Motor Matt's Hard Luck; or, The Balloon-House Plot

by Stanley R. Matthews

  CHAPTER IV.

  RESCUED.

  All those on the _Christina_ were astounded at the move made by the twoboys.

  "Leave 'em in the water for a while!" shouted Brady, Sr. "I guessthat'll take the ginger out of 'em. Don't be in any hurry, captain,about turning around."

  The captain could not have turned very quickly, even if he had wantedto. With all sail set, the _Christina_ was driving through the water atrace-horse speed. It would take time, and she would inevitably have toget a long way from the boys before she could be put about.

  Both Carl and Ferral were good swimmers and had little difficulty inkeeping themselves afloat, hampered though they were with their wetclothing.

  "We're in for it now, Carl!" gurgled Ferral. "That sailboat will putabout and we'll be hauled aboard--then that swab of a Brady will haveus just where he wants us." Ferral rose in the water, shook his headto clear his eyes, and peered after the _Christina_. "They're comingaround now," he added.

  "Led dem come aroundt all vat dey blease," sputtered Carl; "Matt villpull us oudt oof der vet pefore dey ged here."

  "Matt?" echoed Ferral.

  "Look oferheadt vonce, Tick."

  Ferral took a look upward. Rushing toward that part of the lake andswooping downward like a huge bird was an air ship. The strange craftwas almost upon him and Carl. Two men were leaning over the guard railof the car on each side; both held coiled ropes in their hands, and oneof them was shouting instructions to Matt, who was in charge of themotor.

  The _Christina_ was forging along on the back track, the Bradys wellforward and clinging to ropes while they watched the manoeuvres of theHawk. It must have been apparent to them that the Hawk would pick upthe boys before the _Christina_ could come anywhere near them.

  Splash! splash!

  Two ropes dropped in the water just as the Hawk, with a graceful,gliding motion, came to an even keel some fifteen or twenty feet abovethe surface of the lake. The whirling propeller lessened its speed andthe air ship hovered over the water.

  "Grab the ropes!" shouted a voice from the Hawk's car.

  It was a useless suggestion, for the ropes had already been caught.

  "Can you climb up?" called one of the men. "It isn't safe to bring theair ship any closer to the water."

  Climbing the rope was easy for Ferral. Hand over hand he lifted himselfupward, was caught by the man and pulled over the rail and into thecar. But Carl was no sailor, and every time he tried to climb the ropehe slid back into the water again.

  "Hang hard," shouted the man in the car, "and we'll pull you up."

  The _Christina_, by then, was quite close. Carl had hardly been liftedclear of the water before the crack of a revolver rang out.

  Brady, Jr., had passed his own revolver to his father, and the latterwas pecking away at Carl as he gyrated under the car of the air ship.

  "Keep a firm hold on that rope!" cried the man in the car. "We've gotto ascend and get away from that sailboat."

  The nose of the Hawk tilted sharply upward, the propeller whirred atsteadily increasing speed, and the air ship bore swiftly away with thedripping form of the Dutch boy swinging underneath.

  Crack! crack! came the reports from Brady's revolver.

  Carl, however, was not a good target, and, besides, Brady had to firefrom the pitching deck of the _Christina_. All the bullets flew wide,and before Brady could fire more than three shots the air ship was outof range.

  The Dutch boy's position was in no wise comfortable for his nerves.The Hawk was steadily mounting toward the clouds, and Carl was swayingunderneath like a pendulum. As soon as the air ship was out of pistolrange of the _Christina_, however, hands were again laid on the ropeand Carl was jerked up to the car and pulled to safety.

  "Well, great spark plugs!" cried the voice of Motor Matt. "Of all thebrain twisters I ever ran up against, this takes the banner! Where didyou come from, Dick? And how does it happen Carl is with you?"

  Matt was in a chair at one end of the open space in the middle of thecar, his hands on the levers that worked the mechanism and controlledthe motor.

  Ferral, wet as a drowned rat, was sitting up on the floor of the car,his back against the rail. Across from him was Carl. In the other endof the car were the other two passengers. One of these wore the uniformof a policeman.

  Ferral's novel situation filled him with wonder. His eyes were dartingall around him, above at the swelling gas bag, around him at themachinery, the propeller, the rudder and space, and below him at theheaving expanse of water.

  "Well, strike me lucky," he breathed, "but all this seems like a dream.Am I doing a caulk, and imagining I'm wide awake? If I am, pinch me,somebody."

