Motor Matt

“ It details the astonishing adventures of a young mechanic who owned a motor cycle. Is there a boy who has not longed to possess one of these swift little machines that scud about the roads everywhere throughout the United States? Is there a boy, therefore, who will not be intensely interested in the adventures of "Motor Matt," as he is familiarly called by his comrades? ”

“ Motor Matt disliked any further entanglements with Tsan Ti and the fateful ruby fully as much as did his cowboy pard, and he was greatly perturbed over the unexpected developments which had again drawn him and McGlory into the plots and counterplots hovering around the valuable gem. But it was impossible for the king of the motor boys to turn his back upon an appeal from any one in distress when it was in his power to be of help. ”

“ Think of Matt and me getting done out of those two motor cycles of yours."
"But I'll have to put up ten times what you fellows did for the motor cycles—that is, if we can't get the car back."
"We!" boomed McGlory, starting forward in his chair. "If we can't get the car back! Are Motor Matt and Pard McGlory mixed up in that 'we'?" ”

“ The motor boys and their gasoline air ship always commanded attention and were loudly cheered. The fame of Motor Matt's exploits had been told in handbills and dodgers by the clever showman, and, too, Burton had seen to it that the young motorist secured ample space in the newspapers. ”

“ Now that Matt had charge of that fine big car, he was conscious of a feeling of pride as he stood off and surveyed the superb machine. From now on the car was to be under his care, and to run under his hands. Motors were his hobby, particularly gasoline-motors, and he was never so happy as when he had something to do with them.
He wondered a little why a wealthy wholesale jeweler should be traveling about the Southwest in a touring-car with no more baggage than Mr. Tomlinson had with him. ”

“ Motor Matt's work was mapped out for him, and he had plenty to do. Whirling on the grim-faced half-breed, he dropped down on a boulder and pulled a small motor-cycle catalogue from his pocket. Ripping off the cover, which was bare of printing on the inside, he laid it on top of his leather cap, which he placed on his knees.
"This will be a queer-looking affidavit," said he, fishing a lead-pencil from his pocket, "but we'll have to make the most of what we have. You see, Pete, we're [Pg 22] working against time, and every second counts. ”

“ Ah Sin, having been duly instructed as to his duties, prepared the supper on the electric stove, and served it. Speake relieved Matt at the steering gear, and when Dick went below to take Gaines' place at the motor, Matt sprawled out on the locker to catch his own forty winks. A stiff sea was running, and the Grampus was submerged to a depth that merely left the periscope ball clear of the combers.
As the darkness deepened, Speake had Carl put the turbines at work, throwing out sufficient water ballast to lift the conning-tower lunettes clear of the waves. ”

“ The boys who want to learn something from what they read, as well as to be interested by it, will never find another publication that will satisfy them so well as MOTOR STORIES. "Motor Matt" is not an impossible boy character. He is simply a youth who has had considerable training in a machine shop where motors of all kinds were repaired, and who is possessed of a genius for mechanics. ”

“ Wow! Let's duck f'r de rocks agin!"
"Get into the car!" shouted Matt, giving the crank a whirl.
One beauty of the Red Flier was the quickness with which the machine caught up its cycle; and it had been the same with Matt's twin-cylinder motorcycle. Half a turn of the pedal was enough for the little Comet, and one pull of the crank did the business for the red car's motor.
While the machine popped its defiance of Brisco and Spangler, Motor Matt ran around and vaulted into his old familiar place. He felt at home—much more so than he had when driving the runabout. ”

“ This is more than I can stand."
"We can't descend until we reach the right place."
Matt made a wide turn, the engine working perfectly.
"Hold on tight, below there," he called. "I've got to take my attention from running the motor for a moment, and if we give a wild pitch or two don't be afraid. I'll be able to keep the machine right side up."
"I'm pretty near all in," came from Le Bon in a subdued voice, "but it would take an axe to chop me off this trapeze." ”

“ But the work the king of the motor boys had mapped out for himself exceeded his powers. There was none to come to his aid. Below, in the tank room and motor room, was a silence undisturbed by human voice or movement, and there, in the periscope chamber, the only noise to be heard was the deep breathing of Matt's unconscious friends and the rattling sounds of the scuffle going forward between the young motorist and Ah Sin.
The slouch hat and the false queue were kicked into one corner. Ah Sin's long, lean fingers were gripping Matt's throat. ”

“ The mass of compact machinery would have been puzzling to a boy who knew nothing about gasoline motor-cycles, but Matt's sparkling eyes went over the beautiful model part by part.
"It's one of the latest make and not being generally sold, as yet," explained the major, still smiling at the unfeigned pleasure the sight of the mechanical marvel was giving Matt. "Notice the twin cylinders? Seven horse-power, my boy. Think of that! Why, you could scoot away from a streak of lightning on that bike. ”

