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"If the bank will only hold until morning!" said Mr. Manton, about
midnight, as he and Billy Brackett entered the _Venture's_ cosey
"shanty" for a brief rest. All but these two and Solon were asleep,
laying in a stock of strength for the labors of the next day.
Suddenly there came a frightened shouting from the bank. Then all
other sounds were drowned in the furious roar of rushing waters, while
the raft seemed to be lifted bodily and hurled into space.
CHAPTER XXXIX.
HURLED THROUGH THE CREVASSE AND WRECKED.
During the earlier hours of that eventful night Billy Brackett had
brought all his engineering skill to bear upon the problem of how to
save the Moss Bank levee. His cheery presence, and the evident
knowledge that he displayed, inspired all hands with confidence and a
new energy. Under his direction the raftmates worked like beavers, and
Mr. Manton was more hopeful that the levee could be made to withstand
the terrible pressure of swollen waters than he had been from the
beginning. But it was very old and had been neglected for years. By
daylight the young engineer might have noted its weak spots, and
strengthened them. He would have seen the thin streams that silently,
but steadily and in ever-increasing volume, were working their way
through the embankment near its base.
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