only it serves us this day."

As it was getting darker all the time, no wonder George had begun to
feel nervous. Even though he saved himself, and Nick, should he lose
his boat, it would almost break his heart; for in spite of her many and
serious faults the jaunty skipper of the erratic _Wireless_ fairly
loved the craft.

"Yes, we are not many miles above Murderkill; and that or Jones Creek
will have to be our destination; for we must have passed the Dona
opening by mistake. But perhaps the storm will kindly hold off until
we're all snug in a harbor."

While Jack said this, in order to buoy up the downcast chums, deep down
in his heart he believed that they were bound to be caught out on that
wide stretch of water, and have a fight for their lives, particularly
those who were manipulating the tricky speed boat.

But it was useless to ask George to come aboard the _Comfort_, and try
to tow his craft. That would seem too ignoble, worse than having a
farm wagon drag the broken-down bubble wagon into town, in fact.

They had gone in as near the western shore as prudence dictated. Jack
told everybody to be on the lookout for the first sign of an opening.
Beggars could not be choosers, and only too gladly would they welcome
any port, however ill-named or hard looking.

"She's coming, all right," declared Jimmy, as he crouched there, his
hair blowing in the rising wind, and his eyes taking in every sign of
approaching trouble.

"Yes, and I'm sorry to say from the one bad quarter, the southeast,"
Jack made out to answer, between his set teeth. "If it had only been
west, now, we'd have had the shelter of the land, and could have crept
along nicely until we got where we wanted to go."

The waves were surely increasing in size, and the small craft began to
heave in a very suggestive way. When they grew still larger, under the
influence of the rising wind, Jack expected that with the passing of
each billow the screw would flash out of water. That was the time to
be dreaded; for as resistance suddenly ceased with the passage of the
wave, the screw would revolve at lightning speed, and something was apt
to go wrong.

Let an accident occur when in such a bad predicament, and it would be
all over with the unlucky mariners who chanced to be on the disabled
boat.

"Be mighty careful, Herb and George," he called to the others. "Watch
each billow, and slow the engine before the screw is exposed. You know
what I mean