and showed her the way we were going to
head, and why he thought it more likely to work than he had done before.
I was to make my way down the Macquarie and across by Duck Creek,
George's station, Willaroon; start from there with a mob of cattle to
Queensland as drover or anything that would suit my book.

Jim was to get on to one of the Murray River boats at Swan Hill, and
stick to her till he got a chance to go up the Darling with an Adelaide
boat to Bourke. He could get across from there by Cunnamulla towards
Rockhampton, and from there we were safe to find plenty of vessels bound
for the islands or San Francisco. We had hardly cared where, as far as
that goes, as long as we got clear away from our own country.

As soon as Jeanie got a word from Jim that he'd sailed and was clear of
Australia, she'd write up to Aileen, who was to go down to Melbourne,
and take mother with her. They could stop with Jeanie until they got a
message from San Francisco to say he'd safely arrived there. After that
they could start by the first steamer. They'd have money enough to take
their passages and something handsome in cash when they got to land.

Aileen agreed to it all, but in a curious sort of way. 'It looked well,'
she said, 'and might be carried out, particularly as we were all going
to work cautiously and with such a lot of preparation.' Everything that
she could do would be done, we might be sure; but though she had prayed
and sought aid from the Blessed Virgin and the saints--fasting and on
her bare knees, night after night--she had not been able to get one
gleam of consolation. Everything looked very dark, and she had a
terrible feeling of anxiety and dread about the carrying it out. But she
didn't want to shake my courage, I could see; so she listened and smiled
and cheered me up a bit at the end, and I rode away, thinking there was
a good show for us after all.

I got back to the Hollow right enough, and for once in a way it seemed
as if the luck was on our side. Maybe it was going to turn--who was to
know? There had been men who had been as deep in it as any of us that
had got clean away to other countries and lived safe and comfortable to
the day of their death--didn't die so soon either--lived to a good round
age, and had wives and children round them that never knew but what
they'd been as good as the best. That wouldn't be our case; but still
if we once were able to put the sea between us and our old life the odds