Gloucester County Democrat. (Woodbury, N.J.) 1878-1932, 1908-06-18

Istealtng haste. The night was clear.
though dark The stars helped them
to distinguish the outlines of the shore
now coming rapidly nearer. As they
crept round the southern cheek of
Point Kansas the Argentine ceased
padding and placed warning hand
on Gray's arm. The cliff was so high
and steep that its shadow plunged into
deepest gloom the water at it's base.
Suarez, however, had imbibed a good
deal of savage lore during his enforced
residence on the island. He stretch
ed well forward over the bows, held a
paddle as far in front as possible and
thus not only guided the drifting canoe
by an occasional dip of the blade, but
/ trusted to it for warning of any I'M
seen rock.
There was a cold breeze on the sur
face of the bay, but the dog was the
only one that shivered, and his tremors
arose from excitement. At last they
found the reef he was searching for.
BY watching star it was easy enough
to follow the southerly bend taken by
the canoe in skirting this barrier, while
their ears caught the murmur of the
swift current amid the numerous tiny
channels of the rocks. Suddenly this
swirl and hum of fast flowing water
ceased. Elsie and Gray became aware
that Suarez was cautiously drawing
himself inboard again. Then his pad
die dipped with noiseless stroke. The
canoe was inside the Alaculof harbor.
The midnight blackness was now
something that had a sense of actual
obstruction in it. 1t seemed that a
hand put forth would encounter a
wall. The tide was here but no per-
ceptible current. For all they could
tell to the contrary, they might have
been floating in Charon's boat across
some Stygian pool.
| For a minute or two Elsie's brave
heart failed her. Here was a diff
Guilty which desperate courage could
not surmount There might be dozens
of canoes moored on all sides, but to
discover them in this pitch darkness
was so obviously impossible that she
almost made up her mind to abandon
this part of her enterprise. Yet the
narrow beamed Fuegian craft she was
in would hold only four more occu-
pants, and that with certain risk and
unwieldiness.
She was as determined as ever to
| cross the bay and endeayor to commu-
nicate with the imprisoned men. But
she recognized the absurdity of the
thought that Courtenay and Tolle-
mache would consent to escape in the
canoe and leave the others to their
fate, even il such a thing were practi-
cable Oddly enough, the one person
whose daring might reasonably be sus-
pected gave no signs of the pangs of
doubt Suarez pushed forward reso-
lutely. He knew what Elsie had for
gotten-that in each canoe used by the
Indians there was a carefully pre-
served fire. whose charcoal embers re-
tanned some heat and glow all night.
The first intimation of this fact was
revealed by the pungent fumes which
enyironed them. Elsie could not help
uttering a little gasp of relief There
was a slight movement In front. Gray
leaned back and touched her hand.
tsSuarez says" he whispered, that
you are to be ready with your tow
ropes AS he secures each canoe he
viii pass it along to me. You will be
able to see its outlines by the dim
glimmer of the fire. But how win you
manage about the dog? He may cause
an alarm
Much to Joey's disgust, he was forth
with muzzled with piece of rope-not
that this device would stop him et-
fectually from barking, but Elsie
thought he would so resent the indig-
nifty that he might pay less heed to
| outer circumstances. She needed no
warning that Indians were near The
Argentine miners description of the
community which dwelt on Otter creek
made her understand that there were
hundreds within hail
| A great joy leaped up in her when
| the first canoe came under her hand
1t was quite easy to manipulate the
| painter rope The stem had a notched
knob provided for this very purpose,
and there was sternpost against
which steersman might press a pad
die and thus swerye the canoe in any
direction. But it was slow work. The
craft were moored without any sem
blance of order, yet Suarez was forced
to secure them In a definite sequence
or string of half dozen would be-
c0Ina l1I1nanaO pa bIe
When the second canoe was made
fast Gray bent toward the girl once
more
Il have been listening to the tick of
my watch he breathed against her
ear. I reckon it has taken ten min
utes to collect two dugouts. Unless we
mean to remain all night we must lei
up on the cutting adrift proposition"
Il agree" she murmured. But we
must have two more"