gone down, I reckon;
enyhow ther whol' side wus caved in. What's ther matter with yer
engine?"

"It's all right now--keep your eyes peeled ahead."

The steam began to sizz, settling swiftly into a rhythmatic chugging,
as the revolving wheel began to churn up the water astern. Confident
of being safely hidden by the darkness, I permitted the current to bear
me downward, my muscles aching painfully from the struggle, and with no
other thought in my mind except to keep well out of sight of the
occupants of the boat. To be perceived by them, and overtaken in the
water, meant certain death, while, if they continued to believe that I
had actually sunk beneath the surface, some future carelessness on
their part might yield me an unexpected opportunity to serve Rene. The
few words overheard had made sufficiently plain the situation. Poor
Sam had already found freedom in death, crushed between the two
colliding boats, but the girl had been grasped in time, and hauled
uninjured aboard the heavier craft. This had been the object of the
attack--to gain possession of her. Very evidently I had not been seen,
at least not closely enough to be recognized by Kirby. In a measure
this afforded me a decided advantage, provided we ever encountered each
other again--and I meant that we should. The account between us was
not closed by this incident; far from it. There in that black water,
struggling to keep afloat, while being swept resistlessly out into the
river, with no immediate object before me except to remain concealed by
the veil of darkness, I resolved solemnly to myself that this affair
should never end, until it was ended right. In that moment of decision
I cared not at all for Rene Beaucaire's drop of negro blood, nor for
the fact that she was a slave in her master's hands. Her appeal to me
ignored all this. To my mind she was but a woman, a sweet, lovable,
girlish woman, in the unrestrained power of a brute, and dependent
alone on me for rescue. That was enough; I cared for nothing more.

The intense blackness hid me completely, as I held my head barely above
the surface, no longer making any effort to stem the downward sweep of
the stream. Conscious of being thus borne rapidly to the mouth of the
river, my only endeavor was to keep afloat, and conserve my strength.
The ceaseless noise of the engine told me accurately the position of
the keel-boat, although, by this time, there was a stretch of rushing
water bet