Chapter Twenty-Three
The Great Race
"Well," remarked Mr. Sharp, when Tom and Mr. Damon had called on him,to state that Andy Foger's machine was now on the grounds, anddemanding to be allowed to view it, to see if it was an infringement onthe one entered by the young inventor, "I'll do the best I can for you.I'll lay the case before the committee. It will meet at once, and I'lllet you know what they say."
"Understand," said Tom, "I don't want to interfere unless I amconvinced that Andy is trying an underhand trick. My plans are missing,and I think he took them. If his machine is made after those plans, itis, obviously, a steal, and I want him ruled out of the meet."
"And so he shall be!" exclaimed Mr. Sharp. "Get the evidence againsthim, and we'll act quickly enough."
The committee met in about an hour, and considered the case. Meanwhile,Tom and Mr. Damon strolled past the tent with its flaring sign. Therewas a man on guard, but Andy was not in sight.
Then Tom was sent for, and Mr. Sharp told him what conclusion had beenarrived at. It was this:
"Under the rules of the meet," said the balloonist, "we had toguarantee privacy to all the contestants until such time as they chooseto exhibit their machines. That is, they need not bring them out untiljust before the races," he added. "This is not a handicap affair, andthe speediest machine, or the one that goes to the greatest height,according to which class it enters, will win. In consequence we cannotforce any contestant to declare what kind of a machine he will useuntil he gets ready.
"Some are going to use the familiar type of biplanes and, as you cansee, there is no secret about them. They are trying them out now." Thiswas so, for several machines of this type were either in the air,circling about, or were being run over the ground.
"But others," continued Mr. Sharp, "will not even take the committeeinto their confidence until just before the race. They want to keeptheir craft a secret. We can't compel them to do otherwise. I'm sorry,Tom, but the only thing I see for you to do is to wait until the lastminute. Then, if you find Andy has infringed on your machine, lodge aprotest--that is unless you can get evidence against him before thattime."
Tom well knew the uselessness of the latter plan. He and Mr. Damon hadtried several times to get a glimpse of the craft Andy had made, butwithout success. As to the other alternative--that of waiting until thelast moment--Tom feared that, too, would be futile.
"For," he reasoned, "just before the race there will be a lot ofconfusion, officials will be here and there, scattered over the ground,they will be hard to find, and it will be almost useless to protestthen. Andy will enter the race, and there is a possibility that he maywin. Almost any one could with a machine like the Humming-Bird. It'sthe machine almost as much as the operator, in a case like this."
"But you can protest after the race," suggested Mr. Damon.
"That would be little good, in case Andy beat me. The public would sayI was a sorehead, and jealous. No, I've either got to stop Andy beforethe race, or not at all. I will try to think of a plan."
Tom did think of several, but abandoned them one after the other. Hetried to get a glimpse inside the tent where the Foger aeroplane washoused, but it was too closely guarded. Andy himself was not much inevidence, and Tom only had fleeting glimpses of the bully.
Meanwhile he and Mr. Damon, together with their machinist, were keptbusy. As Tom's craft was fully protected by patents now, he had nohesitation in taking it out, and it was given several severe testsaround the aerial course. It did even better than Tom expected of it,and he had great hopes.
Always, though, there were two things that worried him. One was hisfather's illness, and the other the uneasiness he felt as to what AndyFoger might do. As to the former, the wireless reports indicated thatMr. Swift was doing as well as could be expected, but his improvementwas not rapid. Regarding the latter worry, Tom saw no way of gettingrid of it.
"I've just got to wait, that's all," he thought.
The day before the opening of the meet, Tom and Mr. Damon had given theHumming-Bird a grueling tryout. They had taken her high up--so highthat no prying eyes could time them, and there Tom had opened the motorfor all the power in it. They had flashed through space at the rate ofone hundred and twenty miles an hour.
"If we can only do that in the race, the ten thousand dollars is mine!"exulted Tom, as he slanted the nose of the aeroplane toward the earth.
The day of the race dawned clear and beautiful. Tom was up early, forthere remained many little things to do to get his craft in final trimfor the contest. Then, too, he wanted to be ready to act promptly assoon as Andy's machine was wheeled out, and he also wanted to get amessage from home.
The wireless arrived soon after breakfast, and did not contain verycheering news.
"Your father not so well," Mr. Jackson sent. "Poor night, but doctorthinks day will show improvement. Don't worry."
"Don't worry! I wonder who could help it," mused poor Tom. "Well, I'llhope for the best," and he wired back to tell the engineer in Shoptonto keep in touch with him, and to flash the messages to theHumming-Bird in the air, after the big race started.
"Now I'll go out and see if I can catch a glimpse of what that sneakAndy has to pit against me," said Tom.
The Foger tent was tightly closed, and Tom turned back to his ownplace, having arranged with a messenger to come and let him know assoon as Andy's craft was wheeled out.
All about was a scene of great activity. The grand stands were filled,and a big crowd stood about the field anxiously waiting for the firstsight of the "bird-men" in their wonderful machines. Now and then theband blared out, and cheers arose as one after another the frail craftwere wheeled to the starting place.
Men in queer leather costumes darted here and there--they were theaviators who were soon to risk life and limb for glory and gold. Mostof them were nervously smoking cigarettes. The air was filled withguttural German or nasal French, while now and then the staccatoRussian was heard, and occasionally the liquid tones of a Japanese. Formen of many nations were competing for the prizes.
