To bring the boat to a sudden stop was not an easy matter, and there were some moments of suspense before the Chelton passed safely to the other side of the spot where Lottie was struggling.
The water was not so deep but that she was able to scramble to her feet, but the wash of the boat forced her to work violently to keep her head above water.
“The rope!” called Cora, who had dashed from her position at the steering wheel to the side of the boat where the mooring rope had been dropped. In the excitement, of course, all crowded to one side of the small craft, which caused it to careen alarmingly.
“There! There!” shouted Ed. “Lottie, grab the rope!”
“Oh, I can’t,” came the rather weak and shaky reply. “I can’t reach it.”
By this time the Dixie, the innocent cause of the accident, was alongside. Drayton Ward, the wealthy young fellow who could boast of a motor boat that would have aroused comment even at Newport, leaned over the side and grasped the arm of the girl in the water. The rest was a simple matter, for soon Lottie was assisted over the rail of the Dixie, and was in the finest boat on Crystal Bay.
“What do you think of that?” gasped Bess into Cora’s ear.
“Clever!” replied Cora, simply.
“But the togs?” queried Jack, to whom the accident had seemed something of a joke.
“What a pity,” returned Belle, “and she did look so sweet!”