, he
disappeared beneath it. A blue-light was instantly ignited, the bright
glare of which must, it was hoped, penetrate to the very bottom of the
ship. It seemed impossible to those standing by that Peter could exist
beneath the black fluid which surged over him. The seconds went slowly
by, each second appearing to them almost like a minute. The doctor, who
had come down, kept his watch in his hand. Adair expected him every
moment to give the signal for drawing up the man.

"The poor fellow will be drowned if he stays any longer," observed
Adair.

"He will endure it for twenty-five seconds more," answered the doctor.
"We must have him up by that time, if he does not return."

"Haul him up," cried Adair; "he cannot stand it longer."

Just as he spoke, the black's head appeared above the water.

"Me find it next time," he said, drawing a deep breath. In a couple of
minutes Peter declared himself ready again to descend. Another
blue-light was burned, irradiating the depths below. As before, the
doctor watched the time Peter was under the water. Two minutes had
passed, when Adair ordered the man to be hauled up. It was not a moment
too soon. At first, from his appearance, all supposed he was drowned,
and the doctor began to prepare to resuscitate him, when he came to
himself.

"All right!" he exclaimed; "de leak found, big 'nough to put him hand
through."

Peter, as soon as he had regained his strength, showed the exact spot
where the hole existed, through which the water was spouting as through
a hose. Adair was satisfied that the black was right. The question was
now how to stop it. The carpenter had got plugs ready, but Peter
averred that no human power could force them in, unless the pressure of
water was first taken off from the outside. The only way of doing this
was by getting a thrummed sail under the ship's bottom. The engineer
suggested that an iron plate should be screwed on, but the difficulty
was to screw it in the proper position. He then proposed fixing an iron
bar to the plate and securing the other end to a beam above it. The
plate was quickly prepared as he suggested, but though it prevented the
water spouting upwards as it had before done, it found an entrance
notwithstanding, between the plate and the ship's bottom. Adair now
gave orders to have a sail thrummed. The operation is as follows: A
sail is stretched out and masses of oakum are fastened on to one side,
so as to giv