Tom Swift and his Electric Rifle

Table of

of a full moon, which shone down from a cloudless sky, he saw a man standing at the por

aring honest folks out of their wits, and making 'em think the end of the world has come! W

e me a chance, Mr. Mok

rly town character, living all alone in a small house, just beyond Tom's home, again shook h

ool for five minutes, and come inside and tell me what happened I'll be

u tried to shoot

Tom, as the excited man calmed

ough the side of the house, whizzes past my ear, makes my hair fairly stand up on end, and goes outside the other side of the house. What kind of bullet

me a chance," went on Tom wearily. "

shooting gallery of yours point right at my

empt to, and Mr

do you m

ric gun went near you, it was a mist

declared the excited man. "

rifle, but I had the limit set for two hundred feet, the length of the gal

of my house all the same," insisted Mr. Moker. "It didn'

with the gage set for that distance." He paused suddenly, and hurried over to where he had pla

a thousand feet instead of two hundred. I forgot to change it. The charge, after passing through the steel

me!" exclaimed the still angry man.

ton "Everybody knows Tom Swift wouldn't try

did he sho

xplained Tom, "and I ap

en killed!" muttered the miser. "I'm going to sue

le!" excl

le?" demanded

carecrow figure I made for a test," explained Tom. "All that passed through your house was a small charge, and, if it HAD

unningly. "You say so, but for all I

Tom, trying

the miser went on quickly, "but folks thinks I've got a lot, and I

had been a powerful charge you would never have been able to come over here. I set the main charge to go off inside the

nsisted the miser with

f the cloth and straw," explained Tom. "First the charge would have destroyed the steel plate, which it passed through without

n been set up on the range. This time Tom was careful to set the gage so t

the heavy steel plate was bent, torn and twisted as

worry, Mr. Moker, you didn't have a narrow escape. You were in

laimed the miser. "I believe I could sue you for

ant man. "Will ten dollars be enough?" He knew that the whole room could be repapered for that,

t," agreed the miser craftily, "though it's worth thirteen dollars, if it

ded the young inventor, passing over the money,

ther way," suggested Mr. Moker as he went out, car

er queer," remarked

I was sure I set the gage for two hundred feet. I'll have to invent some automatic attachment to prevent it be

is end the tes

Tom. "We haven't any more stuffed figures to fire at, but I

isturb Mr. Moker, or

on, see if you can shatter this steel target," an

o his chum, and, taking his place in a protected part o

ed Tom, and Ned p

eemed to crumple up, and collapse as if it had been melted in the fire. There was a jag

usiastically. "I had the di

tric bullet stopped as soon as it did

" explained Tom. "You know I said t

es

ke a big dry-goods box, and make believe it's an elephant. Now, this is going to be a h

I to do?"

little hill back of the shed, and not tell me where you put it. Then I'll go out, and, by

t anyhow, in the moo

ooking out of a window. "It's quite dark, and will gi

? Suppose you misjudge the distance, and the b

stake the charge will go into the side of the hill, and spend itself there. There is no d

ery dark now, and if Tom could see in the night to hit a box som

y see to make their way along, carrying it to the foot of the hill, and they stumbled several times. But at last it was