red coloring matter in Barnes's blood. No wonder, when this action
of just a whiff of it on us is so rapid. Even a short time longer
and death would follow. It destroys without the possibility of
reconstitution, and it leaves a dangerous deposit of albumin. How
do you feel?"

"All right," I lied.

We looked out again. The things that looked like fuses were not
bombs, as I had expected, but big reinforced bottles of gas
compressed at high pressure, with the taps open. The supply was
not inexhaustible. In fact, it was decidedly limited. But it
seemed to have been calculated to a nicety to do the work. Only
the panting of the locomotive now broke the stillness as Kennedy
and I moved forward along the track.

Crack! rang out a shot.

"Get on the other side of the train--quick!" ordered Craig.

In the shadow, aside from the direction in which the wind was
wafting the gas, we could now just barely discern a heavy but
powerful motor-truck and figures moving about it. As I peered out
from the shelter of the train, I realized what it all meant. The
truck, which had probably conveyed the gas-tanks from the
rendezvous where they had been collected, was there now to convey
to some dark wharf what of the treasure could be seized. There the
stolen yacht was waiting to carry it off.

"Don't move--don't fire," cautioned Kennedy. "Perhaps they will