Tom Swift and His War Tank; Or, Doing His Bit for Uncle Sam

by Victor Appleton

  Chapter V

  "Is He a Slacker?"

  Mr. Nestor, whatever else he was, proved to be a prudent father. He didnot immediately go into the front room, whither Mary and Tom hastened,their voices mingling in talk and laughter.

  Mr. Nestor, after leaving the young folks alone for a while, with aloud "Ahem!" and a rattling of his paper as he laid it aside, startedfor the parlor.

  "Good-evening, Mr. Nestor!" said Tom, rising to shake hands with thefather of his young and pretty hostess.

  "Hello, Tom!" was the cordial greeting, in return. "What's going on upat your place?" went on Mr. Nestor, as he took a chair.

  "Oh, nothing very special," Tom answered. "We're turning out differentkinds of machines as usual, and dad and I are experimenting, also asusual."

  "I suppose so. But what nearly broke the fence to-night?"

  Tom started, and looked quickly at his host.

  "Were you there?" he asked quickly.

  "Well, I happened to be passing--took a short cut home--and I heardsome queer goings on at your place. I was speaking to Mary about them,and wondering--"

  "Father, perhaps Tom doesn't want to talk about his inventions,"interrupted Mary. "You know some of them are secret--"

  "Oh, I wasn't exactly asking for information!" exclaimed Mr. Nestorquickly. "I just happened to hear the fence crash, and I was wonderingif something was coming out at me. Didn't know but what that giant ofyours was on a rampage, Tom," and he laughed.

  "No, it wasn't anything like that," and Tom's voice was more sober thanthe occasion seemed to warrant. "It was one of our new machines, and itdidn't act just right. No great damage was done, though. How do youfind business, Mr. Nestor, since the war spirit has grown stronger?"asked Tom, and it seemed to both Mary and her father that the younginventor deliberately changed the subject.

  "Well, it isn't all it might be," said the other. "It's hard to getgood help. A lot of our boys enlisted, and some were taken in thedraft. By the way, Tom, have they called on you yet?"

  "No. Not yet."

  "You didn't enlist?"

  "Ned Newton tried to," broke in Mary, "but the quota for this localitywas filled, and they told him he'd better wait for the draft. Hewouldn't do that and tried again. Then the bank people heard about itand had him exempted. They said he was too valuable to them, and he hasbeen doing remarkably well in selling Liberty Bonds!" and Mary's eyessparkled with her emotions.

  "Yes, Ned is a crackerjack salesman!" agreed Tom, no lessenthusiastically. "He's sold more bonds, in proportion, for his bank,than any other in this county. Dad and I both took some, and havepromised him more. I am glad now that we let him go, although we valuedhis services highly. We hope to have him back later."

  "He can put me down for more bonds too!" said Mr. Nestor. "I'm goingto see Germany beaten if it takes every last dollar I have!"

  "That's what I say!" Cried Mary. "I took out all my savings, except alittle I'm keeping to buy a wedding present for Jennie Morse. Did youknow she was going to get married, Tom?" she asked.

  "I heard so."

  "Well, all but what I want for a wedding present to her has gone intoLiberty Bonds. Isn't this a history-making time, Tom?"

  "Indeed it is, Mary!"

  "Everybody who has a part in it--whether he fights as a soldier or onlyknits like the Red Cross girls--will be telling about it for yearsafter," went on the girl, and she looked at Tom eagerly.

  "Yes," he agreed. "These are queer times. We don't know exactly wherewe're at. A lot of our men have been called. We tried to have some ofthem exempted, and did manage it in a few cases."

  "You did?" cried Mr. Nestor, as if in surprise. "You stopped men fromgoing to war!"

  "Only so they could work on airship motors for the Government," Tomquietly explained.

  "Oh! Well, of course, that's part of the game," agreed Mary's father."A lot more of our boys are going off next week. Doesn't it make youthrill, Tom, when you see them marching off, even if they haven't theiruniforms yet? Jove, if I wasn't too old, I'd go in a minute!"

  "Father!" cried Mary.

  "Yes, I would!" he declared. "The German government has got to bebeaten, and we've got to do our bit; everybody has--man, woman andchild!"

