aground once more, dragging
Larry's craft behind it. The youth did all he could to back water, but
in vain, and once more they heard the unwelcome slish of mud under
their bottom.

"Now you've done it again!" howled the lieutenant, leaping up from his
seat. "You numskull! give me that oar." And he tried to wrench the
blade from Larry's hand.

"It was not my fault," began the youth, when the officer forced the
blade from him and hurled him back on one of the soldiers. Then the
lieutenant tried to do some poling for himself, and got the oar stuck
so tightly in the mud that he could not loosen it.

Burning with indignation, Larry felt himself go down in a heap, and
at once tried to get up again. At the same time the soldier beneath
him gave him a shove which pitched him several feet forward. He landed
up against the lieutenant with considerable force, and in a twinkle
the officer went overboard, head first, into the water and mud where
the casco had stuck fast.

CHAPTER IV

THE GAP IN THE FIRING LINE

"Hullo, Lieutenant Horitz has fallen overboard!"

"Pull him out of the mud, before he smothers or drowns!"

Such were some of the cries which arose among the soldiers that filled
the casco. Then Larry was shoved back, and two of them caught hold of
the legs of the man who had disappeared, as for an instant they showed
themselves. There was a "long pull, a strong pull, and a pull
altogether," and up came the lieutenant, minus his hat and with his
face and neck well plastered with the black ooze of the river bottom.

For a moment after he sank on the seat that was vacated to receive him,
he could not speak. One of the soldiers handed him a handkerchief, and
with this he proceeded to clear his eyes and ears, at the same time
puffing vainly to get back his breath. At last he cleared his throat
and glared angrily at Larry.

"You--you young whelp!" he fumed. "You--you knocked me over on
purpose!"

"No, sir, I did not," answered the young tar, promptly. "One of the
soldiers shoved me up against you."

"I don't believe you," roared the unreasonable one, as he continued to
clean himself off. "You shall pay dearly for this assault, mark me!"

"Didn't you shove me?" asked Larry, appealing to one of the soldiers.

"I shoved you off of my neck, yes," answered the enlisted man. "But I
didn't throw you into Lieutenant Horitz. You did that yourself."

"Of course he did it himself," said another soldier, who did not