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THE STORY
Part II
"I found it too late to recede from the
mental attitude I had taken. There was nothing to do but to face the awful
consequences of my chosen method of research. Swiftly and more swiftly I was
whirled around the vortex when suddenly the noise of the whirlpool ceased for a
second and nothing could have stopped its hungry bellow save food for its
insatiable maw which I and my vessel furnished and which were swallowed in one
gulp. I met my doom, or at least thought I had, but instead of blank
forgetfulness, as I had expected, I found myself still conscious in the water
and as I stretched out my hands as if to swim, I felt something hard and
clutched it with all the desperation of a drowning man. It soon dawned on me
that I was not in the water at all, but in a submarine in which I found myself
giving orders to its crew as if it were my accustomed duty. The vessel was
completely under my control, delving to the bottom of the sea or rising at will
to its surface by manipulating a series of levers placed conveniently at
hand."
"I saw in the distance as I arose to the
surface an enemy battleship appearing. I submerged my craft, steered to the
leeward of the vessel and gave a command, 'Fire.' "At the report of the
explosion I saw a great smoke arise from my target and the vessel parted in two
and sank. I sailed boldly forward and spied another vessel coming toward me,
but before I could fire or submerge, I saw a flash from the enemy's vessel and
almost instantly I felt the rude shock and heard a loud explosion as my
submarine went to pieces. I thought surely my end had come, but being still
conscious, I decided to open my eyes in order to note what the bottom of the
sea looked like, and as soon as I had opened them, I was greatly surprised and
chagrined to find myself in your tent."
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