CHAPTER XXIV
A STRANGE DISCOVERY
Once it became evident to the occupants of the airship what Tom Swift'splans were, they all prepared to help him. Previous to the trip certainduties had been assigned to each one, duties which were to be exercisedwhen Tom gave the exhibition of his new aerial fire-fighting apparatusat the set fire before the fire department of Denton.
This preparation now stood the young inventor in good stead, for therewas no confusion aboard the Lucifer when she winged her way toward theburning Landmark Building, where the flames were continually spoutinghigher and higher as they rushed through the roof, directly above thestairway well and elevator shafts.
So far the flames had confined themselves to this central part of thebig structure, but it was only a question of time when they wouldspread out on all sides, licking up the remainder of the pile. And, forthe most part, the firemen on the ground were at a great disadvantage.
They had run in lines as near as they could get to the center of theblaze, and had also attached hose to the standpipes inside thebuilding. But this last effort was wasted, as developed later, forthere was no one in the building to direct the nozzle ends of the hoseattached to the standpipes on the different floors. Also the fierceheat fairly melted the pipes themselves in the vicinity of the elevatorshafts, and there was no automatic sprinkling system in the building.
This was the situation, then, when Tom in his airship loaded withfire-extinguishing chemicals headed for the blaze. And this, also, wasthe desperate situation that confronted Mary Nestor and her uncle,Barton Keith, as well as Amos Field and Jason Melling. Thoseunscrupulous and cowardly men were in a veritable panic of fear, whichcontrasted strangely with the calm, resigned attitude of Mary and heruncle.
"We must get out! Some one must save us!" yelled Field.
"Jump from the window!" cried Melling.
"No, I can't permit that!" declared Mr. Keith, standing in their path."It would be sure death! As it is, there may be a chance."
"A chance? How?" asked Field. "Listen to that!"
Through the closed door of Mr. Keith's office could be heard the roarand crackle of flames, while the very air was now stifling and hot,filled with acrid smoke.
"We can only wait," said Mr. Keith, and he wet Mary's handkerchief inthe water and handed it to her to bind over her face.
"Is everything all right, Ned?" called Tom, as he turned on a littlemore power, so that the Lucifer lunged ahead toward the great pillar offire that now reddened the sky for miles around.
"All ready," was the answer. "You only have to give the word when youwant us to let go."
"Let go!" cried Mr. Damon. "Bless my umbrella, Tom! We don't have tojump out, do we?"
"He means to let go the extinguisher grenades," said Mr. Baxter. "Shallwe let them all go at once, Tom?" asked the chemist.
"No, drop half when I shoot over the first time. We'll see what effectthey have, and then come back with the rest."
"That's the idea!" cried Ned. "Well, give us the word when you'reready, Tom."
"I will," was the answer of the young inventor, and with keen eyes hebegan to set the automatic gages so those in charge of the grenadeswould be able to drop them most effectively.
The flames were mounting higher and higher above the ill-fated LandmarkBuilding. It was a "land-mark" now, for miles around--a fearsome mark,indeed.
"I hope every one is out of the place," said Ned, as the airshipapproached nearer and the fierceness of the fire was more manifest.
"Bless my thermometer, you're right!" exclaimed Mr. Damon. "I don't seehow any one could live in that furnace."
Seen from above it appeared that the fire was engulfing the wholebuilding, while, as a matter of fact, only the central portion was yetblazing. But it was only a question of time when the remainder wouldignite.
And it was to this fact--that the fire was rushing up the stairway andelevator shafts as up a chimney--that Mary and her uncle, as well asField and Melling, owed their temporary safety.
Had Tom known that the girl he loved was in such direful danger, it isdoubtful if his hand would have been as steady as it was on throttleand steering wheel. But not a muscle or nerve quivered. To Tom it wasbut carrying out a prearranged task. He was going to extinguish a greatblaze, or attempt to do so, by means of his aerial fire-fightingapparatus. And his previous tests had given him confidence in hisdevice. His one regret was that the fire department of the city thatwas contemplating the purchase of certain rights in his invention couldnot witness what he was about to do.
"But they'll hear of it," declared Ned, when Tom voiced this idea tohis chum.
Nearer and nearer to the up-spouting column of flames the airshipwinged her way. Tense and alert, Tom sat at the wheel guiding his craftwith her load of fire-defying chemicals. Behind him were Ned, Mr. Damonand Mr. Baxter, ready to drop the grenades at the word.
"Getting close, Tom!" called Ned, as they could all feel the heat ofthe conflagration in the Landmark Building, which now seemed doomed.
