Frantic with the delay, the youth worked his hand like a machine, feeling in every corner of the bag. What if he could not find the rope?
But fortune was with him. In another bag on the opposite side of the mule he found the rope. Luckily it was not tangled.
Joe was almost afraid to turn for fear Dr. Rander would be gone. His heart gave a leap as he saw that the explorer’s head was still above the water.
“Here, get hold of this,” Joe called, throwing the rope over to the old man. “Now come on, Bob. Let’s pull.”
This last was unnecessary, as Bob was already on the spot waiting to catch hold of the rope.
“Steady, now!”
Slowly the youths pulled their friend out of the heavy mud, which oozed ominously as it released its victim. Once it seemed as if the old man would have to release his hold, but he managed to hang on desperately.
At last, when he was completely out of the mud, he moved over to his young companions and gazed at them gratefully.
“You did wonderful,” he commended. “Many people would have acted more slowly—and I would have gone under.”