Produced by Juliet Sutherland, Melissa McDaniel and theOnline Distributed Proofreading Team at https://www.pgdp.net
Transcriber's Note:
Inconsistent hyphenation and spelling in the original document have been preserved. Obvious typographical errors have been corrected.
Italic text is denoted by _underscores_.
Foot by foot the Sprite crept up to the Winner till the two boats were racing side by side.
(_The Golden Boys and Their New Electric Cell_) _Page 35_]
THE GOLDEN BOYS AND THEIR NEW ELECTRIC CELL
BY L. P. WYMAN, PH.D. Dean of Pennsylvania Military College
AUTHOR OF
"_The Golden Boys at the Fortress_," "_The Golden Boys in the Maine Woods_," "_The Golden Boys with the Lumber Jacks_," "_The Golden Boys on the River Drive_."
A. L. BURT COMPANY Publishers New York
THE GOLDEN BOYS SERIES
A Series of Stories for Boys 12 to 16 Years of Age
BY L. P. WYMAN, PH.D.
Dean of the Pennsylvania Military College
The Golden Boys and Their New Electric Cell The Golden Boys at the Fortress The Golden Boys in the Maine Woods The Golden Boys With the Lumber Jacks The Golden Boys on the River Drive
Copyright, 1922 By A. L. BURT COMPANY
THE GOLDEN BOYS AND THEIR NEW ELECTRIC CELL
Made in "U. S. A."
THE GOLDEN BOYS AND THEIR NEW ELECTRIC CELL
CHAPTER I.
THE NEW CELL.
"Say, Jack, do you have any idea that this thing is going to work?"
"I don't know, Bob, the theory is all right, but how it will work outin practice is a cat of another color; one thing is sure, though, andthat is if it don't work we are out of the running in the race, forthe new boat the Jenkins boys have just bought, will run circles roundthe Sprite."
"Well, we'll soon know, for it's about ready to test."
This conversation took place one afternoon in the latter part of Julyin the basement of a house in Skowhegan, Maine. The room was fitted upas a combined workshop and laboratory, and a single glance wouldindicate that the two boys were by no means novices, for it containedmany expensive and intricate pieces of machinery.
Jack and Bob Golden, 15 and 17 years old respectively, were sons of arich manufacturer, who had made a large part of his fortune throughhis own inventions. Mr. Golden was an indulgent father and seeing thathis inventive genius had descended to his sons, had fitted up a modernmachine shop and laboratory for them and had supplied them liberallywith money for experiments. He had by no means been disappointed inthe results, for although they were but boys, they had already workedout several designs, which had been patented and had proved verysuccessful.
Mr. Golden was proud of his boys and with good reason. They were largefor their age, Bob standing 5 feet 10 inches in his stockings and Jackbeing but two inches shorter. They were fine, manly, looking fellows,and their clean-cut open faces told that they were generous to a faultand were boys to be trusted.
The rest of the family consisted of Mrs. Golden, a small lovablewoman, and a daughter Edna, 14 years old, who was almost worshipped byher big brothers. Altogether they were as happy and jolly a family asone would find in a long journey.
Through the center of the town ran the Kennebec river, and six milesto the north lay a beautiful sheet of water, five miles long by twowide, known as Hayden Lake. Here the boys kept their motorboat, and asMr. Golden had a large cottage on the shore of the lake, the familyspent the greater part of the summer there. The shores of the lakewere dotted with cottages, and probably thirty or more motor boatswere owned by the people who made the place their summer home. Duringeach summer many races were held, and proud indeed was the boy or manwho secured the blue ribbon given to the winner of the final race heldthe first week in August.
"I say, Jack," shouted Bob from the farther side of the room where hewas closely watching a piece of electrical apparatus, "shut down thedynamo, will you? I want to look at these cells and see how they arecoming. We ought to have about enough in the first one."
"Right you are, son!" replied Jack as he turned a lever, and as thehum, which had filled the room ceased, he added, "There you are."
Bending over a glass tank, which was about 12 inches square by 8 deep,and nearly filled with dilute sulphuric acid, Bob disconnected twowires and reaching in his hand, lifted out a cylinder of metal about 6inches long and 11/2 inches thick.
"Hurrah," he shouted, "she's almost full. Now in about a minute we'llknow whether or not we've wasted our time during the last week. Haveyou got those caps all ready and is the motor in trim?"
