tarting point.

Si Peters won the choice of positions, and, of course, took the inside.

The race should have been a mile straightway, but the original challenge
which led to the race had been for a half mile going and the same coming.

Soon the two boys were in position.

"Ready?"

There was a dead silence.

Bang!

They were off! Both boys caught the water at the same instant. Each pulled
a long but quick stroke. Ten yards were covered, and they remained side by
side.

"Pull, Si!"

"Go it, Jerry!"

Like two clocks, so far as regularity went, the two contestants bent their
backs and pulled with might and main.

One thing was certain, unless something happened, it would be a close
race.

But now the Lakeview boys were getting wild.

"See Jerry! He is gaining."

"Jerry is five feet and more in the lead!"

It was true. Slowly but surely our hero was forging ahead. Should he be
able to keep this up he would cross Si Peters' course at the turning
point.

But now Wash Crosby showed his hand. Without so much as a toot of the
whistle, his steam launch kept drawing closer and closer to Jerry's side.

Then it gradually went ahead, until Jerry was caught in the swash of the
tiny waves it produced.

Under ordinary circumstances these waves would not have been noticed, but
in a shell, and especially during a race, even such apparent trifles count
heavily.

"Keep off!" shouted the young oarsman.

"Mind your business!" shouted Wash Crosby in return, but so lowly that no
one but Jerry could hear him. "This is Si Peters' race!"

CHAPTER VII.

WHO WON THE SHELL RACE.

Jerry saw at once that he had been right in imagining that this was the
plot against him. Wash Crosby intended to keep just close enough to cause
him trouble without actually fouling him.

Already the swash from the steam launch was telling on Jerry's lead. Si
Peters kept up at his best and soon was once more abreast of our hero.

"Hurrah!" came from the shore.

"Si Peters leads!"

"I said he would win!"

"That steam launch is too close to Jerry Upton."

"Nonsense! Don't croak because you are going to lose the race," shouted
Browling.

The Lakeview boys began to look glum.

But now something happened that Wash Crosby had not calculated upon.

Straight from across the lake came the naptha launch belonging to Harry
Parker's uncle. In the bow stood Harry, boathook in hand.

When the launch was within three yards of the Cros