"Do not be frightened, Henry," he called; "do not be frightened—I am coming, and will get you out."
At this Henry ceased his violent efforts to extricate himself, and remained quiet until George came up as near as it was prudent to come, and laid his pole across the broken place, so that each end of it rested upon solid ice.
"Now hold on to that," said he, coolly.
You may be certain the poor lad in the water did not wait to be asked twice to do as he was told. With both hands he grasped the stick. Then George lay down at full length, and keeping one hand for support on the pole, crept up so close to the broken place in the ice, that he could grasp one of Henry's hands.
"Easy—easy," said he, in a calm encouraging voice, as the boy in the water caught his arm eagerly, and was in danger of dragging him in also. This gave Henry more confidence, and restored, in some measure, his presence of mind. After this, it took but a moment for George Williams to pull Henry out, and get him beyond all danger.
The two boys were more than half-way home, when they met a number of men, whom Edward Jones had alarmed by his cries for help, running at full speed to rescue the drowning lad. The praise they bestowed upon George for his courageous conduct was very pleasant to him, but not half so pleasant as the reflection that he had saved the life of his young playmate.
On the evening after this occurrence, Mr. Jones, the father of Edward, took his son into his room, and when they were alone, said to him,—
"How comes it, my boy, that you did not, like George Williams, go immediately to the aid of Henry Lee when you saw him break through the ice?"
"I was so frightened," replied the boy, "that I did not know what I was doing."
"And this fright would have cost Henry his life, if there had not been another boy near to save him."