On a Torn-Away World; Or, the Captives of the Great Earthquake

range aeroplane. That was driven at a sharp angle down upon the boys' flying mach

he mists and the wind shrieked through the stays of the ae

torrent from the clouds, swept about them, saturating their garme

son, and their companions were in as grave peril a

to the earth-and to be dashed down from such a height

depended entirely upon his handling of the great machine. They had descended below the level of the

planes, or wings, of the flying machine were not torn away. All Jack could do was to guide her the best h

nd-and the flying machine and his friends with him-wit

was so blinding; nor could he observe the indicators before him with any clearness. But he was quite sure that the enemy that had driven him

rd. The flying machine shook and throbbed in every part. The power of the engines would have driven her, under

rk of manipulating the levers. He brought the Snowbird through the cloud and-with startling suddenness-they s

perfect calm of the upper ether was so great that it was

as Mark w

ane again, Jack I

h still on a level above, at the pace the Snowbird was now trav

) was not kept up for long. By eight o'clock the Snowbird had dropped the other machine below the horizon,

ssing harmlessly through the vapor which had so long hidden the earth from them, and so came

ay a good bit to land near this town on the shore of the St. Lawrence, for the flying mach

ed the place a five-dollar bill to allow the machine to stand on his land,

they might meet, the boys went to a machine shop to have a rod repaired. The party took supper with the farmer, and an hour later the flying machine being pronou

achine soared heavenward the voyagers could look deep into the seeming black-velvet of the skies, picked

a few minutes, they were flying over St. Thomas, where the lights twinkled, too. Then they shot over the broad, i

and then in the operator's seat, and they did not call the boys until Washington White made breakfast at daybreak. By that time the Snowbird had passed Lake St. John, far to the north and east, and was heading for Hudson Bay. The earth below

n altitude of two thousand feet and the rarefied atmosphere so far above the earth was cool, anyway. Since leaving St. Thomas, on the bank of the St.

part of Hudson Bay," Pro

s and they slid down the airways toward the water. They traveled all night over this great inland sea, at tim

oyagers they could not rise in the Snowbird above the tempest. Had there been solid ground benea

the safety of the flying machine each moment. There was no sleep for any of the party now, and Washington White came pretty near (as Jack said)

n of the gale. The great body of water was passed and they knew that there was land beneath them again. But e

he study of his recording instruments, that they were passing over an utter wilderness in which no help could be

bird at times, when driven by the full force of the

or told them that, had it been clear, at the altitude they tra

Arctic Sea. Blown on and on, with little diminution of speed, it was not many hours before the Snowbird was flying over Alaskan wilds. The flying machine had kept cl

minds, however, was this: Would th