It was a moment before the other lads took in the seriousness of the situation. Then with a yell Bill Sherwood started swimming for the dock. Garry guessed his intention, and reached there at the same moment, the other boys close behind their comrades. Bill jumped into his own eccentric motorboat, Garry tumbling in after him. By the time he had loosened the rope that tied the boat to the dock all five were on board. For once the engine worked without protest. Bill, who was a master hand at working the craft urged the cranky motor to its limit and headed the nose of the boat toward the south shore. The drivers of the strange motorboat were steering crazily, and those in the small craft who found themselves in the way turned tail and scuttled for cover. "Why don't they turn out?" exclaimed Garry, in a frenzy of anxiety. "Are they blind? Can't they see that they're heading right for the rocks?" "They're either idiots or they don't know how to run a boat," muttered Bill, as he bent himself to the task of getting out of his engine all the speed possible. "Or else they've lost their heads and are too scared to try to steer at all," commented Rooster. "Gee, but that was a close shave!" he added, as the strange craft barely missed running down a canoe. Bill's boat was now whizzing along like a comet, and the distance between it and the other craft was rapidly diminishing. The boys could now see quite clearly the inmates of the runaway vessel. There were but two of them, boys apparently of about the age of Garry and his chums, and they seemed to be arguing about the possession of the wheel. Garry made a megaphone of his hands and shouted: "Turn out! You're heading for the rocks. Turn out!" Even as he spoke there came a flash of fire, a sharp report, and the motorboat crashed against the rocks! CHAPTER II A GALLANT RESCUE The occupants of the ill-fated craft were thrown clear of it just as the wreck broke into a mass of flames. "They went down over there, Bill!" cried Garry, pointing to the spot where the strangers had disappeared. "Better slow down and I'll dive for them." "I'm with you," declared Rooster, who was almost as expert a swimmer as Garry Grayson. Bill nodded and brought the boat sharply about. Garry poised on the edge of the deck for a moment and then dived into the transparent water, closely followed by Rooster Long. As Garry came up he saw one of the victims of the wreck struggling in the water and trying to keep his head above the surface. The owner of the head was evidently in a frenzy of fear. "Save me! Help! I'm drowning!" The words came in sputtering yelps, and Garry struck out for the imperiled youth. In a moment he was at the boy's side. "Put your hand on my shoulder," he directed. "Easy now. You're all right. We've got a boat right here."