Chapter 7 Tom Swift and His Sky Train by Victor Appleton
THE PARACHUTE JUMPER
“Well, Tom, do you think everything is going to be all right?” asked Ned Newton as he sat beside his chum in the cabin of the big towing airplane.
“I hope so,” answered the young inventor, as he looked over the various gauges, giving particular attention to the electric control that served to release one glider after another by means of the magnetic switch. Tom, or some one in the plane, could let a glider go, after the proper signal to those riding in it, or the occupants of the car itself could effect the release after giving notice. “If this doesn’t work now,” Tom went on, “I shall begin to think something serious is wrong.”
“I hope not, for the sake of Mr. Damon’s reputation in getting that big loan for us from his bank,” remarked Ned, as Tom waited for the motors of the big craft to warm up a little more before giving the actual signal to go aloft.
“Yes, it would be unfortunate if we had anything like a bad crack-up now,” Tom went on. “But I think everything is going to be all right. The new couplers seem to be just what we need. I think we may as well go up now. Those motors sound sweet to me,” and he nodded forward where the big engines were slowly turning, making a purring, throbbing sound not unlike the contented noise that comes from a sleek, petted cat.
Ned was about to say: “Let’s go!” when he noticed a figure separating itself from the throng that had gathered to watch the start and come running across the flying field. So the financial manager changed his unspoken words to the audible ones of:
“Wait a minute Tom! Looks like some one was coming to see you!”
“It’s Mr. Damon!” Tom exclaimed. “I guess he wants to see how his bank’s money is going to be spent. You’re just in time,” he added to the odd character. “Come on in! That is, if you want to go up with us,” the inventor added as he opened a door in the side of the plane’s cabin.
“Go up! Bless my umbrella, I should say I did want to go up!” cried Mr. Damon, panting slightly from his run, as he climbed in. “I didn’t know you were going to start your sky train service today, Tom.”
“This isn’t the actual start of the service,” Tom stated as he closed and fastened the door. “This is just a trial flight. Can’t tell what may happen.”
“You can’t scare me!” spoke Mr. Damon with a chuckle. “I’m insured and my wife’s away. Bless my fountain pen! I’m glad I took the notion to run over today to see you. I had no idea you were going up, but when they told me in the office that you were, I rushed out here. Just in time, I guess.”
“Not a minute to spare!” Tom said, as he gave the signal for full speed to the pilot in the motor cockpit.
A moment later the big engines broke out into a roar, the airplane began to taxi across the field, drawing after it five experimental gliders, each one containing three men, Koku, in his craft, counting as two. It was Tom’s intention to cruise about in the upper regions for some time, noting the action of the towed gliders. Then he would release each succeeding rear one in turn, letting them float down to earth under the guidance of the pilots in charge of each one.
“And if that works all right, tomorrow we’ll try hitching on a glider in full flight,” Tom told Ned.
“That will be a test!” agreed the financial manager.
Up and up rose the great plane, pulling after it the five gliders. It was a wonderful sight, the most ambitious trial flight Tom Swift had yet attempted of his new invention. So impressive was it that the group of shop employees gathered on the field set up a loud cheer, which, however came only faintly to the ears of those now aloft.
“Well, we’re up, anyhow!” remarked Ned as, after attaining a considerable height, the pilot of the plane straightened out on a level course.
“Yes,” Tom agreed. “And everything seems to be going fine. I’ll just ask Lacter and Turtan how things are,” and he picked up the telephone which communicated with the two pilots in the forward motor compartment of the big plane. There was some space between the pilots’ compartment and the cabin where Tom and Ned were and where, later, passengers would ride, so it was necessary to communicate by means of the telephone. Likewise it was necessary to use the wire if Tom wished to talk to any of the occupants of the following gliders. When a glider left the rear of the sky train to descend to earth, this telephonic communication was automatically cut off. It was restored in like manner to the new glider that might be attached.
“How’s she running, Lacter?” asked Tom of his chief pilot.
“Fine, Mr. Swift,” came back the answer over the wire. “As smooth as silk and twice as fast. Motors never worked better.”
“That’s good. Better start to circle now. We’ll make one big round of the field and then I’ll begin to drop off the gliders. I’ll tell you when.”
“Very good, Mr. Swift. We’ll stand by for orders.”
Though Tom had spoken of a “big circle of the field,” unless one had seen the experimental grounds of the Swift Construction Company he would have had a very inadequate idea of the extent of this curving line. For Tom and his father had gradually added to their holdings until now, for trying out airplanes and similar machines they owned a big extent of country. To circle about it, meant to cover many miles and thus Tom would always be over his own territory in conducting tests, some of which might end rather disastrously.
