Tom Swift in the Caves of Ice, or, the Wreck of the Airship

by Victor Appleton

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  Tom Swift in the Caves of Ice

  OR

  The Wreck of the Airship

  by VICTOR APPLETON

  CONTENTS

  I ERADICATE IN AN AIRSHIP II ANDY FOGER'S TRIPLANE III ABE IS DECEIVED IV TOM GETS THE MAP V GRAVE SUSPICIONS VI ANDY'S AIRSHIP FLIES VII READY FOR THE TRIP VIII A THIEF IN THE NIGHT IX A VANDAL'S ACT X TOM IS HELD UP XI OFF FOR THE FROZEN NORTH XII PELTED BY HAILSTONES XIII A FRIGHTENED INDIAN XIV THE RIVAL AIRSHIP XV THE RACE XVI THE FALL OF THE ANTHONY XVII HITTING THE ICE MOUNTAIN XVIII A FIGHT WITH MUSK OXEN XIX THE CAVES OF ICE XX IN THE GOLD VALLEY XXI THE FOGERS ARRIVE XXII JUMPING THE CLAIM XXIII ATTACKED BY NATIVES XXIV THE WRECK OF THE AIRSHIP XXV THE RESCUE-CONCLUSION

  CHAPTER I

  ERADICATE IN AN AIRSHIP

  "Well, Massa Tom, am yo' gwine out in yo' flyin' machine ag'in to-day?"

  "Yes, Rad, I think I will take a little flight. Perhaps I'll go overto Waterford, and call on Mr. Damon. I haven't seen very much ofhim, since we got back from our hunt after the diamond-makers."

  "Take a run clear ober t' Waterfield; eh, Massa Tom?"

  "Yes, Rad. Now, if you'll help me, I'll get out the Butterfly, andsee what trim she's in for a speedy flight."

  Tom Swift, the young inventor, aided by Eradicate Sampson, thecolored helper of the Swift household, walked over toward a smallshed.

  A few minutes later the two had rolled into view, on its threebicycle wheels, a trim little monoplane--one of the speediest craftof the air that had ever skimmed along beneath the clouds. It wasbuilt to carry two, and had a very powerful motor.

  "I guess it will work all right," remarked the young inventor, forTom Swift had not only built this monoplane himself, but was theoriginator of it, and the craft contained many new features.

  "It sho' do look all right, Massa Tom."

  "Look here, Rad," spoke the lad, as a sudden idea came to him,"you've never ridden in an airship, have you?"

  "No, Massa Tom, an' I ain't gwine to nuther!"

  "Why not?"

  "Why not? 'Case as how it ain't healthy; that's why!"

  "But I go in them frequently, Eradicate. So does my father. You'veseen us fly often enough, to know that it's safe. Why, look at thenumber of times Mr. Damon and I have gone off on trips in thislittle Butterfly. Didn't we always come back safely?"

  "Yes, dat's true, but dere might come a time when yo' WOULDN'T comeback, an' den where'd Eradicate Sampson be? I axes yo' dat--whar'd Ibe, Massa Tom?"

  "Why, you wouldn't be anywhere if you didn't go, of course," and Tomlaughed. "But I'd like to take you for a little spin in thismachine, Rad. I want you to get used to them. Sometime I may needyou to help me. Come, now. Suppose you get up on this seat here, andI promise not to go too high until you get used to it. Come on, itwill do you good, and think of what all your friends will say whenthey see you riding in an airship."

  "Dat's right, Massa Tom. Dey suah will be monstrous envious obEradicate Sampson, dat's what dey will."

  It was clear that the colored man was being pursuaded somewhatagainst his will. Though he had been engaged by Tom Swift and hisfather off and on for several years, Eradicate had never shown anydesire to take a trip through the air in one of the several craftTom owned for this purpose. Nor had he ever evinced a longing for atrip under the ocean in a submarine, and as for riding in Tom'sspeedy electric car--Eradicate would as soon have sat down withthirteen at the table, or looked at the moon over the wrongshoulder.

  But now, somehow, there was a peculiar temptation to take his youngemployer at his word. Eradicate had seen, many times, the youthfulinventor and his friends make trips in the monoplane, as well as inthe big biplane and dirigible balloon combined--the RED CLOUD. Tomand the others had always come back safely, though often they metwith accidents which only the skill and daring of the daringaeronaut had brought to a safe conclusion.

  "Well, are you coming, Rad?" asked Tom, as he looked to see if theoil and gasoline tanks were filled, and gave a preliminary twirl tothe propeller.

