Chapter 2 Tom Swift and His Sky Train by Victor Appleton
A WONDERFUL INVENTION
Tom Swift’s first order was to Porton, the pilot in the glider directly attached to the big airplane.
“Cut loose and go down!” snapped Tom into the instrument. “Northrup has cracked!” Then, switching the telephone to the cockpit of the towing plane, the young inventor called to Mason: “Stand ready to make a landing when I give the word! Porton is going to cut loose! Northrup has made a nose dive and is going to crack! Land on the far side of the field so you won’t taxi into either glider! Get ready now! Porton has cut off!”
Having given his orders, Tom dropped the instrument and looked out of a side window, down to the ground.
“There he goes!” he exclaimed. “Oh, what a crack!”
“Killed?” gasped Ned.
“I’m afraid so! Get the first aid kit out!” and Tom pointed to a wall cabinet where it was kept.
As Ned turned away from the window, he had a fleeting glimpse of the glider, out of control, with Northrup in it, strike the earth. A moment later the other glider, carefully piloted by Porton, went down in a perfect landing.
Once more Tom Swift called to the plane pilot:
“Shoot her down, Mason!”
The big craft began to lose speed and approach the earth while Ned, with the first aid kit ready, and Tom Swift waited anxiously to ascertain the extent of damage and to learn what had happened to the luckless Northrup.
“This is bad, Ned! Bad!” murmured Tom. “Poor fellow!”
“Yes, Tom, it looks bad!”
And while they are getting ready to make a landing it will be an opportune moment to tell new readers something about Tom Swift and Ned Newton, as related in previous volumes of this series.
The first book is named “Tom Swift and His Motor Cycle.” Tom, then a younger man, in fact a mere lad, was the son of Barton Swift, a well-known inventor who lived in Shopton, a small interior city on the shores of Lake Carlopa. Mrs. Swift had been dead for some time and Tom and his father were looked after by Mrs. Baggert as housekeeper. Another member of the family was Eradicate, an aged colored servant. Ned Newton had been Tom’s boyhood friend and was now his business manager. For under the guidance of Mr. Swift there had sprung up in Shopton a big business in making many machines. Tom’s first venture into the inventive field was after a Mr. Wakefield Damon, of the neighboring city of Waterfield, riding his new motor cycle, tried (unsuccessfully and without real intention) to climb a tree with it. Disgusted with his purchase, Mr. Damon, exclaiming: “Bless my insurance policy, I’m done with motor cycles,” sold it to Tom.
Tom repaired it, improved it and then began his inventing career. He next appeared in a speedy motor boat and from that it was but a step to an airship. As the years went on, Mr. Swift’s health failed and Tom, with Ned to help him as business manager, took charge of the Swift Construction Company, with faithful Garrett Jackson as head of the different shops.
Tom’s various inventions and exploits are set forth in the different books prior to this one. The volume immediately preceding this one is called “Tom Swift and His Big Dirigible,” and in it is told how Tom managed with his Silver Cloud to make a most thrilling rescue of several guests marooned at a summer resort hotel by a great forest fire. Since then Tom had been busy on as many new ideas as his wife, who was formerly Mary Nestor, would let him busy himself over. Tom had long been in love with Mary, and his attentions had been encouraged by Mr. and Mrs. Nestor ever since Tom succeeded in saving them by means of his celebrated wireless message. Tom’s marriage was such a happy one that he often urged Ned to become the husband of Helen Morton, and Ned had said, more than once, that he “would think about it.” At the time of this story he was still thinking.
The first part of this wonderful inventive experiment was under way when the accident happened. The rear of two gliders had, in some manner, become detached from its fellow, which, in turn, was coupled to the powerful airplane, and now lay a shapeless wreck on the ground.
“Come on, Ned!” called Tom as Mason skillfully brought the big plane to a perfect, three-point landing. “Maybe he isn’t killed, though it looks like a bad crack!”
“It sure does!” Ned echoed as, with the first aid kit in his hands, he followed Tom who was racing across the landing field toward the crumpled glider. Luckily there was no fire, as gliders carry no motor, with gasoline which can explode.
As Tom and Ned rushed toward the scene of the accident, several men from the Swift shops, which lined one side of the landing field, were also seen hurrying to aid. Among them was one big, powerful fellow who easily outdistanced the others, reaching the wreck first.
“There goes Koku!” murmured Ned.
“Yes, my giant is right on the job!” Tom echoed.
Koku was, in truth, a veritable giant, nearly eight feet tall now, and broad in proportion. Before Tom and Ned, or any of the others could reach the scene of the disaster Koku, who had been brought back from a strange jungle on one of Tom’s exploring airship trips, was beside the wrecked glider, tearing it apart with his powerful hands.
“I get um out!” he rumbled in his deep voice, and, as he spoke, he tenderly lifted out in his big arms the inert form of Northrup. No one but a giant like Koku could have done it so quickly and skillfully.
“Is he dead?” cried Tom, as he reached the side of his big man and looked anxiously at his pilot.
“No—guess um not deaded,” Koku answered. His English left much to be desired, but his strength and kind heart nothing. “See, um make um eyes open.”
As Koku spoke, the pilot, who had fallen to earth with the suddenly released glider, slowly opened his eyes and put his hand to his head which was bleeding a little.
“How are you, old man? Mighty sorry this happened!” exclaimed Tom. “Quick, Ned! Some bandages! And give him a little stimulant! Are you badly hurt, Northrup?”
