"Oh, I've got him! I've got him!" cried Bunny, eagerly.
"I rather think he has got you!" said a man, rushing up to Bunny just in time to grab him. The little fellow's feet were being lifted off the floor and, in another few seconds, he himself was in danger of being pulled into the pool. For the cord was a strong one, and the turtle was one of the largest.
"Let go the string!" called the man who had hold of Bunny. "Let go the string!"
Bunny did so, and the turtle swam away with it.
By this time Mother Brown and Aunt Lu, who had heard Bunny's calls, had rushed over to him. Others, too, left the seals, to see what was the excitement at the turtle and alligator pool.
"Oh, Bunny! What have you done?" cried his mother.
"I—I was catching a fish," Bunny explained, as the man who had stopped him from being pulled into the pool, set the little fellow down. "I was catching a fish and—"
"But you musn't catch any fish in here!" exclaimed one of the men in uniform, who was on guard in the aquarium. "You're not allowed to catch fish in here!"
"It—it wasn't a fish," said Bunny. "It was a turtle. I tried to get a fish, but I couldn't. But the turtle bit on the rag bait."
"Yes, turtles will do that," said the guard. "But you must never again try to fish in here. These fish are to look at, not to catch."