He made a rush to get hold of the box again before it should be washed too far out from shore, but he stumbled over a pile of sand and fell. He was not hurt, but when he got up the box was farther out than ever.
Daddy Bunker looked at the water between him and the box, and said:
"It's too deep to wade and spoil a pair of shoes. And, after all, maybe there is only a lot of old trash in the box."
"Oh, I thought maybe my doll was in it," sighed Violet.
"Can't you take your boat, Tom, and row out and get the box?" asked Cousin Ruth.
"Yes, I could do that," he said. "I will, too! The water is calm, though I can't tell how long it will stay so."
But before Cousin Tom could go back to the pier in the inlet, where the boat was tied, the box was washed quite a distance out from shore. Then the wind sprang up and the sea became rough, and it was decided that he had better not try it.
"Let the box go," said Daddy Bunker. "I guess there was nothing very much in it."
But the children thought differently. They stood looking out at the unopened box, now drifting to sea, and thought of the different things that might be in it. Each one had an idea of some toy he or she liked best.
"Well, we waited too long about opening it," said Mr. Bunker. "We should have pulled the box farther up on the beach, Russ."