"I wonder where Chouse has gone, Hans."
"Oh, he's chasing rabbits all over the field."
Just then they heard Chouse bark, but it was a very faint bark, as if he were far away. The children looked and looked, but they couldn't see him anywhere. He barked again, and this time it sounded a little bit louder, but he was still out of sight. As Greta and Hans went on down the river, the barking got louder and louder.
"Oh, Hans, I see Chouse," cried Greta in great excitement.
"Where is he, Greta?"
"He's way down there in front of us, right down by the water near that group of trees. Hurry, Hans. Let's see why he is barking."
Hans pushed the boat forward with strong, swift strokes. He knew exactly how to handle his boat, and in no time at all they had reached the group of trees that was growing by the edge of the water.
"Oh, Hans, the kittens! There are the kittens!" Greta stood right up in the boat. "Hurry, Hans. One of the kittens is in the river."
"You'd better sit down, Greta, or you'll be in the river yourself."
With one strong stroke of his paddle, Hans drove the boat against the grassy bank. Both children jumped out and ran over to Chouse and the kittens. One kitten was lying on the grass, but it looked more like a rat than a kitten. Its soft fur was soaking wet. Chouse was working hard to pull the other kitten out of the river. Finally he got it up on the bank just as Hans rushed up to help with the rescue.