d been listening. Drawing his pistol, and calling to the crew
of the Jasper B. to follow him, Cleggett plunged recklessly downward
and into the darkness.

CHAPTER VII

FIRST BLOOD FOR CLEGGETT

As his feet struck the top of the rubbish heap in the hold of the
vessel, Cleggett stumbled and staggered forward. But he did not let go
of his revolver.

Perhaps he would not have fallen, but the Pomeranian, which had leaped
into the hold after him, yelping like a terrier at a rat hunt, ran
between his legs and tripped him.

"Damn the dog!" cried Cleggett, going down.

But the fall probably saved his life, for as he spoke two pistol shots
rang out simultaneously from the forward part of the hold. The bullets
passed over his head. Raising himself on his elbow, Cleggett fired
rapidly three times, aiming at the place where a spurt of flame had
come from.

A cry answered him, and he knew that at least one of his bullets had
taken effect. He rose to his feet and plunged forward, firing again,
and at the same instant another bullet grazed his temple.

The next few seconds were a wild confusion of yelping dog, shouts,
curses, shots that roared like the explosion of big guns in that
pent-up and restricted place, stinking powder, and streaks of fire that
laced themselves across the darkness. But only a single pistol replied
to Cleggett's now and he was confident that one of the men was out of
the fight.

But the other man, blindly or with intention, was stumbling nearer as
he fired. A bullet creased Cleggett's shoulder; it was fired so close
to him that he felt the heat of the exploding powder; and in the sudden
glow of light he got a swift and vivid glimpse of a white face framed
in long black hair, and of flashing white teeth beneath a lifted lip
that twitched. The face was almost within touching distance; as it
vanished Cleggett heard the sharp, whistling intake of the fellow's
breath--and then a click that told him the other's last cartridge was
gone. Cleggett clubbed his pistol and leaped forward, striking at the
place where the gleaming teeth had been. His blow missed; he spun
around with the force of it. As he steadied himself to shoot again he
heard a rush behind him and knew that his men had come to his
assistance.

"Collar him!" he cried. "Don't shoot, or----"

But he did not finish that sentence. A thousand lights danced before
his eyes, Niagara roared in his ears for an instant, and he knew no
m