lled Jack, to make himself heard above the wind and
the rushing of the water.

"I'm caught fast!" the man gasped out. "And my son is caught fast too."

"Both of my feet are fast!" screamed the boy. "Oh, please help us! Don't
leave us here to be drowned!"

"It's a couple of logs of wood that are holding us," went on the man in
a hoarser tone than ever. "They are jammed in between us and some rocks
and a floating tree. If you can only start the tree, maybe we can get
out of here."

Both the man and the boy were in the rushing water up to their armpits,
and occasionally the dashing element would fly over them in a spray that
hid them completely from view.

"Oh, boys, this is awful!" groaned Fred. "Can't we do something for
them?"

"We've got to do something," answered Jack. "We can't leave them there
to drown."

"But what are we going to do?" demanded Andy soberly.

"He said something about loosening the tree that has drifted up
alongside them," came from Randy. "Do you think we can do it, Jack?"

"I don't know. But we can have a try at it, anyway. And if we can't push
the tree, maybe we can get at the logs that are holding them down."

Jack was looking up the river as he spoke, and at a distance saw a
series of rocks jutting out for a considerable distance into the stream.

"I am going out on those rocks and then trust to luck to get over to the
other side," he said. "We can't get at that fallen tree from this side."

"All right, I'm with you, Jack," said Randy. And together they made
their way out on the rocks mentioned and the others slowly and
cautiously followed.

I know it will not be necessary to introduce the Rover boys to my old
readers. But for the benefit of those who are now meeting them for the
first time a few words of introduction will not come amiss.

In my first volume, entitled "The Rover Boys at School," I related how
three brothers, Dick, Tom and Sam Rover, were sent to Putnam Hall
Military Academy, where they made a great number of friends, including a
cadet named Lawrence Colby.

After passing through Putnam Hall, the boys attended Brill College, and
then joined their father in business in New York City, with offices on
Wall Street. They organized The Rover Company, of which Dick was now
president, Tom secretary and general manager, and Sam treasurer. The
three youths were married and lived in three connecting houses on
Riverside Drive, overlooking the Hudson River.

About a year a