"For goodness' sake! what is the matter?" demanded Harriet, sitting up.

"Lie still, dear," urged Miss Elting. "You will be all right in a few
moments."

"All right? There is nothing the matter with me, except that I'm wet
and cold." Harriet got up and shook herself, gazing anxiously at her
companions. "What is it, girls? Tell me!"

"Oh, Harriet, don't you know?" breathed Hazel.

"No, I don't. You are all here, aren't you?" she demanded, with a
quick glance about her.

"Yes, now we are," nodded the guardian. "Don't you understand? We
thought you had gone down with the bridge."

"Well, I did go down, but not with the bridge. What of it?"

"We thought you were dead," continued Miss Elting, her voice shaking.

Harriet looked from one to the other of her friends. "Why, you poor
dears, no wonder you looked so woe-begone. Now that it is all over, I
don't blame you for thinking so."

"Well, I swum!" muttered Janus, combing out his whiskers with the
spread fingers of his right hand.

"So did I," laughed Harriet. "That's why I'm here."