. I can see that we
are going to have trouble."

"Trouble?" queried Amy, looking at her chums.

"Yes. We aren't going to get off as easily as I thought."

"Do you think we'll ever get off?" asked Grace.

"Of course we will," declared Betty promptly.

"I'll never wade or swim ashore--not with the river full of such nasty
alligators!" announced Grace.

"Wait until you're asked," cried Mollie. "I'm sure we can get off when
the motor is reversed."

"The propeller seems to be in deep water," spoke Betty, taking an
observation over the stern. "Come back here, girls, and sit down."

"It's more comfortable here," objected Grace, languidly. "In fact, if
it were not for the fact of being stranded I should like it here." The
cockpit was covered by an awning which kept off the hot rays of the sun,
and the cushions, as Grace said, were very comfortable.

"But I want to get all the weight possible in the stern," Betty
insisted. "That will raise the bow."

Understanding what was required of them, the girls moved aft, and
perched on the flat, broad deck, while Betty went to start the motor and
slip in the reverse clutch.

The engine seemed a bit averse to starting at first, and, for a few
seconds, Betty feared that it had suffered some damage. But suddenly it
began to hum and throb, gaining in momentum quickly, as it was running
free. Betty slowed it down at the throttle, and then, looking aft to see
that all was clear, she slipped in the clutch that reversed the
propeller.

There was a smother of foam under the stern of the _Gem_, which trembled
and throbbed with the vibration. Betty turned on more power, until
finally the maximum, under the circumstances, was reached.

"Are we moving?" she called, anxiously, to her chums.

"Not an inch!" answered Mollie, leaning over to look at the surface of
the water. "Not an inch."

"We'll try it a little longer," said Betty. "Sometimes it takes a little
while to pull loose from the sand."

"Suppose some of us go up in the bow and push?" suggested Mollie. "That
may help some."

"Perhaps; and yet I want to keep the bow as light as possible, so it
won't settle down any more in the sand."

"I'll go," volunteered Mollie. "One can't make much difference. And I am
not so very heavy."

"All right," agreed Betty.

With one of the oars Mollie pushed hard down into the holding sand,
while Betty kept the motor going at full speed, reversed.

But the _Gem_ seemed too fond of her ne