lass ruction in progress just upon the spot
from which Slim's vocal signals were emanating, then Slim's voice was
deceptive, indeed.

As a matter of fact, there was the finest sort of a fracas afoot.

Slim, on shore, had been a silent and anxious witness to the sudden
turning on of the navy yard searchlight, and to all that it exposed--the
boat, the man at work in it, Joe in the water, and his discovery by the
boat's occupant.

And then, as the light was extinguished, and the whole affair was
engulfed in darkness, Slim heard the rapid beating of the oars upon the
water, and the rower heading toward shore--and Slim.

Unable to see the craft approaching, he traced its course by sound, and
when the man stepped ashore Slim was only a few yards away. Discerning a
shadow just ahead of him, the youth threw himself at it with his whole
weight, only to grunt his pain and disgust as he came into violent
contact with the trunk of a dead tree.

The sound, however, startled the enemy into an exclamation which
revealed his whereabouts, and a moment later the two were locked
together and rolling over the ground, Slim with a desperate grip upon
the stranger's throat, and the latter landing blow after blow upon
Slim's stomach.

It was during this melee that Slim spied the searchlight of the launch
and let out his first call. After that most of his "bellows" were
involuntary and but punctuated the rapid-fire attack with which the
other man was landing his blows just above Slim's waist-line, or where
his waist-line should have been.

As the launch headed toward shore, its searchlight trained over the bow,
the man of the rowboat resorted to more desperate tactics. With a
tremendous jerk he managed to free his throat from Slim's grasp. An
instant later he gave the youth's neck a twist which almost broke it.
Then he landed a vicious kick which put poor Slim out of business.

Just as the marines from the launch were climbing ashore the fellow sped
off into the denseness of the night; and as his footsteps died away all
present trace of him was gone. A dozen of them searched for an hour, but
without result, and further investigation along that line had to be
abandoned until the following day.

Meanwhile, however, all three lads were hurried back to the navy yard
for fresh clothing and other repairs; having received which, together
with hot coffee from the cook at the barracks mess, they were permitted,
at their own earnest solicitati