CHAPTER II. PROFESSOR FEATHERWIT TAKING NOTES.
"To the house!" cried the professor, raising his voice to overcomeyonder sullen roar, which was now beginning to come their way. "Trustall to the aeromotor, and 'twill be well with us!"
The wiry little man of science himself fell to work with an energy whichtold how serious he regarded the emergency, and, acting under his lead,the brothers manfully played their part.
Just as had been done many times before this day, a queer-lookingmachine was shoved out from the shed, gliding along the wooden waysprepared for that express purpose, while Professor Featherwit hurriedaboard a few articles which past experience warned him might prove ofservice in the hours to come, then sharply cried to his nephews:
"Get aboard, lads! Time enough, yet none to spare in idle motions. See!The storm is drifting our way in deadly earnest!"
And so it seemed, in good sooth.
Now fairly at its dread work of destruction, tearing up the raindampened dirt and playing with mighty boulders, tossing them here andthere, as a giant of olden tales might play with jackstones, snappingoff sturdy trees and whipping them to splinters even while hurling themas a farmer sows his grain.
Just the one brief look at that aerial monster, then both lads hung fastto the hand-rail of rope, while the professor put that cunning machineryin motion, causing the air-ship to rise from its ways with a suddenswooping movement, then soaring upward and onward, in a fair curve, asgraceful and steady as a bird on wing.
All this took some little time, even while the trio were working as menonly can when dear life is at stake; but the flying-machine wasafloat and fairly off upon the most marvellous journey mortals everaccomplished, and that ere yonder death-balloon could cover half thedistance between.
"Grand! Glorious! Magnificent!" fairly exploded the professor, when hecould risk a more comprehensive look, right hand tightly gripping thepolished lever through which he controlled that admirable mechanism. "Ihave longed for just such an opportunity, and now--the camera, Bruno! Wemust never neglect to improve such a marvellous chance for--get out thecamera, lad!"
"Get out of the road, rather!" bluntly shouted Waldo, face unusuallypale, as he stared at yonder awful force in action. "Of course I'm notscared, or anything like that, uncle Phaeton, but--I want to rack out o'this just about the quickest the law allows! Yes, I DO, now!"
"Wonderful! Marvellous! Incredible! That rara avis, an exception to allexceptions!" declared the professor, more deeply stirred than either ofhis nephews had ever seen him before. "A genuine tornado which hasno eastern drift; which heads as directly as possible towards thenorthwest, and at the same time--incredible!"
Only ears of his own caught these sentences in their entirety, for nowthe storm was fairly bellowing in its might, formed of a variety ofsounds which baffles all description, but which, in itself, was morethan sufficient to chill the blood of even a brave man. Yet, almost asthough magnetised by that frightful force, the professor was holding hisair-ship steady, loitering there in its direct path, rather than fleeingfrom what surely would prove utter destruction to man and machine alike.
For a few moments Bruno withstood the temptation, but then leaned farenough to grasp both hand and tiller, forcing them in the requisitedirection, causing the aeromotor to swing easily around and dart awayalmost at right angles to the track of the tornado.
That roar was now as of a thousand heavily laden trains rumbling overhollow bridges, and the professor could only nod his approval when thusaroused from the dangerous fascination. Another minute, and the air-shipwas floating towards the rear of the balloon-shaped cloud itself, eachsecond granting the passengers a varying view of the wonder.
True to the firm hand which set its machinery in motion, theflying-machine maintained that gentle curve until it swung around wellto the rear of the cloud, where again Professor Featherwit broke out inecstatic praises of their marvellous good fortune.
"'Tis worth a life's ransom, for never until now hath mortal being beenblessed with such a magnificent opportunity for taking notes and drawingdeductions which--"
The professor nimbly ducked his head to dodge a ragged splinter offreshly torn wood which came whistling past, cast far away from thetornado proper by those erratic winds. And at the same instant themachine itself recoiled, shivering and creaking in all its cunningjoints under a gust of wind which seemed composed of both ice and fire.
