n all was still again, and Ralph felt that his only
chance was to steady himself for a moment with his feet, loosen his hold
with his right hand, and let himself glide along the face of the rock
forward till his left touched the ivy, and then hold on.

If he missed catching hold--?

"I mustn't think of such a thing," he muttered; and he at once put his
plan into action, letting himself glide forward.

As a scholar, fresh from a big school, he ought to have been more
mathematically correct, and known that in describing the arc of a circle
his left hand would go lower; but he did not stop to think. The
consequence was that as his fingers glided over the rough stone, they
passed a few inches beneath the tough stem he sought to grasp, and once
in motion, he could not stop himself. He clutched at the stone with his
right hand, and his nails scratched over it, as he vainly strove to find
a prominence or crevice to check him; but all in vain; the pressure of
the running water on the lower part of his body helped to destroy his
balance, and with a faint cry, he went headlong into the gliding stream,
the men simultaneously giving vent to a yell, half of horror, half of
satisfaction.

"The sink-hole! Shall I be sucked down?" was the thought that flashed
across the lad's brain, like a lurid light, as he went under; then he
struck out vigorously for the side, and as he rose to the surface saw
that he was being drawn toward the hole where it gaped horribly, and
closed, and gaped again, a few yards away.

If any boy who reads this cannot swim, let him feel that he is sinning
against himself, and neglecting a great duty, till he can plunge without
a trace of nervousness into deep water, and make his way upon the
surface easily and well. Fortunately for Ralph Darley, he was quite at
home in the water, and the strong firm strokes he took were sufficient
to carry him well in toward the side, so that he passed the little
whirlpool where its force was weakest; and as the men below closed
together, and waded a couple of steps to meet him, they had the
mortification of seeing him clinging to the wall of rock, half-a-dozen
yards above them, and then creeping forward again, step by step, till he
reached the point from which he had been swept, and held on there once
more.

Here, as they watched him curiously, they saw that he remained
motionless, as if thinking what to do next, as was the case; and coming
to the conclusion that he mu