"Do you think you're big enough?" The joy of battle was in his growl.

"Yes, I do." The man put up his hands.

Instantly Dan's left broke down the guard; his right fist landed
squarely on the stoker's jaw, sending him reeling to the bunker wall,
where he fell. It was a clean knock-out.

"Go douse your friend with a pail of water, Mouse." Dan, still grinning,
picked up his shovel and went to work.

* * *

When Neville's watch went off duty, Larry found the sea no rougher than
on countless other runs he had made along the Atlantic coast. The wind
had freshened to a strong gale, but he reached the forecastle with no
great difficulty.

Without marked change the _San Gardo_ carried the same heavy weather
from Barnegat Light to the Virginia capes. Beyond Cape Henry the blow
began to stiffen and increased every hour as the freighter plowed
steadily southward. Bucking head seas every mile of the way, she picked
up Diamond Shoals four hours behind schedule. As she plunged past the
tossing light-ship, Larry, squinting through a forecastle port, wondered
how long its anchor chains would hold. The _San Gardo_ was off Jupiter
by noon the third day out, running down the Florida coast; the wind-bent
palms showed faintly through the driving spray.

Neville's watch went on duty that night at eight. As his men left the
forecastle a driving rain beat against their backs, and seas broke over
the port bow at every downward plunge of the ship. To gain the
fire-room door, they clung to rail or stanchion to save themselves from
being swept overboard. They held on desperately as each wave flooded the
deck, watched their chance, then sprang for the next support. On
freighters no cargo space is wasted below decks in passageways for the
crew.

When Larry reached the fire-room there was not a dry inch of cloth
covering his wiry body. He and his fellow-stokers took up immediately
the work of the men they had relieved, and during the first hours of
their watch fired the boilers with no more difficulty than is usual in
heavy weather.

At eleven o'clock the speaking-tube whistled, and a moment later Neville
came to the end of the passage.

"What are you carrying?" he shouted to the water-tender. "We've got to
keep a full head of steam on her to-night."

"We've got it, Mr. Neville--one hundred and sixty, an' we've held
between that and sixty-five ever since I've been on."

"The captain says we've made Tortugas. We lost three hours on the