r past the middle--if I could, I'd work her
back right now where we come from."

"They'd shoot you!"

"If they did it would only be me they'd get--the river won't be so
particular."

"You mean--we're in danger?"

"Danger!" The naive question angered the cowboy. "Oh, no we ain't in any
danger, not a bit in the world. We're just as safe as if we was sittin'
on a keg of powder with the fuse lit. There's nothin' in the world can
hurt us except this little old Mizoo, an' it wouldn't think of such a
thing----"

"Don't try to be sarcastic, Tex, you do it very clumsily."

"Maybe I do, but I ain't clumsy at guessin' that of all the tight places
I've ever be'n in, this is the tightest. How far can you swim?"

"Not a stroke."

"So can I."

"Anyway, it's better than being lost in a dust storm--we won't shrivel
up and die of thirst."

"No, we won't die of thirst, all right. But you an' me have sure
stumbled into a fine mess. What'll Win think, an' what'll everyone else
think? If we go under, they'll never know any different, an' if we do
happen to get across, it'll be some several days before this river gets
down to where we can get back, an' I can see from here what a lovely
time we're goin' to have explainin' things to the satisfaction of all
parties concerned."

"You seem to be a born pessimist. We're not going under, and what's to
prevent us from waiting out here until the men on the bank go away, and
then going back where we started from?"

A flash of lightning illumined the horizon and the Texan's voice blended
with a low rumble of thunder. "With the force of water the way it is,"
he explained, "we can't move this boat an inch. It'll carry to the
middle on the slack of the line, an' in the middle we'll stay. It'll be
uphill both ways from there an' we can't budge her an inch. Then, either
the line'll bust, or the river will keep on risin' till it just
naturally pulls us under."

"Maybe the river will start to fall," ventured the girl.

"Maybe it won't. We've had enough rain this spring for four summers
already--an' more comin'."

"We'll get out someway." The Texan knew that the words were forced. And
his heart bounded with admiration for this girl who could thus thrust
danger to the winds and calmly assert that there would be a way out. A
nearer flash of lightning was followed by louder thunder. "Sure, we'll
get out," he agreed, heartily. "I didn't mean we wouldn't get out. I was
just lookin' the facts squ