They pulled.
With surprising quickness, Joe came loose. He came plunging down into the fireplace on top of the others, each of whom lost his balance and sat down heavily. There was more soot.
The four lads were piled in a heap in the fireplace, so blackened and dirty as to be unrecognizable. Joe, of course, had the worst of it. His face was as black as coal. He was a bedraggled, sooty object, but not much sorrier sight than his companions.
As they sat up and looked at one another, the humor of the situation suddenly struck them.
“Oh, boy! You chaps look funny!” yelled Chet, and burst into a howl of laughter.
“No funnier than you!” roared Biff. “You look like a chimney sweep.”
They scrambled out of the fireplace, laughing in spite of themselves.
“If somebody could have seen us all when Joe came down out of that chimney!” laughed Frank. “I’ll bet we looked funny. What a glorious tumble!”
“I vote we all take a bath,” said Chet mournfully.
“We certainly need it. And the fire is out and we have no hot water.”