Miss Miller urged the girls to jump in but Nita dipped her toe in at the edge and screamed, "Boo! but it's cold!"
"That's not the way do this!" laughed Zan, plunging in and immediately submerging her whole body.
"My, what a wet mess your hair will be!" called Hilda.
"The sun'll soon dry it again. Don't bother about your hair! Half the fun in swimming is ducking your head!" sputtered Zan.
Miss Miller plunged in next and took a few strong strokes that carried her halfway across the pool.
The girls on the bank watched her admiringly.
"My! Miss Miller, you sure can go it!" cried Elena.
The Guide's example encouraged the three girls who hesitated on the verge of the pool. Jane had been swinging on a pliable branch of the willow, enjoying herself immensely. Zan now called to her to come in with them and show how far she could swim. Jane in her eagerness to race with Zan, let go the willow before her footing was quite firm on the bank, with the result that she stumbled and fell against the three girls huddled on the wet grass. Before any one knew how it all happened, Jane, and the three girls, went pell-mell into the water, creating a mighty shower of water everywhere.
"O-ooh! Help! Murder! S-swish sc-cswash!" and other queer sounds came from the struggling group of girls. Miss Miller had just gained the opposite bank and had seated herself on the grass when the funny accident took place. Zan had been treading water and had missed the slide, but jumped up at the shouts.
"Oh, what a funny motion picture that would have made!" gasped the Guide as soon as she could speak.
Jane was swimming over to join Zan, and the three soaking non-combatants, tried to force their fists into their eyes vainly hoping to expel the water. Ears were singing, and noses snuffling and they looked like anything but joyous pleasure-seeking maidens.
After a few minutes, however, the fear of drowning faded with the sense of feeling their feet on the rock which was only a depth of a foot or so, where they had scrambled up. The wild laughter of
Zan, Jane and the Guide did much to reassure them that life still held on with a firm grip for them.
"As long as you're all soaked, why not come in gracefully?" called Zan, taking a dive and swimming under water to the spot where Jane rose to rest. In a few seconds Jane gave a frenzied scream and went head down, heels up, in the water.
"Oh, look! Jane's sinking!" cried Elena.
But Zan's head appeared alongside Jane's heels, and in another moment, the victim of Zan's mischief bobbed up.
As her head appeared again, Miss Miller called, amid spasms of laughter, "Right position! Front! Mark time!"
Zan was the only one who thoroughly enjoyed the command so often obeyed at school, while Jane snuffed angrily, "Just wait!" The three deluged girls were too busy trying to lower their bodies gradually, and still keep their feet flat on the rock.
"Oh, here! Nita, hold on to my hand while you let yourself down flat on your stomach! Then try and kick out as Zan does," advised Hilda.
Nita obeyed and held clutchingly on Hilda's hand. Just as she felt herself touching rock-bottom and experienced the delightful sensation of being buoyed up by the water, Elena, who had been experimenting alone, splashing out arms and legs, suddenly came in contact with the timid beginner and shoved her under water. Nita excitedly caught hold of Hilda's foot and a second unexpected dive took place, with Hilda, the heavy, on top of Elena, the light.
More cries and shouts from the tobogganed beginners, and yells and laughs from their audience. Then, the Guide started across to show the three girls how to begin.
After fifteen minutes more of practice, Miss Miller said, "Time to come out, girls. We've been in over half an hour, and that is quite enough for the first dip."
"Dear me, at this snail's pace, we will be Wayseekers all summer!" grumbled Hilda.
"Oh, no you won't! In a week's time you'll be swimming a few strokes and in another week probably you can do fifty yards. Your power of endurance will determine how soon you can swim the hundred yards," said Miss Miller, as they reached the camp, and went in to dress.
"Not one of us remembered to count our hundred yards, although I'm sure I did fully five hundred all told," said Zan.
"Counting that under-water trick yes, maybe you did!" replied Jane, giving Zan a look that boded no peace for the future.
"How does every one feel! Weary or right for a short tramp up the ravine?" came from the Guide who dressed first and was waiting on the Bluff for the girls.
"Weary I should say not!" cried Hilda enthusiastically.
"I'm as fresh as a daisy! Could climb a dozen ravines," added Elena.
"I'm not tired, but why do any more now?" sighed Nita.
"Because we want to drive that lazy spirit out of you!" retorted Zan, dragging the girl up to her feet.
"I thought we might take a hatchet and whittling knife with us on the hike and put them to use for our third test," suggested Miss Miller.