be a hunter's cabin, inhabited only at certain seasons of the
year. Ten to one, there's no one living in it now."

"You'd be pleased if there wasn't!" almost snarled Professor Scotch.
"You're a boy without a heart!"

Frank laughed softly.

"We'll soon find out if there's any one at home," he said, as the canoe
ran up to the bank, and he took care to get out first.

As soon as Frank was out, the professor made a scramble to follow him.
He rose to his feet, despite Barney's warning cry, and, a moment later,
the cranky craft flipped bottom upward, with the swiftness of a flash of
lightning.

The professor and the Irish lad disappeared beneath the surface of the
water.

Barney's head popped up in a moment, and he stood upon his feet, with
the water to his waist, uttering some very vigorous words.

Up came the professor, open flew his mouth, out spurted a stream of
water, and then he wildly roared:

"Help! Save me! I can't swim! I'm drowning!"

Before either of the boys could say a word, he went under again.

"This is th' firrust toime Oi iver saw a man thot wanted to drown in
thray fate av wather," said Barney.

Frank sat down on the dry ground, and shouted with laughter.

Up popped the professor a second time.

"Help!" he bellowed, after he had spurted another big stream of water
from his mouth. "Will you see me perish before your very eyes? Save me,
Frank!"

But Frank was laughing so heartily that he could not say a word, and the
little man went down once more.

"Hivins! he really manes to drown!" said Barney, in disgust.

"Grab him!" gasped Frank. "Don't let him go down again. Oh, my! what a
scrape! This beats our record!"

For the third time the professor's head appeared above the surface, and
the professor's voice weakly called:

"Will no one save me? This is a plot to get me out of the way! Oh,
Frank, Frank! I never thought this of you! Farewell! May you be happy
when I am gone!"

"Stand up!" shouted Frank, seeing that the little man had actually
resigned himself to drown. "Get your feet under you. The water is
shallow there."

The professor stood up, and an expression of pain, surprise, and disgust
settled on his face, as he thickly muttered:

"May I be kicked! And I've been under the water two-thirds of the time
for the last hour! I've swallowed more than two barrels of this
swamp-water, including, in all probability, a few dozen pollywogs,
lizards, young alligators, and other delightful