d.

"What's the country coming to?" demanded another man. "Gals gallivanting
around like gol-dinged birds!"

But the majority of the crowd took the pretty girl aviators to its
heart. Somebody set up a cheer.

It was still ringing out when, to the huge relief of the embarrassed
girls, the auto came rolling up with Miss Prescott and "The Wren," as
they still called the latter.

The girls, leaving the boys to look after the aeroplanes, ran to the
side of the car and were speedily ensconced in its roomy tonneau. "We'll
see you at the hotel!" cried Roy, as the car rolled off again, much to
the disappointment of the crowd.

Two local constables came up at this juncture and helped the boys keep
the crowd back from the machines. The throng seemed souvenir mad. Many
of them insisted on writing their names with pencils on the wings of
the air craft. Others would have gone further and actually stripped
the aeroplanes of odd parts had they not been held back.

"This is the last time we'll land in a town of this size," declared Roy
indignantly, as he helped the constables shove back an obstreperous
individual who insisted on examining the motor of the _Dart_.

With the help of the constables a sheltering place for the machines was
finally found. A livery stable that had gone out of business the week
before was located across the street from the small park in which they
had alighted. The owner of the property happened to be in the crowd and
a bargain with him was soon struck. The aeroplanes were then trundled on
their landing wheels into this shelter and the doors closed. Roy, for a
small sum, engaged a tall, gangling-looking youth, whose name was Tam
Tammas, to guard the doors and keep off the inquisitive. This done,
thoroughly tired out, the boys sought the hotel. Like most towns of its
size and importance Meadville only boasted one hostelry worthy of the
name. This place, the Fountain House, as it was called, was a decent
enough looking hotel and the young aviators were warmly welcomed. After
supper, for in Meadville nobody "dined," Miss Prescott and the girls
sauntered out with The Wren to obtain some clothing for the waif who had
so strangely come into their possession. It was odd, but somehow they
none of them even suggested giving up the queer little foundling to the
authorities as had originally been their intention. Instead, although
none of them actually voiced it, it appeared that tacitly they had
decided to keep t