shore.

But just as Jerry had maintained his courage and strength by keeping
constantly in mind Joe's plight, so Joe stuck to his terrible task,
suffering the most severe punishment, by an unwavering confidence in
Jerry's ability to get assistance in the shortest possible time.

He could see and hear that the man in the boat was working hastily, even
laboriously; and every few seconds there was the smothered splash of
something heavy being dropped carefully overboard.

And then, at the most inopportune moment, just when Joe was head and
shoulders out of the water, not more than twenty feet away from the
boat, the searchlight was thrown full upon him.

He dived; but not before the other man saw him. Joe, swimming ten feet
under water, and as hard as he could with the current down stream, knew
that he had been discovered, for he heard the quick rap-rap of the oars,
the sound dying away as the little craft sped toward shore.

When he did come to the surface it was with the certain feeling that the
fatal searchlight had been played upon the scene two minutes too early,
and just in time to prevent the capture red-handed of a very
questionable character, undoubtedly carrying out some plot for an enemy
government.

For as distinctly as he could hear the oars thrashing the water toward
shore, he could discern the steady but subdued puffing of a steam launch
racing up the river.

Joe was now on the point of exhaustion. He was flapping the water
desperately, but he was making no progress, and he was having the
greatest difficulty keeping himself afloat. He tried to cry out, and
this final effort took his last bit of strength.

The steam launch was then perhaps thirty feet away, but Jerry's words,
"Right about here," floated to him as from the opposite side of the
river. The boat's searchlight that was then suddenly thrown on blinded
him; he lost all account of things, and had the vague feeling of
sailing across great spaces on fleecy white clouds.

When he regained partial consciousness Sergeant Martin was in the water
with him, and trying to raise his body over the side of the launch; then
he relapsed again, for what seemed to him hours, but what was actually
only about two minutes, and was awakened to his real senses by the
shouts of Slim, on shore.

"Slim's got him," Jerry almost shouted. "Hurry, captain, right off this
way to the shore. Slim must have him. Listen to Slim's bellow."

And if there wasn't a first-c