Tom Swift and His Sky Racer; Or, The Quickest Flight on Record

rize

, the inventor of

bell glanced at the youth

" was the reply. "Di

k Aviation Association. I had some correspondence with y

t you come in? My father will be glad to see you. He is as much interested in airships as I am." And Tom led the w

I came to see you, than if we corresponded," went on Mr. Gunmore. "I hope I haven'

ad to see you. I thought at first it was my chum,

which is a suburb of Westville, New York State. We expect to have all the prominent 'bird-men' there, to compete fo

he Red Cloud, was destroyed in Alaska, during a recent trip

ed you might have some other air craft that you could enter at our meet. We want to make it as com

ed Tom, "but since my big craft was destr

compete for the prizes? There are several to be offered, some for distance flights, some for altitude, and the largest, ten thou

utterfly, I call it, and while it is very speedy, there have been such advances made in aeroplane const

e could induce you to enter. I don't mind telling you that w

. I haven't any

have plenty of time, as it doesn't come off for three months yet. We are only making the preliminary arrangements. It i

ring it. There was an increased brightness to his eyes, and one could tel

prize," he went on. "I would be very glad if you did win it, and, so I think, would be the gentlemen associated with me in this enterpr

d coming along the hall, and a moment later an

"I didn't know you had company.

sted in this as I am. This is Mr. Gunmore, of the Eagle P

ok hands with the aged inventor. "You and your son

in the youth. "He wants me to build a specially sp

e you ought to take a rest. You haven't been back from your gold-hunti

away," eagerly explained Mr. Gunmore. "Th

d his father. "Do you think you could build

e a plan partly thought out, but it will take some ti

secretary. "May I ask whether it

edy than the double-deckers, and if I'm going to try for the

ast monoplanes for the meet," went on Mr.

an any that have yet been constructed, and yet one that will carry two persons. The hardest work will be to make

small monoplane! It isn't po

" said Tom quietly, and with not

the meet?" asked

hinking out the details for my new craft. I have been going to build one ever since I got back, a

ing to put you down as a possible contestant for the ten-thousand-

and his father, for they all distinctly heard steal

ere, listening," sa

the eccentric colored man who was employed by the inventor and his

dn't be back until late to-night. He had to get some medicine for his mule, Boomerang, who is s

d looked out. He could observe nothing, as the night was dark, a

Mr. Gunmore as he ad

swer. "I can't hear

eper," volunteered Mr. Swift. "Perhaps it w

that his father appeared older that night than he had ever looked before. There

n the wall, in order to darken the room, so that he might peer out to better advantage. "I think he's been working too hard on

had emerged from behind a thin bank

asked Mr. Gunm

e open top and bottom, a screen on the outside keeping out mosquitoes

e sounded a rustling in the shrubber

hing!" exclaim

wered the yo

n to get under the lower sash (for the windows in the library ran all th

shes. They were violently agitated, and a second later a

? Hold on!" cried

ang forward, determined to see who i

ried again. The

had gained on the fugitive, who could just be

t you!"

foot caught on the outcropping root of a tree

luck!"

The latter glanced back, and, as it happened, Tom had a good

such an enemy of our hero. "Andy Foger sneaking under my windows to hear what I ha

ight of the figure. A moment later he heard the p

is car!" And knowing it would be useless to keep up