"I will!" cried Ham, and in less time than I can take to tell it, Ham and his trained monkeys lowered the boat and jumped in.
"Shove off!" commanded Cockswain Ham, and with a strong pull and a loud "Yo-ho!" the little boat shot away.
Ham held firmly to the tiller and kept the bow pointed toward the big rollers, while the monkeys handled the oars.
"Pull for the shore, sailor, pull for the shore," sang the Weathercock.
The bears, who had slid down the iceberg close to the water's edge, stood anxiously waiting.
"Careful, now!" cried Ham. "Pull on your starboard oar!"
The boat grazed the iceberg. "Jump!" shouted Ham. "Quick!"
And then one of the bears gave a spring and landed in the boat. His mate, however, slipped, and a big wave at that moment whirled the boat away from the ice, and with a big splash he landed in the water.
"Throw him a life-preserver!" shouted Capt. Noah.
"Throw him a life line!" yelled Shem.