and add to the already deafening hurly-burly, quietly secreted herself
in a lilac-bush, and listened to what was going on. She began to laugh
as the aeronaut unwound his imaginative threads; then she grew angry
with him for his recklessness; then she laughed again at the astounding
coolness of the man, and the skilful manner in which he avoided all
difficulties in his path. Finally, at the end of what seemed to her an
eternity and a half, the gardener appeared with his borrowed ladder, and
proceeded in the direction of the pear tree. Miss Currie watched the old
man place the ladder against the tree, under the combined directions of
her father and the unconcerned occupant of the balloon-car, and then she
thought the time was ripe for her to stroll up in a negligent manner.

"Why, whatever is the matter?" she cried, with innocent surprise.

"Nothing, my dear, nothing," responded the Colonel, beamingly. "A very
worthy gentleman and a magnificent florist has, by good fortune, become
my guest, and he is coming down in order to partake of luncheon."

"But where is he, and how did he come there?" she went on, deeming it
highly prudent to disown any previous knowledge of the matter.

The old gardener looked at her with an intelligent grin, inwardly
remarking that Missy was a deep one, she was. The aeronaut laughed with
incontinent heartiness. The Colonel explained to her how the accident
had occurred. After which Reginald Hampton climbed out of his nest,
reached _terra firma_, and found himself entirely satisfied with the
slim beauty of his rescuer.

The moment might have been an embarrassing one for the average man; it
was, however, precisely the kind of situation that Reginald Hampton most
enjoyed.

"Delighted to make your acquaintance at closer quarters," he remarked,
first raising his cap to the Colonel, and then extending his hand. "Your
daughter, I presume?" he added, turning to Violet Currie. "I am glad, by
the way, she did not happen to be occupying the hammock there, or my
abrupt descent might have startled her somewhat."

"So it might, so it might," responded his host, urbanely. "Now, let us
go indoors; you must be positively famishing, and that port of mine is
itching, I know, to see the light of day."

"What a time you are going to have!" whispered the girl, as they took
their places at table.

He and she managed to stave off the evil day until lunch was half over;
but procrastination was not nearly as wh