de's personal following volunteered. At once his good
humour returned; and his easy leisurely confidence in himself.

"We've got to close that opening, first thing," said he. "Marsh, tow the
pile-driver up there."

He caused a heavy line to be run from a tree, situated around the bend
down stream, to the stern of the driver.

"Now if you have to," he told North, who had charge, "let go all holds,
and the line will probably swing you around out of danger. We on the tug
will get out as best we can."

The opening was to be closed by piles driven in groups of sixteen bound
together by chains. The clumps were connected one to the other by a
system of boom logs and ropes to interpose a continuous barrier. The
pile-driver placed the clumps; while the tug attended to the connecting
defences.

"Now, boys," said Orde as his last word, "if she starts to go, save
yourselves the best way you can. Never mind the driver. STAY ON TOP!"

Slowly the tug and her consort nosed up through the boiling water.

"She's rising already," said Orde to Marsh, watching the water around
the piles.

"Yes, and that jam's going out before many minutes," supplemented the
tugboat captain grimly.

Both these statements were only too true. Although not fifteen minutes
before, the jam had lain locked in perfect safety, now the slight rise
of the waters had lifted and loosened the mass until it rose fairly on
the quiver.

"Work fast!" Orde called to the men on the pile-driver. "If we can close
the opening before those Redding logs hit us, we may be able to turn
them into our new channel."

He did not add that if the opening were not closed before the jam broke,
as break it would in a very few moments, the probabilities were that
both pile-driver and tug would be destroyed. Every man knew that
already.

Tom North ordered a pile placed in the carriage; the hammer descended.
At once, like battering rams logs began to shoot up from the depths of
the river end foremost all about them. These timbers were projected with
tremendous force, leaping sometimes half their length above the surface
of the water. If any of them had hit either the tug or the pile-driver
squarely, it would have stove and sunk the craft. Fortunately this did
not happen; but Marsh hastily towed the scow back to a better position.
The pile had evidently been driven into the foot of the jam itself, thus
loosening timbers lying at the bottom of the river.

The work went forward as