The Motor Boys in the Clouds; or, A Trip for Fame and Fortune

by Clarence Young

  CHAPTER XIX

  STARTING FOR THE RACE

  "Go back to him, Jerry," cried Mr. Glassford, observing from the pilothouse what had happened. "Tell him to swallow several mouthfuls ofwater. That will equalize the pressure on his ear-drums, which is whatmakes him feel so badly. We are up rather high, and still ascending."

  Jerry and his chums had been told how to conduct themselves in case ofemergency in high altitudes, and though when he reached the place whereBob was stretched out in great distress he found Ned about to succumbto the rarefied atmosphere, Jerry did not lose his head. He procuredwater from a tank, made both lads swallow some, and then, with the aidof Professor Snodgrass, administered a few simple remedies. Ned and Bobsoon felt better.

  Curiously enough, neither Jerry nor the professor were affected by theheight to which the _Comet_ had now shot. As for Mr. Glassford, he hadmade too many balloon ascensions to mind being a few miles up in theair. His principal anxiety was now regarding the mechanism of the motorship.

  Work as desperately as he did, and pull as hard as was safe on thelever that shifted the rudder controlling the height, nothing resultedfrom it. Nor could he open the valve that held the gas in the big bag.

  "I've got to try some other means of getting down," declared Mr.Glassford.

  "Maybe the sun will soon stop expanding the gas," ventured Bob, who wasnow feeling much better.

  "Yes, that will happen shortly, as it is setting; but I must stop ourupward flight more quickly than that."

  "Why don't you stop the motor?" asked Ned.

  "Because while we are in motion it rides on a more even keel, and isless subject to air currents. I must climb out forward and ungear theelevation rudder."

  "Isn't that dangerous?" asked Jerry.

  "Well, I've been in safer places, and I've done more risky things. I'vegot to take a chance."

  Then, almost as suddenly as they had emerged into the open, sun-litspace, which was responsible for much of their trouble, the travelersfound themselves enveloped in a mist.

  "We're in the clouds again!" exclaimed Mr. Glassford. "That ought toput a stop to our rising."

  He ran forward and looked at the instrument for indicating the height.

  "Yes, we've stopped," he announced. "We're stationary, as far as goingup or down is concerned."

  "Bur-r-r-r!" exclaimed Bob with a shiver. "It's getting cold!"

  It was very chilly, and they had brought along no wraps to protect themfrom the frostiness of the upper air. It had been ninety in the shadewhen they started from the earth.

  "Go into the cabin," advised Mr. Glassford. "Shut the doors andwindows. That will keep you somewhat warm."

  "What are you going to do?" asked Jerry.

  "I'm going to shift that rudder," announced the inventor firmly. "We'vegot to descend, and I don't dare risk meddling too much with the gasvalve, for fear I will break it, and all the gas will rush out tooquickly. I must have a duplicate valve for just such emergencies asthis."

  Jerry saw that it would be best to let Mr. Glassford manage things hisown way, so with his two chums and Professor Snodgrass he retired tothe main cabin, where, with doors and windows closed, there was someprotection from the cold.

  "Look!" cried Bob suddenly. "It's snowing!"

  Sure enough, looking out of the windows they all saw a whirling cloudof white crystals, blowing this way and that as they sailed throughthem.

  "A very common phenomenon," remarked the professor. "It is caused bymoist air coming suddenly in contact with a cool stratum, which causedit to condense below the dew point, thus producing rain or snow, as thecase may be. But if there aren't some new kind of insects! I must havethem for my collection."

  No danger was ever too great to deter the professor from collectingspecimens. However, this time it was impossible to get them, as when heopened the door such a rush of cold air met him as caused him to turnback.

  "One needs an overcoat here," he declared.

  "I should say so," remarked Jerry.

  "Well, I must risk it," went on the professor. "I simply must havethose insects."

  "You're too late," said Jerry. "We've passed them."

  This was so, for the _Comet_ had shot beyond the little cloud ofcreatures that were flying about in a snowstorm. The professor, with asigh, gave up his plan and returned to the cabin window.

  "We're going down!" cried Ned quickly. "Mr. Glassford must have fixedthe rudder."

  The airship was descending. In a little while they were sensiblethat it was much warmer, and they could open the cabin. They foundthe inventor in the pilot house, rubbing his hands to restore thecirculation, which had been impeded by the cold.

  "Are we all right?" asked Jerry.

  "Fairly so. I can't operate the gas valve, but I think by deflectingthe rudder sufficiently and by waiting until after sundown, we canreach the earth. The gas is rapidly cooling off. The rudder was jammed.I released it, and now it works all right."

  "It's getting late," observed Bob. "Where are we?"

  "About seventy miles from home," announced the inventor. "I think we'llget there some time to-night. I will speed up the motor as soon as weget a little lower."

  They were now below the clouds, and they could see that the sun hadset. It rapidly became darker, but Mr. Glassford had a compass and agood sense of direction, so he kept on, confident that he would reachCresville. The stars came out overhead, and all below the travelers wasblackness, with here and there lights showing as they passed over somevillage or city.

  "We're about eight hundred feet above the earth now," announced Mr.Glassford after a pause. "I think we'll stay there until we get wherewe can make a landing."

  "We might as well eat, I suppose," proposed Bob after a pause. "It'ssupper time, anyhow."

  "I thought you were too frightened to eat," said Jerry.

  "I was, but I'm over it now. I'll get the grub."

  Chunky set out what was left of the provisions they had brought, andthe food was very acceptable, Jerry taking some in spite of the fun hemade of Bob.

  Mr. Glassford speeded up the motor, and the _Comet_ sailed along fasterthan before. It was about nine o'clock when they reached Cresville, anda landing was made without accident.

  They found quite a crowd waiting for them, for it was known that theyhad gone off on a long trip, and when the ship was not back at thetent at dusk much alarm was felt. The boys found their parents in thethrong, and though the lads made light of what had happened, they werevery thankful to be safely back on earth again.

  "Well, we've proved that we can make a long trip and get back in spiteof accidents," said Mr. Glassford. "We'll soon be ready for the greatrace."

  The next two weeks were spent in making some changes to the motorship, providing duplicate gas valves and taking all the precautionsto prevent a recurrence of the former troubles. A large gasolene tankwas put aboard, to hold the fluid necessary to run the engine for manyhundreds of miles.

  "Well, I guess everything is in good shape," announced Mr. Glassfordone day, following a rather long flight, when everything workedperfectly. "We'll ship the _Comet_ to Park Haven to-morrow, and thenwe'll go there ourselves to take part in the great race."

  "And I'll go along, too," announced Professor Snodgrass. "I haven'thalf enough insects for my collection yet, and I want more."

  The next morning, the motor ship having been taken apart fortransportation, it was sent on to Indiana, whither the boys, Mr.Glassford and Professor Snodgrass also went.

  And though they did not know it, there followed them, on the nexttrain, Noddy Nixon and Giles Hoswell.