Tom Swift and His War Tank; Or, Doing His Bit for Uncle Sam

Indiff

d the stranger of Tom, as the young invent

arious evolutions, and down below, where the young soldiers were drilling under such conditions, as far as possible, as

k at that chap turning upsi

man, whose face he was trying to recall. It was not that Tom had no

know something about airships. It has some new wrinkles on it, and I thought you might have evolved them yourself. Not that it's an amateur af

n-buckle in place; "but I didn't actually construct it-that

uickly, as he motioned toward the big factory, not far from Shopton, wh

mused Tom; "at least until I can fig

and the stranger pointed toward the circling craf

aft. He stole a side look at the man. The face was becoming mo

t the young inventor. "It's different, somehow. Now why should m

nd tossed a monkey wre

g fixed?" aske

ried to make his answer pleasant. "It

l be on you

eady?" called T

ain so soon. There's one young fellow up there who has loope

usiness," Tom said easily.

you seem to be a mechanic, and that's just the sort of man I'm looking f

his guard

at I am," he answered

nish satisfactory references. I am in need of a good mechanic, an inventor as well, who can

their men go," said Tom, as Mr. Da

that out. But I th

ook hi

d, "but I'm otherwise e

e saw Tom about to start "Is the S

was an unexpected note in the man's voice. The face of

d above the crackling bangs of the motor. And then, a

is beard fooled me, and he probably didn't kno

ried Mr. Damon. "What

awk fell into an "air pocket," and needed all his attention

it will take but a few moments to acquaint my new readers with something of the history of the young

t was now quite aged and not in robust health, but he was acti

buildings in which the different machines and appliances were made. Tom's mother was dead, but Mrs.

s mule Boomerang; but Boomerang had manners that, at times, did not make him a welcome addition to any household. Then there was the

sion of that machine that Tom met his friend Mr. Wakefield Damon, who lived in a neighboring town. Mr.

eled in his motor boat, in an airship, and then had taken to a submarine. In his electric runabout he showed what the speediest car on the road could do,

g the diamond makers, and another from the caves of ice;

credit, fame, and not a little money. He had not long been back from an expedition to Honduras, dubbed "the land of wonders," when he was again busy on

near the shed back of the young inventor's home. "Bless my scarf pin! but any

l," Tom said, with a smile, as he motioned to Koku to

man,

ip. I kept puzzling and puzzling as to his identity, and, a

there was something vaguely familiar about him. It

told you that man was Blakeson, of Blakeson and Grinder,

down in

es

d in surprise, a

didn't know him with his beard, but that was Blakeson, all right!

e didn't seem to know me or you, either-unless he did and didn't let on. I suppose it was because of

hink he is working at the army camp, or helping make Liberty

d a mechanic, and hinted that I might do. Jove! if he really di

tle ride. And now I must be getting back. But if you co

ll my time, though I don't just like it. However, I'm going to do my best," and he waved good-bye

use, the unsettled look still o

it a minute! I've got

"Well, if it's Liberty Bonds, you don't need to show me a

e next time Uncle Sam wants the people to dig down in their socks. This is something different," and Ned Newton, a

re's the very latest from the other side. A London banker friend of mine sent it to me, and it got past the cen

-those weird machines traveling on endless steel belts of caterpillar constru

's the most wonderful machine of the age, e

ifferently, and his ma

u think that great? Why don't you say something? You

, N

atter with you? Is