The majority of the machines were monoplanes and biplanes though onetriplane was entered, and there were several "freaks" as the biplaneand monoplane men called them--craft of the helicopter, or the wheeltype. There was also one Witzig Liore Dutilleul biplane, with threeplanes behind.
Tom was familiar with most of these types, but occasionally he saw anew one that excited his curiosity. However, he was more interested inwhat Andy Foger would turn out. Andy's machine had not been tried, andTom wondered how he dared risk flying in it, without at least apreliminary tryout. But Andy, and those with him, were evidently fullof confidence.
News of the suspicions of Tom, and what he intended to do in case thesesuspicions proved true, had gotten around, and there was quite a crowdabout his own tent, and another throng around that of Andy.
Tom and Mr. Damon had wheeled the Humming-Bird out of her canvas"nest." There was a cheer as the crowd caught sight of the trim littlecraft. The young inventor, the eccentric man, and the machinist werebusy going over every part.
Meanwhile the meet had been officially opened, and it was announcedthat the preliminary event would be some air evolutions at no greatheight, and for no particular prize. Several biplanes and monoplanestook part in this. It was very interesting, but the bigten-thousand-dollar race, over a distance of a hundred miles was theprincipal feature of the meet, and all waited anxiously for this.
The opening stunts passed off successfully, save that a German operatorin a Bleriot came to grief, crashing down to the ground, wrecking hismachine, and breaking an arm. But he only laughed at that, and coollydemanded another cigarette, as he crawled out of the tangle of wires,planes and the motor.
After this there was an exhibition flight by a French aviator in aCurtis biplane, who raced against one in a Baby Wright. It was a deadheat, according to the judges. Then came a flight for height; and whileno records were broken, the crowd was well satisfied.
"
Get ready for the hundred-mile ten-thousand-dollar-prize race!"shouted the announcer, through his megaphone.
Tom's heart gave a bound. There were seven entrants in this contestbesides Tom and Andy Foger, and as announced by the starter they wereas follows:
CONTESTANT MACHINE Von Bergen.................Wright Biplane Alameda..............Antoinette Monoplane Perique.................Bleriot Monoplane Loi Tong..........Santos-Dumont Monoplane Wendell....................Curtis Biplane De Tromp...................Farman Biplane Lascalle.............Demoiselle Monoplane Andy Foger.................-------------- Tom Swift..........Humming-Bird Monoplane
"What is the style of the Foger machine?" yelled some one in the crowd,as the announcer lowered his megaphone.
"It has not been announced," was the reply. "It will at once be wheeledout though, in accordance with the conditions of the race."
There was a craning of necks, and an uneasy movement in the crowd, forTom's story was now generally known.
"Get ready to make your protest," advised Mr. Damon to the younginventor. "I'll stay by the machine here until you come back. Bless myradiator! I hope you beat him!"
"I will, if it's possible!" murmured Tom, with a grim tightening of hislips.
There was a movement about Andy's tent, whence, for the last half hourhad come spasmodic noises that indicated the trying-out of the motor.The flaps were pulled back and a curious machine was wheeled into view.Tom rushed over toward it, intent on getting the first view. Would itprove to be a copy of his speedy Humming-Bird?
Eagerly he looked, but a curious sight met his eyes. The machine wastotally unlike any he had expected to see. It was large, and to hismind rather clumsy, but it looked powerful. Then, as he took in thedetails, he knew that it was the same one that had flown over his housethat night--it was the one from which the fire bomb had been dropped.
He pushed his way through the crowd. He saw Andy standing near thecurious biplane, which type of air craft it nearest resembled, thoughit had some monoplane features. On the side was painted the name:
SLUGGER
Andy caught sight of Tom Swift.
"I'm going to beat you!" the bully boasted, "and I haven't a machinelike yours, after all. You were wrong."
"So I see," stammered Tom, hardly knowing what to think. "What did youdo with my plans then?"
"I never had them!"
Andy turned away, and began to assist the men he had hired to help him.Like all the others, his machine had two seats, for in this race eachoperator must carry a passenger.
Tom turned away, both glad and sorry,--glad that his rival was not torace him in a duplicate of the Humming-Bird, but sorry that he had asyet no track of the strangely missing plans.
"I wonder where they can be?" mused the young inventor.
Then came the firing of the preliminary gun. Tom rushed back to whereMr. Damon stood waiting for him.
There was a last look at the Humming-Bird. She was fit to race anymachine on the ground. Mr. Damon took his place. Tom started thepropeller. The other contestants were in their seats with theirpassengers. Their assistants stood ready to shove them off. Theexplosions of so many motors in action were deafening.
"How much thrust?" cried Tom to his machinist.
"Twenty-two hundred pounds!"
"Good!"
The report of the starting-gun could not be heard. But the smoke of itleaped into the air. It was the signal to go.
Tom's voice would not have carried five feet. He waved his hands as asignal. His helper thrust the Humming-Bird forward. Over the smoothground it rushed. Tom looked eagerly ahead. On a line with him were theother machines, including Andy Foger's Slugger.
Tom pulled a lever. He felt his craft soar upward. The other machinesalso pointed their noses into the air.
The big race for the ten-thousand-dollar prize was under way!