Book Description

This historic book may have numerous typos and missing text. Purchasers can usually download a free scanned copy of the original book (without typos) from the publisher. Not indexed. Not illustrated. 1901 edition. Excerpt: ... CHAPTER XIX A STORMY NIGHT ON A SINKING PILE-DRIVER Plunging, then darting like a frightened deer, the " Gazelle " raced for her goal; the long pier of Rondeau Harbor was just off her starboard bow. Could she make it by six o'clock? Frank and Arthur thought no, Kenneth would not admit, even to himself, that he was beaten. Laying way over before the blast, she rushed along. The water churned up by her bows rushed white above her lee rail, the weather rigging, taut with the strain put upon it, vibrated like the bass strings of a harp, the lee rigging sagging in proportion. Kenneth leaned forward, his face eager, his hand grasping the tiller so hard that the knuckles showed white through his tanned skin. Frank and Arthur lay far out to windward--as far out as they could get. "Six o'clock! " cried Arthur, looking up from the clock he held in his hand. "And, by Jove, you've won!" Rounding the lighthouse pier, the yacht slipped in behind the crib and rested in smooth water. "Well, old man, I take my hat off to you," and Frank suited the action to the word. "That was the finest bit of sailing I ever saw. Ken, you're a dandy." Kenneth was still breathing quickly with the excitement and exhilaration of the race with time. His satisfaction in the performance of his boat was only secondary to the pleasure he felt in his friends' praise. Again luck had served them well. For the next three days a storm raged over the lake that made the boys very thankful that they were shel tered in a safe harbor. This tempest was a forerunner of what was to come--a foretaste of what the young mariners were likely to experience. The sudden storms for which the lake region was famous at this time of year had begun, and would continue until navigation was closed...