or the most part be to fend off from threatening rocks.

It was intended that the other boats should follow close enough to give
their pilots a chance to profit by the knowledge Francois had of the
currents and most dangerous places. At the same time, they must not come
within a certain distance lest they foul each other.

Faster and faster did the swift current bear them on its bosom. They
could now see it surging on toward the abrupt bend, around which the
dangerous rapid lay.

Every fellow shut his teeth hard together. Sleeves had been rolled up,
so that nothing might interfere with the heavy work ahead of them.

Jimmy was the soul watcher, he alone having no part in making that
perilous passage of the cataract. Gripping the two sides of the canoe,
as he squatted amidships, Jimmy stared with bulging eyes as the bend was
turned, and he could see that foamy track ahead. All of the way across
the river the ugly jagged rocks thrust their sharp points above the
surface of the swift water, and for a distance of nearly a quarter of a
mile it seemed as though only by a miracle could a frail canoe safely
pass among these evil genii of the rapids.

But a careful and practiced eye could pick out an avenue of
comparatively smooth water that ran from top to bottom of the rapid. It
often curved sharply, so that it made a very irregular line. Quick
action would be necessary in many instances, so as to avoid contact with
some snag that lay in wait for a victim.

Francois went boldly in. He sat there like a carved statue, only that
the upper part of his body was in constant action, as he drove his
magical blade deeply into the water, and caused the canoe to obey his
dominant will as he pleased.

After him came the bronzed Cree Indian guide, copying every movement of
the other, much as Japanese workman would a design given into his hands
to duplicate even to the minutest detail.

It was a glorious dash, and one the scouts would certainly never forget.
Their blood leaped madly in their veins as they saw the tumbling,
boiling water all about them, acting as though fairly wild to get them
in its power.

Several times Ned and Jack found themselves put to their best efforts in
order to stem the tide, and keep from meeting with shipwreck.
Fortunately, their muscles were sound, and their heads clear, so that in
every instance they recovered the advantage almost lost. When the foot
of the cataract was reached nothing of a serious na