The Bridgeport times and evening farmer., 1919-03-15


 1 he could not, during that fierce en- 1 counter, have distinguished my fea- 1 lures any more clearly than I had his | own. There was no one else to fear. ! If only l might once succeed in get ] ting safely aboard, slightly disguised, perhaps, and mingle unnoticed among ] the crew, the chances were not bad ! for me to pass undetected. Such ships l carried large crews and were constant : ly changing in personnel. A strange ! face appearing among them need not arouse undue suspicion. And I felt convinced I could locate the Namur. But could hope to attain the ship in 1 advance of the returning party of raiders? God helping me, would try!
 My brain throbbed with fresh resolu- tion-the call to action.
 There were oars in the boat. shipped the useless rudder inboard and chose my course from the stars [ My boat had drifted considerably far ther out into the bay than I had SUD- ! posed, and it required a good half hour of steady toil at the oars before i, I sighted ahead of me the darker out lines of the shore. At first I could ! identify nothing, but finally there sud- denly arose, clearly defined the gaunt limbs of a dead tree, bearing a faint resemblance to a gigantic cross, that had been pointed out on the sloop. This peculiar mark was at the extrem- ity of the first headland lying north of the point itself, and consequently a straight course across the bay would 10nH mo Nrv;+h A1-ry
 where the Namur had last been at
 anchor.
 To a degree my immediate plan of
 action had been definitely mapped out
 within my own mind while toiling at
 the oars. I would beach my dory and
 strike out on foot directly across the
 narrow neck of land. The Namur was
 not so far out from shore as to make
 swimming to her a dangerous feat.
 and ] could approach and board her
 with far less chance of discovery in
 that manner than by the use of 0 boat.
 The greater danger would come after l had attained the deck, wet to the skin. The sharp bow of the dory ran
 l stepped ashore.
 Illti( lllGI t CtlllG tO He IllG1 uTSJ real
 consciousness of the reckless nature
 of this adventure. As I faced then
 the probabilities there scarcely seemed
 one chance in a hundred. And yet I must admit there was the one chance;
 and in no other action could I per ceive even that much encOura cement. | If Dorothy Fairfax was already in the i hands of these men, then my only op- portunIty for serving her lay in my 1 being close at hand. No alternative presented itself; no other effort could be effective. It was already too late to attempt the organization of a res cue party. No, the only choice left
 was for me either to accompany the girl or else abandon her entirely to her captOrs. I must either face the possibility of discovery and capture, which as surely meant torture and death, or otherwise play the coward and remain impOtently behind. So
 drove the temptation to falter away | and strode on up the bank into the black shadow Of the trees.
 ! I found extremely hard walking as | I advanced through tangled under
 brush, Fortunately the distance was | even shorter than I had anticipated. | It was not until after I had advanced 1 cautiously into the water and then ! stopped low to thus gain clearer vision | along the surface that I succeeded in | locating the vessel sought. Even then | the Namur appeared only as a mere i shadow, without so much as q light l showing aboard, yet apparently an- | chOred in the same position as when
 we had swept past the previous after noon. I waded straight out through | the lines of surf, until all excepting | the head became completely sub
 merged. If were to reach the bark
 at all this was the one opportunity. l stood there, resisting the undertow 1 tugging at my, limbs and barely able
 to retain my footing. intent upon my
 purpose. Full strength had come back | to my muscles and my head was again l clear. With strong, silent strokes l swam forward, directly breasting the
 force of the incoming sea, yet making 1 fair progress. Some unCOnsidered cur rent must have swept me to the right, | for, when the outlines of the bark | again became dimly visible through l the night I found myself well to star ! board of the vessel. Stroking well
 under water and with only my eyes
 exposed above the surface, changed
 my course to the left and slowly and ! cautiously drew in toward the star l board bow. A few moments later, un- perceived from above, and protected from observation by the bulge of the
 oyerhang and density of the shadow,
 my hands clung to the anchor hawser
 my mind busy in deyising some means | for attaining the deck.