“That’s the talk!” cried several who understood Andy’s allusion to an “airship.” “Let’s give him his first lesson now.”
In a twinkling Reff Ritter was surrounded and bundled up in his own blanket. Then he was lifted bodily from the cot and taken out of the tent through the back. Six cadets carried him across the field.
Some cadets were still on guard and how to get out of camp was a problem. But Dale solved that question with ease. He gave a low whistle and one of the guards answered it almost instantly.
“Go past Post No. 7,” said Dale. “The guard there will be looking at the stars.”
The others followed his advice. On Post No. 7 Fred Century was stationed. They saw him looking intently up at a bright star, evidently oblivious to his surroundings and, of course, he did not see or notice them.
“Good for Fred!” cried Pepper. “He knows his little book all right!”
Reaching the end of the encampment field, the cadets entered the edge of the woods. Here was a swing which some of the boys had put up the afternoon before.
The rope of the swing was speedily secured, and several cadet belts were placed around Ritter’s waist and under his arms. Then the rope was run under these belts and the other end was thrown over the limb of a big tree.
“Now up with him!” ordered Andy. “Ritter, you’ll soon know how it feels to fly through the air!”
The cadets pulled on the rope with a will and up into the air went Ritter, sprawling out like a frog and turning around and around.