hours for a week."

Gregory turned quickly to McCoy and said earnestly: "It's a big idea,
Mac. It will work. It's got to work. It's getting bigger all the time.
And I'll be damned if I'm going to have a girl hang me up by falling
down on her job."

He shut his lips tight as he drew a blue-print from his pocket and
spread it out on an empty case.

"Now I want to go over these plans for making a bunk-house out of this
building. The boys can't get a decent place to stay in the town. The
contractor will be here in half an hour. After I've closed with him I'm
going down to the Lang dock and see the girl."

* * * * *

Dickie Lang paced the docks in nervous expectancy while she checked in
her returning fleet and conferred with one of her fishing captains.

"I'll tell you, Tom, we've got to get them. I'm under contract to supply
Mr. Gregory with fish and I can't fall down like this. Look here."
Shoving a tally-sheet before his eyes, she pointed to the totals. "Not
enough there to last him half a day. He's beginning to eat them up.
We've got to get more."

"But if they ain't runnin', what you going to do?"

"Go after them," she snapped. "Mascola's getting fish. He's going out to
sea for them. He brought in a good haul yesterday from Diablo. That's
why I sent the big boats over there with the _Petrel_ scouting ahead."

The fisherman shook his head dubiously.

"You're takin' a tall chance," he said slowly. "Things happen out Diablo
way. Your dad never could make it stick out there. He lost a heap around
that devil-island. That's why he give up fishin' out there."

"He didn't give it up," the girl flashed, "any more than I'm going to
give it up. Diablo's got your goats, and you know it. There's always
fish around the island and I'll bet you two to one when the fleet comes
back they'll have them to burn."

Turning with disgust, Dickie walked to the end of the dock and sought to
pierce the shifting curtain of mist which hung about the inlet. It came
to her suddenly that in her anger at Gregory's proposal, she had made a
big promise. Moreover she had entered into a contract which she was
finding more difficult to fulfill than she had imagined. Perhaps she was
a fool not to have taken up the cannery-owner's proposition. At least it
was worth considering. By accepting his terms all the worry would have
been shifted to him and she would have been able to play safe. In a year
she would have be