The pilot lay still a moment in the great arms of Koku and then struggled to an upright position, much to the relief of Tom, Ned and the others who had hurried up. Among them were Mason the mechanic of the plane and Porton from the second glider which had landed safely.
“I—I guess I’m pretty near all right, Mr. Swift,” Northrup slowly answered. “A bit shaken up but—nothing broken,” he went on as he got to his feet, took a few steps and flexed his arms. As he did so, a spasm of pain crossed his face and Tom leaped forward to catch him, thinking he was about to fall.
“It’s just a sprain, that’s all,” Northrup said with half a smile. “I thought I was going to make it all right,” he went on, “but I couldn’t straighten her out in time and she hit right on her nose.”
“Yes, I saw it,” said Tom. “You’re lucky not to be like that,” and he pointed to the cracked-up glider. “I’m glad I put the control seat as far back as I did.”
“That’s about all that saved me,” Northrup admitted.
“But what happened?” Tom asked when he saw his man was not seriously hurt. “I didn’t tell you to uncouple the glider. I was just going to after Mason speeded up, but I hadn’t given the word.”
“I know you hadn’t, Mr. Swift. I was waiting for it when, all of a sudden, without doing a thing, I found myself loose and down I shot before I could get the controls where I wanted them.”
“You mean you didn’t cut loose?” asked Tom, a bit sharply.
“No, sir, I didn’t, Mr. Swift. She cut loose herself! I think there is something wrong with the coupling mechanism!”
“Is that so! Well, that’s bad and it’s something I’ll have to look into,” Tom said. “Not much use looking at the coupling of that glider, though,” he went on, grimly, as he pointed to the wreck. “But how about your coupling, Porton?”
“Mine worked all right,” answered the second pilot. “I cut her loose when I got word from you and she landed perfect—like a feather.”
“I can’t understand it,” murmured Tom, going over to the wreck of the cracked glider, in the hope of being able to pick some pieces of the coupling device out of the debris. He shook his head in puzzled fashion. “Well,” he went on, “we’ll have to go into this thoroughly later. Mr. Jackson,” he said to the shop manager who had come out with some of his workers, “have this stuff taken to my laboratory, please. I’ll go over it there,” and he pointed to what was left of the glider. “You can put the plane in the hangar, Mason,” he said to the chief pilot. “And, Porton!”
“Yes, Mr. Swift.”
“Detach the coupling mechanism from your glider and bring it to my office. I may have to make some changes in it. We certainly can’t afford to drop a passenger glider off our sky train and have this happen to it,” he added with a rueful laugh as he turned aside from the twisted mass of wings, struts and cockpit that had, a little while ago, been a perfect glider.
“I should say not!” murmured Ned. “I’m afraid this is going to have a bad effect on business,” he went on, as he and Tom started for the office of the plant.
“How do you mean?”
“Well, when Lester Willam hears about this accident, he isn’t going to have enough confidence in your new invention to lend you any money. And he will be sure to hear of it.”
“Yes,” agreed the young inventor as Ned finished, “I guess this bad news will spread. And I’m not going to try and stop it. Often experiments fail. It is through failure that we learn. This was only an experiment—and a partial failure. I’m glad Northrup wasn’t much hurt, though.”
“So am I! What’s that?” Ned exclaimed as a sound of high voices came from the group of shopmen they had just left. Koku’s deep tones could be heard saying:
“Yes, I carry you! Master Tom he say I do dat!”
“You’re not going to carry me like a baby, you big giant!” objected Northrup with a laugh. “I’m all right. I can walk,” which he proceeded to prove, though he limped slightly.
“Ef I done had mah old mule, Boomerang, I’d ride yo’ all in on him back,” proclaimed Eradicate the old colored man, shuffling along back of Koku and the pilot of the glider. “An’ ef yo’ all wait a bit, I’ll git mah wheelbarrer!”
“No, thanks!” said Northrup.
“Rad go ’way!” ordered Koku.
“I ain’t gwine t’ do it! Massa Tom want me t’ help much as he does yo’ all—yo’ great big stiff!” and Rad looked angrily at the giant.
“They’re at it again!” spoke Ned with a chuckle. Tom smiled and called:
“Here, Rad! I need you to help me in the office!”
“Ho! Whut I tell yo’ all!” exclaimed the colored man triumphantly. “Go on, big stiff! Yo’ all kin carry him! Massa Tom want me!”
Koku made a playful punch in the direction of Eradicate. If it had reached him the colored man would surely have toppled over, but, in spite of his age, he nimbly shuffled out of the way. A little later he was doing some simple tasks in the office, delighted to be of service to his young master. Meanwhile Koku had, in spite of Northrup’s objections, carried him to the shop infirmary where a doctor and nurse looked the pilot over. Later they reported to Tom that his employee was not seriously hurt.
“Mighty lucky,” commented Ned.
“Yes, but mighty unlucky about that new coupling jigger of mine,” said Tom. “I don’t see what caused it to loosen before it was released. There’s something wrong I’ve got to find out about.”
“Are you going to see Willam?” asked Ned. “It might be a good time to tackle him before he has a chance to hear about this accident.”
“Good idea, Ned. I’ll go see him out at the Country Club right away. I think when he hears about my new invention, he’ll come across.”
“It’s a wonderful invention all right,” murmured Ned as Tom left to get his auto to make the run out to the Lake Carlopa Country Club. “But can he make that shrewd Willam believe it? And yet he must, if we are to get the loan of that money to carry on! I hope Tom Swift has good luck!”