One had only to
glance over the side of the motor boat to see it.

"Pass a lead line over the side."

A line was dropped to them and at the captain's command Dan Davis took
a sounding.

"What do you make it?"

"By the deep, one, sir."

"As you signaled."

"Yes, sir."

"A close guess. You have a sharp eye, Davis."

The captain peered down. He could, by getting between the sun and the
bow of the ship, look down to where the prow of the battleship
disappeared in the white sand on the bottom of the bay.

"Do you want the divers over, sir?" called the executive officer.

"I think not, just now. It will be useless until we get her nose out
of the sand. They cannot tell us any more than we know now."

The motor boat then made a tour of the ship, the captain surveying her
from all points of view. The "Long Island" appeared to be resting
easily, and the sea was comparatively smooth. A glance at the skies
told the commanding officer that good weather might reasonably be
expected for the rest of the day.

"Return to the starboard gangway," he commanded tersely.

The captain forgot to go to his luncheon that day. He paced the
quarter-deck, watching the weather, receiving frequent reports from the
forward end of the ship and having frequent tests made to determine the
state of the tide.

The afternoon was well along before the welcome intelligence was
brought to him that the tide was flowing strong and would be high
within the next thirty minutes.

"Tell the engineer to stand by to go astern full speed," he said. "All
hands not on necessary duty will gather on the quarter-deck, so that we
may get all the weight possible aft. Pipe all hands aft, Mr. Coates."

The boatswain's whistle trilled here and there, and was finally lost in
the depths of the ship. Soon the sailors began marching to the
quarter-deck until that part of the ship was packed with them.

The captain, with his executive officer, went forward to the bridge.

"I think we had better try it now, Coates," he said. "Give orders to
have the anchor shipped."

"Stand by the starboard anchor," commanded the executive.

A few minutes of waiting followed.

"Ship the starboard anchor!"

"Signal the engineer to send both engines full speed astern," ordered
the captain.

The bridge telegraph clanked noisily, then a quiver ran through the
ship. The commanding officer stood stolidly awaiting the result. It
was an anxious moment for him, me