called, sharply, to two of
them. "Drive to Dam Number Two and open the gates there, turning every
bit of water you can into the canal! You three men get saddle-horses.
You," to one of them, "rush to Crawfordsville and telephone to Tommy
Garton. Tell him what has happened. Tell him to send me two hundred
men on the run. _On the run_, do you hear? Tell him to tie Bill
Wallace up and put two men to watch out for him. Now go! And you two
fellows get your horses saddled and bring them here and wait for
orders."

He got down from the boulder, and as he did so Mr. Crawford came to
his side.

"Do you mean, Greek," he said, anxiously, "that there is a chance
yet?"

"A chance? Yes! There is more than a chance! We are going to make a go
of it. Listen: Truxton put in his foundations here, and I went ahead
with the superstructure for the simple reason that here is a perfect
dam-site, here are solid rock walls and creek-bed that would hold any
concrete structure in the world. And up there at the Jaws you have to
contend with shale, full of seams, in places lined with clay. And
right there I am going to make a rock-filled dam, and make it fast!
It's going to be a temporary job and a makeshift, but it's going to
sling the water into a flume that will carry it back into the old cut
and down into the Valley. And it will do until Mr. Colton Gray and his
people are satisfied."

The man who had accompanied Mr. Crawford and Jimmie Kent from
Crawfordsville came forward and put out his hand.

"Mr. Conniston," he said, quickly, "I am Colton Gray. And I am already
satisfied. If my influence is worth anything the P. C. & W. is going
to stand by its old contract. And I believe that when I tell the P. C.
& W. what I know they will complete what you have done and inform Mr.
Oliver Swinnerton that they can have no further dealings whatever
with a criminal of his type."

Conniston shook hands with him warmly.

"Thank you. But you are going to have no points to strain. We are
going to have water, plenty of water, in Rattlesnake Valley before the
first day of October."

Conniston left them and ran to join his men at the Jaws. Never had he
heard of a dam to match the one he saw growing under his eyes. There
was no time for scientific perfection of work; here and now was only a
crying need for an obstruction, any kind of an obstruction which would
withstand the great and growing pressure of water, which would drive
it up to the banks, which w