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Page 12
"And he does it well, too," went on David. "He is not only thoroughly
interested but he keeps guard out here in case any one should try to break
in. There are his cot and things in the corner. He sleeps in the open
unless it rains. Then he sleeps inside."
As the old hunter did not put in an appearance David decided to wait no
longer.
"Why can't we all help?" asked Grace. "What must we do? Please tell us."
"All right," answered David, "just give it a shove into the open space,
and you'll see how she gradually rises for a flight."
After making a careful examination of all the parts of the a�roplane, and
starting the engine, David took his seat in the machine.
Then the two boys, assisted by Grace and Nora, pushed it swiftly out into
the broad open space back of the ruin.
Suddenly the machine began to rise. Slowly, at first, then seeming to
gather strength and confidence like a young bird that has learned to fly
at last, it soared over the apple trees. David, white, but very calm,
quietly worked the levers that operated the little engine. When he had
risen about a hundred feet, he began to dip and soar around the orchard in
circles. He appeared to have forgotten his friends, watching anxiously
below. He did not notice that little Mrs. Gray's knees had suddenly
refused to support her, nor that she had sat flat on the ground in a state
of utter bewilderment at the sight of his sudden flight. David looked far
across at the beautiful rolling meadows, and fields dotted with farmhouses
and cottages. How he loved the fertile valley, with its little river
winding in and out between green banks! It was all so beautiful, but it
was time to descend. He must not give his pet too much liberty, or he
might rue his indiscretion. He headed his machine for the open space back
of the Omnibus House, and began the descent. Then, something snapped, and
he fell. He remembered as he fell the look of horror on the up-raised
faces of his friends, and then everything became a blank.
It all happened in a flash, much too quickly to do anything but stand and
wait until the a�roplane had crashed to the ground, but it seemed much
longer, and Anne remembered later that she had felt a curious impulse to
run away and hide. If David were to meet his death through this new toy,
she could not endure to stay and see it happen.
But David was far from dead. He was only stunned and dizzy from the swift
descent. He had not been high enough from the ground when the accident
occurred to sustain serious injuries. They lifted him from the machine and
laid him upon the grass, while Reddy ran to the brook and brought back his
cap filled with water.
Mrs. Gray produced her smelling salts which she always carried with her.
"Not for my own use, my dears," she always said, "but for the benefit of
other people."
Reddy loosened David's collar and dashed the water into his face; while
Hippy chafed unconscious boy's wrists.
Presently David opened his eyes, looking vaguely about. He had a confused
idea that something had happened to him, but just what it was he could not
think. He looked up into the anxious faces of his friends who stood around
him. Then he remembered.
"I'm not hurt," he said in a rather weak voice. Then he sat up and smiled
feebly at the company. "I just had the wind knocked out of me. I am sure
no bones are broken. How about my pet bird? Has she smashed her little
ribs?"
"No, old fellow," exclaimed Hippy in a reassuring tone, for Hippy had
never been able to endure the sight of suffering or disappointment. "Her
wings are a good deal battered, that's all. But are you all right, old
man?" he added, feeling David's arms and legs, and even putting an ear
over his heart.
"It's still beating, you foolish, old fat-head," said David, patting his
friend affectionately on the back.
In the meantime Anne had helped Mrs. Gray to her feet.
"I declare, I feel as though I had dropped from the clouds myself," said
the old lady, wiping her eyes. "I am so stunned and bewildered. David, my
dear boy, if you had been seriously hurt I should never have forgiven
myself for allowing you to fly off like that. What would your poor mother
say if she knew what had happened?"
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