Naturally, this necessitated some bold manoeuvring on the part of the airships. At one time they would be circling through the upper air to dizzy heights far above the highest mountains; then suddenly there would be a turn and a mad plunge downwards for thousands of feet, as their quarry swooped down almost to the level of the ground below. There were many hairbreadth escapes from collisions; and altogether the sport was about as exciting as the most daring or the most reckless could desire. ’It beats the switchback railway business and all that sort of thing hollow!’ exclaimed Gerald that evening, when relating their experiences to Freddy; for the Zuanstrooms had not joined the hunting-party. ’Looping the loop’s nothing to it!’ Jack declared. Freddy looked wistful. ’How I wished I was with you!’ he sighed. ’H’m! I ’m afraid you are not old enough yet for that sort of thing, youngster,’ remarked Jack loftily. ’What has Silas been doing to amuse you to-day?’ ’He hasn’t been amusing me at all,’ was the answer. ’It’s been one of my "bad days" again. The nasty, ugly old man has come back, and has been with uncle and Silas all day; and whenever he comes I am always sent off and left to amuse myself as best I can!’ Gerald and Jack looked at each other. Jack gave a long, low whistle; Gerald exclaimed under his breath, ’The Ogre again!’ *CHAPTER XVII.* *LESSONS IN FLYING.* ’It bain’t no sort o’ use; I shall never l’arn t’ fly!’ grumbled Bob Reid, as he stood rubbing his bruises. He had just come ’a nasty cropper,’ and seemed, as he expressed it, to have ’hurt meself all over at wanst.’ One hand was rubbing a leg, while the other was busy with a shoulder. ’If I ’ad ’alf a dozen more ’ands I could find plenty for ’em t’ do!’ he continued ruefully. ’I seem t’ be bruised everywhere. Let’s give it up, Tom, afore we suicides ourselves unintentional.’ ’Not I!’ cried Tom Clinch, who was balancing himself on a ladder. He flung his arms—to which two great wings were attached—about wildly, and leaped into the air, gasping as he came floundering down. ’You see, Bob, I ’ll master it yet!’ The two sailors had had some ’flying-dresses’ lent them, and had been practising and striving for all they were worth to learn the mystic art; but somehow they could not, as Tom put it, ’fall into the knack.’ ’It be like swimmin’,’ Tom went on, between leaps and jumps which would have done credit to a Spring-heeled Jack. ’It takes a long time t’ fall inter the knack’—— ’Ye’ll fall inter the ditch d’reckly,’ Bob tittered, as Tom rolled over on the ground. ’It’s no use, Tom! Let’s be sensible, an’ give it up. It ain’t dignerfied like fur us two chaps at our time o’ life!’