CHAPTER IV
A PERILOUS FLIGHT
There was silence for a moment--there had to be--for Eradicate wasdoubled over with mirth and could not even laugh aloud, and as forAndy the whitewash running down his face and over his moutheffectually prevented speech. But the silence did not last long.
Just as Eradicate caught his breath, and let out a hearty laugh,Andy succeeded in wiping some of the liquid from his face so that itwas safe to open his mouth. Then he fairly let out a roar of rage.
"I'll have you put in jail for that, Eradicate Sampson!" he cried."You've nearly killed me: You'll suffer for this! My father will sueyou for damages, too! Look at me! Look at me!"
"Dat's jest what I'se doin', honey! Jest what I'se doin'!" gaspedEradicate, hardly able to speak from laughter. "Yo' suah am a mostcontrary lookin' specimen! Yo' suah is! Ha! Ha!"
"Stop it!" commanded Andy. "Don't you dare laugh at me, afterthrowing whitewash on me."
"I didn't throw no whitewash on you!" protested the colored man."Yo' done poured it over yo'se'f, dat's what yo' done did. An' Ijest cain't help laughin', honey. I jest natchally cain't! Yo' lookso mortally distressed, dat's what yo' does!"
Andy's rage might have been dangerous, but the very excess of itrendered him incapable of doing anything. He was wild at Eradicateand would willingly have attacked him, but the whitewash wasbeginning to soak through his clothes, and he was so wet andmiserable that soon all the fight oozed out of him.
Then, too, though Eradicate was old, he was strong and he still heldthe long handle of the whitewash brush, no unformidable weapon. SoAndy contented himself with verbal abuse. He called Eradicate allthe mean names he could think of, ending up with:
"You won't hear the last of this for a long time, either. I'll haveyou, and your old rack of bones, your mule Boomerang, run out oftown, that's what I will."
"What's dat? Yo' all gwine t'hab Boomerang run out ob town?"demanded Eradicate, a sudden change coming over him. His mule washis most beloved possession. "Lemme tell yo' one thing, Massa Andy.I'se an old colored man, an' I ain't much 'count mebby. But ef yo'dare lay one finger on mah mule Boomerang, only jest one finger,mind you', why I'll--I'll jest natchally drown yo'--all inwhitewash, dat's what I'll do!"
Eradicate drew himself up proudly, and boldly faced Andy. The bullyshrank back. He knew better than to arouse the colored man further.
"You'll suffer for this," predicted the bully. "I'm not going toforget it. Tom Swift put you up to this, and I'll take it out of himthe next time I see him. He's to blame."
"Now looky heah, honey!" said Eradicate quick. "Doan't yo' all gitno sich notion laik dat in yo' head. Massa Tom didn't tell me to donoth'in an I ain't. He ain't eben 'round yeh. An' annudder thing.Yo'se t' blame to' this yo' own se'f. Ef yo' hadn't gone fo' is kickde bucket it nebber would 'a happened. It's yo' own fault, honey,an' doan't yo' forgit dat! No, yo' better go home an' git some dryclothes on."
It was good advice, for Andy was soaking wet. He glared angrily atEradicate, and then swung off down the road, the whitewash drippingfrom his garments at every step.
"Land a massy! But he suah did use up all mah lime." complainedEradicate, as he picked up the overturned pail. "I's got t' makemo'. But I doan't mind," he added cheerfully, and then, as he sawthe woe-begone figure of Andy shuffling along, he laughed heartily,fitted the brush on the handle and went to tell Tom and Ned what hadhappened, and make more whitewash.
"Hum! Served him right," commented the young inventor.
"I suppose he'll try to play some mean trick on you now," commentedNed. "He'll think you had some hand in what Rad did."
"Let him," answered Tom. "If he tries any of his games I'll be readyfor him."
"Maybe we'll soon be able to start for the city of gold," suggestedNed.
"I'm afraid not in some time," was his chum's reply. "It's going totake quite a while to get ready, and then we've got to wait to hearfrom Mr. Illingway. I wonder if it's true that Mr. Foger has losthis fortune; or was that only a trick?"
"Oh, it's true enough," answered Ned. "I heard some of the bankofficials talking about it the other day." Ned was employed in oneof the Shopton banks, an institution in which Tom and his fatherowned considerable stock. "He hasn't hardly any money left, and hemay leave town and go out west, I heard."
"He can't go any too soon to suit me," spoke Tom, "and I hope hetakes Andy with him."
"Your father isn't going to have any business dealings with Mr.Foger then?"
