see even the glow of the fire
against the clouded sky.

"I believe it's goin' to open up and rain ag'in," Toby said. "But if you
want to go on and plow me a fire-strip, Tommy, I'll be a thousand times
obleeged to you."

"That's what I came this way for," said the young fellow briefly. "Hop
on and we'll go to the island as quickly as possible."

They found Mrs. Vanderwiller and the crippled boy anxiously watching the
flames in the tree top from the porch of the little house on the island.
Nan ran to them to relate their adventures, while Toby got out the plow
and Tom hitched his big horses to it.

The farm was not fenced, for the road and forest bounded it completely.
Tom put the plow in at the edge of the wood and turned his furrows
toward it, urging the horses into a trot. It was not that the fire was
near; but the hour was growing late and Tom knew that his mother and
father would be vastly anxious about Nan.

The young fellow made twelve laps, turning twelve broad furrows that
surely would guard the farm against any ordinary fire. But by the time
he was done it did not look as though the fire in the sawdust would
spread far. The clouds were closing up once more and it was again
raining, gently but with an insistence that promised a night of
downpour, at least.

Old Mrs. Vanderwiller had made supper, and insisted upon their eating
before starting for Pine Camp. And Tom, at least, did his share with
knife and fork, while his horses ate their measure of corn in the
paddock. It was dark as pitch when they started for home, but Tom was
cheerful and sure of his way, so Nan was ashamed to admit that she was
frightened.

"Tell yer dad I'll be over ter Pine Camp ter see him 'fore many days,"
Old Toby jerked out, as they were starting. "I got suthin' to say to
him, I have!"

Tom did not pay much attention to this; but Nan did. Her heart leaped
for joy. She believed that Toby Vanderwiller's words promised help for
Uncle Henry.

But she said nothing to Tom about it. She only clung to his shoulder as
the heavy timber cart rattled away from the island.

A misty glow hung over the sawdust strip as they advanced; but now that
the wind had died down the fire could not spread. Beside the road the
glow worms did their feeble best to light the way; and now and then an
old stump in the swamp displayed a ghostly gleam of phosphorus.

Nan had never been in the swamp before at night. The rain had driven
most of the frogs and