The Boy Aviators' Polar Dash Part 24

"Who, I?" asked the professor, in mild surprise. "Oh, no, my dear boy.

I will get a penguin yet, even if I have to fight a regiment of them.

I'll get one, never fear, and tame him to eat out of my hand."

"I hope so, I'm sure," said Frank, with a smile at the odd old man's enthusiasm.

"Hullo, what's that?" cried Billy, suddenly pointing.

"What?" chorused the boys.

"Why that creature off there on the ice flapping about,--it seems to be in distress."

"There is certainly something the matter with it," agreed Frank.

What seemed to be a huge bird was struggling and flapping about on the floes at no great distance from them.

"Other birds are attacking it!" cried Billy.

It was so, indeed. Numerous albatrosses and other large sea birds and gulls were hovering above the struggling creature, from time to time diving and pecking it.

"What in the world can it be?" cried Frank.

"We might go and see, but the professor is wet and should get back to the s.h.i.+p," said Ben.

"Oh, my dear sir, don't mind me," demurred that individual. "If I could have a little more of the stimulant--ah, thank you--as I was saying, I am never in a hurry to go anywhere when there is an interesting question of natural history to be solved."

"Very well, then," said Ben, heading the boat about; "if you catch cold, don't blame me."

"Oh dear, no. I wouldn't think of such a thing," said the professor, his eyes eagerly fixed on the disturbance of the birds.

"It's a big wounded albatross!" suddenly exclaimed Billy, as the boat drew near to the object the other birds were attacking.

"So it is," cried Harry.

"A monster, too," supplemented the professor. "It would be a great find for any collection."

"Perhaps we can catch it and stuff it," cried Billy.

"Perhaps so; but we must hurry or the others will have pecked it to bits."

The boat flew through the water, and soon they were near enough to drive the other birds away. The wounded albatross, however, did not rise, but lay flapping on the ice.

"Why, bless my soul, how very extraordinary!" cried the professor, forgetting his wet clothes and his chill in his excitement.

"What is?" asked Frank.

"Why something seems to be holding the bird down under water," was the answer.

"It's a string!" suddenly cried Ben, standing up in the stern of the boat.

"A string?" echoed the professor.

"Sure enough," was the reply.

And so it proved. The albatross was held down by a bit of string encircling its neck so tightly as to almost choke it, and which had become caked with ice till it was quite heavy.

"I know that bird," shouted the professor, suddenly, as they drew alongside it.

"You know it?" echoed the others, thinking the old man had taken leave of his senses.

"Yes, yes," cried the professor. "It's the one that nearly dragged me overboard. See whether the wire loop is still round its neck."

"It sure is," exclaimed Ben, as, disregarding the pecks of the big bird, he dragged it struggling into the boat and pinioned its wings.

"Well, this is a most extraordinary happening," smiled the professor, as happy as if he had been left a million dollars. "This will be most interesting to scientists and will make my name famous. 'The Sandburr albatross, which flew many scores of miles with my la.s.so round its neck.' Wonderful. Poor creature. I suppose as it dipped into the waves for its food a thin film of ice formed on the cord till it grew too heavy for it to carry."

"That's right," said Ben, who had cut the la.s.so and released the creature from its hampering weight. "I'll bet this weighs ten or twelve pounds."

He held out a huge chunk of ice for their inspection.

"That's great weight for a bird to carry so many miles," said Frank.

"It is, indeed," said the professor, patting the bound albatross on the head. "That makes it all the more remarkable."

"What are you going to do with the albatross, now that you have him?"

inquired Billy Barnes.

"I must make a cage for him out of packing cases, and perhaps we can tame him," said the professor.

All agreed that this would be an interesting experiment, and the boat pulled back to the s.h.i.+p with one pa.s.senger more than she had left it with. As for the professor, he was in the seventh heaven of delight all the way back.

He sat on a stern seat by the albatross, which was looking wildly about, and kept talking to it as if he thought it could understand him.

"Ah, my beauty, I'll astonish Professor Tapper with you when I get home," he said; "you are worthy to be ranked with the fur-bearing South Polar pollywog. I will feed you till your feathers s.h.i.+ne and you are the envied of all birds. I am the most fortunate man in the world."

All hands enjoyed a hearty laugh as, on the return to the s.h.i.+p, their adventures were narrated.

"The poor professor never seems to go out but what he gets into some pickle or other," laughed Captain Barrington, who was joined in his merriment by Captain Hazzard. "But, dear me," he went on, "where is the professor?"

They ran out on deck and found the man of science seated in the boat, which had not yet been hauled up, as the vessels were not to weigh anchor till the next day,--the berth where they lay being a snug one.

"Why don't you come on board, professor?" asked Captain Hazzard, indicating the accommodation ladder, which had been lowered.

"I-I'd like to, but I can't," responded the professor.

"You can't? Why, what on earth do you mean? You'll freeze to death down there," roared Captain Barrington.

"I wish you'd send down a small stove," wailed the scientist.