hed back again, the gates were thrown open and Willis and the
other men dashed out.

They sped past the camp toward the dense forest. Willis darted off
across the fields to a steep hill up which he ran, the guards firing
continually at him.

As he reached the summit, he turned into the forest and hastened in the
direction he had agreed upon with Isaacs. He soon met him, and
together they started off toward the southwest, guided by the compass
they had brought with them. They did not see any of the other men,
with the exception of one whom Isaacs had heard puffing and grunting
past him as they ran from camp. In the darkness he had not been able
to recognize him.

That night they traveled about twenty-five miles. Hidden in the brush,
they slept by day and traveled on again at night. It was a perilous
trip through the forest, lasting eight days. Often they could only
push their way backwards for long distances, through the terrible
thickets. It rained and they were cold and wet. But on the eighth day
they found themselves on the top of a dizzy precipice just above the
Rhine. There they lay hidden until nightfall, although they were in
constant danger of being discovered by German sentinels and townspeople
who passed near them. When darkness came, they crawled about for two
hours, seeking to find a trail that would lead them down to the river.
If only they could cross the river, they were sure of safety. But
wherever there was a possible way of reaching the river, there was a
German sentry. Once Willis kneeled on a dry twig which snapped. In a
trice a German sentinel flashed a bright pocket searchlight--but in the
opposite direction.

The hearts of the two men sank in fear lest having nearly gained their
freedom they should again be captured. Then they decided that they
must creep down by one of the little tributaries flowing into the
Rhine. So they stepped into the little stream and crawled down it,
feeling for loose stones that might rattle and attract the attention of
the sentry.

After several hours they reached the water's edge, about two o'clock in
the morning.

The water was freezing cold, as the streams flowing into the river come
from the mountains where snow and ice are found nearly the year around.
As they stood knee-deep in the water and looked across to the other
shore, they doubted whether they could swim the long distance. Here
the Rhine is about seven hundred feet wide. Moreover, th