For even if they succeeded in shaking off their pursuers the whole country was alarmed and hunting for them. And they had no food and no one to guide them.
But the present evil was great enough, for the furious Spaniards were hot on the trail.
"Surrender! Surrender!" Clif heard the officer shouting a short way back.
The chase would have ended in no time had it not been for the woods, which kept the fugitives out of sight so that they could not be shot.
But that was a protection that would not last forever. Clif gave a sudden gasp as he saw a clearing ahead of them.
But it was only a small one, and the Americans sped across it at the very top of their speed. They hoped to reach the woods before their foes sighted them.
And they did. Then suddenly a new idea flashed over Clif.
"Stop a minute!" he cried. "Ready!"
The sailors saw him draw his revolver, and they knew what it meant. They crouched in the bushes, waiting.
"We'll show them it isn't all play," Clif whispered.