CHAPTER III

GRAN’MA AND GRAN’PA FLY AFTER THE CHILDREN

When Gran’pa and Gran’ma saw the children fly over the fence they could scarcely believe their eyes. They shouted as loudly as possible for Janey and Johnny to come back.

And when the children circled above the farm in their home-made Flying Machine, all the neighbors, hearing the cries of the two old people, came running over to the farm and watched the strange sight.

When the home-made Flying Machine rapidly disappeared in the sky the two old people put their arms around each other and wept like children.

Of course there was nothing they could do, so they went into the house and sat down upon the old couch.

“They were such good children!” Gran’ma sobbed.

“They were always good children!” Gran’pa cried. “Oh dear! Oh dear!”

All the rest of the day the old people thought of Janey and Johnny and wondered what had become of them.

“I wish we could go in search of them!” Gran’pa said.

“Where did they get such a wonderful Flying Machine?” Gran’ma asked as she wiped the tears from Gran’pa’s eyes and her own with her apron.

“They made it from an old box and some boards I had left after finishing my chicken coop!” Gran’pa told her.

“Yes, I remember now!” Gran’ma said. “Janey came in and asked me for an old sheet for a sail, and for two spools. The spools, she said, would be the ‘Start’ and ‘Stop’ twisters for the flying machine!”

“It’s funny they didn’t come back when we called to them!” Gran’pa mused. “They always have minded so well!”

“I don’t believe they knew how to work the Flying Machine so that they could return to the earth!” Gran’ma replied. “Perhaps they did not think it would really fly and so neglected to put something on to send the machine down. I am sure that must have been the reason!”

“It must have been!” Gran’pa mused. “But see here, why can’t we go after them and bring them back, Gran’ma! If the children could build a Flying Machine, I see no reason why I couldn’t build one! In fact,” Gran’pa continued, “I could build a better one, I’m sure!”

“But how do we know where they have gone to?” Gran’ma asked.

“We can easily find out!” Gran’pa said, as he walked to the door. “I will build my machine with many spools on it, and one spool we will mark ‘Direction taken by the children’ and the machine will follow them everywhere they have gone until we find them! The other spools can be labeled ‘Stop,’ ‘Go,’ ‘Rise,’ ‘Lower,’ and anything else we can think of. We must be careful and have everything complete before we start!”

“It is six o’clock now,” Gran’pa added. “I should have it finished by eight or nine o’clock and we can start the first thing in the morning!”

So Gran’pa took all his tools out in the back yard and began to work.

Johnny had picked out the largest box around the place and all that Gran’pa could find were four little soap boxes; these he nailed together.

A neighbor boy came over to watch Gran’pa, and when he heard what Gran’pa was building he said, “Gran’pa, why don’t you borrow my boat? I should be glad to let you have it, and you could put a sail on it and fix it up fine!”

“That will be great, Eddie!” Gran’pa said, “I’ll come right over and get it!”

So Gran’pa hitched up old Ned, and telling Gran’ma where he was going, he drove over to Eddie’s home and brought back the boat.

It did not take Gran’pa long to make the wings on either side of the boat. He took all the spools he could find and nailed them around the front part. He made a rudder behind that could be turned in any direction. Gran’pa, when he had the boat completed, sat and thought a minute, then he went into the buggy shed and taking two lamps from an old surrey he trimmed the wicks, filled them with oil and fastened them on the sides of the boat.

When he had everything to his liking, it was still daylight and he called Gran’ma to come out and see the new Flying Boat.

“Do you think it will really go?” Gran’ma asked.

“Jump in and let’s try it!” Gran’pa cried.

So the two old people climbed into the boat and Gran’pa twisted one of the spools. The Flying Boat rose quietly in the air and flew about as Gran’pa twisted the spools or the rudder.

“It is a success!” both cried as Gran’pa brought the boat back to the starting point.

When they settled to the ground, Gran’ma ran into the house and came out with Gran’pa’s coat and hat. She had put on her best bonnet and shawl. She had Janey’s and Johnny’s coats and several sweaters with her.

Gran’ma had prepared a large basket of food while Gran’pa had been working on the boat, so she told Gran’pa to get this while she filled a jar with water.

“If we find them, the dears will be hungry and thirsty,” Gran’ma said, “and it is such a beautiful evening we might as well start now.”

“You are right!” Gran’pa exclaimed. “We will start immediately!”

Eddie had remained at home to eat his supper when Gran’pa went for the boat, and now he came running over just in time to see the Flying Boat rise from the ground and go sailing over the fences and trees.

“I’ll take care of your place until you come back!” he yelled.

And Gran’pa and Gran’ma, increasing the speed of the Flying Boat, were soon only a speck in the sky.

When they had reached a great altitude, Gran’pa twisted the spool marked “Direction taken by the children” and the Flying Boat swooped down towards the earth until it was on a plane with the course taken by Janey and Johnny; then, as Gran’pa twisted the “Speed” spool, the Flying Boat whizzed through the air so fast that the wind screamed as it rushed in and out of the chinks in the wing boards. Gran’pa and Gran’ma saw the sun rise as they flew over the horizon. The side of the earth away from the sun was in darkness, so that when they flew higher it took on the appearance of a half moon.

Gran’pa looked at his watch and said it was ten-thirty.

“You take a wink of sleep, Gran’ma,” he said. “I’ll keep watch!”

