Tom Swift and His Sky Racer or The Quickest Flight on ... - Fourmilab

83By daylight it was seen that quite a hole had been burned in the aeroplaneshed. <strong>Tom</strong> <strong>and</strong> Mr. Damon, accompanied by Mr. Jackson, walked through theplace.“And you say the fire broke out right after you had seen the mysteriousairship hovering over the house?” asked the eccentric man.“Well, not exactly after,” answered <strong>Tom</strong>, “but within an hour <strong>or</strong> so. Whydo you ask?”But Mr. Damon did not answer. Something on the flo<strong>or</strong> of the shed, amida pile of blackened <strong>and</strong> charred pieces of wood, attracted his attention. Hestooped over <strong>and</strong> picked it up.“Is this yours?” he asked <strong>Tom</strong>.“No. What is it?”<strong>The</strong> object looked like a small iron ball, with a tube about half an inch indiameter projecting slightly from it. <strong>Tom</strong> took it’.“Why, it looks like an infernal machine <strong>or</strong> a dynamite bomb,” he said. “Iwonder where it came from? Guess I’d better drop it in a pail of water. MaybeEradicate found it <strong>and</strong> brought it here. I never saw it bef<strong>or</strong>e. Mr. Jackson,please h<strong>and</strong> me that pail of water. We’ll soak this bomb.”“<strong>The</strong>re is no need,” said Mr. Damon, quietly. “It is harmless now. It hasdone its w<strong>or</strong>k. It was that which set fire to your shed, <strong>and</strong> which caused thestifling fumes.”“That?” cried <strong>Tom</strong>.“Yes. This ball is hollow, <strong>and</strong> was filled with a chemical. It was droppedon the roof, <strong>and</strong>, after a certain time, the plug in the tube was eaten through,the chemicals ran out, set the roof ablaze, <strong>and</strong>, dripping down inside spread thechoking od<strong>or</strong>s that nearly prevented you from getting out your aeroplane.”“Are you sure of this?” asked the young invent<strong>or</strong>.“Positive. I read about these bombs recently. A German invented them tobe used in attacking a besieged city in case of war.”“But how did this one get on my shed roof?” asked <strong>Tom</strong>.“It was dropped there by the mysterious airship!” exclaimed the odd man.“That was why the aeroplane moved about over your place. Those in it hopedthat the fire would not break out until you were all asleep, <strong>and</strong> that the shed <strong>and</strong>the Humming-Bird would be destroyed bef<strong>or</strong>e you came to the rescue. Some ofyour enemies are still after you, <strong>Tom</strong>.”“And it was Andy Foger, I’ll wager!” he cried. “He was in that aircraft! Oh,I’ll have a long sc<strong>or</strong>e to settle with him!”“Of course you can’t be sure it was he,” said Mr. Damon, “but I wouldn’tbe a bit surprised but what it was. Andy is capable of such a thing. He wantedto prevent you from taking part in the race.”“Well, he shan’t!” cried <strong>Tom</strong>, <strong>and</strong> then he thought of his invalid father.<strong>The</strong>y made a further examination of the shed, <strong>and</strong> discovered another emptybomb. <strong>The</strong>n <strong>Tom</strong> recalled having seen something drop from the mysteriousaeroplane as it passed over the shed.“It was these bombs,” he said. “We certainly had a narrow escape! Oh, waituntil I settle my sc<strong>or</strong>e with Andy Foger!”