A MOMENT OF PERIL.
It was a thrilling moment in Harry Webb’s life when he saw his chum’s
sister in her extremely perilous situation.
He well understood how hard it was to keep up one’s courage in that
freezing cold water, with the strong current trying its best to drag
one under the ice.
“Don’t let go, Minnie!” he shouted, and just then his own voice sounded
strange to him. “Hold fast! I’ll be there in another minute!”
With powerful strokes he swept nearer and nearer. The somewhat thin ice
bent and cracked beneath his weight, but to this he paid scant heed.
In his pocket, Harry had a couple of skate-straps he had brought along
in case anything should happen to his clamp skates. These straps he now
buckled together, and wound one end around his hand.
Getting as close to the hole as he dared, he threw out the end of the
straps.
“Catch the buckle, Minnie!” he cried. “Can you reach it, or shall I
come closer?”
The poor girl in the water tried to speak, but the words would not
come, so benumbed and cold was she.
But she put out one hand convulsively, and caught the strap just above
the buckle.
“Now put the other hand on the ice, and I’ll pull you up,” went on
Harry. “Steady, now, or the ice will----”
Crack! crack! crash!
The ice around the brave boy had suddenly given way, and on the instant
he found himself plunged into the chilling water head first.
He went down several feet, and then turned and came up. The shock to
his system, all overheated from racing, was terrible, and for a few
seconds he seemed fairly paralyzed.
But he retained his hold on the straps, and by their aid was quickly at
Minnie Woodruff’s side.
“Oh, Harry!” the girl burst out.
She could not say more, but those two words just then meant a good deal.
“I’ll save you yet, Minnie,” he returned, as he caught her around the
waist. “Hold fast to me.”
“I--I can’t! I’m so co--cold!”
“I’ll hold you, then,” he went on. “Help! help! help!”
His cry rang out loud and clear across the frozen river. Fortunately,
several had seen him turn from the race course, and watched where he
had gone. These persons were now hurrying to the scene of the accident
as fast as possible.
“It’s Harry Webb!”
“He’s trying to save Minnie Woodruff from drowning!”
“What a plucky boy to leave the race and go in after her!”
These and numerous other shouts went up. Then, as the little crowd
drew closer, they speculated upon how they should aid the struggling
pair.
“Somebody get a rope!”
“We want a board worse than anything! You can’t pull them out with a
rope.”
In the meantime one boy threw out the end of his long tippet to Harry,
who caught one end of it and tied it about Minnie’s wrist.
Then, suddenly, a boy came skating toward the crowd, carrying a long
board. It was Boxy Woodruff!
“Here’s a board to get ’em out with!” he cried. “Now if--Minnie!”
He had not previously recognized his sister, and now at the discovery
he almost fainted.
“Minnie! and Harry has gone in after her!” he murmured. “Oh, I hope
they both get out safe!”
Willing hands had taken the board and shoved out one end toward the big
hole in the ice.
“Get back!” shouted a cool-headed man. “Get back, every one, or
there’ll be a dozen more in together!”
The warning came none too soon, for already the ice was cracking in
a dozen directions. The crowd started back, only the man and Boxy
remaining at the outer end of the board, to prevent it slipping around.
Bringing every ounce of his youthful strength into play, Harry caught
hold of the end of the board, and slowly pulled himself out of the
water, with Minnie half-clinging, half-held to his side. The ice
groaned dismally, but did not break, and in a few seconds the two were
safe once more.
Boxy caught Minnie in his arms just as the exhausted girl was on the
point of fainting. A crowd of admiring boys surrounded Harry.
“Good for you, Harry!”
“That was well done!”
“My! but he’s got nerve, hasn’t he?”
“I--I guess I had better get ho--home!” chattered the hero of the
occasion. “I’m almost fro--frozen!”
“Here, take my overcoat!” It was Jack Bascoe who spoke. “You’re a
brick, Harry! I never dreamed that you had turned out to save Minnie
Woodruff.”
“Who won the ra--race?” questioned Harry, as he slid into the overcoat
in short order.
“I did. But you were ahead, and you deserve----”
Jack broke off short, as a sleigh drawn by a pair of coal black horses
dashed up on the ice. It was old Mr. Grimes’ turnout.
“Get in here, and put the girl in, too!” cried the old fellow, who sat
on the front seat beside the driver. “Be quick! The sooner you both get
home the better. You’ll catch your death of cold out here on the river.”
