CHAPTER VIII
NODDY AND BILL
“There, I guess that will do!”
“Should it not be put up a little farther forward?”
“No, it will light up better where it is. Besides, we can’t move it anyfarther forward, or it will interfere with the hydroplane lever.”
“That’s right.”
The above colloquy took place between Jerry, Ned and Bob in the bigshed that housed the motorship _Comet_, a few hours after theirdecision to start in their air craft in search of the wreck of the_Hassen_. The boys had lost no time going over their wonderful craftto put her in the best possible condition for a long, and possiblydangerous, flight.
They had determined to start at once on the search, for well they knewthe terrible distress the shipwrecked persons might be in--with nothingbut an open boat between them and the vast ocean.
But there were a few needful things to be done, and one was theinstallation of a large searchlight, and it was concerning this thatthe talk had been.
Bob was of the opinion that the big lamp should go farther toward thebow, but Jerry had his own reasons for placing it where it was. Thelight was a new one, much larger than the one heretofore in use, and ithad been purchased and installed in a hurry.
“For we may have to stay on the wing all night,” said Ned, “and thislight may enable us to locate even a small boat on the ocean.”
“But if we do find my uncle and cousin in a small boat, how can we savethem?” asked Bob.
“Easily enough, if the sea isn’t too rough,” replied Jerry. “We candrop the hydroplanes, and descend to them. If it’s too rough we candrop a rope, and haul them up, or even tow the boat if we have to. I’mnot worrying about that part of it. The thing to do first is to findthem.”
“And that isn’t going to be so easy,” observed Bob, with a sigh.
“Oh, don’t be crossing bridges until you can hear the rustling of theirwings,” spoke Ned, with a smile at his chum. “Now let’s get busy, stockup, and set out on this cruise. We’ve lost a lot of time as it is.”
“That’s right,” agreed Jerry. “But we’re doing the best we can.”
“I know that,” spoke Bob, with a grateful look. “Our folks say it’smighty kind of you boys to take this trouble.”
“Huh! Why wouldn’t we?” demanded Ned. “I guess we’re as much interestedin this rescue as you are, Bob Baker.”
“Well, it’s good of you. I’m glad it was the storm that sunk the_Hassen_, and not that German submarine. If that boat had rammed thesteamer she might have gone down so quickly that no one would have hada chance for life.”
“Oh, try to forget that submarine,” protested Jerry. “You’re getting iton the brain.”
“Like Professor Snodgrass,” spoke Ned. “Only a little while ago, whenI went in the house, Jerry, to get some of that high tension wire, heasked me if we had started on it yet.”
“What’d you tell him?”
“That we had other fish to fry. I spoke of our trip in the _Comet_and of course he wanted to come along. He said if he couldn’t get hishermit crab specimens right away he might find some new bugs up in theair. So I told him he was welcome to come.”
“That’s right,” agreed Jerry. “We may need his help if it comes to arescue.”
“The only trouble is,” remarked Bob, with a smile, “that if we sightthat submarine again the professor may insist on being put aboard so hecan get to the bottom of the sea. What will we do then?”
“Wait until it happens--worry then,” advised Jerry, with a laugh. “Idon’t imagine that submarine is within a thousand miles of us.”
“Me either,” added Ned.
But neither he nor Jerry realized how soon their idle words were to beproven wrong.
All haste was made in preparing the _Comet_ for her rescue trip. Theparents of the boys thoroughly approved of it, for the motor lads hadundertaken so many strenuous “stunts” in their craft that even Mrs.Hopkins no longer worried much when Jerry and his chums went out in her.
“Well, I guess we’re ready to start,” announced Jerry, a little later,after a look at the airship. Everything had been put in first classshape, and the rudder, that had given so much trouble before, had beenreplaced by a different one.
“Look who’s there,” said Bob in a low voice, nodding toward the roadwayin front of the Hopkins house.
“Noddy Nixon,” muttered Jerry.
“Yes, and Bill Berry is with him,” went on Bob. “They seem to belooking in here pretty sharply.”
“Yes, they probably see that we’re getting ready for a trip,” spokeNed. “I hope they won’t try to follow us, and make trouble.”
Jerry looked annoyed. Noddy and Bill were staring insolently in thedirection of the open shed which housed the airship. Even a passer-bycould see that it was in readiness for a flight.
Jerry, who, with his chums, had not seen much of Noddy since the bullyand his crony had vainly tried to get the sixty nuggets of gold, astold in the last volume, started toward the front gate. Noddy saw himcoming, but did not move.
“Were you looking for me?” asked Jerry, in no friendly voice.
“I don’t know as I was,” returned Noddy, in surly tones.
“If you are,” put in Ned, who had stepped to the side of his chum, “youwon’t find any gold nuggets to try and get away from us this time.”
“Huh! Think you’re mighty smart; don’t you?” sneered Bill Berry.
“We were smart enough to fool you and the Dominion police you set onus,” laughed Bob. “Now will you have gravy on your pancakes?”
