Brother and sister started after the little feathered songster, which was making a queer, chirping noise. Then Jan suddenly called:
"Oh, here's another!"
And, surely enough, there was a second bird acting almost as was the first—fluttering along, half hopping and half flying through the grass.
"We'll get 'em both!" yelled Teddy, and he and Jan hurried along. But, somehow or other, as soon as they came almost to the place where they could reach out and touch one of the birds, which acted as though it could not go a bit farther, the little creature would manage to flutter on just beyond the eager hands of the children.
"That's funny!" exclaimed Teddy. "I almost had one of 'em that time!"
"So did I!" added Janet. "Now I'm sure I can get this one!" and she ran forward to grasp the fluttering bird, but it managed to hop along, just out of her reach.
The one Ted was after did the same thing, and for some time the children hurried on after the birds. At last the two songsters, with little chirps and calls, suddenly flew high in the air and circled back through the woods.
"Well, would you look at that!" cried Teddy, in surprise.
"They can fly, after all!" gasped Janet. "What d'you s'pose made 'em pretend they couldn't?"
"I—I guess they wanted to fool us," said her brother.