nt wrench he freed himself of the arms of his captors, while

bein' a' doing of now?" dema

f the crackers, "and we calculate to have him decorating a tree-bough b

re quite capable of carrying out their threat. In fact a murmur of approval greeted the cold-blooded proposal. One man-a little short fellow with a

ell decorating that t

hunting, had been much surprised to see the motor-boat man?uvring off the point on the far side of which the boys had beached the canoes. They stealthily watched the tw

in pursuit of us," exclaimed Frank and Harry in one b

l dinghy that towed astern and come ashore at the spot where the canoes were lying. He carried a small axe and was about to raise it and destroy the craft when the crackers, with a startling yell, burst out of t

ss their minds. "What if the two men had visited the s

fears. Frank's answer, however, g

that they planned to destroy the canoes before attacking the Carrier Dove, as with the small cr

n his dark face. He looked very different from the well-dressed man who had first attracted their attention in the dining-room at the Hotel Willard, but

?" demanded

yes of an Oriental. Combined with his dark yellow skin they stamped him at once as an unmistakable subject of the ruler of the far Eastern power the agents of which the Secretary of the Na

d refuse to tell

ve us some information we will in return try to intervene for you, notwithstanding the fact that you have tried to blow up our aerodrome and now w

eply that he is in good h

ain't, my fine fellow," put in Ben indignan

e said proudly, "I shall not sue Amer

rrounded by the cruel faces of men who would have no hesitancy in killing him, he showed no

ke in one of the moonshiners, a big, powerful f

he horrible thing the man contemplated. They meant

oard. If you want to string up this fellow to the yard-arm I don't know, if it wasn

e suggestion angrily and leaning forward on his rifle, "I reckon we

ered, "That's right-who's he to

age. At this an angry cry went up. The boys and Ben perceived that matters would soon reach a crisis if some

e-maker and seizing him in an iron grasp put his

e more word like that and you'

ntly did for he

he way we do these things an' if you don't

wood. Indeed with his parchment-like skin and dark, slit eyes he d

en even had come out of the huts, with their timid children peeping from behind their skirts, to be onlookers at the unwo

his here reptile-much reason as we've got to-and we don't want him to be tortured, and I'll be keelhauled i

So completely had Ben's determined manner cowed the mo

ou've got to make tracks in that thar motor-boat of yours for the north and swea

s of these people you will have to pledge us your word to trail us no f

have you in jail by this t

with some of the expression of sullen cunning obliterated from his dark face

motor-boat till I signaled to him that I was going to put off again. If you w

and drove the boat round the point whe

ther

him with this," he drew from his pocket a small whistle, of

thing to repay you for your kindness which I confess

Ben, who didn't much like the cool w

must be at your camp. We only carried him off in an attempt to prevent his giving the alarm.

tonishment. The tone he

nd in a terrible form. As for me I have pledged you my word. I am your country's enemy,

y," Frank could not refrain from saying, "

ore unscrupulous and more to be feared than I," the ot

on us in Washing

lied the man, "it was my duty. We soldiers of the Samur

an officer?"

an war and was afterward given the honor to assist in t

trymen have done," rejoined Frank warmly; "it loo

," he said abruptly, "I must be going. We must be well on our way north by dark for the

said and be warned," he

st transpired that they had not noticed that for some time the sky had been growing blacker and that one of the sudden storms, peculiar to the tropics, had been advancing towards them with all the rapidity that marks

squall breaks," growled Ben as his seaman's eye noted the signs of bad w

the moonshiners, he vanished down the trail leading to the shore. The moo

ang him," said one of them, "he'll w

been impressed by the man's earnest manner and evident gratitude. How s