Margaret Burnham

“ Beneath them wound a road, along which, but at some distance behind, the touring car could be seen coming in a cloud of yellow dust.
The wind began to grow puffy, and it required all the skill of the young aviators to keep their flock of motor-driven birds on even wings. Before long, just as the distant, but fast approaching, cloud curtain began to be ripped and slashed by vivid scimitars of lightning, Roy espied, beneath them, a field, at one end of which stood a prosperous-looking farmhouse, surrounded by buildings and hay stacks. ”

“ Our lives would be a dry desert without the girl aviators to liven things up," declared Jimsy.
"Jimsy Bancroft, if you are going to get poetical you'll leave this car," cried Jess.
"That's just it," declared Jimsy, "girls can cry their eyes out over romantic heroes, but when a regular fellow starts to get 'mushy' they go up in the air."
Amidst the chorus of protestations aroused by this ungallant speech Roy started the car. Swiftly it sped out of the grounds; but not so swiftly that the keen eyes of Lish Kelly did not see it.
He called Herman Le Roy, the Cuban aviator, to him. ”

“ He sat down where he was told and Roy took the wheel. Jeb's companions gazed on in awed silence.
"Look out, Jeb," cried one.
"Don't hit the sky," yelled another.
"Bring me back a star," howled the facetious old man.
"Me a bit of the moon," called another.
Jeb said nothing to this raillery. Instead, he looked uneasily about him and held his rifle, which he had insisted on bringing with him, between his knees.
"All right?" asked Roy, looking back at him.
"As right as I ever will be," rejoined Jeb, with a rather sickly grin.
"You must hold tight," warned Peggy. ”

“ Then came definite words:
"Don't! Please; don't hit me again!"
"It's a child!" exclaimed Jimsy.
"A girl!" cried Peggy, "some one is ill-treating her."
"We'll soon find out!" cried Roy hotly. It infuriated the boy to think that a child was being subjected to ill-treatment, and the nature of the cries left no doubt that such was the case.
"Stand back here, girls, while we see what's up!" struck in Jimsy.
"Indeed we'll do no such thing!" rejoined the plucky Bess, bridling indignantly.
"At any rate let us go in advance," advised Roy; "we don't know just what we may run up against." ”

“ Stunned for an instant, and half blinded, not one of the young folks in the touring car uttered a word.
The storm, too, appeared to be "holding its breath" after that terrific bombardment.
"That struck close by," declared Roy, the first to recover his speech.
"Oh! oh!" moaned Miss Prescott, "then the next will hit us!"
"Don't be a goose, Aunt Sally," comforted Peggy; "don't you know that lightning never strikes twice in the same place?" ”

“ Forward plunged the car, its queer driver with his feet wedged in the spokes of the steering wheel. Aloft the flock of young aviators roared with laughter at the sight. It was the oddest experience they had yet had—this spectacle of a grave-looking, long-horned ram driving an auto, while Jake prudently kept out of reach of those horns. As for Miss Prescott and The Wren, they cowered back in the tonneau in keen alarm. ”

“ The small man, whose hair was fair, not to say pale, glanced at the glowing boy with an expression of deep melancholy.
"Yes, if something don't happen," he declared, in tones of deep pessimism.
"Jake's never happy unless he's foreboding some disaster," explained Roy to Bess, who happened to be standing by drawing on her gloves.
"It don't never do to be too sure," murmured the melancholy Jake, "'cos why? Well, you can't most generally always tell."
"Everything ready?" cried Peggy at last, as Miss Prescott got into the car. ”

“ Quite a small crowd gave a loud cheer as Roy cried:
"Go!"
"We're off!" cried Peggy, athrill with excitement.
Propellers flashed in the sunlight and the next instant the biplane, after a short run, soared aloft toward a sky of cloudless, clean-swept blue. In rapid succession the Dart, Golden Butterfly and Red Dragon followed.
"Come on," cried Bess to Jimsy, waving her hand challengingly.
"Ladies first, even off the earth," came back from Jimsy gallantly, as he skillfully "banked" his machine in an upward spiral. ”

