“Here he is, on this side, George!”
Then began one of the queerest experiences Jack had ever participated in. All of his hare and hound and paper chases must sink into insignificance after this hunt; for a desperate man was seeking to effect his escape.
Glenwood would wait until they were close upon him, meanwhile trying to recuperate. Then, at the critical instant, he would sink out of sight, and swim under water to the other side of the boat, or the rear, never ahead. In this way he kept them guessing; and besides, after the boat was started it was necessary for them to make more or less of a circuit before they could bear down on the fugitive again.
“What does he hope to gain by all this, sir?” asked George, when they had missed the swimmer for the fourth time, and were waiting for him to appear again.
“Oh! Glenwood is a keen one,” replied the government agent. “Depend on it he has several irons in the fire. Perhaps he expects to get a chance to land on the Canadian shore, where I could not very well chase him. Then again he keeps hoping that our good friend, the moon, will kindly hide again. That would give him all the opportunity he wants to come up, get a breath, and vanish without being seen. There he is, George; back up this time!”
So the merry chase continued—at least it may have seemed that to the two boys, but must have assumed a more serious aspect with the man they were after. Jack could not but admire the nerve and audacity of the swimmer. He even secretly began to hope Glenwood might get away; for after all it was none of their business, though the fellow was really a criminal, in that he was breaking the laws of the land.
But George had entered heart and soul into the game, and was determined to do all he could to assist the revenue man. He backed the boat so fast that soon the swimmer had to duck again.
“He’s getting weaker all the time, boys,” remarked the agent, in a satisfied tone. “We have only to keep this system of tactics up a little longer, and Glenwood will be only too glad to come in out of the wet, or drown.”
“Oh! I hope that doesn’t happen,” said George.
“Little fear,” replied the other. “Like most of us, Glenwood clings on to life, and always has hopes of escaping. Do you see him yet, either of you?”