17 - Tom Swift and His Submarine Boat by Victor Appleton

In pursuit of sunken treasure, Tom and his submarine crew brave the ocean’s depths. Underwater dangers and hidden riches await in this thrilling expedition.

Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
Visit LibriVox dot Org. Tom Swift and his submarine Vote
by Victor Appleton, Chapter seventeen, directed by Captain Weston, who
glanced at the compass and told him which way to
steer to clear the outer coral reef. Tom sent the
submarine ahead, signaling for full speed, to the engine room,
where his father and mister Sharp were. The big dynamos

(00:23):
purred like great cats as they sent the electrical energy
into the forward and aft plates, pulling and pushing the
advance forward. On and on. She rushed underwater, but ever
as she shot ahead, the disturbance in the phosphorescent water
showed her position plainly. She would be easy to follow.
Can't you get any more speed out of her? Asked

(00:45):
the captain of the lad Yes, was the quick reply.
By using the auxiliary screws. I think we can. I'll
try it. He signaled for the propellers forward and aft
to be put in motion, and the motor moving the
twin screws was turned on at once. There was a
perceptible increase to the speed of the advance. Are we
leaving them behind? Asked Tom anxiously, as he glanced at

(01:07):
the speed gage and noted that the submarine was now
about five hundred feet below the surface. Hard to tell,
replied the captain. You'd have to take an observation to
make sure. I'll do it, cried the youth, youse deer. Please,
then I'll go into the conning tower. I can look
forward and laught there as well as straight up. Maybe
I can see the wonder springing up the circular ladder

(01:28):
leading into the tower. Tom glanced through the windows all
about the small pilot house. He saw a curious sight.
It was as if the submarine was in a sea
of yellowish liquid fire. She was immersed in water which
glowed with the flames that contained no heat. So light
was it, in fact, that there was no need of
the incandescence in the tower. The young inventor could have
seen to read a paper by the illumination of the phosphorus.

(01:51):
But he had something else to do than observe this phenomenon.
He wanted to see if he had catched sight of
the rival submarine. At first, he could make out nothing
save the swirl and boiling of the sea caused by
the progress of the advance through it. But suddenly, as
he looked up, he was aware of some great black
body a little to the rear and about ten feet

(02:12):
above his craft. A shark, he exclaimed aloud, an immense
one too. But the closer he looked, the less it
seemed like a shark. The position of the black object changed.
It appeared to settle down, to be approaching the top
of the conning tower. Then, with a suddenness that unnerved
him for the time being, Tom recognized what it was.
It was the underside of a ship. He could see

(02:33):
the place riveted together. Then, as he noted the rounded
cylindrical shape, he knew that it was a submarine. It
was the wonder she was close at hand and was
creeping up on the advance. But what was more dangerous,
she seemed to be slowly settling in the water. Another
moment at her great screws might crash into the conning
tower of the Swift's boat and shave it off. Then

(02:54):
the water would rush in, drowning the treasure seekers like
rats in a trap. With a quick motion, Tom yanked
over the lever that allowed more water to flow into
the ballast tanks. The effect was at once appearance. The
advance shot down toward the bottom of the sea. At
the same time, the young inventor signaled to Captain Weston
to notify those in the engine room to put on
a little more speed. The advance fairly leaped ahead, and

(03:18):
the lad looking up through the bull's eye and the
roof of the conning tower, had the satisfaction of seeing
the rival's submarine left behind. The youth hurried down into
the interior of the ship to tell what he was
seen and explain the reason for opening the ballast tanks.
He found his father and mister Sharp somewhat excited over
the unexpected maneuver of the craft. So they're still following us,

(03:40):
murmured mister Swift. I don't see why we can't shake
them off. It's on account of this luminous water, explained
Captain Weston. Once we are clear of that, it will
be easy, I think, to give them the slip. That is,
if we can get out of their sight long enough.
Of course, if they cleep close after us, they can
pick us up with their searchlight. For I suppose they
carry one, yes, admitted the aged adventor. They have as

(04:03):
strong a one as we have. In fact, their ship
is second only to this one in speed and power.
I know for Bentley and Eager showed me some of
the plans before they started and asked my opinion. This
was before I had the notion of building a submarine. Yes,
I am afraid we'll have trouble getting away from them.
I can't understand this phosphorescent glow keeping up so long,

(04:23):
remarked Captain Weston. I've seen it in this locality several times,
but it never covered such an extent of the ocean
in my time. There must be change conditions here now.
For an hour or more, the race was kept up,
and the two submarines forged ahead through the glowing sea.
The Wonder remained slightly above into the rear of the other,
the better to keep sight of her, and though the

