Running the Gauntlet
There was tense silence aboard the launch from the moment when she had
plunged from the placid waters of the lagoon on to the brightly lit
surface of the stream which the two fugitives had followed. For half an
hour scarcely a word was spoken, while all eyes searched the path ahead,
and peered vainly into the deep, impenetrable shadows on either hand.
But at length Tom broke the trying silence, a sharp exclamation coming
from the bows, where he was stationed.
"By lummy," he called, "but dat precious queer. Minute ago dere a bright
lane ob water ahead; now noding, jest noding, all dark and black. Massa
Major, yo ain't gwine ter steam ahead like dis all de while! S'pose dere
a big rock ahead. S'pose de water come to an end. Dat be very awkward."
"Steady," called out the Major. "Guess it is queer, as Tom says; for a
minute ago I could have sworn that this stream ran on clear and unbroken
a good mile ahead. Now, it's suddenly blocked out. Perhaps there's a
bend 'way there in front."
"I'm sure," answered Jim promptly. "If we run on gently we shall find
that the stream opens up again before we get to that patch of darkness.
Gee! Guess I'm right; it was a bend."
Meanwhile he had slowed down his motor; and it was fortunate he had done
so, for as the launch covered the intervening space lying between
herself and the dense shadow, to which Tom had drawn attention, it was
noticed by all that the fairway had narrowed considerably. At the bend,
when she was gliding slowly forward, the banks came together very
abruptly, leaving a stream of water between them which was but a few
feet wide. And while the rays from the moon fell upon the surface for
some dozen boat-lengths ahead, beyond that point the distance was
shrouded in darkness, the jungle cut off the rays as if with a shutter,
casting a dense shadow on every side. Instantly the Major issued his
orders.
"Stop her," he cried in low tones. "This is a teaser. I don't much care
about going on through that narrow lane; for if there were folks round
here to attack us, we might have a job to get out again. Chances are we
couldn't turn the boat, and that would mean reversing all the way. What
do you say, Jim? It's a teaser, ain't it?"
But for the moment our hero was engaged with his engine. He threw out
his lever at the Major's orders, and then pushed it right forward, till
the propeller was reversing. Having brought the boat to a standstill, he
left the motor running gently, and clambered forward till he was beside
the officer.
"Guess it'd be better to stay right here," he said shortly. "I quite
agree that if we went along that narrow lane we might be placing
ourselves in a difficulty. We might find ourselves in a regular bottle,
with only a narrow neck from which to make our escape. Best lie here
till morning, when we shall see where we are, and what sort of a place
that stream leads to."
"Den boil de kettle an' hot up de food," sang out Ching, who was still
huddled at the stern of the vessel. "Plenty hungry and thirsty, Mass
Jim, an if havvy food to eat, den de time slippy along velly quickly."
The Major nodded his head vigorously. "You are a man in a hundred, Jim,"
he said, giving vent to a laugh. "'Pon my word, when I am next sent off
on an expedition I shall make it a point that you come along with your
servants. A more useful lot I never hit upon. Gee! Of course we're
hungry. Jest get to with it, Ching."
"Drop de anchor, eh!" demanded Tom, standing to his full height forward,
and holding the pole erect in the air. Indeed, for the moment he looked,
with the moon playing upon him, for all the world like a dusky sentry,
keeping guard over all on the launch and her surroundings. Then he set
the pole down with a clatter, there came to the ear the clank and chink
of a chain being dragged across the boarding. Tom lifted the launch's
anchor from its rests, and held it out at arm's length, as if it were a
feather.
"Drop um in?" he asked, poising it above the water. "Wat you say, sir?"
"Let her go," cried the Major. "When she's fast, haul in the slack, and
let me know what depth we've got. Reckon this is as good a place to lie
in as we could have, for we're well in midstream, and those rascals
could not easily reach us from the banks. But of course they could send
their bullets whizzing amongst us, and that's a risk we shall have to
laugh at. What's the time, Jim?"
