all right. It's when she goes white that you want to look out."

Perhaps this was precisely what Skookie had feared. Within three
minutes after Rob had spoken what he had dreaded actually occurred. They
were riding steadily up toward the top of a long, oily wave whose
leeward side was quite unbroken, when, just as they reached the top, the
wind seemed to tear the crest of the wave into shreds. Without warning,
a great, boiling surge of white, hissing water came up all around them.
It was as though some angry spirit of the deep had risen up from below
and tried to pull them down.

The white water poured in over the gunwale and half filled the dory,
which seemed on the point of sinking before the long wave crept away,
growling, as though disappointed at being baffled in its purpose.

Jesse, who had left the stern seat and was crouched in the bottom of the
dory, uttered a cry of affright.

"Quiet, there!" called out Rob, sharply. "Bail, bail as fast as you can!
Hurry up!"

Thoroughly frightened, but rallying to his young commander's voice,
Jesse obeyed, and bailed rapidly as he could, the sloshing water now
leaving him for the bow, and now flooding him to the knees as it swept
back to the stern when the bow arose. The dory yawed and veered
unsteadily. Had they struck another piece of white water the end must
have come for them, for their craft would have been beyond the control
of their weary arms. Good-fortune was with them, however, and Jesse's
efforts steadily lightened their little ship, while the others kept her
headed up, quartering into the long waves.

How long they rowed in this heart-breaking manner none of them ever
knew, but it seemed many hours. No doubt it was two or three hours
before they began to reach the shelter of the nearest projecting point
on the farther side of the bay. By this time they were nearly worn out,
their arms trembling, and their faces pale from over-exertion, but they
dared not stop, and so pulled on as best they could. All at once Skookie
spoke.

"_Karosha_!" he exclaimed. "Pretty soon all light, all light! I hear-um
water over dar."

He meant that he now could hear the surf breaking along the beach on
their side of the bay. The roar of the waves became plainer and plainer
as they pulled in, and now the rollers became less gigantic, and their
headway increased as the wind was shut off by the promontory at the head
of their beach.

The sound of the breaking surf was ominous e