She placed the boat on the water. The sail filled, and off went the "Wilhelmina" with a slow, true, steady motion, her red sail glowing in the sunshine, and her stiff little pennant standing straight out in the wind. As the boat crossed the pool, Greta played out the cord carefully, so as not to impede its motion. When it reached the other side and had gently grounded on the shelving shore, Greta gave the line into Will's hand. "If you will hold this," she said, "I will go across the bridge." "Don't trouble yourself to do that," said Will, "I will go over." "No," said Greta, "I wish to go. I am captain of my own craft, and I know how to manage my 'Wilhelmina.'" "I had no idea she was so pretty," said Will. "She is a true, stanch little sailer." "She don't show off until she is on the water," said Greta, smiling, "and then she sails like a real boat. Do you know what I am going to do when I get to the other side?" "I can guess. You will send your boat back to me from below the island while I hold this end of the cord. That will bring the line around my ship and pull her off." "I thought of that, but it is too risky. If anything should go wrong with my boat, the line might get tangled; or there might be too great a strain, and the ship would come off with a jerk and be tumbled bottom upward into the water. I intend to untie the cord from the boat, and you and I must walk slowly down toward the 'America,'--I on that side, and you on this. We must hold the cord low so as to catch the mast under the sail, if we can." "All right," said Will. Greta walked quickly down the bank, across the bridge, and up the other side until she reached the "Wilhelmina." Placing the boat on the bank for safety, she took the cord off, and, holding it firmly, walked slowly down toward the island. Will did the same on his side of the pool. The cord went skimming over the surface of the water, then it passed above the tops of the long grass on the island. This brought the line on a level with the top-sail. This would not do; for a pressure up there might capsize the schooner. Both of the workers saw that they must slacken the line a little to get it into the proper place. Now was the critical time; if the line was too much slackened it might slip under the vessel and upset it that way. Gently they lowered it until it lay against the mainmast below the sail. "Take care!" screamed Will to Greta. "Go slow!" screamed Greta to Will. Gently they pulled against the schooner, and, inch by inch, she floated off into the open water.