h them before the darkness set in;
and they could all be rescued.

Now that the first of the imperiled airmen had been hauled aboard, there
remained but Casper Blue himself. The wreck had not as yet sunk wholly,
since, relieved from the weight of the heavy man, it seemed to possess
enough buoyancy to remain on the surface of the water. But this could be
only for a short time; the planes would soon be thoroughly soaked, and
then the end must come, when the clinging man would find himself
deprived of all support, and must swim or go down.

He had something of a half defiant look on his small sunburned face, as
he saw Andy trying to draw the wreck toward him, with the evident
intention of giving him the next opening. Perhaps he was half inclined
to take his chances as he was, rather than allow these two boys to make
him a prisoner.

Frank had his mind made up. He figured that both men had been long
enough in the water to have their weapons well soaked, so that they
would be in no condition to threaten their rescuers.

"The box, make him pass it up first, or we leave him here!" he called
out to Andy, as the latter was about to reach out and lay hold of the
smaller man.

Casper Blue glared almost savagely at Frank. For the moment the Bird
boys even thought the enraged man would hurl defiance back at them, and
declare that he preferred taking his chances with the wreck rather than
give up the spoils.

But just then it happened, fortunately, that the remnant of the biplane
began to settle more positively than before, warning him that it was
folly to pin any hope on its buoying him up more than a few minutes at
most.

"Here, take it!" he snarled, handing up the box; which Andy immediately
passed over to his cousin before he would stretch out his hand again to
render the defeated yeggman any assistance.

Then Casper Blue was drawn aboard, and lower still sank the buoyant
hydroplane, until both propellers were almost wholly submerged beneath
the surface of the heaving billows that came rolling on, steadily and
remorselessly.

CHAPTER XXIII

BROUGHT TO BOOK--CONCLUSION

"What time is it, Frank?" asked Andy, who w as breathing very hard after
his recent exertions in helping both men to get a footing on the
hydroplane.

"I think pretty close to four o'clock," replied the other, though he
made no attempt to take out the little nickel watch, he always carried
nowadays.

The fact of the matter was that Frank