Then upward and outward soared the gayly colored sky racers, like a flock of wonderful birds.  It was the greatest sight that the crowd left behind and below had ever witnessed, although one or two shook their heads and prophesied dire results from young ladies tampering with them blamed “sky buggies.”

But not a thought of this entered the heads of the aerial adventurers.  With sparkling eyes, and bounding pulses they flew steadily southward, from time to time glancing below at the touring car.  Even though they were flying slowly it was plain that the big auto had hard work to keep up with them.  The unique motor flight was on, and was about to develop experiences of which none of them at the moment dreamed.

CHAPTER III.

LITTLE WREN AND THE GIPSIES.

They flew on, keeping the motor car beneath them in constant sight till about noon.  Then, from the tonneau of the machine, came the waving of a red square of silk.  This had been agreed upon as a signal to halt for a brief lunch.

Shouting joyously, the young adventurers of the air began circling their machines about, dropping closer earthward with every sweep.  Beneath them was a green meadow, bordered on one side by a country road and on the other by a small brook of clear water and a patch of dark woods.  It was an ideal place to halt for a roadside lunch, and as one after the other the machines dropped to earth Miss Prescott was warmly congratulated on her choice of a halting place.

The car was left in the road, and the melancholy Jake Rickets set to work getting wood for a fire, for it was not to be thought of that Miss Prescott could go without her cup of tea.  In the meantime the girls spread a cloth and set out their fare.  There were dainty chicken sandwiches with crisp lettuce leaves lurking between the thin white “wrappers,” cold meat and half a dozen other little picnic delicacies, which all the girls, despite their aerial craze, had not forgotten how to make.

The boys set up a shout as, returning from attending to the aeroplanes, they beheld the inviting table.

“This beats camping out by ourselves,” declared Roy, “girls, we’re glad we brought you.”

“Thank you for the compliment,” laughed Jess.  “I suppose you mean that you are glad we brought all this.”

She waved her hand at the “spread” dramatically.

“Both,” rejoined Jimsy, throwing himself on the grass.  By this time Jake’s kettle was bubbling merrily, and soon the refreshing aroma of Miss Prescott’s own particular kind of tea was in the air.  The boys preferred to try the water from the brook, despite Jake’s dire hints at typhoid and other germs holding a convention in it.  It was sweet and cool, and the girls voted it as good as ice-cream soda.

“At any rate as we can’t get any we might as well pretend it is,” declared Bess.

So the meal passed merrily.  After it had been concluded, amid gay chatter and fun, Peggy proposed an excursion to the woods for wild flowers which grew in great profusion on the opposite side of the stream.  Crossing it by a plank bridge, the young people plunged into the cool woods, dark and green, and carpeted with flowering shrubs and vines.