That sort of thing would not attract pupils to a swimming-school, so Fred Balmes tried to find the best substitute for the hand of the teacher under the chin of the taught. At last he hit upon the idea of running a wire along the pool two or three feet above the surface. Now, if there were only some way to hang the pupil to this wire so that he could move forward and backward and never be allowed to sink! A trolley was just the thing for that. Balmes bought a small metal wheel, with its rim deeply curved inward, so that it would not jump off the wire and become clogged. Hanging down from the axle of this wheel was a piece of brass that ended in a swivel. Balmes already had a broad canvas belt, with a ring at the upper part of it. He hooked the end of the swivel into the ring on the belt, and threw himself into the water. The trolley-line was a success. He splashed both hands and feet above the surface of the pool, but still he floated like thistle-down. Backward and forward he swam. The trolley rolled and creaked along the wire, and always held him up in precisely the right position. He might lie there all day if he chose without wetting his mouth. Not only can one learn to swim quickly by the trolley plan, but it is a fine way to learn how to float. Some of us are too thin ever to learn this branch of the art, but if any one possesses latent floating power, he may be sure that the trolley will develop it. The inventor of this delightful way to learn swimming has not patented his trolley plan, so any one may use it. The wire can be rigged from side to side of any swimming-bath. It is best not to have the line more than fifty feet long, for a greater length than that will cause the wire to sag at the middle and let the pupil sink. In rigging the wire only one end should be wrapped fast around a post. The other end should be hitched to a stout rope and pulley-block. Before using the trolley the rope should be hauled as taut as possible and made fast securely. Then there will be a straight tight wire and no sagging. If enough care is used, there is no reason why a trolley swimming line cannot be set up along a river-bank or the edge of a swimming-pond. In doing this, however, boys should not depend upon their own judgment. It is best by far to engage a competent man to set the posts and rig the wires. No matter how clever boys may be, they are not cautious enough to arrange against all the possibilities of danger. And it is necessary always to remember that in water is the most dangerous place to play. A VIRGINIA CAVALIER.[2] [2] Begun in HARPER'S ROUND TABLE No. 868. BY MOLLY ELLIOT SEAWELL. CHAPTER V.