e rock, while vainly endeavoring to keep his
head higher than his flying heels.

While it was very funny to the boys who peered over the edge of the
shelf, as Noodles would have an ugly tumble should things give way, Andy
and Seth quickly realized that they had better get busy without any more
delay, and do the gallant rescue act.

Had Paul been there he would have gone about it in a business-like way,
for he was quick to grapple with a problem, and solve it in short order.
As it was a case of too many cooks spoiling the broth, one boy suggested
a certain plan, only to have a second advanced as a better method of
getting Noodles out of his unpleasant predicament.

Meantime the poor fellow was kicking, and turning, and pleading with
them not to go back on an old chum, and leave him to such a terrible
fate.

"Der rope--get quick der rope, undt pull me oop!" he wailed.

"That's so, boys, Noodles has struck the right nail on the head!" cried
Seth. "Here, who's carrying that rope right now?"

"Noodles has got it himself, that's what!" exclaimed Eben.

"Did you ever hear of such rotten luck, now?" demanded Seth.

"Hold on!" interrupted Andy, "seems to me I remember seeing him lay
something down over here. Let me look and find out. Whoop! here she is,
boys! That's what I call great luck. Seth, suppose you see if you can
drop the loop over his head."

"Pe sure as you don't shoke me, poys!" called out the dangling object
below, in a manner to prove that he heard all they said.

"Get it over his feet, Seth; then we can yank him up. He won't mind it
for a short time. Some of his brains will have a chance to run back into
his head that way," suggested Eben.

"Make quick, blease!" wailed the unhappy scout, who was growing dizzy
with all this dangling and turning around. "I hears me der cloth gifing
away; or else dot dree, it pe going to preak py der roots. Hurry oop!
Get a moof on you, somepody. Subbose I want to make some squash pie down
on der rocks?"

But Seth was already hard at work trying to coax that noose at the end
of the dangling rope to fall over the uptilted legs of the unfortunate
scout.

"Keep still, you!" he shouted, when for the third time his angling
operations were upset by some unexpected movement on the part of the
struggling boy. "Think I c'n lasso a bucking broncho? Hold your feet up,
and together, if you want me to get you! There, that's the way.
Whoop-la!"

His last shout announced sudden su