The lurid light in the sky seemed to grow brighter, and there was a thick pall of smoke visible now.
"It's getting worse!" cried Cole.
"You don't expect it's going to put itself out, do you?" asked Frank
Burton. "Wait till we get there!"
A little later they turned into the street leading to the lumber yard. As they did so the blaze shone full in their faces, and they saw where the fire had originated. One of the big lumber barges that plied on the lake was on fire at the dock, and the flames were blowing right toward the heart of the yard, with its piles of timber.
"We've got our work cut out for us!" cried Bert.
"We'll have plenty of water, anyhow," shouted back Cole. "My force pump can be used, too!"
"He'd say something about his force pump if we had a steam fire engine," murmured Vincent.
"Run her right down, boys," called Bert. "Get as close to the water as you can!"
The boys picked their way through the piles of lumber. Already several members of the town bucket brigade were on hand, and they were standing in the shallow part of the lake, dipping up water in their pails and dashing the fluid on the blazing barge. "Volunteers this way!" sung out Bert, and several of his chums, who were already on hand and waiting, hastened to join their comrades.
But now a new problem was presented. The flames, eating their way among the dry lumber on the barge, had assumed a fierceness that made it impossible to run the engine down on the dock. In fact, the pier was already ablaze in places. Great glowing embers were being carried by the wind into the middle of the yard, but this danger had been seen, and several men were putting out the big sparks as fast as they fell.