Motor Matt's Daring, or, True to His Friends

seat fer anythin' on hoofs, 'r wheels, 'r wings. If ye think ye kin make Eagle-eye Perkins, ex-Pirate o' the Plains, take to the cliffs an' the cactus

ve to shed yo

around on a two-wheeled buzz-wagon, the less plunder he keeps aboard the bett

y, Welcome Perkins, the self-called reformed road-agent, had stumped out of the house and walked around the hitching-post against which Penny had leaned the machine. Welcome had snorted contemptuou

r anything Welcome hadn't done or couldn't do-to hear him tell about it-

his enthusiasm palling a little as he th

a reg'lar bike yet, so I reckon two wheels an' a couple o' quarts o' gasoline ain't

ine and to switch on the spark. Welcome

an' see how easy ridin' a contraption like that comes t

o Chub to hold, along with his hat.

sudden thought. "How am I goin' to

erk," answered Chub pr

he was gone, Welcome began pulling up the strap that secured the pin to his stump o

ed a gal in t

thing by the na

ersuade her for

' she took an'

e the saddle, his foot on the ground, with Penny, who was s

ght, son,"

wered Chub, with a wink at Penny as he lif

a head fer machinery, anyways, an' I could hev studied it

nny pull the m

ne voice, with sly grins at each

e me tea

s gave it a shove. There was a good deal of wabbling, at first, but as the mac

pointment. "The old freak seems to know how to stay on and keep right sid

ing 'round in that big open space near the canal bridge. Gee-whiz! but that was a

ueried Chub excitedly. "Some

g like a house afire, his long hair blowing out behind him, and he was howl

ye stop 'er? Ye didn't t

a gun, his voice trailing out behind him a

d Chub, "but he can't stop! Why did

ked me!" ans

s runnin' aw

g turn at another place that allowed

e howled; "how long've I

!" sugges

e tied me

ain. When he circled back on the next frantic round

"Ye framed it up between ye, that's what ye

e bridge over the canal. A man wa

ng toward the bridge, "that's Dirk H

d," answered Penny. "Looks to me as though h

ard the scene of threatened disaster. Hawley had

an!" he cried. "What d'ye m

"Can't stop-don't know how to

side. He escaped being struck, and missed going into the water of the canal by a scant margin; but he had been obliged to

about Welcome, but the old fellow was plunging on beyond t

nce, and bring himself to a halt at any cost, his frenzied eyes caught sight of a

amed thing's got the bit in its tee

e, then described a half-circle, put on more power, and raced along beside the

, when both machines were at a halt and the old man was standing

p'intin' fer All Outdoors an' becomin' a hootin', tootin' border ruffian, as I do this here minit! Wow! The ole

nderstood just how much of a false alarm he was. "It won't do for you to backslide now, after you

h the rope. As soon as Welcome could jerk the pin loose, he whirled and stumped furious

what Dirk Hawley is doing over in this direction? Welcome came within one of kno

lying on the planks, and halted to pick the object up. It proved to be an old envelope with an enclosure of some sort, and was addressed to James

for Chub, and had fallen from Dirk Hawley's pocket when he threw himself out of the way of Welcome and the charging motor-cycle. But how was it that such a letter happened to be

that letter? Hand it over