The Raymer enterprise., 1920-07-22

saw the horror on the girls face a.
she made the discovery.
Il did not think about the car
tridges." she cried. Il heard you were
in danger and ! seized II and came to
you. What shall we dot am going
to die with you"
I'VE are not going to de-" be an
swered. But he felt q trickle Of blood
III his eyes. he pulled himself to-
gether to face the situation. thinking
with oil the concentration Of which
bis mind was capable.
he heard the sails being run up. and
the creak Of the cordags 10 the wind.
Then the schooner. grinding her
course through the drift Ice. began to
roll and pitch ~ the force Of the gulf
current struck her. And through the
portfolios Hilary saw the lights Of st.
Boniface reel into the enwrapping fog
and vanish.
With .Nldeleine's arm about him he
thought with desperate concentration.
Doubtless the rufIians had gone to as
sist Dupont in taking, the schooner out
into midstream. confident that their
victim was At their mercy. Once the
vessel had passed the dangerous Ice
and deadly sunken rocks Dupont
alone could keep her on her course.
And Dupont had planned his death.
He remembered the hate on the old
mans face: but he could not imagine
the cause Of II. for he did not connect
1t with the story about Marie.
They would return. they would dis
cover that the revolver wss useless !;
his life was worth about ten minutes
purchase. and Of Msdeleine's fate he
dared not think. He must fight for
her and live for her. He got his shak.
ing limbs under control.
.I'm alt right" he whispered. "rve
got my plan now. Keep behind me
nnt.. be ready to help. The doors
,ocked. ] suppose?"
quick attempt TO open II showed
him that II was. But he had
chance, II he could break down the
door. for the sound might pass un-
heard In the gale. with the crashing
Of the ice against the sides Of the
schooner. enabling him to pass Into
the hold unseen In the darkness.
He hurled himself against the cabin
door. fists. shoulders. body. with every
muscle set tense. II broke upon Its
hinges and Hilary fell. sprawling into
the passage between the piles Of
stacked lumber. which rose to a height
Of twenty feet on either side Of him,
running to within few feet Of the
catla and the deck ladder.
He crouched there for q few sec
onds, hearing Madeleine behind him.
and looked upward. The wind was
roaring through the rigging with q
noise far louder than that made BY the
falling door. No one had heard the
crash. Above him swung the great
mainsail, ohscuring the gibbous moon
that scurred like pale ghost among the
drifting clouds. haloed ln the fog. Hill
AIRY could Just discern the hazy fg-
ures OF three men. hard at work to
gain the middle channel, and the Ian
tern shat hung from the mast above,
fainhy Illuminating them.
He had seen. but had not conscious
ly observed, till the remembrance
came to him then. that pile Of lum-
Der, placed in the ship but not yet Sc
cured. lay about the center Of the
open space in front OF the cabin. II
could not shift with the rolling Of
the schooner. so as to destroy her equi.
librium, on account OF the stacks on
either side. II consisted Of the last
load of logs. which had been dropped
there from the end Of the fume. Hill
ary raised two IN his arms and car
ried them In front OF the broken door.
Ii was impossible to make his voice
heard. for the ship was staggering
through the Gushing ice foes with a
noise like that Of artillery. but Made
leine saw his purpose. and In an In
stant was at work helping him. They
began swiftly building a barricade !;
and, as Madeleine deposited her logs
by the side of Hilary's, Hilary wedged
the ends against the chained stacks on
either side. so that the whole would
form an Immovable barrier. He toiled
furiously. for their scanty time was
precious beyond value. Soon Made
leine was behind the harricade. ad-
justing the logs that Hilary brought.
and II stood the height Of his waist.
II was improbable that either Du-
pont. Pierre or Leblanc carried q ~
volver: but. even II they did. the bar.
ncade was bullet-proof. Hilary for.
got bis aching head. the retchlng nau-
sea. The barrier was shoulder-high.
He clambered behind Il and took his
station there Just a. the grinding Of
the foes ceased. and the schooner
caught the clear water.
A ray Of moonlight. struggling
through the fog disclosed old Dupont
1t the wheel above the poop. and the
great mainsalI sweeping over it-and
two forms that crept along the pas
sage between the lumber piles. They
started hack in sudden consternation
at the sight Of the unexpected barri-
cade. and Hilary's club. aimed ct
Pierre's head. descended upon the oat.
laws arm. which dropped linn at hia