our
fuse long enough, light it, and throw the thing under the car. That
would settle it."

Adair yawned sleepily.

"Well, they've got all night for the inventive part of it. There's no
rescue for us unless somebody--a good husky army of somebodies--just
happens along."

"The army is less than eight miles away--over at Frisbie's camp," said
Ford. "With Dick to lead them, the track-layers would sack this place in
about five minutes. If I could only get to the wire!"

Brissac heard the "if."

"Let me try to run their picket line, Ford," he said eagerly. "If I can
get around to our quarters and into the telegraph tent--"

"You couldn't do it, Roy. There is the proof of it," pointing to the
body of the slain negro. "But I have been thinking of another scheme.
The track-camp wire is bracketed across the yard on the light-poles. I
have my pocket relay. I wonder if we could manage to cut in on that
wire?"

"Wait a minute," Brissac interrupted. He was gone but a moment, and when
he returned he brought hope with him.

"The wire is down and lying across the front vestibule," he announced
excitedly. "They must have cut it up yonder by the telegraph tent and
the slack has sagged down this way."

"Which gives us a dead wire without any batteries," said Ford gloomily;
and then: "Hold on--aren't there electric call-bells in this car,
Adair?"

"Yes, several of them; one in each state-room."

"Good! that means batteries of some sort," said Ford. "Rummage for
them, Brissac, while I get that wire in here."

The wire was successfully pulled in through the front vestibule without
giving the alarm. Ford twisted it in two when he had enough of it to
reach the central compartment. Adair did sentry duty while the two
technicians wrought swiftly. The bell battery was found, the ground
connection made with a bit of copper wire stripped from one of the
state-rooms, and Ford quickly adjusted the delicate spring of the tiny
field relay.

What he feared most was that the few dry-cells of the bell battery would
not supply the current for the eight miles of line up Horse Creek. For a
time, which lengthened to dragging minutes, the anxious experimenters
hung over the tiny field instrument. The sensitive magnet seemed wholly
dead. Then, suddenly, it began to tick hesitantly in response to Ford's
tapping of the key.

"Thank God, the battery is strong enough," he exclaimed. "Now, if there
is somebody within hearing at Frisbie's end of th