"What time is it now?" she asked, after she had watched the slow progress of the work long enough to estimate the prospect.
"Half past ten."
"Then we've only an hour and a half more. It isn't enough. You can never fill that hole in time."
"I'm afraid we can't. I'm afraid we've lost in the struggle."
"Oh, no, you mustn't feel that way. We simply must win this battle. If we can't do it in one way, we must find another."
Duncan made no answer. There seemed to him no answer to be made. The girl continued to look about her. After a while she asked:
"Is the end of the crib at the county line?"
"Yes—or rather the line lies a little way this side of the end of the crib."
Again she remained silent for a time, before saying:
"There are two big tree trunks lying longways there in the crib. They extend across the county line. Why can't you jack them up into place, and lay your rails along them, without filling the space, and without using any ties?"