Fifteen minutes later a
wobbly craft put out to sea, manned by a picked crew of determined
citizens of Tinkletown. When they were in midstream a loud cry came from
the bank they had left behind. Looking back, Anderson Crow saw excited
men dashing about, most of them pointing excitedly up into the hills
across the river. After a diligent search the eyes of the men on the
raft saw what it was that had created such a stir at the base of Crow's
Cliff.
"There he is!" cried Anderson Crow in awed tones. There was no mistaking
the identity of the coatless man on the hillside. A dozen men recognised
him as the man they were after. Putting his hands to his mouth, Anderson
Crow bellowed in tones that savoured more of fright than command:
"Say!"
There was no response.
"Will you surrender peaceably?" called the captain of the craft.
There was a moment of indecision on the part of the fugitive. He looked
at his companion, and she shook her head--they all saw her do it.
Then he shouted back his reply.
[Illustration: Then he shouted back his reply]
CHAPTER III
The Culprits
"Ship ahoy!" shouted the coatless stranger between his palms.
"Surrender or we'll fill you full of lead!" called Anderson Crow.
"Who are you--pirates?" responded the fugitive with a laugh that chilled
the marrow of the men on the raft.
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