Paul darkened the lamp by putting a piece of rubber over it, and when the profile of the peasant stood clear between him and the sky, he suddenly removed the rubber and turned, the light full on the man, at the same time sounding an unearthly blast on his bugle.

The startled peasant uttered no sound; but the distant clinking of his sabots down the road, told how badly he was frightened.
About four o'clock that morning, Paul felt his dress touching bottom, the current slackened, and he knew he had wandered into a false channel.
With some difficulty, he assumed an upright position and the moment he did so, found his legs grasped as in a vise.
He was caught in the quicksand.
With a feeling of horror he felt himself settling, settling in the treacherous sands, until he was slicked down nearly to the neck, his face almost even with the surface, the dark water gliding by him like some slimy serpent into the night.
The tender swung round with her bow pointing toward him, the strong light from the bull's eye glaring him in the face with its blinding rays.

The little boat seemed to realize the awful situation and she tugged at the cord which fastened her to the dress, as though struggling to free him.

From the moment the sands were felt, he' had worked to free himself, only to find that the effort sunk him deeper.

He began to think he was not going to get out; that his time had come and not a trace on earth would be left to tell of his dreadful end.