The Bobbsey Twins in a Great City | Page 4

children passed over. Flossie
and Freddie were skating as fast and as hard as they could.
"They are very anxious to win," said Nan, who was skating beside her
brother.
"Yes, but they can't keep going as fast as that all the way home."

"You're going to let them win, aren't you?" asked Nan.
"Sure I am! But they're so sharp we don't dare lag much behind. We
must make a spurt toward the end, and pretend we did our best to beat
them. Tommy Todd may come in ahead of them, though."
"We can skate up to him and tell him not to," suggested Nan.
"Good idea!" declared Bert. "We'll do it."
The older twins skated a little faster to overtake Tommy, who was
some distance behind Flossie and Freddie, when suddenly Nan gave a
cry and clutched Bert by the arm.
"Look!" she exclaimed, pointing with her hand.
"An ice-boat," remarked Bert. "And going fast, too!"
"Yes, but see! It's coming right toward Flossie and Freddie, and they're
skating with their heads down, and don't see it! Oh, Bert! Yell at them!
Tell them to look out! Yell at the man in the ice-boat!"
It did indeed seem a time of danger, for a swift ice-boat--one with big
white sails and runners, like large skates under it, was skimming over
the frozen lake straight for the smaller twins.

CHAPTER II
BUILDING THE "BIRD"
Flossie and Freddie, anxious to win the skating race, were bending over
with heads down, as all skaters do who wish to go fast and keep the
wind from blowing on them too hard. So they did not see the ice-boat
coming toward them, for the craft, blown by the wind, made hardly any
noise, and what little it did make was taken up by the clicking of the
skates of the smaller twins.

"Oh, Bert! Do something!" cried Nan.
"Yes, yes! I will--of course!"
Bert shook off Nan's hand, for it was still on his arm, and started to
skate toward the twins as fast as he could. He hoped to reach them in
time to stop them from skating right into the path of the oncoming
ice-boat.
But he soon saw that he was not going to be able to do this. The
ice-boat was coming toward the small twins faster than Bert could ever
hope to skate and reach them.
"Yell at them!" shouted Nan. "That's the only way to stop them! Yell
and tell them to look out!"
Bert himself had decided this was the best thing to do. He stopped
skating and, making a sort of funnel, or megaphone, of his hands, he
cried out:
"Flossie! Freddie! Look out! Danger--the ice-boat!"
Just at this moment, whether it was because of Bert's shouts or because
they were tired of going so fast and wanted a rest, the two children
leading the skating race stood up straight and looked back. They saw
Bert pointing toward them and then they glanced at the ice-boat. It was
very close, and Flossie screamed.
At the same time the man who was steering the boat saw the children.
With a shout that echoed the one given by Bert, and the screams of Nan
and Flossie, the man steered his boat to one side. But he made such a
sudden change that, though he steered out of the way of Flossie and
Freddie, he nearly ran into Tommy Todd. That small boy, however,
was a good skater and stopped just in time, for he had seen the ice-boat
coming.
Then with a whizz and a clink of ice, as the runners of the boat scraped
big chips from the frozen lake, the skimming boat shot past Nan and

Bert, not doing a bit of harm, but scaring all five children very much.
"Sorry! Didn't see you! Next time----"
This was what the man in the ice-boat shouted as he whizzed by. His
last words seemed whipped away by the wind and the children did not
know what he meant.
"Maybe he meant next time he'd be sure to run into us," said Tommy
Todd.
"Oh, he wouldn't do _that!_" declared Bert "That was Mr. Watson. He
buys lumber from my father. I guess he meant that next time he'd give
us a ride."
"Oh, my!" exclaimed Nan. "Would you ride in one of those dangerous
things, Bert Bobbsey?"
"Would I? Well, just give me the chance! How about you, Tommy?"
"I should say so! They're great!"
"Oh, I can't bear them!" went on Nan. "Please let's stop and rest. My
heart is beating so fast I can't skate for a while."
"All right--we'll call the race off," agreed Bert. Flossie and Freddie
were a little startled by the closeness of the ice-boat, and they skated
back to join their