"I'm not taking any chances," returned Frank, and then he swung his craft up alongside that of his brother. As Andy had said, his skiff was in pretty good condition. This was due to two causes. The blow of the whale's tail had been a glancing one, and the skiff had an unusually high freeboard, so that though it was splintered down to the water edge, not much of the sea had entered.
"I believe she'll float when I'm out of it so she'll ride higher," declared the younger lad. "Take me into your boat, and maybe we can tow mine in and fix it up. It's too good to lose."
"That's right. Wow! But you had a narrow escape!" and Frank looked very grave as he assisted his brother into the undamaged craft. "I thought it was all up with you."
"So did I, when I saw that beast coming for me. But he sheered off just in time. Then I felt sure my boat would fill and sink in an instant, when I saw the water pouring in, after he swiped me, so I got ready to jump. I didn't want to be carried down with it."
"That's right. Say, that's cut through as clean as if done with a knife," and Frank looked at the slash in the side of his brother's boat. It was indeed a sharp cut, and showed with what awful force the tail of the monster must have descended.
"As much water came pouring in over the side as there did through the hole," went on Andy. "That's what gave me a scare. But did you see the harpoon in that whale?"
"No, was there one?"
"Sure as you're a foot high. There was a short piece of line fast to it, and the whale had a big hole in his side. He's been wounded, probably by a steamer's propeller after he was harpooned up north, or else that's the wound of a bomb gun. I could see it quite plainly."
"Yes, you had a nearer view than I'd want," observed Frank, as he made fast Andy's boat to the stern of his own. As the younger lad had said, his skiff, now that it was higher in the water, because his weight was out of it, took in very little of the sea.
"I guess we can tow it if we bail out," observed Frank. "Are you very wet?"