  "You're not asleep, old chap," laughed Matt, "if that's what you meanby 'doing a caulk.' Where did you come from?"

  "Denver. I'm on my way to Quebec. Heard you were anchored in Chicagoand stopped off there to see you. Couldn't find you at home, but I didfind Carl."

  "How in the world did you and Carl happen to be on that sailboat?" wenton Matt. "And why did you jump overboard?"

  "Carl pulled me overboard," replied Ferral.

  "It vas healthier for us in der vater dan it vas on der poat," put inCarl, slapping at his wet clothes. "Aber I vouldn't haf pulled Verraloferboardt oof I hatn't seen der Hawk skyhootin' along toward us. Ach,dot vas pully! How you habben to be vere you vas schust ven ve needetyou, bard?"

  "Mr. Jameson"--and Matt nodded toward the passenger forward with theofficer--"is thinking of buying the Hawk, but he wanted to try her outwith a good long flight and to see if she would be perfectly safe overwater. So we sailed over Chicago and headed into the lake. We saw thatsailboat, but didn't pay much attention to her until Harris saw someone waving something on her deck. Then, thinking we were being hailed,we laid a course for her. As we came closer, we saw two persons jumpinto the water. That was our cue to get closer to the lake and pick youup. But what was the matter on that boat? You haven't told me yet."

  Ferral ran one hand into the front of his shirt and fished out hiswater-soaked roll of greenbacks.

  "That's what caused the trouble," said he. "Brady wanted the money."

  "Brady?" Motor Matt looked questioningly at Carl.

  "Yah, so," spoke up Carl. "It iss der same Prady vat you hat sooch atime mit, ofer py Villoughpy's svamp."

  "What do you think of that, Harris?" cried Matt, looking at the officer.

  "If Brady is on that boat," returned Harris, showing a good deal ofexcitement, "we ought to tip somebody off and have him captured."

  "We'll turn back toward Chicago," said Matt. "Meantime, Carl, you andDick tell us all about how you got into that fix. Hurry up with theyarn. If we're to do anything toward capturing Brady, we haven't muchtime to lose."

  Carl and Ferral went over their recent experiences. Matt's wondergrew as he listened. It was strange the way events had fallenout and brought the three chums together just in time to avert arobbery--perhaps a tragedy.

  "It's main queer, mate, don't you think?" queried Ferral, when thedetails had all been given.

  "Queerest thing I ever heard of!" avowed Harris. "I knew Brady had ason, but I hadn't a notion where he was, or what he was doing. Looks asthough young Brady was a chip off the old block."

  "It's a lesson for me," remarked Ferral ruefully, "never to pick up afellow on his own showing. The queerest part of the whole business wasmy meeting young Brady on the train, walking right into the trap he hadset for me and his father was going to help him spring, and towing Carlalong."

  "We're coming close to the shore, King," called Jameson.

  Matt stole a look over the side.

  "Take out your notebook and pencil, Harris," said he, drawing back,"and write a note. Address the memorandum to the police departmentand say that Hector Brady and his son are off the government pier ina sailboat called the _Christina_, and that if the scoundrels arecaptured, a tug better put off at once."

  Harris scribbled the note. When it was finished, Matt had him
tie thesmall sheet of paper around a bolt taken from the tool box.

  "We'll fly low over the park near the Art building," said Matt, "andyou yell to the first policeman you see, Harris, and drop the note."

  There was no need of yelling to attract anybody's attention in thepark, for every person was looking upward at the air ship.

  Harris was not long in sighting an officer, and his own uniformdemanded the officer's respectful attention.

  The note was dropped, and those in the air ship could see the policemanpick it up, untie the sheet of paper and read the communication.

  Before the Hawk got out of sight of the park, Matt and the rest had thesatisfaction of seeing the policeman wave his hand to signify that heunderstood, and then hurry off toward the lake.

  "I guess that will cook Brady's goose for him," muttered Harriscomplacently.

  "Are you satisfied with the Hawk, Mr. Jameson?" inquired Matt.

  "I never imagined that an air ship had been invented which could bemanoeuvred as you have manoeuvred this one," said Jameson. "I'm so wellsatisfied with the Hawk that I will give three thousand for her."

  Carl gave a gasp and stared at Ferral, only to find that Ferral wasalready looking at him.

  Were Matt and Ferral to lose the air ship, after all?