guessed what sort of accident
it was. Some of them ran out, and Mr. Bobbsey followed them.

"Oh, Daddy!" cried Freddie, when he saw his father. "He's in!"

"Who? Not Bert or Harry, I hope!"

"No, it's Tommy Todd--you know the boy----"

"Yes, yes! I know him. He went through the ice, did he? Here, men, get a
rope to throw to him. The ice is too thin to go close enough to reach
his hand. We must pull him out with a rope."

There were ropes in the office, to be used in tying loads of lumber on
the delivery wagons, and Mr. Bobbsey caught up a coil and ran toward the
place where Tommy was struggling in the water.

By this time the man who had warned the other skaters away had found two
planks. He carried them as near to the edge of the hole through which
Tommy had fallen as was safe. Then Mr. Bobbsey came with the rope. He
walked out on the planks and called to Tommy.

"Catch hold of the rope, Tommy, and we'll pull you out!" shouted Mr.
Bobbsey.

He tossed one end of the rope to the boy in the water, but it fell
short. Pulling it back to him Mr. Bobbsey tossed it again. This time a
coil fell near Tommy's hand. He grasped it and then Mr. Bobbsey and the
other man, who was Mr. Randall, pulled Tommy out on the solid ice. Poor
Tommy could hardly breathe.

"We must get him to a warm place at once!" cried Mr. Bobbsey. "I'll
carry him to my office. There's a roaring hot fire there, and if we wrap
him well in blankets we may keep him from getting cold."

In his arms Mr. Bobbsey carried the dripping lad. Luckily Tommy had kept
his lips closed when he fell into the water, and he knew enough not to
breathe when his head was under, so he had not swallowed too much water.
But he was wet through, and ice-cold.

Mr. Randall first warned the other boys and girls about going too near
the hole, then he stuck one of the planks up near it, with a piece of
rag on it as a danger signal.

Beside the warm fire in the lumber office Tommy was undressed and
wrapped in warm blankets. One of the men made some hot cocoa, and when
Tommy drank this he felt much better.

"But you can't put on your clothes for a long time--not until they are
well dried," said Mr. Bobbsey. "I guess Bert has an extra suit that will
fit you. I'll telephone to my wife and have her send it here."

Sam, who was Dinah's husband, came a little later with an old suit of
Bert's, and Mrs. Bobbsey sent word that Tommy was to keep it, as Bert
did not need it any longer.