"Want's half an hour of midnight, sir. Guess we might have a feed, and
then turn in."
The arrangement was one to be recommended, and the Major fell in with it
instantly. Jim stopped his motor, shut off the gasolene and oil, and
made a careful inspection of the machinery with the help of his electric
torch. Ten minutes later Ching announced that hot coffee was ready, and,
rising from the petroleum stove situated as far forward from the motor
as was possible, and over which he had been bending, proceeded to deal
out the beverage to each member of the expedition. Sam followed him with
a tin of biscuits, while the ponderous and good-natured Tom thrust his
arm over the shoulder of his diminutive comrade, offering squares of
cheese which he had cut ready, and had placed upon the lid of the box to
serve as a tray.
"Guess better eat as much as you can," he laughed, opening his cavernous
mouth. "S'pose dose scum come along fine and early; den hab noting to
eat, but p'raps plenty bullet. Den very sorry yo not fill up to-night."
In any case he availed himself of his own advice, and sat on the edge of
the well devouring enormous mouthfuls. As to the others, each ate
according to his appetite, and we record but the truth when we say that
in no case did that fail them. Their rush across the lagoon in the wake
of the fugitives, the excitement of the chase generally, and the
freshness of the night had given them all a feeling of briskness, and
with that feeling came undoubted hunger. Besides, it might be necessary
to push on without a pause, once there was light enough with which to
see, then he who had not partaken of a full supper might regret the
fact, and might have many hours to wait before an opportunity occurred
of taking food.
"Jest you turn in and take a sleep, Jim," said the Major, when the meal
was finished. "It's just midnight now, and between two and three in the
morning we shall have light. I'll take the watch till then, and Tom may
as well be along with me. That big chap somehow seems to make one feel
quite secure and safe."
Within five minutes silence once more reigned over the launch, while the
moon peeped down upon a number of figures huddled in the well. The
Chinaman lay bunched in a little ball right aft, which he seemed to have
appointed as his own particular quarters, while Sam lay curled up like a
faithful dog at his master's feet. The Major sat beside the engine, a
rifle barrel resting against his shoulder, and Tom was perched on the
rail, his big eyes searching every shadow, a smile of serene happiness
on his face. And at length the morning came. While the moon still hung
low in the sky, prepared to disappear altogether, a rosy hue lit up the
dense banks of green on either hand, and, falling upon the tree trunks,
brought them into prominence. Swiftly the light increased in strength
till the banks beneath the trees were visible. The surface of the water
gleamed white and cold, and every feature of the launch stood out
distinctly. It was time to move. The Major rose from his seat and peered
into the narrow channel through which he had not dared to take his men
during the darkness. He was on the point of issuing an order when at a
spot a little to the right, still hidden somewhat by the lack of light,
a puff of white smoke was seen to burst. Flame ringed it in the centre,
while the smoke itself rose and spread in wide billows. Something
thudded heavily against the side of the launch, while an instant later a
deafening report broke the morning silence, and reverberated along the
forest.
"Eugh!" cried Tom in alarm, his eyes prominent. "Yo hear dat, massa? Dem
scum do as I say and start in right early. Tom not like de bullets
singing and humming about his head."
As if the Major could have failed to hear! He started violently as the
report swept across the water, and then clambered across into the cab.
Jim and the others were already on their feet, while the crafty Ching
had uncurled himself, and now lay full length upon his face, a rifle at
his shoulder.
"Do dat again and me fire fo sure," he cried. "Mass Jim, you call out if
dis Chinaboy to send dem a bullet."
But Jim had other matters to attend to, for he realized that any instant
it might be necessary to set the launch in motion. He crawled along into
the engine well, and with the light now to help him, had his motor
running within the space of a few seconds.
"One of you boys get that anchor lifted," commanded the Major, his eyes
fixed upon the spot from which the shot had come. "Tomkins, just fix
your sights 'way over at that corner, and if there's another shot, send
'em a bullet. You needn't be careless either; this time they're asking
for a lesson."
