Captain Reynold's side.

"Will he withdraw?" asked the latter.

"He will not. He says the men are depending on him and he must go through with it."

"By Jove! a fine spirit!" exclaimed Captain Reynolds. "I hope he is not too easily disposed of."

"I don't think he will be," said Captain Raleigh, quietly. "Someway, I have a feeling that you haven't carried off the honors yet."

"But it's foolish to talk like that, Raleigh," said Captain Reynolds.
"You know this man, Harris."

"I suppose it is foolish, but it's the way I feel just the same. Ah!
There's Harris now."

Tim Harris had appeared on deck; and the crew of the Indefatigable went wild. Now for the first time the crew of the Queen Mary knew who Jack's opponent would be; and after a look at Harris, they became strangely silent. Then one voice called:

"Never mind who he is. Templeton can lick him, anyhow!"

The others took up the cry and Jack smiled.

Now the referee called the principals to him and gave them their instructions.

"No hitting in clinches, and clean breaks," he said.

Jack and Harris nodded that they understood. As the two stood there together, the crowd sized them up.

Jack, standing well above six feet, still was not as tall as his opponent, who topped him by a full inch. Their arms were about of a length, but Harris was big through the chest and his arms seemed more powerful than Jack's. A close observer, however, would have seen that while Jack was in perfect physical condition, Harris carried a trifle too much fat—not much, but still a trifle. With the battle anywhere near equal, this fat might prove to Jack's advantage.

Jack's arms showed strength, but the muscles were not knotted like those of Harris. Harris was perhaps twenty-eight years old, Jack almost ten years younger. Jack had the youth, but Harris had the experience of many hard encounters. It appeared that the odds were heavily against Jack.

Jack and Harris sized each other carefully. Jack smiled. So did Harris.
As they touched gloves, Harris said:

"You're a nice boy. I don't want to hurt you too much, so I'll make this short"—the referee had announced that the match was to be for ten rounds.

"Don't worry about me," said Jack. "I can take care of myself. If the match is short you won't find me on the deck."

Harris would have replied, but at that moment the referee called:

"Time!"

Jack leaped lightly backward even as Harris aimed a vicious blow at his head, apparently trying to make good his word to end the battle at once. The blow missed Jack's face by the fraction of an inch. Harris followed up this blow with a right and left, which Jack blocked neatly, and then brought his right up, trying to upper cut.

Jack leaped backward and the blow grazed his chin. Before Harris could recover, Jack stepped quickly forward and planted a sharp right and a hard left to Harris' nose. Harris stepped back and wiped away a stream of red.

It was first blood for Jack and the crew of the Queen Mary sent up a wild cheer.

But Harris only smiled. He was not to be caught so easily again.

These two blows had given the Indefatigable champion some respect for
Jack's ability. He advanced more carefully this time. He feinted
rapidly and shot his left forward, quickly followed by his right. But
Jack had not been deceived and caught both blows upon his forearms.

"You're all right, boy," said Harris, admiringly, "It's a pleasure to box with you."

"And I may say the same," said Jack.

They fell to it again.

As Harris stepped quickly forward his foot slipped and he fell to one knee.

"Hit him when he gets up!" came a cry from the crowd.

Instead, Jack lowered his guard and extended a hand. He helped his opponent to his feet. Then he stepped back and the battle continued.

Now Jack decided that he would feel the other out. He feinted rapidly, once, twice, and struck out with a right; and he staggered back suddenly, for something had suddenly come up under his chin with terrible force. In a moment Jack realized what it was. It was Harris' right, which Captain Raleigh had warned him against. Had the blow been timed perfectly, Jack realized, the fight would have been over then and there.

Guarding desperately, Jack managed to fall into a clinch, where he hung on until his head cleared. As he stepped back the referee called time. The first round was Harris' by the margin of that hard uppercut.

"I'll be a little more careful of that right," Jack confided to his seconds, as he again advanced into the ring.

Again the lad assumed the offensive, keeping careful eye on his opponent's right fist. Again Harris tried to reach Jack's chin, but this time Jack blocked the blow. He knew he would not be caught that way again. Jack feinted three times, twice with his left and once with his right, and then the right crashed against Harris' ear. The man staggered back and before he could recover Jack planted two hard blows —right and left—to his sore nose. Desperately, Harris rushed into a clinch.

Again the crew of the Queen Mary cheered.

"And what do you think of that, eh?" asked Captain Raleigh of Captain
Reynolds.

"The boy is a fighter," was the latter's reply. "But wait; experience will tell."

Harris became more cautious. He circled around Jack, lightly, dancing about on his toes. The lad followed him quietly. Suddenly, Harris' left fist shot out. Jack blocked, but before he could recover, Harris launched himself like a catapult and a series of right and lefts descended on Jack's face, neck, ears and abdomen.

Jack staggered back and Harris followed him closely, giving him no rest
Jack was still retreating at the bell.

Again in the third and in the fourth round Jack seemed to be getting the worst of it. In the fifth he braced and sent in as good as he received. In the sixth he almost floored Harris with a straight right to the side of the jaw; and in the seventh Harris was kept on the defensive.

But in the eighth Jack again encountered Harris' right and the force of the blow sent him reeling. All through the round Harris followed up this advantage, and at the bell, it seemed that Jack would be unable to continue the fight.

But his head cleared in the one minute rest period; and he fought through the ninth round carefully. The lad realized now that, so far, Harris had the better of the encounter and that, if he hoped to win, it must be by a knockout. So, while Harris was trying in vain to put in a finishing punch, Jack husbanded his strength, determined to make a strong effort in the final round.

The rest refreshed him still more; and as time was called for the tenth, Jack cast discretion to the winds and leaped forward.

In spite of this, he was cool, however, and kept his eye peeled for the movement that would tell him Harris was about to launch his right.

A right and left he landed to Harris' sore nose. Then Harris rushed. Jack was forced back around the ring by the force of this rush and backed against the ropes; but he bounded out with great force and landed a vicious left to the side of Harris' jaw. Then they clinched.

As the referee parted them, Jack saw the movement for which he had been