he two boys and was
determined to keep them from doing any harm to Bill, for whom he felt
the truest affection. They were growing into a friendship that was
destined to last for many years.

Lee was the soul of honor and had a sense of humor seldom found in one
of Indian blood, and was as ready to romp and roughhouse as a boy of
twelve. His straightforwardness and his tender care of Mrs. Sherman
caused the Major to rejoice every day that he had transferred him to his
service as orderly.

Lee had the Indian gift of silence, so he made no comment at all when he
was alone with Bill and Bill commenced to sputter and fuss about the
change in Frank. He just stared ahead, gazing off across the prairie or
carving delicately on another length of chain which Mrs. Sherman had
asked him to make for her sister back in the east.

"My airplane is finished," said Horace as soon as he could make Bill
hear the glad news. For once he looked genuinely pleased and excited.

"Good enough!" cried Bill. "Is it here?"

"Of course not," scoffed Jardin. "I will not get it until I go back
east. But Major Anderson has arranged for me to learn to fly here. My
father called him on long distance and arranged it."

"I guess I will hang around and pick up some pointers myself," said
Bill. "When do these lessons come off? 'Most any time?"

"Almost any time we want to go over to the Field and get hold of an
instructor," answered Frank. "Now the war is over, the rush is over too
and we are taking our time over here. Stick around all you want to,
Bill; I can fly myself."

Walking over to the hangars, the boys found the field bright with the
giant dragonflies hopping here and there or rising slowly from the
ground, and taking wing with ever increasing noise and speed. Lee
followed the boys and was glad when he found that Bill could not make a
flight without written permission from his parents. This was a rule of
the Field, no minor being allowed to go up without the presentation of
such a paper, which acted as a sort of release in ease of any accident.
Jardin buttoned himself into an elaborate and most expensive leather
coat, carefully, adjusted his goggles, stepped into a plane beside the
usual pilot who winked slyly at Lee, and proceeded, to send his big bug
skimming here and there across the field under the wobbly and uncertain
guidance of Horace. They did not leave the ground, but Frank soon soared
upward on a short flight that filled Bill with