  "Now does yo' t'ink it am puffickly safe, Massa Tom?" and thecolored man looked nervously at the machine.

  "Of course, Rad. Otherwise I wouldn't invite you. But I won't takeyou far. I just want you to get used to it, and, once you have madea flight, you'll want to make another."

  "I don't nohow believe I will, Massa Tom, but as long as you haveaxed me, an' as yo' say some of dem proud, stuck-up darkies inShopton will be tooken down a peg or two when de sees me, vhy, Iwill go wif yo', Massa Tom."

  "I thought you would. Now take your place in the little seat next towhere I'm going to sit. I'll start the engine and jump in. Now sitperfectly still, and, whatever you do, don't jump out. The ground'spretty hard this morning. There was a frost last night."

  "I knows dere was, Massa Tom. Nope, I won't jump. I--I--Oh, golly,Massa Tom! I guess I don't want to go--let me out!"

  Eradicate, his heart growing fainter as the time of starting drewnearer, made as if he would leave the monoplane, in which he hadtaken his seat.

  "Sit still!" yelled Tom. At that instant he started the propeller.The motor roared like a salvo of guns, and streaks of fire could beseen shooting from one cylinder to the other, until there was aperfect blast of explosions.

  The speed of the propeller increased as the motor warmed up. Tom ranto his seat and opened the gasoline throttle still more, advancingthe spark slightly. The roar increased. The lad darted a look atEradicate. The colored man's face was like chalk, and he wasgripping the upright braces at his side as though his salvationdepended on them.

  "Steady now" spoke Tom, yelling to be heard above the racket. "Herewe go."

  The Butterfly was moving slowly across the level stretch of groundwhich Tom used for starting his airships. The propeller was now ablur of light. The explosions of the motor became a steady roar, thenoise from one cylinder being merged into the blast from the othersso rapidly that it was a continuous racket.

  With a whizz the monoplane shot across the ground. Then, with aquick motion, Tom tilted the lifting planes, and, as gracefully as abird, the little machine mounted upward on a slant until, coming toa level about two hundred feet above the earth, Tom sent it straightahead over the roof of his house.

  "How's this, Rad?" he cried. "Isn't it great?"

  "It--it--er--bur-r-r-r! It's--it's mighty ticklish, Massa Tom--dat'sde word--it suah am mighty ticklish!"

  Tom Swift laughed and increased the speed. The Butterfly dartedforward like some hummingbird about to launch itself upon a flower,and, indeed, the revolutions of the propeller were not unlike thevibrations of the wings of that marvelous little creature.

  "Now for some corkscrew twists!" cried the young inventor. "Here wego, Rad!"

  With that he began a series of intricate evolutions, making figuresof eight, spirals, curves, sudden dips and long swings. It wasmasterwork in handling a monoplane, but Eradicate Sampson, as he satcrouched in the seat, gripping the uprights until his hands ached,was in no condition to appreciate it. Gradually, however, as he sawthat the craft remained up in the air, and showed no signs of falling,the fears of the colored man left him. He sat up straighter.

  "Don't you like it, Rad?" cried Tom.

  This time the answer came with more decision.

  "It suah am great, Massa Tom! I'm--I'm beginnin' t' like it. Whoop!I guess I do like it! Now if some of dem stuck-up coons could seeme--"

 
; "They'd think YOU were stuck up; eh, Rad? Stuck up in the air!"

  "Dat's right, Massa Tom. Ha! Ha! I suah am stuck up in de air! Ha!Ha!"

  By this time Tom had guided the machine away from the village, andthey were flying over the fields, some distance from his house. Thecolored man was beginning to enjoy his experience very much.

  Suddenly, just as Tom was trying to get a bit more speed out of themotor, the machine stopped. The cessation of the racket was almostas startling as a loud explosion would have been.

  "Just my luck!" cried Tom.

  "What's de matter?" asked Eradicate, anxiously.

  "Motor's stalled," replied the young inventor.

  "An', by golly, we's falling!" yelled the colored man.

  Naturally, with the stopping of the propeller, there was no furtherstraight, forward motion to the monoplane, and, following the law ofnature, it began to drop toward the earth on a slant.

  "We's fallin'! We'll be killed!" yelled the negro.

  "It's all right, I'll just vol-plane back to earth," spoke Tom,calmly. "I've often done it before, higher up than this. Sit still,Rad, I'm volplaning back to the ground."