So Gran’ma rolled up in the blankets she had placed in the boat and was soon fast asleep.

Gran’pa awakened her in about an hour to look at the Moon, which they were approaching at great speed.

“They must have gone to the Moon!” Gran’ma cried. “No, they must have changed their course!” she added after a moment as the Flying Boat, following the course taken by the children, made the circuit of the Moon.

But the Flying Boat soon flew directly at the Moon and the old folks knew the children must have made a landing there.

In fact, the Flying Boat soon landed near the Flying Machine that Johnny had made.

“Here we are!” Gran’pa cried, as he helped Gran’ma from the Flying Boat. “See where they have been sitting in the grass!”

And Gran’ma and Gran’pa followed the children’s path in the grass until they came to the spring. There they saw the signs of Johnny’s fight.

“It looks as though a struggle had taken place here!” cried Gran’pa.

“Oh! Maybe wild beasts have eaten them up!” cried Gran’ma.

“No! There are no signs of wild beasts!” Gran’pa replied. “We should see their torn clothes about if that were the case! See, their trail leads off this way!”

Gran’pa and Gran’ma at last came to the tiny house of sticks and mud and heard the cries of the children inside.

“Here we are!” Gran’pa cried as he ran around the house.

Gran’ma, lifting her skirts, followed, and when she turned the corner of the house she stopped in amazement beside Gran’pa.

Back of the house the Strange Man was running in circles and dodging behind trees and bushes, now this way and now that, while right behind him came a Faun Boy with lowered head. They were so busy running they didn’t notice Gran’ma and Gran’pa.

And as the old couple watched, the little Faun Boy caught up with the Strange Man and, butting him with all his might, sent him flying through a bunch of ferns.

Before the Strange Man could regain his feet the Faun Boy was upon him and sent him tumbling head over heels again.

The Strange Man scrambled to his feet when the Faun Boy tripped over some vines and without looking behind him he circled about and ran for the house.

As he reached the door, another Faun Boy rushed from the bushes and, taking the Strange Man unawares, sent him flying back towards the first Faun Boy.

“Those goats will butt him to pieces!” cried Gran’ma, as she ran after the Faun Boys and tried to shoo them away.

The Faun Boys paid no attention to Gran’ma’s shooing and continued to butt the Strange Man about between them until he scarcely had time to know from which side he was attacked.

When Gran’pa saw that Gran’ma’s shooing had no effect upon the Faun Boys, Gran’pa ran after them and managed to catch their arms, and although they struggled to get free he held them tightly.

“My gracious!” Gran’pa asked them, “Do you wish to kill that poor old man?”

“Let us go!” the Faun Boys cried, “He’s a wicked magician!”

“I thought they were goats,” Gran’ma exclaimed, and she looked hard at the Faun Boys as she adjusted her glasses, “but they _are_ part boys!”

The Strange Man had managed to get to his feet and without thanking Gran’pa, who still held the Faun Boys, he slipped through the bushes and disappeared.

The two Faun Boys began crying. “He was a wicked magician!” they said, “and he changed us partly into goats. We are trying to get him to change us back to our own shapes! Now you have spoiled it all!”

“Dear me!” Gran’ma cried, as she caught the two Faun Boys in her arms. “Gran’pa, you should have known better!”

“I know I should have known better now, but I didn’t until they told me!” Gran’pa said. “I’m very sorry!”

Just then Janey and Johnny, who had stopped yelling to rest a little, started up again and Gran’pa and Gran’ma ran towards the house.

The door was locked.

“Open the door and we will let you out!” cried Gran’pa when he could make himself heard.

“We are tied, hands and feet,” Johnny yelled, “and we can’t get to the door!”

“Besides, it’s locked on the outside!” Janey called.

“Let’s get a fence rail and break in the door!” said Gran’pa.

But there wasn’t a fence in sight.

“I’ll run back to the Flying Boat and get a hatchet!” Gran’pa called, as he started away.

“No doubt you will find that old Jingles, the Magician, intended changing your grandchildren into animals,” the Faun Boys told Gran’ma.

“If I had him now!” Gran’ma said, stamping her foot upon the ground, “I’d tweak his long nose! That’s what I’d do!”

Finally Gran’pa came running back all out of breath. “The Flying Boat and the children’s Flying Machine are both gone!”

“Oh dear!” Gran’ma exclaimed, as she sat down on the ground and began crying.

The Faun Boys began butting their heads against the door, Gran’pa helping them by throwing his shoulder against it, and soon the door gave way.

Gran’ma and Gran’pa untied the children and hugged them.

The children told Gran’ma and Gran’pa of their experience. “As soon as he had learned the rhyme he was going to change us into pigs!” Janey said.

“Well, we won’t let him now that we are here!” said, Gran’ma, firmly.

“Oh, but you couldn’t help yourself if he decided to change you into animals!” the Faun Boys told Gran’ma.

“I’d like to see him just try it!” Gran’ma said, her lips in a tight line. “I’d tweek his nose out of joint!”

“Perhaps we’d better leave the place before he returns!” Gran’pa said. “Evidently it was Jingles the Magician who took our Flying Boat!”

“Surely it must have been!” the Faun Boys said.

“Here’s his large book, with the verses in, that he uses to work his magic with!” cried Johnny.

The book was too large for them to carry with them, so they hid it under some stones and scattered leaves over it so that Jingles would not be able to find it if he came back.