Well aloft now, and out of sight of the buildings making up his group of shops, Tom looked down on the green extent of country, woods and fields that lay below them. It was a pretty sight and, any other time, Tom might have spent a little while admiring the scenery. But now he was too anxious about the success of his experiment. His eyes roved from one control handle to the other, and thence to the various gauges which indicated how the different mechanisms were operating.
“There isn’t too much strain, is there, Tom?” asked Ned as he noted his friend jotting down some figures after consulting one particular dial.
“No, I think not. Of course we’d need a big blow or a heavy storm hitting us head on to give the maximum strain. But I think I have left enough margin of safety. Just now the pull exerted by the towed gliders is almost negligible.”
There had been more than one anxious conference in Tom’s plant, between himself and his consulting engineers, as to the pull that would be exerted on the towing plane by the string of gliders behind the craft. Just as the coupling links and pins on the old fashioned railroad cars, and as the drawbars and heads on the newer style, take the strain as the units are being pulled along by the locomotive, so Tom’s patent coupling and releasing device must stand the strain. Once the inertia of starting was passed, this strain was slight. But it was terrific on the start, especially when the airplane was nosing up at an angle to gain altitude. It was like a locomotive pulling a string of cars up hill.
So, too, in case of a storm, with a head wind blowing against the plane and gliders, there would be a greater strain than in a calm. All the stress and strain had to be calculated and allowed for in making the couplers and in building the gliders. Likewise the gliders must be staunch enough to fend for themselves when released to coast to earth with their loads of passengers.
“But everything is working fine,” Tom said, as he made a note of the stress pull and strain. “It’s well below what I thought it was. Of course when we hit into a storm there may be a different story, but I’m hoping it will be all right.”
“You aren’t going to stay up here until you run into a storm, just to test things out, are you, Tom?” asked Mr. Damon anxiously. He had been sitting near a window gazing at the scene below.
“No,” Tom replied with a laugh. “I’m afraid we’d have to stay up quite a while, for I never saw weather less indicative of a storm. I’ll make that test some other time.”
“Are you in a hurry to go down?” asked Ned.
“Oh, no! Bless my shoe laces, but I’m enjoying myself. Only my wife is coming home this evening and I’d just as soon get back before she arrives. She doesn’t know I’m flying with you.”
“I’ll never tell her!” promised Tom with an understanding chuckle.
The sky train, in experimental form (for the gliders were only temporary ones) was now shooting along through the air at great speed. The pilots in the forward cockpit had gradually opened the throttles until the propellers were whirling at almost their limit. And the gliders, following like the tail of a kite, or, more properly speaking, like the cars of a train, were in perfect alignment.
Tom looked back and noted that each of the pilots of the gliders was well up in his work. They held each individual craft in a perfect alignment back of the one ahead, and the glider nearest to the airplane seemed a part of it, so faithfully did it follow the movements of the Eagle, as Tom had christened his big towing craft.
One complete circuit of the big flying field had been made and Tom had given the orders for another round. They were moving faster now, but in perfect formation.
Then, suddenly, when the sky train was at that part of the circle farthest from Tom Swift’s plant, and near the outermost edge of his grounds, Ned Newton, who was gazing to the rear, while Tom was busy at some calculations, gave a cry of alarm.
“What’s the matter?” asked Tom, springing to his feet.
“Don’t tell me we are falling!” gasped Mr. Damon. “And I haven’t a parachute. Where are they? Bless my necktie!”
“No, we aren’t falling,” Ned exclaimed, “but I didn’t know you had given any signal for that rear glider to cut loose, Tom.”
“I didn’t give any signal!”
“Well there goes the rear glider! Look!”
Tom sprang to the observation window. At that moment the sky train was negotiating a wide curve and all the units of the coupled craft were in view. And, as Tom looked, he saw the rear glider shooting earthward.
“Something’s wrong!” Tom cried. “I didn’t tell Blanchard to cut loose. And they didn’t signal! Something’s wrong!”
“Looks as if the glider was out of control, too!” exclaimed Ned.
“She is!” shouted Tom. “There’s going to be another crack-up! This is fierce! Another coupling broken! I hope Blanchard can get her in hand before they make a landing. If he doesn’t——”
He stopped suddenly, for a strange sight met his eyes.
Out of the glider leaped the figure of a man, hurtling down to the earth more than a mile below.
“It’s Daniel!” cried Ned. “He’s jumped out! He lost his head through fear—he’s crazy!”
For a moment Tom did not speak. Then he said:
“No, not so crazy as it would seem. Look, he has a parachute!”
As he spoke something white and billowing broke out over the head of the man who had leaped from the falling glider. A moment later the parachute opened fully and began to check the descent of the jumper.