little bit more of the current and you might have
been done for."

But now that he had attended to his young friends, Dr. Bentley
did not think of returning to the hotel. He remained through
the night, despite the fact that his charges became steadily stronger
and at last went sound asleep.

In the morning, before eight o'clock, the launch was over again
on that side of the lake. This time it brought Mrs. Bentley,
Mrs. Meade and the girls, as well as a lot of daintily prepared
food fresh from the hotel kitchen.

"This is a mighty pleasant world!" sighed Dick Prescott, full
of luxurious content.

"Yes when you have some good friends in the same world with you,"
Tom added.

Dave and Dan slipped away to remove the body of the rabid dog
killed during the night.

The tent they had brought with them from Gridley would never be
of service again, so Dick & Co. were highly delighted when informed
that Manager Wright begged them to accept the use of this larger,
finer tent, and also of the cots, during their stay at the lake.

CHAPTER XXIII

TRENTVILLE, THE AWESOME

As the "Scalp-hunter" swung around the upper buoy and headed down
the course she had a lead of a clean two lengths over the Trentville
High School canoe.

There was a larger crowd on the lake to-day and more steam and
gasoline craft were out.

As Dick & Co. shot down the line, still leading, steam and pneumatic
whistles broke forth into a noisy din.

Over on the western shore, on the grounds of the larger hotel,
only one little knot of Gridley people stood to watch and cheer.
These were the Bentleys, Mrs. Meade and the same group of girls
that had watched the other race.

No excursion had come up from the home town to-day, for no one
in Gridley had believed that their high school youngsters could
defeat the seasoned Trentville High School canoe crew.

Only two days before Trentville had won from Preston High School
by nearly five lengths.

What show was there for Dick & Co. or for Gridley High School?

Hence the smallness of the Gridley crowd present.

However, some hundreds of people who looked on were eager only
to see the best crew win, as they had no ties binding them either
to Gridley or to Trentville.

But the unexpected had happened.

In the first place, when the Trentville canoe and crew arrived
at the lake Dick Prescott had insisted that Preston High School
and Trentville High School race together first.

Thus he had