"Maybe that is a fairy," suggested Lulu, who sometimes read fairy stories.

"Oh, if it only might be one, and could tell me where the fairy prince
is!" exclaimed Alice, with a sigh.

"Nonsense!" cried Jimmie, who was just going off to see his friend Bully,
the frog. "Stuff and nonsense!"

"That's what I say, too," called out the strange creature. "Nonsense! I'm
not a fairy at all. I'm a duck like yourselves, only I am a wild duck."
Then its wings beat the air and water, and the wild duck arose and flew
right over the pond and back again, as quickly as could be.

"My goodness! How do you do that?" asked Jimmie, who never could fly more
than a few feet.

"Why," answered the wild duck, "I just did it, that's all."

"Snippery, snappery snails!" cried Jimmie, "you're just like a flying
machine that my papa read about in the paper."

"Well, somewhat like one, perhaps," admitted the wild duck. "I can fly a
long distance. Did you ever try?"

"No," answered Jimmie; "I never did."

"Perhaps you would like to try now," suggested the other. "I will stay
here a little while, and show you. It is very easy. You can just as well
become a flying machine as not. Come, I will fly up on the fence. You come