The startled cries of Mrs. Bobbsey alarmed a number of other women on the tower platform, and some one asked: 

“Did your little boy fall off?”

“I don’t know what happened to him!” said Mrs. Bobbsey, who was now almost crying.  “He was here a moment ago, and now he’s gone!”

“He couldn’t have fallen off!” exclaimed Mr. Bobbsey.  “Some one would have seen him.  I think he must have gone down by himself in the little elevator.  I’ll ask the man.”

The elevator, just then, was at the bottom of the tower, but it was soon on its way up, and Mrs. Bobbsey fairly rushed at the man as he opened the door.

“Where is my little boy?  Oh, have you seen my little boy?” she cried.

“Well, I don’t know, lady,” answered the elevator man.  “What sort of little boy was he?”

“He has blue eyes and light hair and—­”

“Let me explain,” Mr. Bobbsey spoke quietly.  “My little boy, Freddie, was out on the tower platform with us looking at the view, a few minutes ago, and now we can’t find him.  We thought perhaps he slipped in here by himself and rode down with you.”

“Well, he might have slipped into my elevator when I wasn’t looking,” answered the man.  “I took two or three little boys down on the last load, but I didn’t notice any one in particular.  Better get in and ride to the ground floor.  Maybe the superintendent or the head elevator man can tell you better than I. Get in and ride down with me.”

“Oh, yes, and please hurry!” begged Mrs. Bobbsey.  “Oh, what can have happened to Freddie?”

“I think you’ll find him all right,” said the elevator man.  “No accident has happened or I’d have heard of it.”

“Yes; don’t worry!” advised Mr. Bobbsey.

But Mrs. Bobbsey could not help worrying, and Nan, Bert and Flossie were very much frightened.  They were almost crying.  Even though the Bobbseys got in an express elevator after getting out of the small, slower one, it could not go down fast enough to suit Freddie’s mother.  When the ground floor was reached she was the first to rush out.

One look around the big corridor of the Woolworth Building showed Mrs. Bobbsey that something had happened over near one of the elevators.  There was a crowd there, and, for a moment, she was very much frightened.  But the next second she saw Freddie himself, with a crowd of men around him, and they were all laughing.

“Oh, Freddie! where did you go and what have you been doing?” cried his frightened mother as she caught him up in her arms.

“I’ve been having rides in the elevator,” announced the small boy.  “And it went as fast as anything!  I rode up and down lots of times!”

“Yes, that’s what he did,” said the elevator man, with a laugh.  “I didn’t pay much attention to him at first, but when I saw that he was staying in my car trip after trip, I asked him at what floor he wanted to get out.  He said he didn’t want to get out at all—­that he liked me, and liked to stay in and ride!”