t ain't safe to be under trees at such a
time, I've heard!"

"Cyclone, your granny!" jeered Seth Carpenter, who had very sharp eyes,
and was less apt to get "rattled" at the prospect of sudden danger, than
the bugler of Beverly Troop, "why, as sure as you live, I believe it's a
balloon, Paul!"

"What! a real and true balloon?" almost shrieked Eben, somewhat relieved
at the improved prospect.

"You're right, Seth," declared the scoutmaster, "it _is_ a balloon, and
it looks to me right now as though there's been trouble for the
aeronaut. That gas-bag has a tough look to me, just as if it had lost
about half of the stuff that keeps it floating! See how it wabbles, will
you, fellows, and how low down over the trees it hangs. There, it just
grazed that bunch of oaks on the little rise. The next time it'll get
caught, and be ripped to pieces!"

"Paul, do you think that can be a man hanging there?" cried Seth.
"Sometimes it looks to me like it was; and then again the balloon tilts
over so much I just can't be sure."

"We'll know soon enough," remarked the patrol leader, quietly, "because,
as you can see, the runaway balloon is heading this way, full tilt. I
wouldn't be surprised if it passed right over our heads."

"Say, perhaps we might grab hold of some trailing rope, and bring the
old thing down?" suggested Fritz, looking hastily around him while
speaking, as if desirous of being prepared, as a true scout should
always make it a point to be, and have his tree picked out, about which
he would hastily wind a rope, should he be fortunate enough to get hold
of such.

"Whew! I wouldn't want to be in that feller's shoes," observed Eben, as
they all stood there in the road, watching the rapidly approaching
balloon.

"Solid ground for me, every time, except when I'm in swimming, or
skimming along over the ice in winter!" Andy interjected, without once
removing his eager eyes from the object that had so suddenly caught
their attention.

It was a sight calculated to hold the attention of any one, with that
badly battered balloon sweeping swiftly along on the wind, and
approaching so rapidly.

All of them could see that there was a man clinging to the ropes that
marked the place where the customary basket should have been; evidently
this latter must have been torn away during a collision with the rocks
or trees on the top of a ridge with which the ungovernable gas-bag had
previously been in contact; and it was a marvel h