er course. But the sloop also turned.

"There is only one young fellow on board," said Jones. "Look, he acts
as if he was scared out of his wits."

"I know him!" fairly shouted our hero.

"You do?"

"Yes, it is Bob Bangs, the rich young fellow I told you about."

"The fellow who couldn't manage his hoss?"

"The same."

"Well, he doesn't seem to know no more about his boat than he did about
that hoss," was the deckhand's comment.

"We are going to run into him!" gasped Randy.

"No, he is going to run into us."

"It will amount to the same thing--so far as he is concerned."

"Maybe--but it will be his fault if he gets drowned."

Another warning whistle now rang out, but was of no avail. The sloop
swerved again and then came squarely up to the big steamboat, which was
now backing water furiously.

"Stop! Don't run me down!" screamed Bob Bangs. He was fairly white with
terror.

His cries were cut short by the crash as the sloop struck. The bow was
splintered, and the shock threw Bob Bangs overboard. Luckily he was far
enough away to escape the paddle-wheel, as the _Helen Shalley_
continued to go ahead despite the fact that her engines had been
reversed.

The first surprise over, Randy was quick to act. Not far away was a
life preserver having a line attached to it and this he took from its
hooks. He waited for the rich boy to appear. Soon he came up,
spluttering.

"Catch the preserver!" called out our hero and cast the article in such
a skillful manner that it fell within easy reach.

"Save me! Save me!" gasped the rich youth, throwing his arms wildly
about him.

"Take hold of the life preserver!" called out half a hundred people at
once. Then several other cries rang out.

At last the motion of the water washed the life preserver up against
Bob Bangs' arm. He clutched at it desperately. By this time the
steamboat had come to a standstill, and it was an easy matter for Randy
and Jones to pull the rich youth towards the vessel. Then a rope ladder
was lowered and Bob Bangs came up to the deck, dripping with water.

[Illustration]

"Well, young man, you had a narrow escape," said Captain Hadley, as he
pushed his way through the crowd to the spot.

"I know it, and it's all your fault!" whined Bob Bangs.

"My fault? Nonsense!"

"You ran me down! I'll have the law on you for it."

"Don't talk like a fool, young man. I was in the wheelhouse myself with
the pilot and saw just how you acted. Evident