The
children could see how they crept along under the ice-covering.
The next moment all was still, then the rising and sinking began again.
Thereupon the cracks began to widen into crevices through which the
water bubbled up. By and by the crevices became gaps. Soon after that
the ice was divided into large floes.
"Osa," said little Mats, "this must be the breaking up of the ice!"
"Why, so it is, little Mats," said Osa, "but as yet we can get to land.
Run for your life!"
As a matter of fact, the wind and waves had a good deal of work to do
yet to clear the ice from the lake. The hardest part was done when the
ice-cake burst into pieces, but all these pieces must be broken and
hurled against each other, to be crushed, worn down, and dissolved.
There was still a great deal of hard and sound ice left, which formed
large, unbroken surfaces.
The greatest danger for the children lay in the fact that they had no
general view of the ice. They did not see the places where the gaps were
so wide that they could not possibly jump over them, nor did they know
where to find any floes that would hold them, so they wandered aimlessly
back and forth, going farther out on the lake instead of nearer land. At
last, confused and terrified, they stood still and wept.
Then a flock of wild geese in rapid flight came rushing by.
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