"In the rain?" asked Keineth, astonished. "Why, of course, silly! Wouldn't we get wet, anyway?" Keineth's face colored. Peggy went on with a toss of her head: "And I simply must practice swimming under water to-day--the contest isn't very far off. You can't expect me to help you out to the rock, Ken, you'll have to play in shallow water!" Keineth's soul smarted under this humiliation. The rock was the goal around which their fun centred. It was twenty yards out from shore and its broad, flat surface gave room for six of them to stand upon it at one time. As around it the water was five feet deep, it was necessary for one of the children to help Keineth reach it. Then, while the others practiced all the feats known to the fish world, Keineth always stood carefully in its centre, head and shoulders above the water's surface and watched them with interest and admiration, tinged with envy. To conceal the tremble in her voice Keineth had now to swallow very quickly. "All right, Peggy," was all she answered and Peggy never knew how deeply her careless words had hurt her. Keineth _had_ grown discouraged with her swimming. Somehow it was so easy when some one was with her, but she could never seem to muster the courage to dive off into the water the way the others did. And Daddy would be so disappointed! Mrs. Lee had given her careful instruction in the stroke--perhaps if she was alone, away from Billy's roguish glance and the terror of his catching her ankle under water, she might feel more confidence. This thought still lingered in her mind when, in the afternoon, they went to the beach. Billy was already in the water; the faithful Pilot was digging on the beach for dog treasures. Because of the drizzling rain Mrs. Lee had not come down. While Barbara and Peggy were racing under water Keineth found it very easy to slip away. She chose a spot where a bend of the shore concealed her. She stood knee-deep in the water, going through the movements of the arm stroke, with a careful one, two, three. She put her small teeth tightly together--she _would_ have confidence, she _would_ go out deeper, throw herself calmly into the water in Peggy-fashion and swim off, one, two, three! She _would_ remember to breathe easily and keep her arms under the surface of the water!