"Ahoy!" answered the men in the boat.
"Have you seen anything of a runaway balloon?" asked Mr. Trench. "Mine got away from the Bolton County Fair, and it had two little children in the balloon basket. Have you seen them?"
Mr. and Mrs. Bobbsey and all in the motor boat waited anxiously for the answer. Captain Craig had shut off his engine so its noise would not drown the words of those in the other boat.
"We saw something big and black sailing through the air over our heads about an hour ago," was the answer. "We thought it was the aeroplane from the fair grounds."
"That was my balloon!" declared Mr. Trench.
"Did you see anything of my children?" Mrs. Bobbsey begged to know.
"No. But we couldn't see very well on account of the fog and because the balloon—if that's what it was—kept up pretty high," came the answer.
"Which way was she heading?" Captain Craig wanted to know, this being his sailor way of asking which way the balloon was going.
"Due north," answered one of the men in the other boat, which was a craft containing a number of fishermen.
"Towards Hemlock Island," stated another.