rabbit was thoroughly enjoying his scamper, and
with his little, short tail cocked up and his long ears streaming
behind him he raced along like the wind.

And then a dreadful thing happened. Some twenty feet from the river
the ground sloped very steeply, and such was the rate at which Jumbo
was going that, when he reached this part, he could not stop himself,
but tumbled head over heels, and rolling down the bank disappeared with
a big, loud splash into the water.

Jim uttered a shout of dismay, which was echoed by all the others, who,
hastily climbing over the gate, came rushing pell-mell down the field.

"Oh, where is he? Oh, is poor darling Jumbo drowned?" Drusie gasped.

But he was not drowned. Even as Drusie spoke his soft, black nose came
to the surface, and kicking vigorously he struck out for the opposite
bank.

"Why, he can swim!" Drusie cried joyfully. "But don't go that way,
Jumbo; come here. Jumbo! Jumbo!"

[Illustration: Drusie kneeling on bank of stream]

Kneeling down on the bank she called to him; but Jumbo had quite lost
his presence of mind, and, far too bewildered and alarmed to heed the
children's cries, he paddled away from them as fast as ever he could.

"Oh, what shall we do?" Drusie cried in great distress. "His long fur
will soon get so heavy that he will not be able to keep himself up. O
Jumbo darling, come here!"

Jim was quite as frightened as she was. If only he had known how to
swim, he would have plunged in to the rescue at once.

Then, as if matters were not already bad enough, they suddenly became
worse. The swans, which Jim had been so anxious to see, suddenly
sailed majestically round the bend of the small island, and came
towards the children, expecting crumbs.

[Illustration: swans]

But none of the children, not even Jim, had any attention to spare for
them, beautiful though they were. Their eyes were fixed on Jumbo,
whose breath was coming in quick, short pants, and whose poor, short,
little legs were growing more and more tired.

Disappointed at not getting the crumbs, the swans slowly turned round
and were sailing away again when they caught sight of Jumbo, and with
angry hisses and long necks outstretched they bore down upon him as he
swam about half-way between the island and the bank.

"Oh, go to the island; it is nearer!" Drusie shrieked; "and O Jumbo,
make haste!"

It almost seemed as if Jumbo understood what she said. At any rate he
began to