CHAPTER III
A TIMELY WARNING
"Well, are you satisfied with your bargain, Tom?" asked Mr. Wood whenthe formalities about transferring the ownership of the motor-boat hadbeen completed.
"Oh, yes, I calculated to pay just what I did."
"I'm glad you're satisfied, for Mr. Hastings told me to be sure thepurchaser was satisfied. Here he comes now. I guess he wasn't at theauction."
An elderly gentleman was approaching Mr. Wood and Tom. Most of thethrong was dispersing, but the young inventor noticed that Andy Fogerand Sam Snedecker stood to one side, regarding him closely.
"So you got my boat," remarked the former owner of the craft. "I hopeyou will be able to fix it up."
"Oh, I think I shall," answered the new owner of the CARLOPA. "If Ican't, father will help me."
"Yes, you have an advantage there. Are you going to keep the samename?" and Mr. Hastings seemed quite interested in what answer the ladwould make.
"I think not," replied Tom. "It's a good name, but I want somethingthat tells more what a fast boat it is, for I'm going to make somechanges that will increase the speed."
"That's a good idea. Call it the Swift."
"Folks would say I was stuck up if I did that," retorted the youthquickly. "I think I shall call it the ARROW. That's a good, shortname, and--"
"It's certainly speedy," interrupted Mr. Hastings. "Well now, sinceyou're not going to use the name CARLOPA, would you mind if I took itfor my new boat? I have a fancy for it."
"Not in the least," said Tom. "Don't you want the letters from eachside of the bow to put on your new craft?"
"It's very kind of you to offer them, and, since you will have no needfor them, I'll be glad to take them off."
"Come down to my boat," invited Tom, using the word "my" with a properpride, "and I'll take off the brass letters. I have a screw driver inmy motor-cycle tool bag."
As the former and present owners of the ARROW (which is the name bywhich I shall hereafter designate Tom's motor-boat) walked down towardthe dock where it was moored the young inventor gave a startled cry.
"What's the matter?" asked Mr. Hastings.
"That man! See him at my motor-boat?" cried Tom. He pointed to thecraft in the lake. A man was in the cockpit and seemed to be doingsomething to the forward bulkhead, which closed off the compartmentholding the gasoline tank.
"Who is he?" asked Mr. Hastings, while Tom started on a run toward theboat.
"I don't know. Some man who bid on the boat at the auction, but whodidn't go high enough," answered the lad. As he neared the craft theman sprang out, ran along the lakeshore for a short distance and thendisappeared amid the bushes which bordered the estate of Mr. Hastings.Tom hurriedly entered the ARROW.
"Did he do any damage?" asked Mr. Hastings.
"I guess he didn't have time," responded Tom. "But he was tamperingwith the lock on the door of the forward compartment. What's in there?"
"Nothing but the gasoline tank. I keep the bulkhead sliding doorlocked on general principles. I can't imagine what the fellow wouldwant to open it for. There's nothing of value in there. Perhaps heisn't right in his head. Was he a tramp?"
"No, he was well dressed but he seemed very nervous during the auction,as if he was disappointed not to have secured the boat. Yet what couldhe want in that compartment? Have you the key to the lock, Mr.Hastings?"
"Yes, it belongs to you now, Mr. Swift," and the former owner handed itto Tom, who quickly unlocked the compartment. He slid back the doorand peered within, but all he saw was the big galvanized tank.
"Nothing in there he could want," commented the former owner of thecraft.
"No," agreed Tom in a low voice. "I don't see what he wanted to openthe door for." But the time was to come, and not far off, when Tom wasto discover quite a mystery connected with the forward compartment ofhis boat, and the solution of it was fated to bring him into no littledanger.
"It certainly is odd," went on Mr. Hastings when, after Tom had securedthe screw driver from his motor-cycle tool bag, he aided the lad inremoving the letters from the bow of the boat "Are you sure you don'tknow the man?"
"No, I never saw him before. At first I thought his voice sounded likeone of the members of the Happy Harry gang, but when I looked squarelyat him I could not see a bit of resemblance. Besides, that gang wouldnot venture again into this neighborhood."