"Sure thing," replied Jack. "But say, Bob, I'm mighty nervous; supposeit don't work."
"Well," said Bob slowly, "it won't be the first time we've had to tryagain. If there is any trouble I feel sure it's in the caps, for thismanganese dioxide was made by the electric current, and if the capsmake it decompose into manganese and oxygen, the same amount ofelectricity will be produced as was used in making it. It's the sameprinciple as the regular storage battery, only we are going to dowithout the plates and sulphuric acid."
"That's all right," said impatient Jack, "but hurry up and hitch it onand let's get the anxiety over with."
While talking, Bob had screwed on to each end of the cylinder a metalcap which had attached to its middle an insulated wire. He now laidthe cylinder on a table and fastened each of the wires to a terminalof a small, but powerful electric motor.
"All right now, switch her on and let's see her hum."
Instantly Jack threw over the lever, but, alas for the hopes of theboys, nothing resulted. As they looked at each other keendisappointment was evident on both faces. Almost instantly, however,Jack grabbed his brother by the arm and almost shouted.
"Well, if I'm not the original clumsy Claude."
"What is it? Tell me quick."
"Why, don't you see? I gave you two positive caps instead of apositive and negative."
Bob quickly picked up the cylinder, and a glance told him that hisbrother was right. Quickly unscrewing one cap he replaced it with asimilar appearing one, but which was marked -- instead of +.
"Now we're off again, switch her on," and this time, to their intensedelight, no sooner was the switch thrown than the little motor sprangto life, and the armature began to revolve with a whirl which seemedto shout success to the two boys. Catching hold of each other's handsthey danced about the room fairly shouting their joy.
"For mercy sakes, what is this, a new kind of a war dance?" asked amild voice, and stopping just at the beginning of a wild yell, theboys saw that their father had entered the room.
"Oh, dad," cried both boys, running to him and catching him by thearms. "It works, it works. Just see it go."
"Well, well, so it does, so it does," said Mr. Golden eagerly. "Boys,I certainly congratulate you; you have done a big thing and if itworks as well as it seems to be doing, it will be one of the greatestinventions of the day."
"Now," said Jack, "we must see how long it will--hold on a minute,"and to their amazement he rushed to the back door flung it open anddashed across the yard. He was gone fully five minutes and when hereturned was panting for all he was worth.
"Didn't you see him?" he demanded.
"See who?" asked Bob.
"Why, sure as I live, Fred Jenkins was looking in that window. He litout, though, and got away before I could get out."
"What do you suppose he wanted?" asked Mr. Golden.
"Well, I'll tell you, dad," replied Bob. "Ever since we came down fr
omthe lake Fred and Will Jenkins have been trying to find out what we'vebeen doing. You know they almost got us on that new vibrator weinvented, owing to our carelessness in leaving it on the table one daywhen they came in."
"Yes," broke in Jack, "and they are just mean enough to sneak roundand try to steal our new storage cell."
"We've got to be mighty careful this time," continued Bob, "and notlet one of those caps get into their hands, for the secret of thewhole thing is in them, as it is the action of the different metalscomposing them which starts the manganese dioxide to decomposing andconverts its chemical energy into electricity."
"Well, come on boys," said Mr. Golden as soon as Bob had finished."Your mother sent me down to tell you to come to supper, and wemustn't be late, as she has company."
"All right," was Bob's reply. "Just let me connect the motor withthis clock. You see," he explained, "I have it arranged so that whenit stops the clock will stop also and we can tell how long it hasrun."
Several times that evening the boys ran down to the basement to see ifthe motor was still going, and as it was humming merrily at 10:30,they decided to go to bed and trust to the clock to tell them when itstopped.
Early the next morning they rushed to the laboratory before they werehalf dressed, to find the motor silent and the hands of the clockpointing to 4:35.
"Whoop," shouted Jack, as he caught sight of the face of the clock,"that's almost twelve hours, just think of it Bob. One of thosecylinders will run the Sprite ten or twelve hours, and it wasn't fulleither."
"It's sure great," returned Bob with no less enthusiasm. "I guesswe'll show the Jenkins some sailing now."
"That's what we will," agreed Jack. "Now we must get busy and fillsome more of those cylinders."