Later our friends learned that such was the case.
The storm had either passed, or the Mars had run out of the path of it, for, after the first few hours of pitching and tossing, the atmosphere seemed reduced to a state of calm.
All the while they were secretly working to gain their freedom so they might attack and overpower their enemies, they took occasional observations from the small window. But they could learn nothing of their whereabouts. They could only view the heaving ocean, far below them, or see a mass of cloud-mist, which hid the earth, if so be that the Mars was sailing over land.
"But how much longer can they keep it up?" asked Ned.
"Well, we have fuel and supplies aboard for nearly two weeks," Tom answered.
"And by the end of that time we may all be dead," spoke the young bank clerk despondently.
"No, we'll be out of here before then!" declared Lieutenant Marbury.
Indeed the hole was now almost large enough to enable them to crawl out one at a time. They could not, of course, see how it looked from the outside, but Tom had selected a place for its cutting so that the sawdust and the mark of the panel that was being removed, would not ordinarily be noticeable.
They set night as the time for making the attempt—late at night, when it was hoped that most of their captors would be asleep.
Finally the last cut was made, and a piece of wood hung over the opening only by a shred, all ready to knock out.