“They’ll be killed!  Oh, those girls!” wailed the guardian.  “Go after them, Janus.”

“They are quite likely to be,” observed the guide huskily.  “I can go after them, but I can’t stop them.  There they are.”

They heard the splash—­in fact, several distinct splashes—­faint, it is true, but sufficient to tell those in the camp that the girls had reached their destination, the pond at the foot of the Slide.  Janus already was racing down the mountain, jumping, stumbling, falling now and then, but making his way down as rapidly as possible.

“Remain here, Hazel,” commanded Miss Elting.  Then she, too, hurried down, making even better time than did the guide, for the guardian was more agile and much lighter on her feet.

Fortunately for Tommy, she had been headed straight along the center of the Slide from the beginning.  The chute sloped somewhat toward the middle.  Tommy had instinctively kept her head up, arms thrust straight ahead of her.  She began gasping for breath, and, either obeying Harriet’s direction or the instinct of the swimmer, she closed her lips tightly and held her breath.  Her little body flashed through a thick growth of bushes that hung over the chute at one point.  She had seen the bushes coming at her like a projectile and instinctively lowered her head before reaching them.  But she quickly raised her head again, uttering an exclamation, as the skin was neatly peeled from the bridge of her nose.

“Oh, thave me!” groaned Tommy, as the pond rose up to meet her.  She caught and held her breath.  When she struck the water a sheet of it rose up on each side of her just as the water does at the launching of a steamship, only there was much less displacement in Tommy’s case.  To her amazement she skimmed along the surface a few feet before she began to settle.  Unfortunately, at about that time Tommy opened her mouth for a breath of fresh air.  Instead she got a mouthful of water.  She began to kick and struggle.

Down went Tommy, still struggling and kicking and striking out blindly, for the girl had not yet recovered from the shock.  It was while she was down that another girlish figure shot straight into the lake.  Instead of skimming the surface this second figure came down on her back with a mighty splash, turned a half-somersault, landing on her feet, where she stood treading water and screaming.

Now a third figure shot down the chute.  It took the water in a clean dive, going clear under, passing close by where Margery was treading water and screaming for help.  When Harriet finally did come up, shaking the water from eyes and head, she was seen to be only a few feet from Grace, who now was making a great splashing on her way to the opposite shore.  Tommy could not speak as yet, but she could swim, and swim she did.

Observing that Tommy was not in immediate need of assistance, Harriet turned back toward Margery, who plainly was expending her strength without accomplishing very much.  Harriet was just in time to see Jane McCarthy sit down in the pond.  She made a great disturbance, added to which was a wild yell as she felt the water rising about her.  Jane went into the water over her head.  Margery, seized by a panic, forgot to tread water and went clear to the bottom.