like him. You see, another name for Kamongo is Lungfish. He’s a kind of fish—more fish than anything else in many ways—but he’s also got lungs of a sort. He can live under water or above it. And so can a submarine. I think it’s a fine name for a sub. I’d like to be boarding her with you.”
“Kamongo,” muttered Stan, almost to himself. “Kamongo.”
“Yes, I’ve been thinking the same thing,” March said. “Getting used to our ship’s name. It’s like suddenly finding out you’ve got a wife and somebody tells you her name—and you’ve never heard it before.”
“If you say it over more and more,” Stan said, “you get to like it. It’s got a good sound.”
“Yes, I think so,” March agreed. “It’s got strength. And for some reason it sounds sleek and trim. And being able to live above or below the water—that’s our ship, all right!”
“Two weeks,” Stan mused. “You’re going home, I suppose?”