seemed now like a kind of mockery.

"When I found you were all right," he said to Archer in his dull way,
"and we were all alone here, I might have known it was too good to be
true. I wouldn't bother now. I just got bad luck.--When I tried for the
pathfinders' badge and tracked somebody that stole something," he added
with his stolid disregard for detail, "I found it was my own father, and
I didn't claim the badge. That's the kind of luck _I_ got. So I wouldn't
try any more. 'Cause if you got bad luck you can't help it. I dropped my
knife and the blade stuck in the ground--up at Temple Camp--and that's
bad luck. Let 'em come----"

[Illustration: "IT'S FIFTY-FIFTY,--TWO AGAINST TWO," SAID ARCHER. Page
153]

This side of Tom Slade was new to Archer, and he stared curiously at the
lowering face of his companion.

"That's what you call losing your morale," he said; "if you lose
that--go-od _night_! Suppose General Joffre said that when the Huns
werre hitting it forr Paris! S'pose _I_ said that when my foot stuck in
the mud on the bottom of this plaguey riverr!"

"I didn't know that," said Tom.

"Well, you know it now," retorted Archer, "and I don't give up till they
land me back in prison, and I don't give up then, eitherr. And I ain't
lettin' any jack-knives get _my_ goat--so you can chalk that up in yerr
little old noddle!"

"I guess that's the trouble," Tom began; "my head aches----"

"Can you swim now?" Archer demanded.

"You go," said Tom; "my knee's too stiff."

"If you everr say a thing like that to me again," said Archer, his eyes
snapping and his freckled face flushing scarlet, "I'll----"

"I didn't think we'd start till midnight," Tom said, "and I thought my
knee'd be well enough by that time."

The little boat, as they could see from the doorway, bobbed nearer and
nearer and Archer could see that it contained two men.

"They've got on uniforms," Archer said, "but I can't see what they arre.
Let's keep inside."

"They know we're here," said Tom; "they'd only shoot us if we started
away."

Closer and closer came the little boat until one of its occupants jumped
out, hauling it into one of the little rocky caverns of the islet. Then
both came striding up to the doorway.

As soon as they caught sight of the boys they paused aghast and seemed
to be much more discomfited than either Tom or Archer. Evidently they
had not come for the fugitives and the thought occurred to Archer that
they might be fu