"
There was a forced air about his attempt to be facetious that did
not conceal, but rather accentuated, the undercurrent of feelings
in him.
"On the contrary," broke in Kennedy, "I shouldn't be surprised to
find that it is the light that succeeded."
"How do you mean?"
"I wouldn't have said anything about it if you hadn't noticed it
yourself. In fact, I may be wrong. It suggests something to me,
but it will need a good deal of work to verify it, and then it may
not be of any significance. Is that the way the Z99 has behaved
always lately?"
"Yes, but I know that she hasn't broken down of herself," Captain
Shirley asserted. "It never did before, not since I perfected that
new coherer. And now it always does, perhaps fifteen or twenty
minutes after I start her out."
Shirley was watching the lights as they serpentined their way to
us across the nearly calm water of the bay, idly toying with the
now useless combinator.
"Wait here," he said, rising hurriedly. "I must send my motor-boat
out there to pick her up and tow her in.
Pages:
368
369
370
371
372
373
374
375
376
377
378
379
380
381
382
383
384
385
386
387
388
389
390
391
392