igh
in the air, well above all trees and buildings, and there were no other
balloons or any aeroplanes in sight.

At the fair grounds was an aeroplane, but it had not gone up yet, and
could not, for the engine was broken, and the man had to mend it before
he could make a flight. So as long as Flossie and Freddie remained in
the basket they were safe.

They did not even feel the wind blow, for as they were being carried
right along in the gale, being a part of it, so to speak, they did not
feel it as they had when standing on the ground.

But, in spite of all this, Flossie's little heart was beating very fast
and tears came into her eyes.

"Oh, Freddie!" she half sobbed, "what you s'pose's goin' to happen to
us?"

"I don't know," he answered. "But anyhow we're up in a balloon and we're
having a fine sail. I like a balloon, don't you, Flossie?"

Flossie thought it over for a moment. Now that the first fright was
passed she rather enjoyed the quiet, easy motion. For there were no
bumps as in an automobile, and there was no swaying as on the
merry-go-round. It was like flying with the birds, and Flossie had
always wanted to be a bird.

"It is--yes, I guess it is nice," she said. "Are we high up?"

"Not very," Freddie answered. "Don't look over the edge or you might
fall out of the basket," he told his sister, as he saw her getting ready
to stand on her tiptoes and peer down. Freddie had looked down once, as
had Flossie, when they first felt themselves going up, and it had made
him a little dizzy. He did not want Flossie to fall out.

"Let's see if we can find something to eat," suggested the little boy.
"I'm hungry."

"So'm I," agreed Flossie. This was something new to think about.

They poked among the things in the balloon basket. There were funny
objects, the uses of which they could only guess at, but there were also
some crackers and sandwiches, as well as a bottle of milk, and some
water.

"Oh, we can have a regular camp-out!" laughed Flossie. "We'll make
believe we're on a steamer."

"It'll be lots of fun," agreed Freddie. So they ate and were quite
happy, while those they had left behind were very much worried and
miserable.

The wind blew harder and harder, but, as I have said, Flossie and
Freddie did not notice it. Soon, however, they began to notice something
else, and this was some drops of water.

"Oh, the balloon's leaking!" cried Flossie, as she felt a damp spot on
her red cheek.

Fredd