"Oh, I say!" gasped Waldo, when he could rally from the sudden blow."Turn the old thing the other way, uncle Phaeton, and let's go lookfor--well, almost anything's better than this old cyclone!"
"Tornado, lad," swiftly corrected the man of precision, leaning farforward, and gazing enthralled upon the vision which fairly thrilledhis heart to its very centre. "Never again may we have such anotheropportunity for making--"
They were now directly in the rear of the storm, and as the air-shipheaded across that track of destruction, it gave a drunken stagger,casting down its inmates, from whose parching lips burst cries ofvarying import.
"Air! I'm choking!" gasped Bruno, tearing open his shirt-collar with aspasmodic motion.
"Hold me fast!" echoed Waldo, clinging desperately to the life-line."It's drawing me--into the--ah!"
Even the professor gave certain symptoms of alarm for that moment,but then the danger seemed past as the ship darted fairly across thestorm-trail, hovering to the east of that aerial phantom.
There was no difficulty in filling their lungs now, and once moreProfessor Featherwit headed the flying-machine directly for theballoon-shaped cloud, modulating its pace so as to maintain theirrelative position fairly well.
"Take note how it progresses,--by fits and starts, as it were," observedFeatherwit, now in his glory, eyes asparkle and muscles aquiver, hairbristling as though full of electricity, face glowing with almostpainful interest, as those shifting scenes were for ever imprinted uponhis brain.
"Sort of a hop, step, and jump, and that's a fact," agreed Waldo, now abit more at his ease since that awful sense of suffocation was lacking."I thought all cyclones--"
"Tornado, my DEAR boy!" expostulated the professor.
"I thought they all went in holy hurry, like they were sent for andhad mighty little time in which to get there. But this one,--see how itstops to dance a jig and bore holes in the earth!"
"Another exception to the general rule, which is as you say," admittedthe professor. "Different tornadoes have been timed as moving fromtwelve to seventy miles an hour, one passing a given point in half ascore of seconds, at another time being registered as fully half an hourin clearing a single section.
"Take the destructive storm at Mount Carmel, Illinois, in June of '77.That made progress at the rate of thirty-four miles an hour, yet itsforce was so mighty that it tore away the spire, vane, and heavy gildedball of the Methodist church, and kept it in air over a distance offifteen miles.
"Still later was the Texas tornado, doing its awful work at the rate ofmore than sixty miles an hour; while that which swept through Frankfort,Kansas, on May 17, 1896, was fully a half-hour in crossing a half-milestretch of bottom-land adjoining the Vermillion River, pausing in itsdizzy waltz upon a single spot for long minutes at a time."
"Couldn't have been much left when it got through dancing, if thatstorm was anything like this one," declared Waldo, shivering a bit ashe watched the awful destruction being wrought right before theirfascinated eyes.
Trees were twisted off and doubled up like blades of dry grass. Mightyrocks were torn apart from the rugged hills, and huge boulders weretossed into air as though composed of paper. And over all ascendedthe horrid roar of ruin beyond description, while from that misshapenballoon-cloud, with its flattened top, the electric fluid shone andflashed, now in great sheets as of flame, then in vicious spurts anddarts as though innumerable snakes of fire had been turned loose by thewinds.
Still the aerial demon bored its almost sluggish course straight towardsthe northwest, in this, as in all else, seemingly bent on provi
ng itselfthe exception to all exceptions as Professor Featherwit declared.
The savant himself was now in his glory, holding the tiller between armand side, the better to manipulate his hand-camera, with which he wastaking repeated snap-shots for future development and reference.
Truly, as he more than once declared, mortal man never had, nor mortalman ever would have, such a glorious opportunity for recording thevarying phases of nature in travail as was now vouchsafed themselves.
