The Submarine Boys on Duty | Page 8

He did not look like the sort of man whom a timid fellow would want for an enemy.
"Hold on there, Unc," greeted Dan Jaggers, motioning his foreman-uncle aside. "Say, you know that cheeky young fellow I told ye about--the tricky one that played the sneak on me, and gave me this black eye?"
"Haven't you met him and paid him back yet?" demanded Mr. Owen.
"Hadn't seen him again, until just now," complained Dan. "What do you think? Pollard has engaged that feller and his friend to work on the submarine."
"Has, eh? Without speaking to me about it?" demanded Joshua Owen, looking anything but pleased.
"Of course you'll let Pollard know that you're foreman and take on and lay off your own gang," hinted Jaggers.
"Now, you leave me alone, Dan, boy, to know what to do," retorted Mr. Owen. Then he stepped on toward the long shed, a very grim look on his face. Going inside the shed, the foreman looked the two boys over briefly.
"If you young men haven't any business in here," he ordered, "get out and on your way. Work is about to begin here. I'm the foreman."
"Oh, Mr. Owen," hailed the inventor, "these are two very bright young chaps, with some experience, that I've engaged to help us out with installing the machinery in the boat."
"Couldn't you have consulted me, sir?" asked the foreman, again looking keenly at the youngsters.
"When you've found out what they can do, Mr. Owen," replied Pollard. "I believe you'll be rather pleased with them. They're hired only on trial, you understand."
"I can tell whether we want 'em before we start work," grunted the foreman. With that he began to fire all manner of machine-shop questions at both boys. Yet Jack and Hal, paying respectful heed, answered in a way that showed them to be quite well informed about this class of work.
"They won't do Mr. Pollard--won't do at all," announced Foreman Owen, turning to the inventor. "I know their kind. They're glib talkers, and all that, but they belong to the know-it-all class of boys. I've had a lot of experience with that kind of 'prentices, and I don't want 'em bothering our work here. So I say, sir, the only thing for you to do is to send them about their business."
Foreman Owen spoke as though that settled the matter. Jack Benson and Hal Hastings felt their hopes oozing.
"I've told the boys they shall have a chance Mr. Owen," replied Pollard quietly, yet in a tone of authority. "So of course my word must be kept with them."
"But I'm the foreman," exclaimed Joshua Owen, irritably, "and I'm supposed to--"
"Exactly," interposed David Pollard. "You're supposed to obey all instructions from your superiors here, and to give your advice when it's wanted. I have much at stake in the success of this boat, and when I find what looks like good material for our working crew I'm going to try out that material."
"But I don't want to be bothered with boys, like these young fellows," retorted the foreman, angrily. "This is no job for amateurs!"
"The boys remain until they've been well tried out," retorted Pollard, firmly. "If they can't do our kind of work, then of course we'll let them go."
"I'll speak to Mr. Farnum about this business," muttered Foreman Owen, turning on his heel. Three other workmen had arrived during this talk. Now, at the order from Owen all climbed the ladder to the platform deck, thence disappearing through the manhole. Electric light was turned on inside the hull by the time that Jack and Hal appeared at the manhole opening.
Owen looked upward, from the floor of the boat, to scowl at them, but, as Mr. Pollard was right behind them, the foreman said nothing at that moment.
Last of all came Dan Jaggers. As he caught sight of the two newcomers he shot at them a look full of hate.
"I thought ye said those fellers couldn't work here," he muttered to his uncle.
"Keep quiet and watch out," whispered Joshua Owen. "They're not going to work here. I'll fix that!"
CHAPTER III
JOSH OWEN STARTS TROUBLE
"Knock off!"
As the deafening din of hammers lessened David Pollard shouted that order through a megaphone.
Confined in a limited space, inside that bull of steel, the clatter, which outdoors would have been barely noticed, was something infernal in volume and sharpness. Human ear-drums could not stand it for any very great length of time.
By this time Jack Benson and Hal Hastings had had a good chance to see exactly what the interior of a submarine torpedo boat was like.
A level floor extended throughout the entire length of the "Pollard." Below this floor, reached by hatchways, were various small compartments for storage. Under the level of this floor, too, were the "water tanks." These were tanks that, when the craft lay or moved