the shore--fighting the waves for his life, for the dog was hurt. Twice he
turned his eyes despairingly toward Chad, and the boy would have leaped in the
water to save him if Tom had not caught him by the arm.

"Tell him to git to shore," he said quickly, and Chad motioned, when Jack
looked again, and the dog obediently made for land. Old Joel was calling
tenderly:

"Come on, Jack; come on, ole feller!"

Chad watched with a thumping heart. Once Jack went under, but gave no sound.
Again he disappeared, and when he came up he gave a cry for help, but when he
heard Chad's answering cry he fought on stroke by stroke until Chad saw old
Joel reach out from the bushes and pull him in. And Chad could see that one of
his hind legs hung limp. Then the raft swung around the curve out of sight.

Behind, the whole crowd rushed down to the water's edge. Jack tried to get
away from old Joel and scramble after Chad on his broken leg, but old Joel
held him, soothing him, and carried him back to the house, where the old "yarb
doctor" put splints on the leg and bound it up tightly, just as though it had
been the leg of a child. Melissa was crying and the old man put his hand on
her head.

"He'll be all right, honey. That leg'll be as good as the other one in two or
three weeks. It's all right, little gal."

Melissa stopped weeping with a sudden gulp. But when Jack was lying in the
kitchen by the fire alone, she slipped in and put her arm around the dog's
head, and, when Jack began to lick her face, she bent her own head down and
sobbed.