"Just think of it, lads!" he cried, almost beside himself withenthusiasm. "This alone will be sufficient to carry our names ringingthrough all time down the corridors of undying fame! This alone would bemore than enough to--Look pleasant, please!"
In spite of that awful vision so perilously close before them, and thenatural uncertainty which attended such a reckless venture, Waldo couldnot repress a chuckle at that comical conclusion, so frequently usedtowards himself when their uncle was coaxing them to pose before his petcamera.
"Is it--surely this is not safe, uncle Phaeton?" ventured Bruno, asanother retrograde gust of air smote their apparently frail conveyancewith sudden force.
"Let's call it a day's work, and knock off," chimed in Waldo. "Ifthe blamed thing should take a notion to balk, and rear back on itshaunches, where'd we come out at?"
Professor Featherwit made an impatient gesture by way of answer. Speechjust then would have been worse than useless, for that tremendousroaring, crashing, thundering of all sounds, seemed to fall back andenvelop the air-ship as with a pall.
A shower of sand and fine debris poured over and around them, fillingears and mouths, and blinding eyes for the moment, forcing the brotherscloser to the floor of the aerostat, and even compelling the eagerprofessor to remit his taking of notes for future generations.
Then, thin and reed-like, yet serving to pierce that temporary obscurityand horrible jangle of outer sounds, came the voice of their relative:
"Fear not, my children! The Lord is our shield, and so long as hewilleth, just so long shall we--Ha! didn't I tell ye so?"
For the blinding veil was torn away, and once again the trio ofadventurers might watch yonder grandly awesome march of devastation.
"Heading direct for the Olympics!" declared Professor Featherwit,digging the sand out of his eyes and striving to clean his glasseswithout removing them, clinging to tiller and camera through all. "Whata grand and glorious guide 'twould be for us!"
"If we could only hitch on--like a tin can to the tail of a dog!"suggested Waldo, with boyish sarcasm. "Not any of that in mine, thankyou! I can wait. No such mighty rush. No,--SIR!"
There came no answer to his words, for just then that swooping air-demonturned to vivid fire, lightning playing back and forth, from sideto side, in every conceivable direction, until in spite of the broaddaylight its glory pained those watching eyes.
"Did you ever witness the like!" awesomely cried Bruno, gazing like onefascinated. "Who could or would ever believe all that, even if tonguewere able to portray its wondrous beauty?"
"What a place that would be for popping corn!" contributed Waldo,practical or nothing, even under such peculiar circumstances. "If I hadto play poppy, though, I'd want a precious long handle to the concern!"
More intensely interested than ever, Professor Featherwit plied hisshutter, taking shot after shot at yonder aerial phenomena, feeling thatfuture generations would surely rise up to call him blessed when theresults of his experiments were once fairly spread before the world.
And hence it came to pass that still more thrilling experiences cameunto these daring navigators of space, and that almost before one or theother of them could fairly realise that greater danger really menacedboth their air-ship and their lives.
Another whirly-gust of sand and other debris assailed theflying-machine, and while sight was thus rendered almost useless forthe time being, the aerostat began to sway and reel from side to side,shivering as though caught by an irresistible power, yet against whichit battled as though instinct with life and brain-power.
Once again the adventurers found it difficult to breathe, while anunseen power seemed pressing them to that floor as though--Thank heaven!
Just as before, that cloud was swept away, and again air came to fillthose painfully oppressed lungs. Once again the trio cleared their eyesand stared about, only to utter simultaneous cries of alarm.
For, brief though that period of blindness had been, 'twas amplysufficient to carry the aeromotor perilously near yonder storm-centre,and though Professor Featherwit gripped hard his tiller, trying all heknew to turn the air-ship for a safer quarter,-'twas all in vain!
"Haste,--make haste, uncle Phaeton!" hoarsely panted Bruno, leaning toaid the professor. "We will be sucked in and--hasten, for life!"
"I can't,--we're already--in the--suction!"
The Lost City Page 2
