"Why, yes, I—oh, Rose, you DON'T think we're—DRIFTING?" gasped Polly.
"You can't get up, and turn round," said Rose, "because Uncle John told us always to keep our seats in a boat, but can't you just twist round enough to see?"
With great care Polly turned, and saw just what she feared—the ring on the boat and NO CHAIN CONNECTED!
With a white little face Polly turned, and with parted lips looked at
Rose.
"We ARE drifting—JUST DRIFTING!" she whispered hoarsely.
"Drifting!" cried Rose. "Oh, Polly, what SHALL we do?"
"Sit still," whispered Polly, "and wait—just WAIT!"
"What WILL Uncle John do? And where will he think we are?" said Rose.
"Oh, I don't know!" wailed Polly, "but I'm SURE we ought to do something. Just look how far we are from the shore, and we're going all the time!"
They looked in despair toward the beach. No one was in sight, and the dancing waves glistened in the sunlight, as if they laughed, feeling no pity for the two frightened children in the boat.