While these were being brought the Bobbsey twins and their relatives drew as near to the balloon as they could get, closely looking at it. At times the big bag, partly filled with gas, swayed until it swept the ground. The basket, too, pulled and tugged at the ropes that held it down. "What does the man do when he's in the basket?" Freddie asked. "Oh, he sits there and rides along up in the clouds," said Bert. "I wish I could go up." "Does he have anything to eat?" Flossie wanted to know. "Oh, yes," said Nan. "There are things to eat in the basket. See!" And she held Flossie up so she could look over the edge and down into the basket. Of course Freddie had to be lifted up, also. The basket seemed a cosy place. There were blankets in it, for it is often very cold high up in the air where balloons go, though it may be very warm on the earth. And there were boxes and packages containing food and many strange things at which the Bobbsey twins wondered. The wind kept blowing harder and harder, and the crowd grew larger as word went around the fair grounds that the balloon was soon to go up. "What about those ropes?" cried the man who was in charge of the balloon. "They're coming," another man told him. "Be here right away!" "Well, those lads want to hurry if this balloon isn't to go sailing off by itself! My, but the wind is blowing hard! I've a good notion to call this off. I'm afraid we're in for a bad storm." "We can't stop it now," said the second man. "The crowd expects us to go up, and we'll have to go." "Well, we'll try it. But we must tie the balloon down and put in more gas. It won't go up very far only half filled as it is." Suddenly some voices cried: "One side! One side if you please!" It was the men coming up with ropes to tie the balloon down. Mr. and Mrs. Bobbsey tried to gather the children close to them, to get them out of the way of the men. But, in some manner, Flossie and Freddie turned to one side, and before they knew it they were separated from their friends. And then Flossie and Freddie found themselves pushed close up against the balloon basket. "Oh, let's get in!" cried Freddie. "We'll just sit down for a minute and then get out," agreed Flossie. The crowd was so excited, trying to get out of the way of the men with the coils of rope, that no one noticed what the small Bobbsey twins did. And so Freddie and Flossie climbed into the balloon basket and snuggled down in the blankets. "Quick now with those ropes!" cried the head man. "She's going to tear loose! Feel that wind!" There came a heavy blow, causing the balloon to sway back and forth. "Look out!" cried another voice. "There she goes!" Almost as he spoke there was a further scramble on the part of the crowd, and the balloon tore loose from the holding ropes before the men had time to put on the new ones. "There she goes!" echoed the crowd. "Up goes the balloon!"