hter's
gone to the devil, my foot's sprained, and the fire is almost upon me."

"Well, let me help you, then," John replied. "Come, get up, and lean
on me. We must get to the lake at once."

Randall made a feeble effort to obey, but sank back upon the ground
with a cry.

"I can't walk a step," he groaned. "Leave me here and save yourself.
There's no time to lose. O Lord, this is awful!"

"No, I won't leave you here," John declared. "Try to bear the pain for
a while. It will be better than to be burned alive. Hurry up. We
must get to the lake to save your daughter. She's on the island, and
the fire will be there in a short time."

"How do you know my daughter's on the island?" Randall asked. Then the
expression upon his face suddenly changed, and a new energy possessed
him. He struggled to his knees and faced the young man. "Are you John
Hampton?" he demanded. "Are you the man who lured my daughter away
from home?"

"I am John Hampton," was the quiet reply. "But I didn't lure your
daughter away from home. She left of her own free will."

"You lie," Randall shouted. "You cursed villain, I'll make you pay for
your deviltry. You brought all this trouble upon me, and I'll,
I'll----"

"There, now, don't get so excited, sir," John warned. "You need all
your strength, so if you don't make an effort to save yourself, you
won't have a chance to do anything to me."

"Get out of my sight," Randall shouted. "I won't be saved by a thing
like you. I'd rather die first."

To try to reason with this angry and half distracted man John realised
would be useless. And besides, there was not time. The roar of the
fire was becoming louder, and the flames were about to burst through
the forest.

Already to their left and right vast columns of smoke were pouring
above the tree tops, and fiery tongues were licking among the bushes
along the borders of the plains. The situation was desperate. He
looked, and his eyes rested upon a pile of large boulders several yards
away. These were heaped upon a great flat portion of rock, whose
surface was devoid of the least vestige of vegetation. To get the
injured man there was his only hope. But when he offered the
suggestion, Randall refused it with scorn.

"That place is worse than this," he declared. "Here it will be over in
a few minutes, but there I shall slowly roast to death."

"No, you won't," John replied, at the same time laying his hand upon
Randall's