outed the indefatigable Tubby.

He seized up an old bait tub, a boat hook and a "swabbing-out" broom,
and lashed them all together in a sort of bridle. Then he attached the
Flying Fish's mooring cable to the contrivance and paid it out for a
hundred feet or more, while the storm-battered craft drifted steadily
backward. Instead, however, of lying beam on to the big sea, she now
headed up into them, the "drag," as it is sometimes called, serving to
keep her bow swung up to the threatening combers.

"There, she'll ride for a while, anyhow," breathed Tubby, when this was
done.

"What's to be done now?" shouted Merritt in his car.

"Nothing," was the response; "we've got to lie here till this thing
blows over."

"It's breaking a little to the south now," exclaimed Merritt, pointing
to where a rift began to appear in the solid cloud curtain.

This was cheering news, and even the seasick but plucky Hiram, who had
been bailing for all he was worth, despite his misery, began to cheer
up.

"Hurrah! I guess the worst of our troubles are over," cried Tubby.
"It certainly looks as if the sea was beginning to go down, and the
wind has dropped, I'm sure."

That this was the case became apparent shortly. There was a noticeable
decrease in the size and height of the waves and the wind abated in
proportion. In half an hour after the rift had been first noticed by
Merritt, the black squall had passed, and the late afternoon sun began
to shine in a pallid way through the driving cloud masses.

The lads, however, were still in a serious fix. They had been driven
so far out to sea that the land was blotted out altogether. All about
them was only the still heaving Atlantic. The sun, too, was westering
fast, and it would not be long before darkness fell.

Without gasoline and with no sail, they had no means of making land.
Worse still, they were in the track of the in and out-bound steamers to
and from New York--according to Tubby's reckoning--and they had no
lights.

"Well, we seem to have got out of the frying pan into the fire," said
Merritt in a troubled voice. "It's the last time I'll ever come out
without lights and a mast and sail."

"That's what they all say," observed Tubby grimly. "The thing to do
now is to get back to shore somehow. Maybe we can rig up a sail with
the cockpit cover and the oars. We've got to try it, anyhow."

After hauling in the sea anchor, the lads set to work to rig up and
lash the oar