"It would take her a week to cut a hawser like that," said Elizabeth, who
had been investigating. "It would be more to the purpose, I think, to chop
it in two with an axe."

"Very well," replied Mrs. Noah, satisfied. "I don't care how it is done as
long as it is done quickly. It would never do for us to be recaptured
now."

The suggestion of Elizabeth was carried out, and the queen herself cut the
hawser with six well-directed strokes of the axe.

"You _are_ an expert with it, aren't you?" smiled Cleopatra.

"I am, indeed," replied Elizabeth, grimly. "I had it suspended over my
head for so long a time before I got to the throne that I couldn't help
familiarizing myself with some of its possibilities."

"Ah!" cried Mrs. Noah, as the vessel began to move. "I begin to feel
easier. It looks now as if we were really off."

"It seems to me, though," said Cleopatra, gazing forward, "that we are
going backward."

"Oh, well, what if we are!" said Mrs. Noah. "We did that on the Ark half
the time. It doesn't make any difference which way we are going as long as
we go, does it?"

"Why, of course it does!" cried Elizabeth. "What can you be thinking of?
People who walk backward are in great danger of running into other people.
Why not the same with ships? It seems to me, it's a very dangerous piece