The words had hardly left his lips when another shot rang out from the
bank, the smoke blowing up again into the cool morning air. It was
followed by another and another, till from some twenty places smoke
obscured the bank and the forest. As to the missiles, they flew, hummed,
and screamed overhead, some dropping into the water beyond, others
thudding against the far bank, while a few, just a few only, struck the
launch, making her wooden sides rumble. Not a man aboard was hit, though
many escaped narrowly.
"Precious near every time," cried Jim, reddening under the excitement,
and finding it extremely difficult to refrain from bobbing. "Gee! I
declare that one of those bullets went within an inch of my arm while
another struck the top of the cylinder here, and--hi! look at this!" he
shouted.
That last bullet had, in fact, done real damage; for it happened to be a
big one, discharged from a huge muzzle-loader, sold to the man who had
fired the weapon by men who palmed it off as of the latest construction.
Almost as big as a pigeon's egg, the mass of lead had struck the
cylinder heavily, and with disasterous results. A column of water was
spurting upward from the rent made in the copper cooling jacket.
"Done any damage? Not harmed the engine, I hope?" said the Major,
looking across at Jim, and then at Tom, who meanwhile was tugging at the
anchor chain. "I hear her running; that sounds hopeful."
Jim did not answer for the moment. At the first hasty inspection he
imagined that the missile must have made a rent in the copper jacket and
also cracked the cylinder casting itself. But a close survey of the
damage showed him that the worst had not happened. The motor was heavily
built, and no doubt the casting had been strong enough and thick enough
to stand up to the blow. As to the water jacket, the damage was serious,
but could be remedied. He could make a temporary repair inside half an
hour, if given the opportunity, some sheet copper, and a soldering lamp.
But for the present the rent must remain; the water must continue to
pump up into the air.
"We'll get along in spite of the damage, Major," he sang out cheerily.
"But I shall want a man along here to bail. Ching, jest you hop in here
with me and bring some sort of a pannikin."
"Got um! By de poker, but I tink dat anchor fixed down below beneath a
rock," shouted Tom at this instant, lurching back on the for'ard deck
and just saving a fall into the well. "Dat ting stick like wax, and Tom
not move um at fust. Hi, by lummy, you ober dere, yo do dat again and
Tom say someting to yo. He skin yo alibe. He roast de flesh on yo bones
and eat you."
Jim grinned; even in the midst of such excitement the huge negro amused
him, so that he was forced to laugh. Indeed the antics Tom indulged in
were enough to cause a shout of merriment. It seemed that a bullet,
fired at him a second earlier, just as he was hauling up the anchor, had
struck him on the back of the hand; and though it had done nothing more
than break the skin, it had caused a great deal of pain. It was that,
and the suddenness of it all, which had roused the ire of the negro.
"You black son ob gun yo!" he bellowed, shaking a huge fist towards the
bank from which the shot had come. "Me break yo into little pieces,
smash yo into fine jelly."
"Hop right down off that deck, and see that you've placed the anchor out
of harm's way," commanded the Major sharply. "Bullets are bad enough,
but when they ricochet from an anchor they give very nasty wounds. Ah!"
He had hardly finished speaking when there came another rolling
discharge from the bank, followed by the rush of the bullets, and then
by a dull thud. The officer commanding the expedition fell forward in
the cab, struck his forehead against the edge, and subsided in a heap on
the floor. Instantly one of his men bent over him.
"Knocked silly, sir," he said, addressing Jim. "What's to be done?"
He looked at his two companions and awaited their answer. But one of
them was busily engaged. Tomkins crouched in the well, his rifle to his
shoulder and a perfect stream of fire issuing from the muzzle. Indeed,
no one could have handled a magazine rifle better. But he came to the
end of his supply of cartridges within a minute, and faced round
quickly.
"What's that?" he demanded anxiously. "The Major hit? Say, this is bad!"
"Knocked silly; not killed," explained his comrade, shooting a cartridge
into his own barrel. "What's to be done?"
