'
Then, as I broke away from the door--'Have mercy on me, Foe--have
mercy and don't leave me! _I can't do without you!_'"
"These were his last words that I heard as I plunged down the sand
and pulled in the boat's shoreline handover-fist. I had just time to
jump in and thrust off before the dog came bounding after me, barking
furiously. The brute was puzzled, but knew something to be wrong.
He even swam a few strokes, but turned back as I hit at him with a
paddle. He made around the curve of the shore, still barking. But I
had sculled through the narrows of the passage before he could reach
it. I had a sight, over my shoulder, of Farrell, who had crawled to
the doorway: and with that I was through the strait and sculling for
open water, while the baffled dog raced to and fro on the spits and
ledges astern, pausing only to bark after me as though he would cough
his heart out.
"In the open water I hoisted sail, with the wind dead aft, and soon,
beyond the point, caught sight of the schooner. After running out
almost three miles, she had hauled close to the wind and was now
heading almost due north.
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