“Hoo-e-e-e-e-e!”

The guardian sprang to her feet.  It was unmistakably Harriet Burrell who had answered her, but the voice of the Meadow-Brook Girl had sounded far away.  Miss Elting believed that the girl had succeeded in reaching the bank of the river.  Jane had thrown herself down beside the unconscious guide and was at work making heroic efforts to bring him back to consciousness.  The driver already was struggling to get to his feet.  Tommy hopped up, and, hurrying to him, gave such assistance as her strength would permit.

The driver staggered; after walking a few steps he leaned against the side of the bridge with both hands pressed to his forehead.  Tommy regarded him wonderingly.  His head was still dizzy; he had no clear conception of what had occurred.

By this time the guardian had gone to Jane’s assistance and was pressing a bottle of smelling salts to the nostrils of Janus Grubb.  Janus twisted his head uneasily, as though to get away from the pungent odor of the salts.

“He will be all right in a few moments, I think.  I wish we had some water,” murmured Miss Elting.

Jane ran to the wagon.  She returned with a rope and a pail.  Tying the rope to the pail, she lowered the latter through the opening in the floor.  A few moments later she presented a pail of water to Miss Elting, which the guardian sprinkled little by little over the face of their guide.  Janus gasped, struggled and rolled over.  Jane turned him on his back again.  This time a solid volume of water was dashed into his face.  He turned over and made a feeble attempt to rise.  Another volume of water smote him in the back of the neck, hurling him to the bridge floor.  This time Janus got to his feet, brushing his eyes, for they were so full of water that he could not see.

“I can let him down at the end of the rope and souse him in the stream,” suggested Crazy Jane.

“No, no, no!” protested the guardian.  She took Janus firmly by the arm.  “Where do you feel bad?”

“I swum!  I swum!” mumbled the guide.  “I swum!”

“You’d have had to swim if you had gone through the hole in the floor,” retorted Crazy Jane.  “Harriet went down there, and——­”

“Eh?  What—­wha—­at?” gasped the guide, blinking rapidly.

“Sit down a moment,” urged Miss Elting.  “None of us is seriously hurt.  How about you?” gazing at the driver.  “No bones broken, I trust?”

The driver shook his head.  Janus was gazing at the opening in the floor with a puzzled expression on his face.  He stared at the planks banked on each side, nodding understandingly.

“Been fixing the bridge.  Forgot to put the planks back in place,” he muttered.

“Isn’t it rather strange that so important a thing should have been forgotten, Mr. Grubb?” questioned the guardian significantly.

“I swum!  I swum!” repeated Janus, running reflective fingers through his beard.