Tomkins cast a sympathetic glance at the Major, and then across at the
river bank. A second later his eyes strayed to Jim's figure, and for a
few moments he watched the young fellow as he tended to his engine, and
with Ching's help placed a board padded with oiled cotton waste over the
rent in the cooling jacket.
"See here," he cried abruptly. "The Major's down. Guess that young
fellow had best take his place. He knows how to work this concern, and
he ain't no fool by a long way. Get to at it."
He took it for granted that Jim would accept the post of commander, and
promptly turned towards the bank again, his magazine already
replenished.
Meanwhile it may be wondered who had caused the whole commotion, who
were the miscreants who had so suddenly and treacherously fired into the
launch.
Five minutes almost had passed since the first shot came, when the banks
were hardly visible. But the dawn comes quickly in the tropics. The day
was full upon them now, and, looking up, Jim could perceive the mass of
tangled undergrowth beneath the forest trees, while right by the edge of
the water were a number of dusky figures. If he could have had any
reasonable doubt that they were natives Tomkins speedily helped him to a
decision. For the man was a first-class marksman, and now that the light
was strong enough he began to make good use of his rifle. As Jim stared
at the bank, one of the dusky figures turned and scrambled towards the
jungle. But it seemed that the man had already been hit; for suddenly he
swerved and almost tumbled. Then he faced round again, and stood
unsteadily leaning on his weapon. The next instant a terrible shout
escaped him; the native, for a dusky individual it was without question,
dropped his weapon and thrust both arms high into the air. Then he
seemed to crumple up entirely, and, falling forward, rolled with a loud
splash into the river. Within a second a comrade had followed him to the
same destination, dispatched thither by the policeman's unerring rifle.
Bang! Bang! From a long length of the bank splashes of smoke came, and
once more bullets sped towards the launch. Jim heard their thudding, and
even noted the various queer sounds they made, the dull blow of one
striking her broadside, the cheep of another which merely grazed her
rail, and then the nasty screaming of a missile which hit the anchor
chain, and, being deflected in its course, rose almost vertically, and
later on brought a shower of leaves from the trees beyond. But that was
not all. Two bullets at least passed with a peculiar whizz, and went on
into the jungle on the other bank, as if they had been driven with
greater force than all the rest.
"Revolvers!" exclaimed our hero at once. "Tomkins, I think there were
two revolver shots then. Eh?"
The man nodded; he had hardly time to speak.
"Guess so," he said abruptly. "Revolvers--those villains we're after.
They've set a whole crowd on to us."
"Then the sooner we are out of their reach the better. See here," cried
Jim; "try to find out where those particular ruffians have got to and
pepper them. Sam, get to the wheel; we'll make over to the far bank;
that'll bother them."
The motor buzzed and roared as he switched his levers forward, while the
water pump gathered such power from the momentum that the pressure
within the jackets increased wonderfully. Ching, despite all his efforts
and all his cunning, could no longer seal that rent made by the bullet.
True, he reduced the leakage wonderfully; but from all round the margin
a spray of hot water swept broadcast, quickly drenching our hero to the
skin. It was a trifle, however: Jim congratulated himself that he was
not likely to be scalded.
"With a motor on a car ashore it would be different," he told himself,
as he put the launch in motion. "Here the temperature cannot very well
rise too high. She takes in her supply direct from the river, and pumps
it right through the jackets and out again. Swing her over, Sam. See
here, Tomkins, I'm going straight for the far bank, and will swing round
in a circle when I get near. We'll bring up end on, beneath a tree if
possible; then we shall present less of a mark. Ah! Good shooting!
That'll make 'em careful."
As yet he had had no time in which to reckon the odds opposed to them,
nor the imminence of the danger in which the expedition stood. Minor
matters occupied his attention, those and vague queries as to how he
should proceed. He noted with satisfaction that Tomkins and his two
comrades were making excellent practice. At least half a dozen of the
enemy had already fallen.
