hen floor surrounded by the
fragments of their breakfast all glued to the wall as tightly as
herself.

"Oh, dear--oh, dear!" she cried, closing her eyes. "Copernicus Droop
said that side weight would be terrible if we travelled too fast. Why,
I'm so heavy sideways I feel like as if I weighed 497-1/2 pounds like
that fat woman in the circus down to Keene."

"So do I," Phoebe said, "only I'm so dizzy, too, I can hardly think."

"Shet your eyes, like me," said Rebecca.

"I would only I can't keep 'em off the North Pole there," said Phoebe,
as she gazed fascinated through the north window opposite.

"Why, what's the matter with the child!" Rebecca exclaimed, in alarm.
"Air ye struck silly, Phoebe?"

"No, but I guess you'd want to watch it too if you could see that ring
we're tied to spinnin' round right close to the top of the pole.
There--there!" she continued, shrilly. "It'll fly right off in another
minute! There! Oh, dear!"

Their attachment did indeed appear precarious. The increased speed
acting through the inclined aeroplane had caused the vessel to rise
sharply, and the rope had raised the ring by which it was attached to
the pole until it came in contact with the steel ball at the top, when
it could rise no farther. Here the iron ring was grinding against and
under the retaining ball which alone prevented its slipping off the top
of the pole.

"I don't see's we'd be any wuss off ef we did come loose," said Rebecca,
with eyes still closed. "At least we wouldn't be gummed here ez tight's
if the walls was fly-paper."

"No, but we'd fly off at a tangent into infinite space, Rebecca Wise,"
Phoebe said, sharply.

"Where's that?" asked her sister. "I'll engage 'tain't any wuss place
than the North Pole."

"Why, it's off into the ether. There isn't any air there or anythin'.
An' they say it's fifty times colder than the North Pole."

"Who's ben there?"

"Why, nobody--" Phoebe began.

"Then let's drop it," snapped Rebecca. "Dr. Kane said the' was an open
sea at the North Pole--an' I'm sick o' bein' told about places nobody's
ever ben to before."

Phoebe was somewhat offended at this and there was a long silence,
during which she became more reassured touching the danger of breaking
away from the Pole. Soon she, too, was able to shut her eyes.

The silence was broken by a meek voice from under the table.

"Would you mind settin' off my chist?" said Droop.

There was no answer and he opened his eyes. H