"You'll not dare cross it too low down, will you?"
"No, I'll have to keep pretty well up," was the answer. "There's acurrent of air over that fire which might turn us turtle."
Heat creates a draft, sucking in colder air from below, and making anupward-rushing column which, in the case of a big blaze, is verypowerful. Tom knew he had to avoid this.
It was now almost time to act. In another few seconds they would besailing directly into the path of the up-spouting flames. Realizingthat to do this at too low an elevation would result in disaster, Tomsent his craft upward at a sharp angle. Then he turned to call to hiscompanions.
"Be ready when I give the word!"
"All set and ready!" answered Ned, and the others signified theirattention to the command that soon was to be given.
Having attained what he considered a sufficient elevation, Tom headedthe Lucifer straight toward the up-spouting column of fire and smoke.If ever his craft of the air was to justify her name it was now!
Straight and true as an arrow she headed for the fiery pillar! Hotterand hotter grew the air! The darkness of the night was lighted by theawful fire, which rendered objects in the street clear and distinct.But Tom and his friends had little time for such observation.
"Get ready!" cried the young inventor, as he felt a rush of heat acrosshis face, partly protected, as it was, by great goggles.
"All ready!" shouted Ned.
"Let go!" cried Tom, and with a click of springs the fire extinguishersdropped from the bottom of the Lucifer into the very heart of theflames in the Landmark Building.
There was a blast as from a furnace seventy times heated, a choking andgasping for breath on the part of the occupants of the airship, ashriveling, as it seemed, of the naked flesh, and then, when itappeared that all of them must be engulfed in the great heat, theairship passed out of the zone of fire.
A rush of cool air followed, reviving them all, and then, when out ofthe swirls of smoke, Ned, looking back, cried:
"Good work, Tom! Good work!"
"Did we hit it?" cried the young inventor. "She's half gone!" declaredMr. Baxter. "Can you give her the rest of the load?"
"I'm going to try!" declared Tom.
"Bless my bank balance!" shouted Mr. Damon, "are we going through thatawful furnace again?"
"It will not be so bad this time," observed Ned. "The fire is half outnow. Tom's stuff did the trick!"
Indeed it was evident, as Tom sent the Lucifer around in a sharp turn,that the fire had been largely smothered by the gas that now lay overit like a wet blanket. But there was still some fire spouting up.
"Give her all we have!" yelled Tom, as, once more, he prepared to crossthe zone of fire.
"Right," sang out Ned.
Once more the Lucifer swept over the burning building. Down shot theremaining grenades, falling into the mass of flames and bursting,though the reports could not be heard because of the tumult in thestreets below. For the
firemen and spectators had seen the sudden dyingdown of the fire, they had caught sight of a shadowy shape in thenight, hovering over the blazing building, and they wondered what itall meant.
"How is it?" asked Tom, as he guided the craft back to get a view ofhis work.
"That settles it!" answered Ned. "There isn't fire enough now to broila beefsteak!"
This was not exactly true, for the blaze was not entirely subdued. Butthe flames had all been killed off in the higher parts of the LandmarkBuilding, and what remained could easily be dealt with by the firemenon the ground. They proceeded to make short work of the remainder ofthe conflagration, the while wondering who had so effectively aidedthem from the clouds.
"Well," observed Tom, as he saw how effectively he had smothered thegreat fire, "it's of no use to go on now. I haven't an ounce ofchemical left on board. I can't give the demonstration that I plannedfor tomorrow."
"You've given a better demonstration here than you ever could have inthe other city," declared Mr. Baxter. "I fancy this will be all thetest needed, Tom Swift!"
"Perhaps. I hope so. But we may as well land and see from the groundthe effect of our work. I'd also like to inquire if any one was hurt.Let's go down."
It was rather ticklish work, making a landing in the midst of apopulous city, and at night. But as it happened, there had been anumber of buildings razed in the vicinity of the Landmark structure,and there was a large, vacant level space. Also several of the city'sfire department searchlights were focused around the burning structure,and when it became evident that an airship was going to land--though asyet none guessed whose it was--the searchlights were turned on thevacant spot and Tom was able to make a good landing, his own powerfulsearchlight giving effective aid.
"What did you do that put out the fire?" demanded the chief of theNewmarket department, as he rushed up with a crowd of others when Tomand his friends alighted.
"I dropped a few grenades down that chimney," modestly answered theyoung inventor.
"A few grenades! Say, you must have turned a whole river of themloose!" cried the delighted chief. "It doused the fire quicker than Iever saw one put out in all my life!"
