orously upward again.

Then his head cleaved the water and he gulped in the blessed air in
long, deep breaths. An instant later this was cut off by the grip of arms
about his neck as Trexler, whom he had momentarily forgotten, clutched
at him with all the strength and determination of despair.

That there were approved methods of releasing such grips Frank knew
from repeated perusals of the scout handbook, but not a vestige of
them stuck in his mind now. Full of wild panic, he struck out blindly
with all his power. Trexler's head went back under the impact; his
grasp slackened. Sanson had a momentary glimpse of the white face with
half-closed eyes and twisted lips all a-swirl with water, and again
that impulse that was stronger than panic made him reach out and catch
hold of the boy's shoulder. At almost the same instant something hard
grazed his cheek, and he realized that the force of his blow had sent him
against one side of the hole. With a grasp of thankfulness, he caught
at it, finding the ice here fairly substantial. He drew Trexler's body
closer to him, and for the first time since the plunge he had a moment
in which to think.

"I mustn't try and climb out or it'll break," he muttered. "Why don't
the fellows come? They must have got out by now." He quite failed to
realize how short a space of time it was since he had first started to
Trexler's aid. "I can't hold on here much longer. I'm freezing now, and--"

His voice broke a little, but he bit his lip and choked back the sob
in his throat. Then, summoning all his strength, he tried to shout for
help, but the result was a hoarse croak that could not have been heard
a hundred feet away. To his utter astonishment it was answered from close
at hand.

"Hold tight, Frank; we're coming!"

It was Sherman Ward's voice. Sanson could scarcely believe his senses,
even though a moment later he heard the scrape of skates and the grating
of a sudden stopping. It took him a moment or two to realize that he
had become turned around and was facing the inlet and the bridge, so
that the fellows had been able to approach from down the lake without
his seeing them.

"Get that branch there," he heard Sherman order crisply. "Hustle! Can
you keep up a bit longer, Frank?"

"S-s-sure!" answered Sanson, through chattering teeth. "Only be as
qu-quick as you c-c-can. P-P-Paul--"

"We'll be there in half a shake. That's it, Dale. Shove it across. Now,
you fellows hold fast to that