And Minnie Woodruff and Harry were bundled into the back seat by Boxy
and the others without delay; the robes were piled over them, and then
off they spun for the town.
Luckily, the Woodruff and Webb homesteads were not far distant, and
inside of ten minutes both the girl and the boy were in their homes,
and being taken care of by their mothers.
Mrs. Webb wished Harry to go bed, but he demurred at this.
“I’m not so frail as all that, mother. I’ll go up to your room, where
it’s warm, and take a good rubbing down and change my clothing, and
then I’ll be all right. I only hope Minnie gets over it all right.”
Harry departed up the stairs, and after giving him a complete change
of raiment, Mrs. Webb hurried next door to assist in making Minnie
comfortable, for she knew Mrs. Woodruff was rather sickly, and could
not do as readily as most women.
She came back inside of half an hour, and found Harry sitting by the
dining-room stove, and with him Jack and Andy Bascoe, who had followed
old Grimes’ sleigh on foot.
“I’m feeling just as well as ever, excepting that I’m awfully tired,”
said Harry. “How is Minnie?”
“She is abed, but the doctor who was summoned thinks she will recover
in a day or two. She was in so long that her whole system was chilled.
Mrs. Woodruff is very thankful for what you did.”
“Oh, I didn’t do any more than any other fair-minded fellow would do,”
replied Harry, modestly.
“She seems to think so, and so does Boxwell. Mr. Woodruff has not yet
come home.”
“He is a genuine hero,” put in Andy. “He ran a great risk, and all the
boys say so.”
Jack agreed with him on this point, and a little later, before
departing for dinner, spoke of the gold medal he had won.
“That medal ought to go to you, Harry,” he said. “And, by rights, I
ought to get the second prize, that Sully got. It isn’t fair to do you
out of your winnings in this way.”
“But you won the medal; I didn’t,” said Harry.
“But you would have won it, though.”
“That’s so,” said Andy.
“I don’t care so much for the medal, but you know I was wishing for the
money, so I could go with you fellows on that tour----” began Harry.
“Well, if that’s all, I’m going to fix you up on that score,” said
Jack, decidedly. “I’ll keep the medal and give you the trip money----”
“No, sir!” cried Harry. “I’m going to get that money myself--by earning
it or otherwise, or else I don’t go. That’s settled.”
And all the talking the Bascoe brothers could do would not shake him
from this determination.
It was growing toward evening when Boxy’s father, who had been on a
trip to New York, came home. He was completely taken aback by the news
that awaited him, and very solicitous concerning his only daughter’s
welfare.
He remained by Minnie’s side all of that evening, and it was not until
well into the forenoon of the next day that he ran over to the Webb
house.
“My dear Harry, how can I thank you for what you have done?” he cried,
as he grasped the young hero warmly by the hand. “You saved Minnie’s
life!”
“Well, I’m downright glad of it,” stammered Harry, not finding anything
else to say on the moment.
“Mrs. Woodruff is also very grateful. I would have been over before,
but I could not bring myself to leave Minnie’s side.”
“How is she this morning?” questioned Mrs. Webb.
“Very much better--in fact, completely out of danger,” returned the
happy father. “Harry, I do not know how to reward you,” he went on,
still wringing the boy’s hand.
“I am not looking for any reward, Mr. Woodruff. I only did what I
thought was my duty.”
“Nevertheless, you played the part of a real hero, and you deserve a
rich reward--more than I or any other man in Rudskill can afford.”
“I was glad to save Minnie for friendship’s sake.”
“I believe you, my boy, but I shall not let it rest there, let me tell
you that. In a few days I am going down to your father’s store and have
a talk with him about you. Boxwell tells me you have said you would
like to attend college with him.”
“Indeed, Mr. Woodruff, I would, but--but----”
“Never mind the buts, Harry. I’m going to talk with your father about
it. Boxwell says he wishes you to take the clerk’s place in the store,
so as to reduce expenses, but maybe I can fix that up. A bright, brave
boy like you deserves a chance in life. Now I must go. By the way, here
is a little trifle from Minnie and Mrs. Woodruff which you must not
refuse. Boxwell put it in their heads to send it to you.”
As Mr. Woodruff finished, he brought forth a sealed envelope, and
thrust it into Harry’s hand. Before the boy could utter any protest he
was gone.
With his mother looking over his shoulder, Harry tore open the
envelope. There were two things inside. One was a card, on which was
written:
“Please accept the inclosed for your share of the expense of the coming
tour of the Zero Club.”
Accompanying the card was a crisp, new twenty-dollar bill.