ound; while out of doors the wild clamor of the fire-alarm
suddenly burst forth to add horror to the scene.

Shaking and terrified, Bob nevertheless stood motionless, partly because
he did not know what else to do, but mainly because the fellows on
either side of him had not stirred. He dug his teeth into his under lip
to keep back a frightened whimper, and then of a sudden the clear,
high voice of Mr. Curtis rang out above the deafening din and turmoil:

"Troop Five prepare to form double riot wedge! One!"

Instinctively Bob leaped two paces forward and a little to the right.
In like fashion the others darted to their positions with the swift
precision of machines. Not a scout failed. Even Bennie Rhead, frightened
as he was, made no mistake, and in a trice the wedge was complete.

"Two!" shouted the scoutmaster.

Down swung the staves, interlocking in a double barrier of stout hickory
backed by equally sturdy muscle. The scoutmaster had barely time to place
himself at the apex of the wedge before the mob struck it.

"Hold fast, boys!" he cried. "Brace your feet and don't let them
break the line!" He flung up both arms in the faces of the maddened
throng. "Stop!" he shouted. "You can't get out this way. The stairs
are impassable. Stop crowding! There's no danger if you keep your
heads. The fire-escapes are in good order. The windows--"

The rest was choked off by the crushing weight of the mob dashing
against the barrier. Even in the second row Bob felt the double line
shake and give under the strain, and instinctively he dropped a shoulder
against the pressure and spread out his legs to brace himself. MacIlvaine
noticed what he was doing, and shouted to the others to follow Bob's
example; and presently the line steadied and held. Then a shrill whistle
cut through the clamor, stilling it a little and making it possible
to hear the stentorian voice of Captain Chalmers from somewhere in
the rear of the crowd.

"You can't get out by the stairs! There are fire-escapes at both front
and rear. Ladders will soon be raised to the other windows. There's no
danger if you only keep your heads. Stop crowding and form in line at the
windows. Scouts will see that these lines are kept and that the women
and children are taken out first."

[Illustration: "Hold fast, boys!" he cried. "Brace your feet and don't
let them break the line!"]

An inarticulate murmur followed his words, but the wild din of a moment
before was not re