“Don’t you talk that way to us!” growled Bill. “If you do----”
“Oh, come on, we don’t want anything to do with them,” said Noddyquickly, taking his crony by the arm and leading him to one side.
“Glad you’ve come to that conclusion,” spoke Jerry, as he turned backtoward the airship shed. “Come on, fellows,” he added to his chums,“we’d better get started. Bob, ask Professor Snodgrass if he’s ready.”
Noddy and Bill started down the street. They were talking earnestlytogether.
“They’re going off on another trip, that’s sure,” Noddy said.
“I guess so,” growled Bill. “But I don’t see that it makes anydifference to us.”
“Oh, don’t you?” asked Noddy. “Well, it might. I’ve a notion to get outmy airship and follow them.”
“What for?”
“What for? Because I need the money; that’s what for.”
“Money? How do you know they’re going after money?”
“Because they ’most always are. Now, Bill, it’s like this. Everythingwe’ve done, lately, has been a fizzle. We’ve lost out every time.”
“Well, it was as much your fault as mine,” growled Bill.
“Maybe it was,” assented Noddy, who seemed to have some special reasonfor not wanting to quarrel with his crony. “But when Jerry and his twochums start off it’s ’most always because they can make something outof it. Now I need money.”
“So do I, for that matter.”
“Our last trip didn’t pan out,” went on Noddy, “and my father has shutdown on me. I’ve got to get some cash, and the only way I know to getit is to follow these chaps. They may be going out to locate anothergold mine.”
“Well, I’m with you then,” agreed Bill. “Is your airship ready to run?”
“I can make her so in a little while. Let’s go back to our house.”
For a time, after getting into trouble, Noddy had left town with hisparents, who thought of remaining away permanently, but Mr. Nixon hadsince moved back to Cresville, though living in a different house thanthe one he formerly occupied. Noddy, as my former readers know, hada large airship. It was one of several he had owned, and, though itwas nowhere near as complete and powerful as the _Comet_, was quiteserviceable.
So, while Noddy and Bill were preparing to follow our friends, in thehope of trailing them to some hidden fortune, Jer
ry and his chums weregetting ready for the rescue flight.
“I’ll be with you in a few minutes!” called Professor Snodgrass whenhe was told that the start would soon be made. “I just want to get asmall net, with a long handle, because I may see some rare insects inthe upper air. We’ll have to let the sea crabs go for a time, until youboys can build a submarine.”
“I’m afraid that will be a long while,” said Jerry, as he looked tosee that the plane-shifting levers worked properly.
It was decided to navigate at first as an aeroplane, since, after thestorm, the weather was very calm. By telegraph, as good a descriptionas possible had been obtained as to where the _Hassen_ had beenlast seen. The boys intended to cruise around over this spot inever-increasing circles.
“All aboard!” cried Bob, as he climbed up on the main deck. “We’ve gotenough to eat for two weeks.”
“Trust Chunky for that,” commented Ned with a smile. “Are you coming,Professor.”
“Yes!” cried the little scientist. “I think I have everything. I amgoing----” he had started from the house toward the airship, butstopped suddenly to peer at something on the ground.
“Oh, what a find!” he cried. “Oh, what a lucky find!”
In an instant he was on his knees and was carefully lifting into one ofhis boxes some little creature.
“What is it?” asked Jerry, with a smile.
“A very rare specimen of a green striped angle-worm,” was the answer.“I have been looking for one for years. Now, if I could only getanother,” and the professor began searching on the ground.
“I’m afraid, Professor Snodgrass, that we can’t wait,” said Jerry. “Weought to be under way now.”
“All right,” was the answer. “Though it is a pity to lose this chance.I say, Dick,” called the scientist to the gardener, “if you see a greenstriped angle-worm----”
“I’ll be sure to kill it, Professor,” interrupted the man. “I know thecreatures, eating up the cabbages, and everything else. I’ll kill everyone I see.”
“No, no! For the love of science don’t do that!” was the appeal of theprofessor. “I beg of you not to do that. I will give you two dollarsfor every one you save for me, Dick!”
“Do you mean that, Professor?”
“I certainly do.”
“Then I’ll search for ’em with a dark lantern to-night,” was theanswer. “I’ll have a lot for you when you come back.”
“Ah, what a lucky day!” cried the professor, as he got aboard the_Comet_.
Good-byes were called to Mrs. Hopkins, and to the mothers of Bob andNed, who had called at Jerry’s house to see the start. The boys tooktheir places, the professor was in the cabin, writing out a descriptionof his latest find, and all was in readiness.
“Here we go!” cried Jerry, as he swung over the lever that started thepropeller motor. The _Comet_ rolled across the smooth starting ground.Then, as the elevating rudder was tilted the craft shot into the airlike a bird, soon attaining a good height.
At the same time, off to one side of the town, another aeroplane dartedforward, trailing the one carrying our friends.