Now, Canoe Lodge was built on a high bank over the river. One stepped from the level sward into the living room. The roof on one side was a short, sharp pitch; but over the river it ran out in a long, easy slope to shelter the canoe landing. Suddenly there was a crash, and the very house shook. There was a wheezy shout of alarm, the sound of another voice in wild laughter, and some heavy body slid down the long side of the roof with the noise of an avalanche. "The Busters!" shrieked Percy, and ran to a window overlooking the river. CHAPTER II THE BUSTERS The girls could overlook the lower slope of the long roof through the bay window at the end of the living room. They crowded to it after Percy Havel, and beheld a most amazing as well as ridiculous sight. A very fat youth, in a blue and white striped sweater and with a closely-cropped yellow head, was face down upon a length of plank, which plank was sliding like a bobsled down the incline of green-stained shingles. "It's Tubby!" gasped Frank Cameron. "Oh! oh! oh!" squealed Mina. "Is he doing that for _fun_?" Before any further comment could be made, the boy on the plank shot out over the edge of the roof and dived, with a mighty splash, into the deep water of the pool, adjoining which Canoe Lodge was built. "He'll be drowned!" cried Grace, wringing her plump hands. "It'll serve him right if he is!" exclaimed Bessie. "What business had he on our roof, I want to know?" "Poor Tubby!" cried Wyn, choked with laughter. "Isn't he the most ridiculous creature that ever was?" rejoined Frank. "See there! he's come up to blow like a frog." "It's a whale that comes up to blow," Wyn reminded her. "Well! isn't Tubby Blaisdell a regular whale of a boy?" returned the black-eyed girl. "There's Dave!" cried Mina. "I knew the two wouldn't be far apart!" sniffed Bess Lavine. "He's got a boat and is going to Tubby's rescue," cried Grace. "But see Tubby flounder around!" Frankie observed. "Why! that boy couldn't sink if you filled his pockets with flatirons!" "There! he _is_ going under," ejaculated the more timorous Mina. "Dave will get him, all right," declared Wyn, with confidence. She and Dave Shepard had been good chums since they were both in rompers. Her girl friends might tease Wyn sometimes about Dave; but the girl had no brothers and Dave made up the loss to her in every way. "Oh! he's going to spear him with that boathook!" gasped Mina again. And really, it looked so. Tubby Blaisdell was splashing about in the pool before the canoe landing like a young grampus. Tubby was always getting into more or less serious predicaments, and he always "lost his head" and usually had to be aided by his friends.