her. As he was about to emerge from
the companionway, the ship's clock in the cabin began to strike and he
stopped to listen. Four bells sounded. It was two in the morning. From
without came the creaking of the gaff-jaw against the mast. The Samoset
rolled and righted on a sea, and in the light breeze her canvas gave
forth a hollow thrum.

He was just putting his foot out on the damp deck when he heard his
wife scream. It was a startled frightened scream that ended in a splash
overside. He leaped out and ran aft. In the dim starlight he could make
out her head and shoulders disappearing astern in the lazy wake.

"What was it?" Captain Dettmar, who was at the wheel, asked.

"Mrs. Duncan," was Duncan's reply, as he tore the life-buoy from its
hook and flung it aft. "Jibe over to starboard and come up on the wind!"
he commanded.

And then Boyd Duncan made a mistake. He dived overboard.

When he came up, he glimpsed the blue-light on the buoy, which had
ignited automatically when it struck the water. He swam for it, and
found Minnie had reached it first.

"Hello," he said. "Just trying to keep cool?"

"Oh, Boyd!" was her answer, and one wet hand reached out and touched
his.

The blue light, through deterioration or damage, flickered out. As they
lifted on the smooth crest of a wave, Duncan turned to look where the
Samoset made a vague blur in the darkness. No lights showed, but there
was noise of confusion. He could hear Captain Dettmar's shouting above
the cries of the others.

"I must say he's taking his time," Duncan grumbled. "Why doesn't he
jibe? There she goes now."

They could hear the rattle of the boom tackle blocks as the sail was
eased across.

"That was the mainsail," he muttered. "Jibed to port when I told him
starboard."

Again they lifted on a wave, and again and again, ere they could make
out the distant green of the Samoset's starboard light. But instead of
remaining stationary, in token that the yacht was coming toward them, it
began moving across their field of vision. Duncan swore.

"What's the lubber holding over there for!" he demanded. "He's got his
compass. He knows our bearing."

But the green light, which was all they could see, and which they could
see only when they were on top of a wave, moved steadily away from them,
withal it was working up to windward, and grew dim and dimmer. Duncan
called out loudly and repeatedly, and each time, in the intervals, they
could hear, very f