er weather of it than the Goldwing?" asked
Dory.

"The lake didn't begin to be as rough as it was a little while ago,"
replied Corny. "The steamer pitched tremendously, and we all had to pump
after we got beyond Valcour's."

"Do you see any thing of the Missisquoi?" asked Dory, who had been too
busy to give any attention to the steamer.

"I can just see her at the south of the island. She has not got off
yet," replied Corny.

"She is under the lee of the two islands; and they can be very
comfortable on board of her for the rest of the day,--a great deal more
comfortable than they would be out in the lake where we have been,"
added Dory.

The Goldwing was abreast of Providence Island by this time. The waves
swept furiously along the south-west shore of the land.

As soon as she reached the south-east point, the skipper luffed up; but
the boat was not inclined to make any headway on the new course.

"Let off the centre-board, Thad," said the skipper, as the boat began to
make more leeway than headway.

Thad had got the hang of this rope; and, as the centre-board went down,
the boat came up to the work. With the help of an oar and a great deal
of coaxing, the skipper got her close up to the shore in seven feet of
water. He had instructed Corny how to get the anchor overboard. The boat
was entirely out of the heavy sea, though the water rose and fell under
the influence of the waves which were rolling along the other side of
the island.

"Here we are as safe as though we had the boat on the top of Mansfield
Mountain," said Dory, after he had secured the cable, and stowed the
jib.

"I never expected to come out of it alive," said Thad, as the skipper
seated himself in the standing-room to recover from the excitement of
the perilous run across the lake.

"Nor I either," added Nat Long.

"It looked very shaky," said Corny; "but I didn't give it up at any
time."

"Now, really, Dory, did you expect to get out of that scrape?" asked
Thad. "Be honest about it, and tell us what you actually thought."

"Of course I knew that something might break, just as I know that a
horse may run away with me when I'm out riding. The wagon or the harness
might break, and that would spoil the best calculation," replied Dory.

"But, without any thing breaking, didn't you expect the boat would go to
the bottom?" urged Thad.

"I didn't expect any thing of the kind. I have been out in a sailboat
when it was as bad or worse than i