"Why, this water is backing up," Belle said slowly, "It's not coming downstream, so any minute whatever's holding it back may burst and the whole thing go at once—or if it stops raining, it won't go any higher."
"Well, we must get away as fast as we can while there is time," said Miss Carter, trembling, but more composed. "We could swim that distance—I swim a little. Then, if we can't walk into Emville, we'll have to spend the night on the hills. We could reach the hills, I should think." Her voice broke. "Oh—this is terrible!" she broke out frantically—and she began to walk the floor.
"Hong, could we get the baby acrost?" asked Belle.
"Oh, the child—of course!" said Miss Carter, under her breath. Hong shook his head.
"Man come bimeby boat," he suggested. "Me no swim—Little Hong no swim."
"You can't swim" cried Miss Carter, despairingly, and covered her face with her hands.
Little Hong now came in to make some earnest suggestion in Chinese. His uncle, approving it, announced that they two, unable to swim, would, nevertheless, essay to cross the water with the aid of a floating kitchen bench, and that they would fly for help. They immediately carried the bench out into the night.
The two women followed; a hideous need of haste seemed to possess them all. The rain was falling heavily again.
"It's higher," said Miss Carter, in a dead tone. Belle eyed the water nervously.
"You couldn't push Timmy acrost on that bench?" she ventured.