“ He pushed his way through the crowd toward the young aviator.
"You young scoundrel!" he yelled, "I'll fix you for that! I'll—" "Look out, here come the rest of them!" shouted the crowd at this juncture.
Nobody needed any warning this time. They fled in all directions as one after the other the Golden Butterfly, the Red Dragon and the pretty, graceful Dart dropped to earth.
"Wa'al, look at them gals, will yer!" shouted a voice in the crowd.
"What's the country coming to?" demanded another man. "Gals gallivanting around like gol-dinged birds!" ”

“ In another instant it would have looked bad indeed for Jimsy, but Roy, landing a hard blow against his assailant, hastened to his chum's rescue.
"You look after that fellow. I'll take care of this one," cried Jake, rushing into the mêlée, whirling his monkey wrench in a formidable manner.
The girls, huddled in a group, gazed on in frank alarm.
"Oh, they'll be killed!" shrilled Jess.
"Roy! Roy! Be careful!" cried Peggy.
"Oh, I wish we could get a policeman," cried Bess, clasping her hands nervously. ”

“ Already three of Kelly's machines were there, among them being that of Señora Le Roy, or, as she was billed, the Cuban Skylark, the Only Woman Flyer in the World. It appeared now that she had small claim to the title. The crowd set up a cheer for her as she took her seat in a neat-looking monoplane of the Bleriot type.
But when Peggy's dapper figure, smartly attired in her aviation costume, appeared a still louder shout went up.
Kelly scowled blackly. He stepped up to his flyers.
"You've got to win this race or get fired," he snarled. ”

“ The engine fairly roared as the propeller blurred round. The whole fabric trembled under the strain. It seemed as if nothing made by man could stand the pressure.
But the Golden Butterfly had been built by one of the foremost young aviators in the country, and it was sound and true in every part. Peggy felt no fear of anything giving out under the strain.
And now the aviation park appeared in the distance. Peggy headed straight for it, hoping devoutly that her motor would not heat up and jam under the terrific speed it was being forced to.
The Cuban woman glanced round anxiously. ”

“ I happened to be near that machine with a monkey wrench and in some way was careless enough to let it put that plug out of business."
Both men laughed heartily, as if Kelly's rascally act had been the most amusing thing in the world.
"You are a genius," declared Le Roy.
"Well, I reckon I know a thing or two," was the modest response; "besides, I need that money."
"But what is your plan?"
"I'll tell you as we go along. Drive fast, but don't keep so close to that other car that they can get sight of us." ”

“ I remember a home and my mother, but that was all so long ago that it isn't clear."
"Then she's not a gipsy," declared Peggy emphatically.
"I'll bet they kidnapped her some place," exclaimed Roy.
"That doesn't solve the problem of what to do with her," struck in Jess.
"We can't send her back to those people," declared Bess, with some warmth.
"On the other hand, how are we to look after her?" said Jimsy.
"It's a problem that will have to solve itself," said Miss Prescott, after a few moments of deep thinking.
"How is that?" asked Peggy. ”

“ The spirits of all rose as did their machines as they raced along. Before leaving the Hutchings farm the old man had been so moved to generosity by the novel manner in which his farm had been saved from destruction that he had offered to give back $2.50 of the $5 he had demanded for the rent of his field. Of course they had not taken it, but the evident anguish with which the offer was made afforded much amusement to the young aviators as they soared along.
In Peggy's machine the talk between herself and Jess was of the strange finding of The Wren, and of the child's curious ways. ”

“ Left to itself the aëroplane "yawed" wildly, like a craft without a rudder. Then suddenly it dashed down toward the earth, smoke and flames leaping from its front part.
Both girls uttered a cry of terror as the aircraft fell like a stone hurled into space. Faster and faster it dashed earthward without a controlling hand to guide it. It was at this instant that Roy and Jimsy became aware of what had happened.
Instantly they swung their machine around in time to see the Golden Butterfly make her sickening downward swoop. ”