"I'm glad I was successful," said Tom. "But was any one in thebuilding?"
"Yes, a few," answered a policeman, who was trying to keep the crowdback from the airship. "They're bringing them out now."
"Killed?" gasped Tom.
"No. But some of them are badly hurt," the officer answered. "Therewas one young lady and a man named Barton Keith--"
"Barton Keith!" shouted Tom, springing forward. "Was he--Who was theyoung lady? I--I--"
But at that moment there was a stir in the crowd about the building, inwhich only a little fire flow remained, and through the throng came adisheveled and smoke-blackened young lady and a man whose clothing wasalso greatly disarrayed.
"Mary!" cried the young inventor.
"Tom!" gasped Mary Nestor. "How did you get here?"
"I came to put out the fire," was the answer, and Tom cooled down nowthat he saw Mary was unharmed. "How did you happen to be in thebuilding?"
"I was in Uncle Barton's office when the fire broke out," answeredMary, "and we were trapped. We had to stay there, with two men from thefloor above."
"Yes, and if they had stayed with us they wouldn't have been hurt,"said Mr. Keith. "But, as it was, they rushed out and tried to get downthe stairs. They were caught in the draft and badly burned, I believe.They are bringing them out now."
Two stretchers, on which lay inert forms, were borne through the nowsilent crowd by firemen and police officers, and taken to waitingambulances.
"That's Field and Melling," said Mr. Keith to Tom. "They had officesjust above me, and they were trapped, as were Mary and I. They actedlike big cowards, too, though I hope they're not badly hurt. We stayedinside my office, and we were just giving up the hope of rescue whenthe fire seemed suddenly to die down."
"I should say it was sudden!" cried the enthusiastic local chief. "Itwas the chemicals from this young man's airship that did the trick!"
"Oh, Tom, was it your new machine?" asked Mary.
"Yes," was the answer. "I was on my way to give a test tomorrow inDenton when I saw this fire. I didn't know you were in it, though,Mary."
"Oh, but I'm glad you came," she said. "It was just--awful!" and sheclung to Tom's arm, trembling.
When Field and Melling, whose rash conduct had caused them to beseverely but not fatally burned, had been taken to a hospital and thefire was declared to be practically out, Tom made arrangements to leavehis airship in the city field all night.
"And you and your friends can come to Uncle Jasper's house," said Mary.
"Of course!" said Uncle Jasper himself, who had arrived on the scene,attracted to the fire by the news that his niece and Mr. Keith were indanger. "Lots of room! Come along! We'll celebrate your rescue."
So the crew of the fire-fighting Lucifer went with Mary, while thefiremen, after again thanking Tom most enthusiastically, kept onplaying, as a precaution, their streams of water on the still hotbuilding.
Only the central portion of the structure, the stairs and elevatorshafts, were burned away. The strong upward draft had kept the firefrom spreading much to either side.
"It certainly was a fierce blaze, and I'm glad my chemicals took suchprompt effect," said Tom. "I shall not fear any test after this."
It was the day following the night of excitement, and Tom and hisfriends, at the invitation of the fire department of Newmarket, wereinspecting what was left of the Landmark Building--and there wasconsiderable left--though access to the upper floors was to be had onlyby ladders, down which Mary and her uncle, Barton Keith, had beencarried.
"Here are my offices," said Mr. Keith, who accompanied Tom, Ned, Mr.Damon and Mr. Baxter, as he ushered them into his suite of rooms.
"Bless my fountain pen! nothing is burned here," cried the eccentricman.
"No, the flames just shot upward," explained the fire chief, who wasleading the party. "But I think those chemicals of yours would havebeen just as effective, Mr. Swift, if the fire had mushroomed out more."
"It was hot enough as it was," answered Tom, with a grim laugh.
"Bless my thermometer, too hot--too hot by far!" exclaimed Tom Swift'seccentric friend, and to this Ned nodded an amused agreement.
An exclamation from Mr. Baxter attracted the attention of all in Mr.Keith's office. The chemist picked up from the floor a bundle of papers.
"Here is a bundle of documents that some one has dropped, Mr. Keith,"he said. "I guess you forgot to put it in your safe. Why--why--no--theyaren't yours! They're mine. Here are my missing dye formulae! The secretpapers I've been searching for so long! The ones I thought Field andMelling had!" cried Mr. Baxter. "How--how did they get here?" and,wonderingly, he looked at the bundle of papers he had discovered in sucha strange manner.
Tom Swift Among the Fire Fighters; Or, Battling with Flames from the Air Page 24
