Then he started to rush after Luke, but Roger caught him by his ankle, and down he went into the water with another splash, this time sending the spray flying clear to those sitting on the fallen tree. "Here! Here! You boys stop that!" cried Mrs. Wadsworth. "We haven't any umbrellas." "Oh, excuse me, I didn't mean to shower you," pleaded Shadow. "Anyway, it was Roger's fault." "If you are going to race, start in!" ordered Dunston Porter. "Well, what's the prize?" queried Roger, doing his best to keep out of Shadow's reach. "The fellow who wins gets the hole in the doughnut," returned Dave, gaily. "All ready! Line up!" ordered Dunston Porter, and after a general scramble and amid much merriment, the boys lined up. Then came the order "Go!" and all of them struck out lustily for the rock that marked the goal. At first Ben, who had taken but little interest in the horseplay just enacted, kept well to the front. Ben had always been a good swimmer, and many a time he and Dave had raced each other in Crumville Creek. "You fellows won't be in it!" he shouted merrily. "Don't you be too sure of that," returned Luke. "This race isn't over yet." "You fellows had better save your wind," spluttered Phil, who at that instant came up alongside of Shadow. There followed a great splashing of water, and suddenly Ben disappeared from view. "Hey, you! Who fouled me that way?" roared the leader. "Whoever caught me by the foot ought to be put out of this race." "Must have been a whale, Ben," answered Roger, mischievously. "I'll whale you if you do it again," was the answer. And then all of the boys stopped talking and with renewed vigor bent to the task of trying to win the race. Soon half the distance to the rock was covered. Ben was still in the lead, with Roger and Phil close behind him. Luke and Shadow had dropped so far to the rear that they gave up all hope of winning. "Here is where I leave you fellows," announced Phil, and made a sudden spurt that soon placed him slightly in advance of Ben. "Hi! hi! don't leave me this way!" yelled Roger, and he, too, put on a burst of speed, followed a second later by Dave. On and on, through the cool, clear waters of Mirror Lake plunged the four boys. The goal was now less than fifty feet away. "O my, see how hard they are swimming!" came from Laura. "Ben was ahead, but I think Roger is up to him," announced Mrs. Basswood. "Those four lads are pretty well bunched up," remarked Dunston Porter. "Shadow and Luke have dropped out of it," announced Belle. "Gracious, how those others are swimming! Wouldn't you think it was for a prize of a thousand dollars?" The four who had remained in the race were now less than five yards from the goal, a large flat rock that was joined to the mainland by a series of other rocks. "Here is where I win!" declared Ben, and threw himself forward with all the strength left to him. "Not much!" came from Phil. "Count me in!" panted Roger. "Also yours truly!" added Dave.