rined at her evident anxiety to return. He could not
shut his eyes to the fact that Donald was very much to her, perhaps
everything. "Let us cross here, and go down the other side," he
suggested, wishing to prolong the pleasure. They glided out from the
shadow of the overhanging cliffs, the ice ringing beneath their feet.
Here the banks were close together, and a narrow strip of moonlight
marked the middle of the stream. Just as they touched its silvery
edge, there came a loud crackling sound. John Egerton realised with
appalling suddenness that he had made a fatal mistake. With a powerful
swing of his arm he sent the girl flying forward. "To the shore!" he
shouted. Before Jessie could grasp his meaning she felt herself
darting forward with the impetus from his arm, and at the same instant
the ice beneath her companion gave way with a sickening crash, and he
was engulfed in the swirling black water.

The girl's wild scream of terror was scarcely uttered when there was a
rush past her; she realised as if in a dream that Maggie was beside her
and that someone was darting out towards the middle of the river,
grasping a stout rail. The sisters clung to each other for an instant
in dumb fear, as they saw in the narrow strip of moonlight, the
minister's head, just above the black hole. He was clinging
desperately to the edge of the ice, which broke off now and then in his
benumbed grasp. Donald shouted a word of encouragement, and laying the
rail upon the ice he threw himself across it and worked cautiously
forward. As he went down upon the rail there was a cry from the bank.

"Oh, Jess, Don's in too!" gasped Maggie, faint with terror. Jessie's
heart stood still. In the darkness of the shadow Donald's figure was
scarcely discernible to her terrified gaze.

"Oh, he's gone down," she cried; "if he drowns I'll die!" She tore
herself from Maggie's grasp and shot down the stream calling for help.

As Donald reached cautiously forward and clutched the drowning man in
an iron grip, Jessie's cry of terror floated out to him. He never
dreamed of applying the words to himself. In the whirl of the moment
he scarcely grasped their meaning. That came to him later with
overwhelming force. With all his strength he was struggling to draw
his burden up on the ice. But already Jessie had returned with
assistance; another rail was being propelled towards the dangerous
spot, another pair of strong arms were stretched out a