"Isn't this great?" cried Bert, as he steered the ice-boat out into the middle of the lake.
"Wonderful!" cried Nan, her hair flying in the wind and her cheeks almost as red as roses. "I don't see how you made it, Bert."
"Well, it wasn't easy. How do you like it, Freddie?"
"All right. When can I steer?"
"Oh, maybe after a while," said Bert, with a laugh. "Say, we're going fast, all right."
"Yes," agreed Mr. Bobbsey. "I think the wind is getting stronger instead of dying out, Bert."
"It does seem so. Well, all the better. We won't have to walk back if it keeps on this way. We can sail to the end of the lake and ride back."
"Are you sure you can manage the boat yourself?" asked Bert's father, "She seems pretty big."
"Oh, Tommy and I sailed her in a stronger wind than this. And we have a heavier load on now, which makes it all the safer."
Mr. Bobbsey himself knew how to sail an ice-boat, but he wanted to let Bert do as much alone as he could, for this is a good way for a boy to learn, if there is not too much danger.