y, caught her round the neck and under the arm, gripping her
left wrist with his right hand behind her; then, exerting every ounce
of strength he yet retained, he thrust her down and from him, until at
length, using his hip as a pivot, he swung her off her feet, threw her
fairly on her back, and held her so, one knee upon her chest, his hands
closed vise-like on her wrists.

Then suddenly Moran gave up, relaxing in his grasp all in a second, and,
to his great surprise, suddenly smiled.

"Ho! mate," she exclaimed; "that was a tough one; but I'm beaten--you're
stronger than I thought for."

Wilbur released her and rose to his feet.

"Here," she continued, "give me your hand. I'm as weak as a kitten." As
Wilbur helped her to her feet, she put her hand to her forehead,
where his knuckles had left their mark, and frowned at him, but not
ill-naturedly.

"Next time you do that," she said, "use a rock or a belaying-pin, or
something that won't hurt--not your fist, mate." She looked at him
admiringly. "What a two-fisted, brawny dray-horse it is! I told you I
was stronger than most men, didn't I? But I'm the weaker of us two, and
that's a fact. You've beaten, mate--I admit it; you've conquered
me, and," she continued, smiling again and shaking him by the
shoulder--"and, mate, do you know, I love you for it."

XI. A CHANGE IN LEADERS

"Well," exclaimed Wilbur at length, the excitement of the fight
returning upon him. "We have plenty to do yet. Come on, Moran."

It was no longer Moran who took the initiative--who was the leader. The
brief fight upon the shore had changed all that. It was Wilbur who was
now the master, it was Wilbur who was aggressive. He had known what
it meant to kill. He was no longer afraid of anything, no longer
hesitating. He had felt a sudden quadrupling of all his strength, moral
and physical.

All that was strong and virile and brutal in him seemed to harden and
stiffen in the moment after he had seen the beach-comber collapse limply
on the sand under the last strong knife-blow; and a sense of triumph, of
boundless self-confidence, leaped within him, so that he shouted aloud
in a very excess of exhilaration; and snatching up a heavy cutting-in
spade, that had been dropped in the fight near the burning cabin,
tossed it high into the air, catching it again as it descended, like any
exultant savage.

"Come on!" he cried to Moran; "where are the beach-combers gone? I'm
going to get one more