"Round with her, right round, Sam," he commanded, when the launch was
near the bank. "Steady! Back her! How's that for a tree?"
With Sam aiding him at the wheel, and he himself controlling the pace of
the launch, Jim soon manoeuvred her beneath a tree which swept its
branches right into the water. Then he threw his lever out, slowed the
motor, and crawled into the cab. With Tom's help he laid the Major on
his back and carefully searched for a wound. And very soon they came
upon the result of the bullet. There was a huge, discoloured bump on the
top of his head, while an ugly graze crossed the forehead. For the rest,
he was breathing deeply and regularly, while the pupils were equal.
"Bullet knock de sense clean out ob him head," explained Tom, as if he
were completely conversant with the matter. "Knock de Massa Major silly.
To-morrow, when he wake up and come to himself, he hold de hands to him
head. Oh, how him ache! Him feel more silly den dan he look now. But,
Massa Jim, dis a bit ob hot stuff. Dis quite all right. Once de fun
begin Tom like it hot and plenty. Yo bide little bit; soon dem debil
fire away all dere powder and ball. Den time to make a move; den Tom hab
someting more to say about de wound. Yo see dat!" and he held out a
bruised and swollen hand for Jim's inspection; "scum of a black nigger
do dat. Yo see. Tom not forget when de time come."
Really the big fellow was too much for Jim. Grave though the situation
was, he was forced to laugh again. For Tom did not stop at threats; his
words lost all their impressiveness without the gestures. And the
latter, terribly fierce though they were--for when he bared his teeth in
a snarl no one could look more like a demon than Tom--were instantly
banished and forgotten by the fellow's well-known merry smile. Tom's
six-foot smile was too catching. His comical face never failed to draw
laughter from his audience.
"If you stand up and expose your ugly head like that you won't be left
when the powder has been done with!" exclaimed Jim severely, suppressing
his mirth. "Now, listen to this: Tom will watch up stream, Ching will
keep a lookout in the downward direction, while Sam will hop ashore.
Don't go more than a few feet away, lad," he warned the little negro.
"Just enough to keep us from being surprised, and to allow you to rejoin
instantly. Say, Tomkins, supposing we give over firing?"
A flushed face turned towards him, while the policeman regarded our hero
as if he thought him demented.
"Let 'em go on shootin' and not answer!" he gasped. "Why, of all----"
"It's like this," explained Jim curtly. "All the time you fire they know
where we're lying. I don't say we're likely to get bad wounds at this
distance, for most of the weapons yonder are gas barrels, I reckon, but
a revolver bullet might hit by accident, and then it'd be a case with
one of us."
There was indecision on Tomkins's face for the space of a few seconds.
To tell the truth, though an excellent fellow, he was one who boasted
unusual independence, both in word and act, and while it was a fact that
he had suggested that Jim should take the Major's place, he had taken it
for granted that orders from our hero would not be very frequent, and
that he would mainly direct by managing his motor, and seeing that a
course was steered. And here he was fighting the vessel. There was
something approaching a scowl on Tomkins's face as the thought flashed
across his brain. He swung round to look at the enemy. But a second
later he was glancing up at Jim once more, his weapon idle beside him.
"You're a conjuror, I guess," he said abruptly. "I'd forgotten those
revolvers. I thought your suggestion was a bad one; then, blessed if one
of them rascals didn't drop in a shot. Look there! He winged me!"
He grinned as he held out a finger of his left hand for inspection.
"That's what I got for being foolish. You're right, sir," he said with
decision. "What next?"
"See that you don't touch the branches overhead. They'd see them moving
from the far side. Sam there? Come aboard. Now," he went on, when the
negro had dropped into the well of the launch, "not a sound from anyone.
They won't hear the motor while she is running light. We'll run down
stream under the trees, and then make a break into the open. A
hundred-yards start will allow us to laugh at all their weapons."
There was agreement on all the faces about him. Tomkins nodded very
decidedly, showing that the plan met with his approval.
"Then lie out there right forward, Tom," said Jim, lowering his tones.
