han a bare quarter of a mile
separated the two craft. Then an idea suddenly occurred to him:
although he was still too distant to be at all willing to hazard a shot
at the occupants of the canoe, there was no particular reason why he
should not fire at the _sail_; he had with him an ample supply of
ammunition, and a few lucky shots through it might cause the sail to
split; nay, there was even the possibility that he might succeed in
bringing it down altogether. Accordingly, planting himself firmly on
the deck to leeward of the tiller, with the latter just pressing
sufficiently against his left hip to keep the catamaran going straight
and prevent her from broaching-to, he took one of the rifles in his
hand, and, determining to devote himself entirely to the effort to bring
down the sail, sighted the weapon to four hundred yards, raised it to
his shoulder, and aiming carefully at the mast of the canoe, waited
until he had got both sights dead on it, when he instantly pressed the
trigger. He was still too far distant to be able to see the result of
the shot, but he was inclined to believe that he had scored a hit
somewhere, for he distinctly heard a loud shout that seemed to carry in
it a note of alarm. Again, patiently waiting his chance, he fired; and
this time he really fancied he saw some chips fly from the mast, close
to the sling of the yard, at which point he was persistently aiming.
Encouraged by this possible success, and still more by the fact that he
was now distinctly overhauling the canoe, Leslie maintained a slow,
careful, and deliberate fire upon her, always aiming for the same spot;
and at length, at about the ninth shot, down dropped the yard into the
canoe, to his mingled surprise and gratification, the fall of the sail
eliciting a tremendous hullabaloo from the excited and astonished
savages.

In the extremity of their consternation the flying raiders seemed unable
to make up their minds what to do, and for a few minutes all was
confusion aboard the canoe, during which the catamaran swept up to her
hand over hand until the two craft were abreast, Dick taking the
precaution to keep some fifty yards of water between him and the canoe,
as he fully expected to be received with a shower of spears. Nor was he
disappointed; for, as he ranged up alongside, the natives as one man
rose to their feet, and in an instant some thirty spears were hurtling
toward him. He had probably never been much nearer death t