handsome boy, and was about a year older than Rollo.

In the afternoon of the day before the party were to leave Geneva, Rollo
came in from the quay, where he had been out to take a walk, and asked
permission to go out on the lake, a little way, in a boat, with Gerald.

"Does Gerald understand how to manage a boat?" asked Mr. Holiday.

"O, yes, sir," said Rollo. "He has been all over the world, and he knows
how to manage every thing. Besides, I can manage a boat myself well
enough to go out on this lake. It is as smooth as a mill pond."

"Very well," said Mr. Holiday. "Only it must not be a sail boat. You
must take oars; and look out well that the Rhone does not catch you."

Rollo understood very well that his father meant by this that he must be
careful not to let the current, which was all the time drawing the water
of the lake off under the bridge, and thus forming the Rhone below,
carry the boat down. Rollo said that he would be very careful; and off
he went to rejoin Gerald on the quay.

Gerald was already in the boat. He had with him, also, a Swiss boy, whom
he had engaged to go too, as a sort of attendant, and to help row, if
necessary. An English boy, in such cases, never considers the party
complete unless he has some one to occupy the place of a servant, and to
be under his command.

So the three boys got into the boat, and pushed off from the shore. For
a time every thing went on well and pleasantly. Rollo and the others had
a fine time in rowing to and fro over the smooth water, from one
beautiful point of land to another, on the lake shores, and sometimes in
lying still on the calm surface, to rest from the labor, and to amuse
themselves in looking down in the beautiful blue depths beneath them,
and watching the fishes that were swimming about there. At last, in the
course of their manoeuvrings, they happened to take the boat rather
too near the bridge. The attention of the boys was at the time directed
to something that they saw in the water; and they did not perceive how
near the bridge they were until Rollo happened to observe that the
stones at the bottom seemed to be rapidly moving along in the direction
towards the lake.

"My!" said Rollo; "see how fast the stones are going!"

"The stones!" exclaimed Gerald, starting up, and seizing an oar. "It's
the boat! We are going under the bridge, as sure as fate! Put out your
oar, Rollo, and pull for your life! Pull!"

Both Rollo and the Swiss boy im