  "An' I'll JUMP back to de ground; dat's what I'll do. I ain't goin't' wait until I falls, no sah! An' I ain't gwine t' do none ob datball-playin' yo' speak ob, Massa Swift. It's no time t' play ballwhen yo' life am in danger. I'se gwine t' jump."

  "Sit still!" cried Tom, for the colored man was about to spring fromhis seat. "There's no danger! I didn't say anything about playingball. I said I'd VOL-PLANE back to the earth. We'll be thereshortly. I'll take you down safe. Sit still, Rad!"

  He spoke so earnestly that the fears of his colored passenger werequelled. With a quick motion Tom threw up the head planes, to checkthe downward sweep. The Butterfly shot forward on a gradual slant.Repeating this maneuver several times, the young inventor finallybrought his machine to within a short distance of the earth, and,also, considerably nearer his own home.

  "I wonder if we can make it?" he murmured, measuring the distancewith his eye. "I think so. I'll shoot her up a bit and then let herdown on a long slant. Then, with another upward tilt, I ought tofetch it."

  The monoplane tilted upward. Eradicate gave a cry of terror. It wasstilled at a look from Tom. Once more the air machine glidedforward. Then came another long dip, another upward glide and theButterfly came gently to earth almost on the very spot whence it hadflown upward a few minutes before.

  Eradicate gave one mad spring from his seat, almost before thebicycle wheels had ceased revolving, as Tom jammed on the earth-brake.

  "Here, where are you going, Rad?" cried the lad.

  "Whar am I goin'? I'se goin' t' see if mah mule Boomerang am safe.He's de only kind ob an airship I wants arter dis!" and the coloredman disappeared into the shack whence came a loud "hee-haw!"

  "Oh, pshaw! Wait a minute, Rad. I'll soon have the motor fixed, andwe'll make another try. I'll take you over to Mr. Damon's with me."

  "No, sah, Massa Tom. Yo' don't catch dis coon in any mo' airships.Mah mule am good enough fo' me!" shouted Eradicate from the safeharbor of the mule's stable.

  Tom laughed, and turned to inspect the motor. As he was looking itover, to locate the trouble, the door of the house opened and apleasant-faced woman stepped out.

  "Oh, Tom," she called. "I looked for you a moment ago, and youweren't here!"

  "No, Mrs. Baggert," Tom replied, waving his hand in greeting to thehousekeeper, "Rad and I just came back--quite suddenly--sooner thanwe expected to. Why? Did you want me?"

  "Here's a letter that came for you," she went on.

  Tom tore open the envelope, and rapidly scanned the contents of themissive.

  "Hello!" he ejaculated half aloud. "It's from Abe Abercrombie, thatminer I met when we were after the diamond-makers! He says he is onhis way east to get ready to start on the quest for the Alaskanvalley of gold, in the caves of ice. I had almost forgotten that Ipromised to make the attempt in the big airship. How did this lettercome, Mrs. Baggert?" he asked.

  "By special delivery. The messenger brought it a few minutes ago."

  "Then we may see Abe any day now. Guess I'd better be looking overthe RED CLOUD to see if it's in shape for a trip to the Arcticregions."

  Tom's attention for the moment was taken off his little monoplane,and his memory went back to the strange scenes in which he and hisfriends had recently played a part, in searching for the cave of thediamond-makers on Phantom Mountain. He recalled the promise he hadmade to the old miner.

  "I wonder if he expects us to start for Alaska with winter comingon?" thought Tom.

  His musings were suddenly interrupted by the entrance into the yard,surrounding the aeroplane shed, of a lad about his own age.

  "Hello, Ned Newton!" called Tom, heartily.

  "Hello, yourself," responded Ned. "I've got a day off from the bank,and I thought I'd come over and see you. Say, have you heard thelatest?"

  "No. What is it?"

  "Andy Foger is building an airship."

  "Andy Foger building an airship?"

  "Yes, he says it will beat yours."

  "Humph! It will, eh? Well, Andy can do as he pleases as long as hedoesn't bother me. I won't be around here much longer, anyhow."

  "Why not, Tom?"

  "Because I soon expect to start for the far north on a strangequest. Come on in the shed, and I'll tell you about it. We're goingto try to locate a valley of gold, and I guess Andy Foger won'tfollow me there, even if he does build an airship."

  Tom and his chum started toward the shed, the young inventor stillholding the letter that was to play such an important part in hislife within the next few months. And, had he only known it, thebuilding of Andy Foger's airship was destined to be fraught withmuch danger to our hero.