Finally, a cutter put off from the “Hudson,” with a cadet midshipman in charge.  The small boat came over alongside, and the midshipman called up: 

“The lieutenant commander’s compliments, and will Mr. Benson detail Mr. Hastings to go over to the ‘Pollard’ and assist?”

“My compliments to the lieutenant commander,” Jack replied.  “And be good enough to report to him, please, that Mr. Hastings and I will both go.”

“My orders, sir, are to convey you to the ‘Pollard’ before reporting back to the parent vessel,” replied the midshipman.

The cutter came alongside, taking off the two submarine boys, while Eph Somers devoted himself to watching Sam Truax as a bloodhound might have hung to a trail.

Arrived on board the good, old, familiar “Pollard,” Jack and Hal hurried below.

“The machinery is too hot to handle, now, sir,” reported one of the naval machinists, “but it looks as though something was wrong right in there”—­pointing.

“Put one of the electric fans at work there, at once,” directed Hal.  “Then things ought to be cool enough in half an hour, to make an examination possible.”

After seeing this done, the two submarine boys left for the platform deck, for the engine room was both hot and crowded.

“How long is it going to take you, Mr. Hastings?” asked the naval officer in command of the “Pollard.”

“Half an hour to get the parts cool enough to examine, but I can’t say, sir, how long the examination and repairs will take.”

So the officer in command signaled what proved to be vague and unsatisfactory information to Lieutenant Commander Mayhew.

“This is a bad time to have this sort of thing happen,” observed the naval officer in charge.

“A mighty bad time, sir,” Jack murmured.

“And the engines of the ‘Pollard’ were supposed to be in first-class condition.”

“They were in A-1 condition, when the boat was turned over to the Navy,” Jack responded.

“Do you imagine, then, Mr. Benson, that some of the naval machinists have been careless or incompetent?”

“Why, that would be a wild guess to make, sir, when one, remembers what high rank your naval machinists take in their work,” Jack Benson replied.

“And this boat was sold to the Navy with the strongest guarantee for the engines,” pursued the officer in charge.

Jack and Hal were both worried.  The sudden break had a bad look for the Pollard boats, in the success of which these submarine boys were most vitally interested.

At last, from below, the suspected parts of the engine were reported to be cool enough for examination.  The naval officer in charge followed Jack and Hal below.

Taking off his uniform blouse and rolling up his sleeves, Hal sailed in vigorously to locate the fault.  Machinists and cadets stood about, passing him the tools he needed, and helping him when required.