An arm was raised from the water and waved at them.
"It's he! He's safe, he's safe, Phillips!" cried the superintendent, dancing about excitedly.
"Look out, Keating! What's the matter with you? You'll have us both in the river, the first thing you know."
The two gray-haired men shook hands, patted each other on the shoulder and laughed like schoolboys in the excess of their joy.
"Can you swim?" called the superintendent.
"Yes, I'll meet you on the other side," was the reply faintly borne to their ears.
"Come on, Phillips." Mr. Keating started on a run for the other side of the river, for which Rush was swimming steadily. The banks were high and steep on the far side, but there was an excellent beach, so that the Iron Boy had no difficulty in making a landing. He was obliged, however, to go around for some distance before finding a place to climb to the top.
Arriving finally, Steve found the superintendent and chief engineer pacing up and down the bank waiting for him. They grasped the lad's hands, each seeking to outdo the other in expressing their appreciation of what he had done.
"But what is troubling us is to understand how you were carried down by that pig and yet not killed?" questioned Mr. Keating.