down a rope."

With that she crawled through the hole, and when once on the stone
ledge, she put her hand in on the boy's head.

"Lift up your leg and hang tight to Petey," she shuddered, and the
blind boy did as he was bidden, and Jinnie pulled him, with the dog
and fiddle, through the opening. She put him on his knees in front of
her with her arms tightly about him.

"Jinnie, Jinnie!" moaned Bobbie. "My heart's jumpin' out of my
mouth!"

Jinnie pressed her teeth together with all her might and main,
shivering so in terror that she almost lost the strength of her arms.

"Don't think about your heart," she implored, "and don't shake so!
Just think that you're going to Lafe and Peg."

Then they began their long, perilous journey to the corner of the
building. It must have taken twenty minutes. Jinnie had no means by
which to mark the time. She only knew how difficult it was to keep the
blind child moving, with the water below bellowing its stormy way down
the rock-hill to the lake. Happy Pete gave a weird little cry now and
then. But on and on they went, and at the corner Jinnie spoke:

"Bobbie, we've got to turn here. Let your body go just as I shove
it."

Limp was no word for Bobbie's body. He was dreadfully tired. His heart
thumped under Jinnie's arms like a battering-ram.

"Bobbie, don't breathe that way, don't!" she entreated.

"I can't help it, honey! my side hurts," he whispered. "But I'll go
where you take me, Jinnie dear."

The girl turned him carefully around the sharp ledge corner, and they
went on again. Her arms seemed almost paralyzed, but they clung to the
child ahead, and the child ahead clung to the little dog, who hung
very straight and inert in front of his body.

When they reached the south corner, Jinnie explained their next move
to Bobbie in this way:

"Now listen," she told him. "You get on my back with your legs under
my arms, hang to me like dear life, and keep Happy Pete between us.
Don't hurt him if you can help it."

They were within touch of one of the dangling ropes and far below
Jinnie saw the swaying plank to which it was fastened. Once on that
board, she could get to the ground.

Then she continued: "Now while I lean over, you get on my back."

As she guided his slender hands, she felt them cold within her own,
but in obedience to her command, Bobbie put his legs about her, one
arm around her neck, and with the other held Happy Pete.

"We won't fall, will we, Jinnie?