to shove her through the surf."

He was occupied for some time, but when a plume of steam blew from the
escape-pipe he came up to the door and looked about. _Terrier's_ languid
roll was getting sharper; mast and funnel swung into a wide sweep.
Sometimes the dark hull lurched up high above the tug's stern, and
sometimes sank in a hollow. The rollers had angry white tops, and a belt
of filmy vapor that looked luminous closed the view ahead. Lister knew
the vapor was phosphorescent spray, flung up by the turmoil on the bar,
through which they must go. If the tug struck and stopped, the white
seas would beat her down into the sand. In the meantime, she was using
full steam, because, since tide and surf carried her on, one must have
speed to steer.

The spray cloud got thick, and wavered with luminous tremblings when the
long rollers broke. They came up, spangled with green and gold flashes,
from astern, shook their fiery crests about the tug, and vanished ahead,
but one heard them crash. Lister thought the tug throbbed to the savage
concussion. He could not hear his engines; one heard nothing but the
daunting uproar.

By and by he felt a shock; not a violent shock, but as if the boat had
touched, and was pushing through, something soft. She slowed and Lister
saw the black hulk swing up and ride forward on a giant roller's top. It
looked as if she were coming on board the tug, and Lister jumped through
and slammed the iron door. Brown would need him now.

He heard the roar of water on deck, there was a crash of broken glass,
and a shower fell on his head. A cloud of steam and a loud hissing came
from the stokehold, and he knew the sea that swept the tug had covered
the gratings. If she stuck, the next sea would swamp her and drown the
fires, but she had not altogether stopped. The propeller was beating
hard and he opened the throttle wide. He felt her move and tremble, as
if she struggled in the grip of the sand, and then lift buoyantly. The
water that pressed her down had rolled off the deck and the oncoming
comber had picked her up and was carrying her along.

Her progress was obvious. One felt the headlong rush, and Lister thought
about a toboggan speeding down an icy slope. The roller would bear her
on until it broke, but if she struck the sand she might not lift again.
She did not strike; there was another wild leap forward, a savage
plunge, and a comber crashed astern. It looked as if she had crossed the
shoal an