.

THEY BELIEVE IT IS THE POLAR SEA.
With no intention of ascending again into any accidental holes in the ice above them, the voyagers on the Dipsey kept on their uneventful way, until, upon the third day after their discovery of the lake, the electric bell attached to the heavy lead which always hung suspended below the vessel, rang violently, indicating that it had touched the bottom.

This sound startled everybody on board.

In all their submarine experiences they had not yet sunk down low enough to be anywhere near the bottom of the sea.
Of course orders were given to ascend immediately, and at the same time a minor search-light was directed upward through the deck skylight.

To the horror of the observers, ice could plainly be seen stretching above them like an irregular, gray sky.
Here was a condition of things which had not been anticipated.