is more sustained efforts had been.

At last the punt reaches the smoking-box, which itself stands in several
feet of water, for the ground of the knoll is submerged, its bushes
alone being visible. There is only the length of the rope now between
our hero and victory! In that length, however, there are innumerable
possibilities. Even while he gazes the house bumps on something, slews
round, and is caught by the current on the right. Before Ian has time
to recover from his agony of alarm, and dip the sculls, it bumps again
and slews to the left; a third favouring bump sends it back into the
slack water. The combined bumps have given an impulse to the house
under the influence of which it bears straight down upon the knoll with
considerable force. Its gable-end is close to the smoking-box.
Entranced with expectancy Ian sits in the punt panting and with eyes
flashing. There is a sudden shock! Inside the house Peegwish and his
chair are tumbled head over heels. Outside, the gable has just
touched--as it were kissed--the smoking-box, Elsie's "summer-house;"
Beauty, flapping her wings at that moment on the ridge-pole, crows, and
Angus Macdonald's dwelling is, finally and fairly, hard and fast upon
Sam Ravenshaw's knoll.

CHAPTER TWENTY THREE.

FOUND AND SAVED.

Now it must not be imagined that old Liz, after being carried away by
the flood, submitted to her fate without a struggle. It was not in her
nature to give in without good reason. She did not sit down and wring
her hands, or tear her hair, or reproach her destiny, or relieve her
feelings by venting them on the old couple under her charge. In short,
she did not fall back in her distress on any of the refuges of the
imbecile.

Her first care was to arrange Daddy and Mrs Winklemann in such a manner
that they could sleep with some degree of comfort in their chairs. This
she did by means of pillows and blankets, and, after accomplishing it,
sat down on the wet bed to contemplate the pair. Her satisfaction was
soon marred, however, by the discovery that Mrs Winklemann was given to
kicking in her sleep. In one of the spasmodic lunges with her lower
limbs she gave Daddy's legs such a shake that the old gentleman was half
awakened by the surprise.

It will be remembered that the pair were seated _vis-a-vis_ in their
respective arm-chairs, with a low table between them, and their legs
resting thereon. To prevent a recurrence of the kick Liz put a piec