It was true enough; for, casting his eye ahead, Jim could see, through the dark tunnel formed by the overhanging branches of the trees, a wide expanse of shimmering water, across which sped the boat that bore the men in pursuit of whom they had come. There was a white wash at her stern, while sparks and flames shot from her funnel. That and the glow which surrounded her, coming from her opened furnace door, showed clearly that the rascals aboard her were fully prepared for flight, with a hot fire burning and roaring in their furnace, and a head of steam which would drive their boat faster perhaps than she had ever travelled. "Got it! Now we'll be moving." With the fingers of one hand Jim had held the float of his carburettor lifted, thereby making sure that the engine would obtain a free supply of fuel; while with the other hand he had discovered the starting handle. It was a simple matter to slip it on to the shaft and turn it till the clutches engaged. Then he bent his back to the work, switched his magneto into circuit and sent the engine twirling round. Poof! poof! poof! Three of the cylinders fired, but the crank ceased turning. Jim lifted his float again, adjusted the handle, and made another effort at starting. Gur-r-rr! bizz! she was off. The rhythmical hum of the machinery told his practised ear at once that the engine was running beautifully. He dropped the starting handle on to the floorboards and stepped briskly across to his levers. "Ready?" he asked steadily. "Let her have it," came from the Major, who, meanwhile, had taken possession of the wheel. "Let her have it all you know, Jim, for we've a long way to make up. Those rascals have obtained a splendid start." Jim promptly dropped his fingers on the quadrant where throttle and ignition levers lay, and jerked both of them up a few notches. He could feel the thrust of the propeller now, and could hear the wash of the water as the launch pushed her way through it. Then suddenly the vessel cleared the dark tunnel in which she had been lying, and a glorious tropical moon shone down upon her, rendering every figure aboard distinctly visible, while, better than all, the rays flooded the engine well and made Jim's task all the easier. "Faster!" commanded the Major sharply, and at the word Jim jerked his levers some few notches higher, till the engine buzzed more loudly than before, while the floorboards took on a trembling vibration to which, as a general rule, they were unaccustomed. "More! We must move faster if we are to catch them," cried the Major, something akin to entreaty in his voice. "Can't you make her do a little more, my lad? We mustn't let those rascals slip through our fingers."