r behind.

"Oh, if it were only lighter!" cried Rodd, stamping his foot with
vexation. "Why, she'll soon be out of sight."

"Before she gets much farther," said Uncle Paul gravely, "she'll be
getting within the light cast by one or other of the harbour lights, and
that will be one of her critical times."

"Why critical, uncle?" cried the boy earnestly. "Because the men in the
fort will have a better chance of hitting her, I should say."

"Oh, I hope they won't," said Rodd beneath his breath. "Why, it would
be horrible, uncle," he half whispered, with his lips close to his
uncle's face. "She must have a brave captain to dare all this."

"A very brave captain," said Uncle Paul earnestly. "But you think
she'll get away, uncle?"

"No, Rodney," said the doctor, laying his hand with a firm grip upon his
nephew's shoulder. "She may pass through the harbour mouth without
being hit by the gunners, for it would require a clever marksman to hit
so swiftly moving an object, rising and falling as the brig does now
that she is getting into the disturbed water near the mouth."

"But suppose she passes through untouched, uncle? What then?"

"What then, boy? She will be out of the shelter given by the end of the
jetty. It's too dim now to see, but once or twice I had just a glimpse
of the waves washing over the harbour light, and there must be a
terrific sea out there. Why, you can hear it plainly even here."

"No, uncle; that's the wind."

"And waves, my boy. Why, trying to sail out there in the teeth of such
a gale as this, it will be almost impossible for her to escape. It
seems to me to be an act of madness to attempt such an escapade, and
cleverly as the brig is handled I think it is doubtful whether she will
ever clear the mouth. But if she does she will catch the full force of
the storm and--"

"And what, uncle?"

"Be carried away yonder to the east somewhere and cast ashore."

"Oh-h!" sighed Rodd; and it was almost a groan.

CHAPTER SIXTEEN.

ESCAPE.

Three more shots were fired at intervals, as the brig kept making short
tack after tack, and with each report the flash appeared to be brighter,
indicative of the increasing darkness, while now a pale lambent light
seemed to be dawning at times and making the shape of the brig stand out
more clearly at intervals, but only to fade away again quickly, while
there were moments when the vessel quite disappeared.

"Why is that, uncle?" asked Rodd qu