The enterprise. [volume] (Wellington, Ohio) 188?-1899, 1890-04-09
go ahead and put IL ON, = commanded

the lordly Lem.
There was q scufling about among
the little boys and the fire was once
more burning tiercely,
Lem pulled up the drawing-string Of
his balloon" and held the big, paper
lined bag over the tube which pro-
truded from the ''crucible." A strange,
mysterious smell filed the air, and the
balloon began visibly to swell.
"Goodness!" "See it f1llr' "She'll 60,
surer' broke from the excited boys.
Even Lem himself was beginning to
lose his stoical calm.
Amid thrilling silence the big bag
rounded out fuller and fuller.
"Who wants the first rider" asked
Lem, In hushed voice.
'Il" cried Bobby Fischer, wishing an
instant later that he had let somebody
else try it frst. But having spoken he
would not back out.
"Come on, thenr' continued Lem, still
in the same hushed tone. There's two
rope handles right there; they won't
break"
He gave the drawing-strings an awful
tug, tied them rapidly over and over,
and Bobby, with his freokles standing
out like blunt, terra Gotta quilts upon
the fretful porcupine-a very white por-
cupine-took hold of the handles, while
the bag did, indeed, move up and down
like genuine balloon.
A cry OF terror burst from the boys.
They had not thought that heavy boy
like Bobby could indeed be borne up
ward by LENS balloon, but it shot up
ten feet or more at the first bound. Lem
gave an awful jump, but he could not
quite reach Bobby's kicking heels.
"Climb the pear tree, quick" shrieked
the young inventor, now thoroughly
alarmed. "Catch him when he goes by"
But over the very top of the pear tree
sailed Bobby, uttering the most blood
curdling yells, while the other boys
several OF them sobbing as they ran
gave vent to the very loudest noises they
knew how to make.
Over the very top Of his own fathers
house also sailed Bobby. And over the
trees in the village green. Then he be-
gan to feel that his support was weaken
ing. Softly as thistle-down descended
the wool sacks and Bobby with them.
His own mother, dumb with horror, was
there to pick him up, needless that her
sleeves were rolled up and her gown
pinned to her waist. His own mother
could not have laid him down to rest
more tenderly than did the big "bal.
LOOM"
How she prayed and wept over her
frightened little eight-year-old, SC
miraculously returned to her alive after
his perilous adventure. Lem was ju'
diciously watching the proceedings
from behind an angle of his fathers
barn. The other boys were trying tC
tell how 1t all happened without max
ing out too bad case against their ia
vorite leader, whom every body was JUS
now ready to fall upon and punish.
"Look here! look herer cried HoddJ
Atwood amid the universal hubbub
wasn't every body in town scolding be
cause there was going to be balloon
ascension last Fourth Of July, and theI
1t didn't come Off"
"Yes," said several voices.
sand the selectmen were going to pa!
$500 for that balloon, heard"
That's what was said," admitted sey
eral bystanders.
"Well, think Lem had orter havt
the pay you was going to give that man
instead OF getting scolded."
"He might have killed Bobby" cr1et
Mrs. Fischer, Indignantly.
Hoddy swallowed little hard as b,
reflected on that awful moment wheI
Bobby sailed over the top Of the pea
tree, but he collected himself sufficient
ly TO reply:
"He didn't, though; Bobby just had I
good ride"
Bobby groaned. He wondered II Hod
dy would have liked that "good ride.p
That groan was more expressive thar
an epic would have been just then ant
there and not another word was spokeI
in defense OF the clever and naught,
Lem.
Before nightfall every farmer within
ten miles Of Canedy's Corners had for
: bidden his children, under threats o
the most awful penalties, to have an,
thing to do with Lem Purdy's balloon.
Lem would have had to 70 up himself II h
wished to experiment again. As he di'
not care TO do this, the wool sacks an,
the mysterious crucible have lain idl
ever since.
And all Of this really happened dur
ing the summer Of 1889 In q little Con
necticut town. Kate Upson Clark, Il
Detroit Free Press.