"Not at all. I expected to run back and forth over this shoal until the Missisquoi had enough of it, and then I was going to Burlington."
"Will the steamer get off the bottom?"
"She was running at her best speed when she struck the bottom; and I don't believe she will get off in a hurry," replied Dory.
"All we have to do is to go to Burlington, then," added Corny.
"We won't be in a hurry about it," said Dory. "I want to see if she can get off. They are backing her now, and there is Captain Vesey at work with a pole. The steamer seems to stick hard. Her bow is about a foot out of water, but I think she is afloat at the stern. They may work her off if they manage it well."
"That other chap has gone to work with a pole too," said Dick Short.
"I hope they will have a good time," added Dory, as he put the schooner about, and headed her across the bow of the Missisquoi.
The skipper wished to obtain a better view of the position of the steamer, to enable him to decide whether it was safe for him to proceed to Burlington. With the wind on the quarter, he ran within ten yards of the stem of the Missisquoi. As he approached her, he saw that her water-line was lifted at least a foot above the surface of the lake, indicating that she was firmly fixed on the hard bottom.
"Hallo there, Dory Dornwood!" shouted Pearl Hawlinshed when the Goldwing came within hail of the steamer. "Come alongside! I want to see you."