CHAPTER XXV
THE RESCUE--CONCLUSION
Down to where the small raft was moored ran Mr. Parker. He wasfollowed by some of the others.
"We must put off at once!" he cried. "Half the island is gone! Theother half may disappear any moment! The steamer can not get here ontime, but if we put off they may pick us up, if we are not engulfedin the ocean. Help, everybody!"
Tom gave one more look at where his wireless station had been. Ithad totally disappeared, there being, at the spot, now but a sheercliff, which went right down into the sea.
The women were in tears. The men, with pale faces, tried to calmthem. Gradually the earthquake tremor passed away; but who couldtell when another would come?
Captain Mentor, Mr. Hosbrook and the others were shoving out thesmall raft. They intended to get aboard, and paddle out to thelarger one, which had been moored some distance away, in readinessfor some such emergency as this.
"Come on!" cried Mr. Fenwick to Tom who was lingering behind. "Comeon, ladies. We must all get aboard, or it may be too late!"
The small raft was afloat. Mrs. Anderson and Mrs. Nestor, weepinghysterically, waded out through the water to get aboard.
"Have we food?" cried Mr. Damon. "Bless my kitchen range! but Inearly forgot that."
"There isn't any food left to take," answered Mrs. Anderson.
"Shove off!" cried Captain Mentor.
At that instant a haze which had hung over the water, was blown toone side. The horizon suddenly cleared. Tom Swift looked up and gavea cry.
"The steamer! The steamer! The CAMBARANIAN!" he shouted, pointing toit.
The others joined in his exclamations of joy, for there, rushingtoward Earthquake Island was a great steamer, crowding on all speed!
"Saved! Saved!" cried Mrs. Nestor, sinking to her knees even in thewater.
"It came just in time!" murmured Mr. Hosbrook.
"Now I can make my diamonds," whispered Mr. Jenks to Tom.
"Push off! Push off!" cried Mr. Parker. "The island will sink,soon!"
"I think we will be safer on the island than on the raft," declaredCaptain Mentor. "We had better land again."
They left the little raft, and stood on the shore of the island.Eagerly they watched the approach of the steamer. They could makeout hands and handkerchiefs waving to them now. There was eager hopein every heart.
Suddenly, some distance out in the water, and near where the bigraft was anchored, there was a curious upheaval of the ocean. It wasas if a submarine mine had exploded! The sea swirled and foamed!
"It's a good thing we didn't go out there," observed Captain Mentor."We would have been swamped, sure as guns."
Almost as he spoke the big raft was tossed high into the air, andfell back, breaking up. The castaways shuddered. Yet were they anysafer on the island? They fancied they could feel the little part ofit that remained trembling under their feet.
"The steamer is stopping!" cried Mr. Damon.
Surely enough the CAMBARANIAN had slowed up. Was she not going tocomplete the rescue she had begun?
"She's going to launch her lifeboats," declared Captain Mentor. "Hercommander dare not approach too close, not knowing the water. Hemight hit on a rock."
A moment later and two lifeboats were lowered, and, urged on by thesturdy arms of the sailors, they bounded over the waves. The seaseemed to be more and more agitated.
"It is the beginning of the end," murmured Mr. Parker. "The islandwill soon disappear."
"Will you be quiet?" demanded Mr. Damon, giving the scientist anudge in the ribs.
The lifeboats were close at hand now.
"Are you all there?" shouted some one, evidently in command.
"All here," answered Tom.
"Then hurry aboard. There seems to be something going on in thesewaters--perhaps a submarine volcano eruption. We must get away in ahurry!"
The boats came in to the shelving beach. There was a little stretchof water between them and the sand. Through this the castawayswaded, and soon they were grasped by the sailors and helped in. Inthe reaction of their worriment Mrs. Anderson and Mrs. Nestor wereboth weeping, but their tears were those of joy.
"Give way now, men!" cried the mate in charge of the boats. "We mustget back to the ship!"
The sea was now swirling angrily, but the sailors, who had been inworse turmoils than this, rowed on steadily.
"We feared you would not get here in time," said Tom to the mate.
"We were under forced draught most of the way," was his answer."Your wireless message came just in time. An hour later and ouroperator would have gone to bed."
The young inventor realized by what a narrow margin they had beenrescued.
"The island will soon sink," predicted Mr. Parker, as they reachedthe steamer, and boarded her. Captain Valasquez, who was in command,warmly welcomed the castaways.
"We will hear your story later," he said. "Just now I want to getout of these dangerous waters."
He gave the order for full speed, and, as the CAMBARANIAN got underway, Tom, and the others, standing on the deck, looked back atEarthquake Island.
Suddenly there sounded a dull, rumbling report. The whole oceanabout the island seemed to upheave. There was a gigantic shower ofspray, a sound like an explosion, and when the waters subsided theisland had sunk from sight.
"I told you it would go," cried Mr. Parker, triumphantly, but thehorror of it all--the horror of the fate that would have been theirshad they remained there an hour longer--held the castaways dumb. Thescientist's honor of having correctly predicted the destruction ofthe island was an empty one.
The agitation of the sea rocked even the mighty CAMBARANIAN and, hadour friends been aboard the frail raft, they would surely haveperished in the sea. As it was, they were safe--saved by Tom Swift'swireless message.
The steamer resumed her voyage, and the castaways told their story.Captain Valasquez refused to receive the large amount of money Mr.Hasbrook and Mr. Jenks would have paid him for the rescue, acceptingonly a sum he figured that he had lost by the delay, which was not agreat deal. The castaways were given the best aboard the ship, andtheir stories were listened to by the other passengers with batedbreath.
In due time they were landed in New York, and Mr. and Mrs. Nestoraccompanied Tom to Shopton. Mr. Damon, with many blessings alsoaccompanied them, going to his home in Waterfield. Later it waslearned that the other boats from the RESOLUTE had been picked up,and the sailors and guests were all saved.
Of course, as soon as our friends had been rescued by the steamer,the wireless operator aboard her, with whom Tom soon struck up anacquaintance, sent messages to the relatives of the castaways,apprising them of their safety.
And the joy of Mary Nestor, when she found that it was Tom who hadsaved her parents, can well be imagined. As for our hero, well, hewas glad too--for Mary's sake.
"I won't forget my promise to you, Tom Swift," said Mr. BarcoeJenks, as he parted from the young inventor, and what the promisewas will be told in the next volume of this series, to be called:"Tom Swift Among the Diamond Makers; or, The Secret of PhantomMountain." In that Tom is destined to have many more surprisingadventures, as is also Mr. Damon, who learned new ways to call downblessings on himself and his possessions.
And now, for a time, we will take leave of the young inventor andalso of his many friends, who never ceased to wonder over TomSwift's skill with the wireless.
THE END
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