"Those long arms of yours will do as fenders. Push us off if we get too
near to a tree. But don't touch 'em if you can help it. Get on to that
wheel, Sam; I'm moving off at once."
He threw in his lever and set the propeller turning very slowly, but the
launch felt the effect instantly. She was already heading in the right
direction, and at once began to glide away beneath the leafy covering.
It happened, too, that she was able to pursue this course for more than
a hundred yards before a break in the bank, where there had been a
species of landslide, and where the trees receded sharply, caused her to
come into the open.
"Take her clear into the centre, and then head her for the lagoon," said
Jim, calling gently to Sam. "Tom, slip back into the cab. All hands keep
their heads as low as possible. Don't fire a shot unless there's actual
need, and if there's trouble, let every man who has no other special
duty pepper those rascals for all they're worth. Over with her."
Bizz! gurr! gurr! The motor roared at his bidding, while the propeller
lashed the shallow water into foam. Ching grabbed at the covering placed
over the rent in the water jacket, and then turned his face from the
engine. For, though there was nothing there to harm one, still the spray
forced in all directions by the pump was disagreeable, to say the least
of it, and made seeing almost impossible! Bizz! Gurr! the launch shot
down the last few yards of the dark lane beneath the trees. Sam, his eye
fixed on the opening, swung his wheel right over, while Jim nudged his
levers a trifle higher. The planks at his feet had started to dither
again, and practice told him that the vessel must be moving. But they
were not shaking and vibrating to such an extent as to make standing
upon them uncomfortable. There was no need for such an exhibition of
haste yet awhile.
"Might bust the jacket altogether," Jim told himself. "Might have a bad
breakdown. Better get along as we are. I can squeeze a little more out
of her if there's occasion. Ah, here she goes round into the open!"
Turning abruptly, as Sam swung the wheel over, the launch canted on her
heel till a stream of water swamped far up the rail-less deck astern.
The bows lifted from the surface in spite of Tom's enormous weight,
while a big bow wave collected beneath her cutwater, and, gathering in
size as the propeller shot the boat forward, was presently spreading
across the surface of the river, and washing heavily against the nearest
bank. Straight as a dart the vessel was directed to the point that Jim
had mentioned. She cut obliquely across the stream, and, almost before
those aboard could have believed it possible, was heeling again to the
swerve of her rudder.
"Done them brown. Cut out below them, and left 'em well behind. Boys!"
cried Tomkins, beside himself with delight, "I 'low as we've something
to thank the chief for. He's done a cute thing; he's stolen a real march
on them blackguards."
"Not know so much, siree," answered Tom from his post in the cab, where
he had retired at Jim's orders. "Massa Jim all right, don't you fear. He
know right well what him up to; but what yo say to dat, and to dat? Dem
bullets buzz too close fo Tom's likin'."
That the passage of the launch had been observed there could not now be
a shadow of doubt, for the far side of the river had already displayed
several patches of smoke, billowing from the rifles of the enemy. But
Tomkins laughed at the idea that they could prove harmful.
"Jest you squat right down here at my feet, darkie," he laughed. "Then
you won't have no cause to get wonderin' whether a bullet's coming
along. Fer me, I guess as we're well out of a ruction that looked at one
time likely to get too hot fer anything. You ain't got sich a thing as a
light along of you?"
Tom grunted. It annoyed the big fellow to have a recommendation to place
himself in safety. His eyes gleamed white in the morning light; his
sharp teeth gritted together.
"Yo policeman," he said, as he extracted his pipe from his pocket, and
still leaned on the edge of the cab, within full view of those on the
bank of the river, "yo Tomkins, yo ain't the only one as wants a smoke.
By gum, but Tom like a draw too, 'specially early in de mornin', when
dere a chance of gettin' a bullet. Yo sit right there and wait. Matches
ain't so plentiful in this locality."
He stuffed his pipe methodically and slowly. Then he put the stem
between his teeth and, slowly again, struck one of his matches. He was
on the point of offering the light to the policeman when a sudden
exclamation came from Sam.
