It was a supreme moment. As Newmark looked at the smooth rim of the
water sucking into the chute, he began to wonder why he had come.

However, the noble ship was pointed right at last, and caught the
faster water head-on. Even Charlie managed to look cheerful for an
instant, and to grin at his passenger as he wiped his forehead with
a very old, red handkerchief.

"All right now," he shouted.

Zeke and his mate took in the oars. The wanigan shot forward below
the gate--

WHACK! BUMP! BANG! and the scow stopped so suddenly that its four
men plunged forward in a miscellaneous heap, while Zeke narrowly
escaped going overboard. Almost immediately the water, backed up
behind the stern, began to overflow into the boat. Newmark,
clearing his vision as well as he could for lack of his glasses, saw
that the scow had evidently run her bow on an obstruction, and had
been brought to a standstill square beneath the sluice-gate. Men
seemed to be running toward them. The water was beginning to flow
the entire length of the boat. Various lighter articles shot past
him and disappeared over the side. Charlie had gone crazy and was
grabbing at these, quite uselessly, for as fast as he had caught one
thing he let it go in favour of another. The cookees, retaining
some small degree of coolness, were pushing uselessly with pike-
poles.

Newmark had an inspiration. The more important matters, such as the
men's clothes-bags, the rolls of bedding, and the heavier supplies