“ He waved the duplicate entry blanks above his head.
"Let's see them," begged Jess.
"All right. Look what I've let us in for!"
"Why—why—good gracious, Roy, you've got us down for everything," gasped Peggy.
"That's right, all the way across from soup to nuts," struck in the slangy Jimsy.
They all laughed. The color rose in the girls' faces.
"If only we can win some of them," cried Jess.
"Well, the machines are all in fine shape. If we don't win it will be because the other fellows have better machines."
"Where are the aviation grounds?" inquired Bess. ”

“ So saying, off he went to sleep again, while Jimsy, overjoyed, hastily peeled a dollar from his "roll" and departed. The last sound he heard was the steady snoring of the garage man.
"Well, there's one fellow that money can't keep awake, even if it does talk," said Jimsy laughingly to himself as, with a cry of triumph, he rejoined the party, waving the plug like a banner or an emblem of victory.
No time was lost in starting the auto up again and they whirled back through Millbrook in a cloud of dust. Passing through the village they retraced their way along the road by which they had come. ”

“ CHAPTER XVII. THE TWISTED SPARK PLUG.
"Gracious, are we in for more trouble?"
Jimsy looked blankly at Roy; but the latter only laughed at his chum's serious face.
Somehow, viewed in the bright light of early day, Lish Kelly's threats did not appear nearly as formidable as they had over night.
"Nonsense; what harm can he do us anyhow? We're going to go into this race, and we're going to win too. Just watch us."
"Going to tell the girls anything about Kelly and his remarks?"
"No; what good would that do? It would only scare them." ”

“ She laid one daintily gloved hand on the steering wheel of the little monoplane and patted it affectionately.
"It's pretty enough, but it wouldn't fly very far," commented Roy teasingly, "sort of aërial taxicab, I'd call it."
"Is that so, Mr. Roy Prescott? Well, I'd like you to know that the Dart could fly just as far and as fast as the Red Dragon or the Golden Butterfly."
"Well, if you wanted to take a trip to North Carolina with us you'd have an opportunity to test that idea out," laughed Peggy.
"A trip to North Carolina? What do you mean? Are you dreaming?" ”

“ The others agreed with him.
"We'll search all around here, including those woods," declared Peggy.
"Well, they can't have taken it very far into the woods," declared Jimsy; "the spread of its wings would prevent that."
"That's so," agreed Roy; "I think we are getting pretty 'warm' right now."
"All I am afraid of is that they may have damaged it," breathed Peggy anxiously.
"It would be in line with their other tactics," agreed Roy; "men who would try to burn down a stable with two boys in it, just to obtain revenge for a fancied insult or injury, are capable of anything." ”

“ Roy turned on him sharply, almost angrily.
"You get the ladies in that machine and drive off down the road a bit," he said; "I'll attend to this thing. Jimsy, come here."
Jake hesitated a moment and then strode off to the auto.
"Can't we stay and help?" asked Bess.
"No; we can help Roy best by doing what he; wants us to. He's got some plan in his head," rejoined Peggy firmly, "come along, Wren; Jess, help me with her, she's terrified to death." ”

“ See the smoke roll up!" cried Bess.
"The lightning must have struck it. Say, we'd better go and help," exclaimed Roy anxiously.
"I don't see that the old man who was so mean to us deserves any help," murmured Bess, rather angrily.
"Why, Bess, for shame!" reproved Peggy. "Go on, boys, the rain's letting up, maybe you can help them."
"All right, sis. Come on, Jimsy!"
The boys dived out of the car and set off running at top speed for the scene of the blaze, which was in a haystack back of the main barn of the farmhouse. ”

“ Her feet were bare, and altogether she was a most repulsive old crone. She saw Roy and Peggy almost as soon as they saw her. For an instant she stood looking at them and then raised her voice in a sort of shrill shriek.
Instantly from the woods around several men appeared—wild-looking, bearded fellows, each of whom carried a rifle.
"What you alls want hyar?" demanded one who seemed to be the leader.
"We were just taking a walk," explained Roy.
"Wa'al, we all don't like strangers particlar." ”