e
scattered, and their bullets have a better chance than ours of finding
a mark. These sniping methods are all in their favor, if Ditty has
sense enough to stick to them."

"They've gained already by this afternoon's work," pondered Tyke.
"When they started in we were seventeen to 'leven. Now, as far as we
know, they're sixteen to our nine, for neither Olsen nor Binney's what
you might call able-bodied. The odds are getting bigger against us."

"All the ammunition we have spent has accounted for only one man,"
added the captain. "Their cover has served 'em well. And our
ammunition is short. I figure out that we haven't much more than
thirty cartridges apiece left for the rifles. That won't last us long."

"Why not dash out and charge them?" suggested Drew.

"We will when our cartridges get low," agreed the captain. "But I'm
hoping they'll charge us first in the morning. We could drop a bunch
of 'em before they closed in on us, and then we'd have a better chance
in hand-to-hand fighting."

After dark the captain posted three men some distance within the
forest, with the promise that they should be relieved at midnight and
with strict injunctions to keep a vigilant watch and report to him at
once should anything seem suspicious.

Rogers was delegated to make his way down to the beach, where it was
supposed the mutineers would encamp for the night, to see if he could
gain any information as to their plan of attack on the morrow.

To Ruth this whole situation was a most terrifying one; but nobody
displayed more bravery than she.

She had attended to the two wounded men skilfully. She had been
obliged to arrange a tourniquet on Olsen's shoulder, or the man would
have bled to death; and she had done this as well as a more practised
nurse. The wound was a clean one, the bullet having bored right
through the shoulder.

Binney's wound was merely painful, and he could not use his rifle
effectively. But he could handle an automatic with his left hand.

The departure of the mutineers and the coming of night released their
minds and hearts from anxiety to a certain degree. Night fowls in the
forest shouted their raucous notes back and forth, and there were some
squealings and gruntings at the edge of the jungle that betrayed the
presence of certain small animals that might add to their bill of fare
could they but capture them.

"We'll forage for grub to-morrow," said Captain Hamilton. "It's too
dark to-ni