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advance was run to her limit of speed, that her
rival could not be shaken off. Clearly, the Wonder was
a speedy craft. It's too bad that we've got to
fight them, as well as run the risk of lots
of other troubles which are always present when sailing underwater,
observed mister Damon, who wandered to about the submarine like
the nervous person he was. Bless my shirt studs. Can't

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we blow them up or cripple them in some way.
They have no right to go after our treasure. Well,
I guess they've got as much right as we have
declared Tom it goes to whoever reaches the wreck first.
But what I don't like is their mean, sneaking way
of doing it. If they went off in their own
hook and looked for I wouldn't say a word. But
they expect us to lead them to the wreck, and
then they'll rob us if they can. That's not fair. Indeed,

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it isn't agreed Captain Weston, if I may be allowed
the expression, but we ought to find some way of
stopping them. But if I'm not mistaken, he added quickly,
looking from one of the port bull's eyes, the phosphorescent
glow is lessening. I believe we are running beyond that
part of the ocean. There was no doubt of it.
The glow was growing less and less, and ten minutes
later the advance was speeding along through a sea as

(05:49):
black as night. Then, to avoid running into some wreck,
it was necessary to turn on the searchlight. Are they
still after us? Asked mister Swift of his son, as
he emerged from the entered him where he had gone
to make some adjustments to the machinery with the hope
of increasing the speed. I'll go look, volunteered the lad
He climbed up into the conning tower again, and for

(06:09):
a moment, as he gazed back into the black water
swirling all about, he hoped that they had lost the wonder,
But a moment later his heart sank as he caught
sight through the liquid element of the flickering gleams of
another searchlight. The rays undulating through the sea still following,
murmured the young inventor. They're not going to give up,
but we must make him, that's all. He went down

(06:30):
to report what he had seen, and a consultation was held.
Captain Weston carefully studied the charts of that part of
the ocean, and, finding that there was a great depth
of water at hand, proposed a series of evolutions. We
can go up and down, shoot first to one side
and then to the other, he exclaimed. We can even
drop down to the bottom and rest there for a while.
Perhaps in that way we can shake them off. They

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tried it. The advance was sent up until her conning
tower was out of the water, and then she was
suddenly forced down until she was but a few feet
from the bottom, jarner to the left, to the right,
and even doubled and went back over the course she
had taken. But all to no purpose. The Wonder proved
fully as speedy, and those in her teem to know
just how to handle the submarine, so that every evolution
of the advance was duplicated. Her rival could not be

(07:14):
shaken off. All night this was kept up, and when
morning came, though only the clocks told it, for eternal
night was below the surface, the rival gold Seekers were
still on the trail. They won't give up, declared mister
Swift hopelessly. No, we've got to race them for it,
just as Berg proposed, admitted Tom. But if they want
to straightaway race, we'll give it to him. Let's run
her to the limit, Dad, that's what we've been doing, Tom, No,

(07:39):
not exactly, for we've been submerged a little too much
to get the best speed out of our craft. Let's
go a little nearer the surface and give them the
best race they'll ever have. Then the race began, and
such a contest of speed as it was, with her
propellers working to the limit, and every bolt of electricity
that was available forced them to the forward and aft plates.
The Advance surged through the water about ten feet below

(08:00):
the surface, but the Wonder kept after her, giving her
not for naught. The course of the leading submarine was
easy to trace now in the morning light, which penetrated
ten feet down. No use, remarked Tom again, when after
two hours the Wonder was still close behind them. Our
only chance is that they may have a breakdown or
run out of air, or something like that, added Captain Weston.

(08:21):
They are crowding us pretty close. I had no idea
they could keep up this speed if they don't look out,
he went on, as he looked from one of the
APT observation windows. They'll foul us, and his remarks were
interrupted by a jar to the advance. She seemed to
shiver and careen to one side. Then came another bump.
Slow down, cried the Captain, rushing toward the pilot house.

(08:42):
What's the matter, asked Tom, as he threw the engines
and electrical machines out of gear. Have we hit anything? No,
something has hit us, cried the captain. Their submarine has
rammed us. Rammed us, repeated mister swift, Tom. Run out
the electric cannon they're trying to sing to us. We
shall have to fight them. Run out this stern electric gun,
and we'll make them wish they'd not followed us. End

(09:05):
of Chapter seventeen, recording by ESTERB and Simonides