  "Yes," agreed Tom, in a low voice, "that's very true. But every one, ina sense, has to judge for himself what the 'bit' is. We can't all dothe same."

  There was a little silence, and then Mary went over to the piano andplayed. It was a rather welcome relief, under the circumstances, fromthe conversation.

  "Mary, what do you think of Tom?" asked Mr. Nestor, when the visitorhad gone.

  "What do I think of him?" And she blushed.

  "I mean about his not enlisting. Do you think he's a slacker?"

  "A slacker? Why, Father!"

  "Oh, I don't mean he's afraid. We've seen proof enough of his courage,and all that. But I mean don't you think he wants stirring up a bit?"

  "He is going to Washington to-morrow, Father. He told me so to-night.And it may be--"

  "Oh, well, then maybe it's all right," hastily said Mr. Nestor. "He maybe going to get a commission in the engineer corps. It isn't like TomSwift to hang back, and yet it does begin to look as though he caredmore for his queer inventions--machines that butt down fences than forhelping Uncle Sam. But I'll reserve judgment."

  "You'd better, Father!" and Mary laughed--a little. Yet there was aworried look on her face.

  During the next few nights Mr. Nestor made it a habit to take the shortcut from the railroad station, coming past the big fence that enclosedone particular building of the Swift plant.

  "I wonder if there's a hole where I could look through," said Mr.Nestor to himself. "Of course I don't believe in spying on what anotherman is doing, and yet I'm too good a friend of Tom's to want to see himmake a fool of himself. He ought to be in the army, or helping UncleSam in some way. And yet if he spends all his time on some foolishcontraption, like a new kind of traction plow, what good is that? If Icould get a glimpse of it, I might drop a friendly hint in his ear."

  But there were no cracks in the fence, or, if there were, it was toodark to see them, and also too dark to behold anything on the otherside of the barrier. So Mr. Nestor, wondering much, kept on his way.

  It was a day or so after this that Ned Newton paid a visit to the Swifthome. Mr. Swift was not in the house, being out in one of the variousbuildings, Mrs. Baggert said.

  "Where's Tom?" asked the bond salesman.

  "Oh, he hasn't come back from Washington yet," answered the housekeeper.

  "He is making a long stay."

  "Yes, he went about a week ago on some business. But we expect him backto-day."

  "Well, then I'll see him. I called to ask if Mr. Swift didn't want totake a few more bonds. We want to double our allotment for Shopton, andbeat out some of the other towns in this section. I'll go to see Mr.Swift."

  On his way to find Tom's father Ned passed the big building in front ofwhich Eradicate and Koku were on guard. They nodded to Ned, who passedthem, wondering much as to what it was Tom was so secretive about.

  "It's the first time I remember when he worked on an invention withouttelling me something about it," mused Ned. "Well, I suppose it willall come out in good time. Anything new, Rad?"

  "No, Massa Ned, nuffin much. I'm detectin' around heah; keepin'Dutchmen spies away!"

  "And Koku is helping you, I suppose?"

  "Whut, him? Dat big, good-fo'-nuffin white trash? No, sah! I'sdetectin' by mahse'f, dat's whut I is!" and Eradicate strutted proudlyup and down on his allotted part of the beat, being careful not toapproach the building too closely, for that was Koku's ground.

  Ned smiled, and passed on. He found Mr. Swift, secured his subscriptionto more bonds, and was about to leave when he heard a call down theroad and saw Tom coming in his small racing car, which had been takento the depot by one of the workmen.

  "Hello, old man!" cried Ned affectionately, as his chum alighted with ajump. "Where have
you been?"

  "Down to Washington. Had a bit of a chat with the President and gavehim some of my views."

  "About the war, I suppose?" laughed Ned.

  "Yes."

  "Did you get your commission?"

  "Commission?" And there was a wondering look on Tom's face.

  "Yes. Mary Nestor said she thought maybe you were going to Washingtonto take an examination for the engineering corps or something likethat. Did you get made an officer?"

  "No," answered Tom slowly. "I went to Washington to get exempted."

  "Exempted?" Cried Ned, and his voice sounded strained.