"Look dar!" he shouted. "Not tink dat good for dis here party. Tings is
all changed round. Dey's chasin' us instead of we bein' after dem. Massa
Jim, dis am a bit of a conundrum."
Conundrum or not, the situation was sufficiently serious. Even Tomkins
went red and hot as he realized to the full the gravity of this new
movement. For the motor launch was not the only one on the river. The
launch on which the two ruffians had escaped from Colon, and which they
themselves had chased in the late hours of the previous night, was now
chasing them, but under altered circumstances. There were fifty dark
figures swarming over her decks.
"Right straight down the centre!" cried Jim, waving to Sam. "You hold on
dead straight unless I give you an order. I think we shall just clear
her."
But would they? That was the question. The steam launch which had
disappeared so mysteriously on the previous night had suddenly darted
out from the opposite bank of the river, her decks crowded with men.
Moreover, she was fully prepared for a speedy journey, for steam was
hissing and whistling from her escape. There was a white wave under her
foot, a spreading surf behind her, while the course she followed
promised to bring her alongside Jim's vessel before the latter could
make her way down the long stretch of water that led to the lagoon.
Indeed it looked very much as if the stranger would intercept their
passage, and then--what was the prospect?
"Boys," called out Jim after a minute, during which time he had pushed
his throttle and ignition levers as far forward as was possible, "see
here, boys, there may be a tussle before us. Get to work right now with
your rifles. Give it to 'em hot. We may be able to scare 'em."
Pip! Pop! The sharp reports of the Government rifles punctuated the
semi-silence which followed, while screams of rage came from the crowded
decks of the enemy. Pip! Pop! Tomkins and his friends splashed their
bullets in the centre of the throng, and sent more than one of the dusky
warriors rolling. Meanwhile, under Jim's guiding hand, the motor launch
sped faster towards the lagoon, till her whole frame shivered and
vibrated. In such acute cases a second's space of time will change the
complexion of matters entirely, will advance the fortunes of one party
against those of the other. And here there was an illustration of the
fact. Jim's engine raced madly, while the propeller took a firm grip of
the water. The vessel bounded forward at a pace which easily
outdistanced that of the steam launch. Very soon it became apparent that
Jim and his friends would slip past the launch that was steaming from
the opposite bank to intercept them.
"Keep at it with those rifles, boys!" he shouted, delighted at the turn
matters had taken, and, heedless of the spray of water which gushed in
all directions from the rent in the cooling jacket of the motor. "Keep
down their fire, and if you catch a sight of those rascals, pepper them
properly. Hooray! We'll best 'em yet."
"Run past dem as if they was lame and walking," sang out Tom, bubbling
over with excitement. "Den turn and gib dem what fo. Yo tink dat good
advice, massa. Yo do as I say; den we knock dem into little pieces. Tom
able to find de blackguard dat fired dat shot; den smash um to a jelly."
But seconds bring great changes in the fortunes of parties, as we have
already observed, and now, having smiled upon Jim and his comrades,
Dame Fortune--a fickle dame at any time--turned her face from them. That
rent in the water jacket, the spray which the pump forced past the plug
which Ching held in position, proved the undoing of the party. The
rhythmical buzz of the engine suddenly ceased. The explosions came
haltingly, while the revolutions lessened sensibly, so much so as to
reduce the speed of the boat. Then Jim's practised ear told him that the
ignition had given out, that the vital spark, without which the motor
was useless and now deficient, had been cut off, and thus the motor had
been sent adrift. Let us express the matter in proper terms--the flow of
water had smothered the magneto, and the current was shorted; no longer
did it flow uninterrupted and insulated to the cylinders. It expended
its force elsewhere, sent sparks flashing about the magneto, and in the
short space of a minute entirely stopped the motor. But the steam launch
made no pause in her progress. She pushed on towards the stranded boat
swiftly, while a shriek of delight and triumph burst from the horde of
natives crowding her decks.