"Help me—Frank—cramp got me!" he gurgled.
Then he went under again, despite his struggles. Frank pushed on, his eyes on the lookout for the upcoming of the drowning lad. He seemed to know that Bluff had not yet lost every atom of his vitality, and was capable of another tussle at least.
When Bluff came fighting to the surface Frank was there. He avoided the frenzied clutch of the other, knowing how fatal such a thing would be. The only hope of saving Bluff was to catch him from behind. Then, if there was danger of his trying to wrap his arms about his would-be rescuer, even more desperate tactics must be employed to stop such a move, and in some cases it seems necessary to strike the drowning person over the head to make him desist.
Of course, Bluff did not know what he was doing now. He had reached that point where he would clutch frantically at a straw, in the hope that it would bear him up. To him, Frank was only as much as a plank would have been.
Watching his opportunity, ere the boy could sink again Frank managed to get a firm grip on the back of his neck. The fact that Bluff wore his hair rather long aided him in this maneuver, he afterward confessed.
Then he worked hard to swim toward the shore, towing Bluff along. It was a difficult task to keep the face of the other above the surface and at the same time fight off his hands when he sought to clutch the swimmer's arms. Such a catastrophe would have possibly been the means of a double tragedy.
Meanwhile, the rest of the party had waded in, holding to each other's hands. Even Jed was at the end of the chain, on the side nearest the shore, but just as eager to lend a hand toward the rescue of the drowning lad as any of the others. Bluff had been kind to the bound boy, and the heart of the waif was full of gratitude toward these friends who had been suddenly raised up for him.
Foot by foot Frank worked his way in, while Jerry held out an eager hand to assist when he came within reach.
Frank remained perfectly cool through it all. It was marvelous how this boy seemed to know just what should be done in any emergency, and how to do it. Bluff did not struggle to get at him so much now. This was not because he knew better; the truth was, he had become partially unconscious.
Still Frank did not lose hope, for he knew matters had not gone so far but what the other could be readily resuscitated by the ordinary means.