Chapter XXVII: Up in a Balloon

“This would just suit me to death,” said Andy, as he gazed with longing eyes at the balloon.

“Get in the basket and see how it feels,” suggested Jack.

The acrobatic youth was quick to comply. The men working around were good-natured and did not interfere.

“Come in here with me,” said Andy, and Pepper and Jack did as requested. Then Andy began to examine the ropes which held the basket to the balloon.

“The balloon is filling,” said Jack.

“Hi, what are you fellows doing in that balloon?” came from Nick Paxton, as he strode up. He was the only one of the Baxter crowd that had come to the celebration.

“That is none of your business,” answered Pepper.

At that moment came a shout from another part of the grounds. Then followed a big explosion.

“The cannon has burst!”

“Somebody must be killed!”

The excitement was intense and for the moment the balloon was forgotten. Hundreds rushed over to where some gunners had been discharging the old town cannon.

“My son was helpin’ to fire that!” said a man who was working on the balloon ropes. “I must see if he was hurt!” And off he ran.

“My brother was helping to load the cannon,” said another, and off he went likewise.

They had scarcely left when a sudden gust of wind made the big balloon give a tug at the ropes.

“Say, we’ll have to get out of this basket,” ejaculated Jack. “It isn’t safe.”

“Just what I was thinking,” answered Pepper.

“Oh, don’t be afraid,” came from Andy. “Perhaps—— Oh!”

The acrobatic youth’s remark came to a sudden stop, for just then the balloon gave another tug. Crack! snap! went some ropes, and in a twinkling up went the basket, carrying the three cadets with it.

“Hold fast!” gasped Jack. “If you don’t, you’ll be killed!”

He clutched at the rim of the basket and so did the others. Almost before they knew it they were a hundred feet above the crowd.

“The balloon has gone up!”

“Three of those cadets are in it!”

“Andy, Jack, and Pepper!” came from Stuffer. “Hi! come back you!” he added.

“I wish we could,” murmured Pepper.

The balloon attendants were clutching at a rope that was trailing along the ground. Dale and Stuffer leaped forward to aid them, and all were quickly raised from their feet. Seeing they could not stop the balloon, they dropped to the ground, Dale landing on Paxton’s shoulders and sending him to the grass with a thud.

The excitement on the exhibition grounds was intense, one half of the folks gathering around the exploded cannon and the other half watching the sailing balloon. Fortunately it was found that nobody had been seriously hurt by the wrecking of the field-piece, for which everybody was thankful.

“Who let that balloon go?” stormed Professor Aireo, as he came rushing from his tent. “Who did it?” And he stormed around wildly.

“She got away, Bill, that’s all I can tell,” said one of the attendants.

“I’ll make somebody pay damages,” stormed the professor, who in private life was plain Bill Jones.

“Better get the balloon back first,” put in a man standing near.

In the meantime the balloon went up higher and higher, until it was a good six hundred feet in the air. Then the wind caught it and sent it whirling over the town and some green fields beyond.

“Wh—where are we going to?” asked Pepper, still clutching the basket with a deathlike grip.

“Don’t ask me,” answered Jack. “I’ll be thankful if we are not upset and cast out!”

“We won’t be upset, so long as we remain in the air,” answered Andy, who, now that the first excitement was over, was quite cool. “I must say I rather enjoy this.”

“Then go ahead and enjoy it,” grumbled Pepper.

“Do you feel dizzy?” asked the acrobatic youth.

“Just a little. The sudden rush upward made me light-headed. But it is going away now,” answered the Imp.

On and on sailed the balloon. For the time being Andy was the only one of the three who dared to look downward, and he announced that the town had been left far behind.

“We are sailing over a patch of woods,” he announced. “Beyond is a hill of rocks.”

“Oh, I hope we don’t tumble on the rocks,” said Jack.

“We are not going to tumble, I tell you, Jack. This balloon will sail for miles before it begins to settle.”

A little while later Jack and Pepper ventured to take a peep at what was below. They could see the farms, with the houses and barns looking like toy buildings. Here and there was a silver thread, where some brook ran into the lake.

“I think we are moving towards the lake,” announced Andy, some time later.

“If we go down in the lake we’ll be drowned,” said Jack.

“We’ll have to swim for it,” answered Andy, cheerfully. “If we get too close to the water we can take off our coats and kick off our shoes. We ought all to be able to swim to shore.”

In five minutes more they crossed another patch of woods and came out over the lake. Far below them was a sailboat, and the occupants looked up at the balloon in astonishment.

“We are surely going down!” cried Pepper.

The balloon made a big dip, coming to within two hundred feet of the lake surface. They were preparing to shed their coats and shoes when a gust took them upward once more and back to the shore.

“We are not going down just yet,” said Andy. “But I think the balloon will settle before long.”

“Where are we?” asked Jack.

“In the air,” said Pepper, who could not resist the temptation to joke.

“I don’t know where we are,” answered Andy. “But there is a wild lot of timber and rocks below us,” he added, after a searching look downward.

The balloon continued to move onward, but kept lowering constantly. Then came a sudden jolt to the basket.

“We hit a tree-top,” announced Andy. “We must be on our guard now!”

But once more the balloon took an upward turn, and the forest remained a good hundred feet below them. Then the wind appeared to die out utterly and the balloon ceased to move forward.

“This is all right,” said Andy. “Now, fellows, prepare to catch hold of a limb or something, when we go down.”

All were on the alert and watched the gradual settling of the big balloon with interest. The hot air had become cooled, and in a few seconds the basket struck the top of a tree and went over. The three cadets were spilled out in a most undignified fashion. They caught hold of the limbs as best they could and swung themselves towards the tree trunk. Then the balloon settled down over the top of the tree, forming a regular tent.