missing theatrical company. The chance and hope were slim indeed, but Blake, Joe and the two men were not of the sort that give up easily.
"Conditions must be fierce all along the river, the way the water keeps on rising," said Blake, when the first faint streaks of dawn showed in the gray, leaden-colored sky.
"I should say so!" agreed Joe. "The river must have gone up almost a foot in the night, to lift us off the island. It took considerable power to pull the logs out of the mud where they were stuck."
"I think the raft broke, and twisted away from the front logs," was Blake's opinion, and this, later, was found to be so. So firmly imbedded in the mud had been the jagged and sharp ends of the logs, that they had remained there. But the stern of the raft, rising, had broken the fastenings, and a section of it had been left on the island.
"All hands to breakfast!" called Mr. Piper, a little later. "And curb your appetites," he added, grimly, as he pointed to the crackers and corned beef on the rough table. "Don't ask for more than one helping of pie, only one slice of white turkey meat to a customer, and no gravy. What do you expect, anyhow?"
They made as merry as they could over the
