d
call it square. What do you say?"

The captain looked round with the sickness of deadly fear in his eyes.

"Don't make us go up there like this," he begged hoarsely. "For God's
sake, don't do that!"

VII

Payne paused with a hand on the flywheel.

The dread in the captain's eyes was obviously genuine.

"Don't make us take you up there, mister," he repeated. "You wouldn't
if you knew."

"Knew what?"

"We can't bring any one up there."

"You aren't bringing any one; you're being brought."

"It'll be hard luck for you, too, mister, if you run up there."

Higgins shouldered angrily forward.

"Keep that kind of pap talk behind your teeth. Trouble with you
fellows is you've been used to handling suckers. You sort of get it
that we're different, don't you?"

"I'm telling you," persisted the captain; "'twon't be any luck for you
to run up there, and it'll be hell for us."

"Get up there and take that wheel!" roared Higgins. "Steer her right
and true to the end of the strip and you won't get into any trouble.
Try to ground her or any tricks, and you won't have to go 'up there' to
catch hell."

"Hold on, Hig." Payne had sensed the desperation rising in the four
men and he was averse to violence if it could be avoided. He was new
in that country and he expected to settle there and develop his land.
For a long time to come, until the contemplated railroad line came down
from the north to his property, he knew the Chokohatchee River must be
his means of communication with the outer world. The four men on the
boat were natives of the section. He had not yet been able to fathom
just what nature of men they were or what their business was, but he
suspected the latter to be something illegal, and despite the poor
showing they had made in the fight on the boat it was apparent that
there was in them at least a tinge of the desperado. The swamps of
Southern Florida, he knew, were favorite hiding places for scores of
bad men. These men probably spent a good deal of time on the river
which he must use, and therefore he had no wish to make them his deadly
enemies.

"Don't take that wheel, cap!" said one of the men suddenly. "And keep
your trap closed."

The scarred man turned and stared sullenly into the barrel of Higgins'
revolver.

"Go ahead and shoot. That's the only way I'll go up there."

"Don't want to go alive, eh?"

"Ain't--allowed--to go--at all."

"Hold on, Hig," repeated Roger. "