"I guess not. Dad doesn't trust him. But say, Ned, what do you sayto a little trip in my sky racer? I want to go over to Waterford andsee Mr. Damon. We can talk about our trip, and he was going to getsome big maps of Central Mexico to study. Will you come?"
"I will this afternoon. I've got to go to the bank now."
"All right, I'll wait for you. In the meanwhile I'll be tuning upthe motor. It didn't run just right the other night."
The two chums separated, Ned to go downtown to the bank, while Tomhastened to the shed where he kept his speedy little air craft.Meanwhile Eradicate went on whitewashing the fence, pausing everynow and then to chuckle at the memory of Andy Foger.
Tom found that some minor adjustments had to be made to the motor,and they took him a couple of hours to complete. It was nearly noonwhen he finished, and leaving the sky racer in the open space infront of the shed, he went in the house to wash up, for his face andhands were begrimed with dirt and oil.
"But the machine's in good shape," he said to the housekeeper whenshe objected to his appearance, "and Ned and I will have a speedyspin this afternoon."
"Oh, you reckless boys! Risking your lives in those aeroplanes!"exclaimed Mrs. Baggert.
"Why, they're safer than street cars!" declared Tom with a laugh."Just think how often street cars collide, and you never heard of anaeroplane doing that."
"No, but think what happens when they fall."
"That's it!" cried Tom gaily, "when they fall you don't have time tothink. But is dinner ready? I'm hungry."
"Never saw you when you weren't." commented the housekeeperlaughing. "Yes, you can sit right down. We won't wait for yourfather. He said he'd be late as he wants to find something about hisgyroscope. I never did any such people as inventors for spoilingtheir meals," she added as she put dinner on the table.
Mr. Swift came in before his son had finished.
"Was Andy Foger here to see me again?" he asked.
"No, why do you ask?" inquired Tom quickly.
"I just saw him out by the aeroplane shed, and--"
Tom jumped up without another word, and hurried to where his skyracer rested on its bicycle wheels.
He breathed more easily when he saw that Andy was not in sight, anda hurried inspection of the aeroplane did not disclose that it hadbeen tampered with.
"Anything the matter?" asked Mr. Swift, as he followed his son.
"No, but when you mentioned that Andy was out here I thought hemight have been up to some of his tricks. He had a little troublewith Eradicate this morning, and he threatened to get even with mefor it." And Tom told of the whitewashing incident.
"I just happened to see him as I was coming to dinner," went on theaged inventor. "He hurried off--when he noticed me, but I thought hemight have been here to leave another letter."
"No," said Tom. "I must tell Eradicate to keep his weather eye openfor him, though. No telling what Andy'll do. Well, I must finisheating, or Ned will be here before I'm through."
After dinner, Ned arrived, and helped Tom start the motor. With aroar and a bang the swift little machine rapidly got up speed, thepropellers whizing so fast that they looked like blurs of light. Thesky racer was held back by a rope, as Tom wanted to note the "pull"of the propellers, the force they exerted against the air beingregistered on a spring balance.
"What does it say, Ned?" cried the young inventor as he adjusted thecarburettor.
"A shade over nine hundred pounds."
"Guess that'll do. Hop in, and I'll cast o
ff from the seat."
This Tom frequently did when there was no one available to hold theaeroplane for him while he mounted. He could pull a cord, loosen theretaining rope, and away the craft would go.
The two chums were soon seated side by side and then Tom, graspingthe steering wheel, turned on full power and jerked the releasingrope.
Over the ground shot the sky racer, quickly attaining speed until,with a deft motion, the young inventor tilted the deflecting rudderand up into the air they shot.
"Oh, this is glorious!" cried Ned, for, though he had often takentrips with Tom, every time he went up he seemed to enjoy it more.
Higher and higher they rose, and then with the sharp nose ofthe craft turned in the proper direction they sailed off well abovethe trees and houses toward Waterford.
"Guess I'll go up a bit higher," Tom yelled into his chums ear whenthey were near their destination. "Then I can make a spiral glide toearth. I haven't practiced that lately."
Up and up went the sky racer, until it was well over the town ofWaterford, where Mr. Damon lived.
"There's his place!" yelled Ned, pointing downward. He had to yellto be heard above the noise of the motor. Tom nodded in reply. He,too, had picked out Mr. Damon's large estate. There were many goodlanding places on it, one near the house for which Tom headed.
The aeroplane shot downward, like a bird darting from the sky. Tomgrasped the rudder lever more firmly. He looked below him, and then,suddenly he uttered a cry of terror.
"What is it?" yelled Ned.
"The rudder! The deflecting rudder! It's jammed, and I can't throwher head up! We're going to smash into the ground, Ned! I can'tcontrol her! Something has gone wrong!"