The engine seemed a bit averse to starting at first, and, for a few seconds, Betty feared that it had suffered some damage. But suddenly it began to hum and throb, gaining in momentum quickly, as it was running free. Betty slowed it down at the throttle, and then, looking aft to see that all was clear, she slipped in the clutch that reversed the propeller.
There was a smother of foam under the stern of the Gem, which trembled and throbbed with the vibration. Betty turned on more power, until finally the maximum, under the circumstances, was reached.
"Are we moving?" she called, anxiously, to her chums.
"Not an inch!" answered Mollie, leaning over to look at the surface of the water. "Not an inch."
"We'll try it a little longer," said Betty. "Sometimes it takes a little while to pull loose from the sand."
"Suppose some of us go up in the bow and push?" suggested Mollie. "That may help some."
"Perhaps; and yet I want to keep the bow as light as possible, so it won't settle down any more in the sand."
"I'll go," volunteered Mollie. "One can't make much difference. And I am not so very heavy."
"All right," agreed Betty.
With one of the oars Mollie pushed hard down into the holding sand, while Betty kept the motor going at full speed, reversed.