"No, I imagine not. Perhaps he was only a curious, meddlesome person.I have frequently been bothered by such individuals. They want to seeall the working parts of an automobile or motor-boat, and they don'tcare what damage they do by investigating."
Tom did not reply, but he was pretty certain that the man in questionhad more of an object than mere curiosity in tampering with the boat.However, he could discover no solution just then, and he proceeded withthe work of taking off the letters.
"What are you going to do with your boat, now that you have it?" askedMr. Hastings. "Can you run it down to your dock in the condition inwhich it is now?"
"No, I shall have to go back home, get some tools and fix up the motor.It will take half a day, at least. I will come back this afternoonand, have the boat at my house by night. That is if I may leave it atyour dock here."
"Certainly, as long as you like."
The young inventor had many things to think about as he rode towardhome, and though he was somewhat puzzled over the actions of thestranger, he forgot about that in anticipating the pleasure he wouldhave when the motor-boat was in running order.
"I'll take dad off on a cruise about the lake," he decided. "He needsa rest, for he's been working hard and worrying over the theft of theturbine motor model. I'll take Ned Newton for some rides, too, and hecan bring his camera along and get a lot of pictures. Oh, I'll havesome jolly sport this summer!"
Tom was riding swiftly along a quiet country road and was approaching asteep hill, which he could not see until he was close to it, owing to asharp turn.
As he was about to swing around it and coast swiftly down the steepdeclivity he was startled by hearing a voice calling to him from thebushes at the side of the road.
"Hold on, dar! hold on, Mistah Swift!" cried a colored man, suddenlypopping into view. "Doan't go down dat hill."
"Why, it's Eradicate Sampson!" exclaimed Tom, quickly shutting off thepower and applying the brakes. "What's the matter, Rad? Why shouldn'tI go down that hill?"
"Beca'se, Mistah Swift, dere's a pow'ful monstrous tree trunk rightacross de road at a place whar yo' cain't see it till yo' gits right ontop ob it. Ef yo' done hit dat ar tree on yo' lickity-split machine,yo' suah would land in kingdom come. Doan't go down dat hill!"
Tom leaped off his machine and approached the colored man. EradicateSampson did odd jobs in the neighborhood of Shopton, and more than onceTom had done him favors in repairing his lawn mower or his wood-sawingmachine. In turn Eradicate had given Tom a valuable clue as to thehiding place of the model thieves.
"How'd the log get across the road, Rad?" asked Tom.
"I dunno, Mistah Swift. I see it when I come along wid mah mule,Boomerang, an' I tried t' git it outer de way, but I couldn't. Den Ileft Boomerang an' mah wagon at de foot ob de hill an' I come up heaht' git a long pole t' pry de log outer de way. I didn't t'ink nobodywould come along, case dis road ain't much trabeled."
"I took it for a short cut," said the lad. "Come on, let's take a lookat the log."
Leaving his machine at the top of the slope, the young inventoraccompanied the colored man 'down the hill. At the foot of it, wellhidden from sight of any one who might come riding down, was a big log.It was all the way across the road.
"That never fell there," exclaimed Tom in some excitement. "That neverrolled off a load of logs, even if there had been one along, whichthere wasn't. That log was put there!"
"Does yo' t'ink dat, Mistah Swift?" asked Eradicate, his eyes gettingbig.
"I certainly do, and, if you hadn't warned me, I might have
beenkilled."
"Oh, I heard yo' lickity-split machine chug-chuggin' along when I werein de bushes, lookin' for a pryin' pole, an' I hurried out to warn yo.I knowed I could leave Boomerang safe, 'case he's asleep."
"I'm glad you did warn me," went on the youth solemnly. Then, as hewent closer to the log, he uttered an exclamation.
"That has been dragged here by an automobile!" he cried. "It's beendone on purpose to injure some one. Come on, Rad, let's see if wecan't find out who did it."
Something on the ground caught Tom's eye. He stooped and picked up anickle-plated wrench.
"This may come in handy as evidence," he murmured.