“ The generous instincts of the motor boys prompted them to go at once to the assistance of a possible victim, and they hurried into the timber. The sounds of scuffling which they had heard died out suddenly, and while they were moving around through the gloom, trying to locate the scene of the trouble, there reached their ears the chug-chugging of motors getting under way.
"Our motor cycles!" exclaimed Matt, darting back toward the road.
"Gad-hook it all!" cried McGlory; "it was a frame-up! A trick to run off our wheels!" ”

“ A familiar humming drew Motor Matt's attention. Looking in the direction of the sound, he saw a motor-cycle spinning along the road from the direction of Grand Rapids. A young fellow of nineteen or twenty was in the saddle.
"There's something that will do—if we can borrow it," said Matt, and jumped into the road and waved his hands.
The motorcycle came to a stop.
"Are you flagging me?" asked the driver of the machine.
"Yes," said Matt hurriedly. "I want to overhaul the street car that just left here. There's a man aboard that we've got to catch. Will you let me take your motorcycle?" ”

“ Motor Matt, a lad who is at home with every variety of motor, and whose never-failing nerve serves to carry him through difficulties that would daunt any ordinary young fellow. Because of his daring as a racer with bicycle, motor-cycle and automobile he is known as "Mile-a-minute Matt." Motor-boats, air ships and submarines come naturally in his line, and consequently he lives in an atmosphere of adventure in following up his "hobby." ”

“ Lieutenant Cameron had declared.
Matt laughed.
"Why, Cameron," he answered, "I used to work in a motor plant, in Albany, New York."
"That may be, Matt, but building a motor is a different proposition from building a flying machine."
"Traquair laid down the plans. All I have to do is to follow them. It's really very simple. An aëroplane, you know, is nothing more than two oblong pieces of canvas, fastened together one above the other and pushed against the air by a motor and propeller. If the motor drives the wings fast enough, they're sure to stay up." ”

“ If McGlory, Cameron, and Ping were delighted with the start of the new aëroplane, Motor Matt was doubly so. Matt was "at the helm" and capable of appreciating the machine's performance as his friends could not do.
Preserving an equilibrium, and riding on a more or less even keel, is the hardest point to be met in navigating an aëroplane. The centre of wind pressure and the centre of gravitation is constantly changing, and each change must be instantly met by manipulating the wings. ”

“ Dick was thrown sidewise by the shock, and Matt only saved himself a fall by taking a convulsive grip on the spokes of the steering wheel.
"Fore-rudder will not work, sir!" cried Speake through the tube communicating with the engine room.
One admirable thing about the king of the motor boys was that he never got "rattled." Under any and all circumstances he kept his head.
"Stop your motor, Gaines!" he cried instantly through [Pg 2] another of the tubes, then, whirling to still another, he called: "Prepare to empty the ballast, Clackett!" ”

“ Almost before Matt realized it he was over the town of Minnewaukon, with the jubilant cheers of the citizens echoing in his ears.
He made a half turn to lay the machine on her new course. The inner wing dipped as the aëroplane came around, but the expanding and contracting device kept the craft from going to a dangerous angle, and it came level again on the straightaway course.
Even on a day that seems still and quiet the air is a veritable maelstrom of conflicting currents close to the earth's surface. ”

“ Shirley turned an approving glance on Motor Matt.
"I hear nothing but most excellent reports of Motor Matt," said he, "and I should like to hear from him, in detail, all that has happened while he and his friends were working to recover the diamonds for the last time."
"It will be worth listening to, I can promise you that," said Cassidy. "Whenever he does a thing, he has a way o' his own of getting at it." ”

“ The roadster flashed up the road, and Matt could see Banks forcing the machine into the bushes at the roadside. In a little while the sheriff was back at the touring car.
"The back part of that machine will be a little crowded," said he, "but we'll have to stand it if we make the play you've laid out, Motor Matt."
"Suppose you and Gridly get into the tonneau," suggested Matt, "and leave Boggs, and me, and the dog to hide in the bushes at the edge of the marsh? We'll be close enough to help if anything happens, and won't interfere with you if you should have to work in a hurry." ”

“ Reason assured Matt that he had a fighting chance. [Pg 20] There was a mile a minute in the Comet if Matt cared to let her go the limit and risk his neck.
Notch by notch he opened her out. Why not do a mile a minute? There was less sand just ahead and better ground. Besides, he was working for Chub and Susie, and what good was a fellow who wouldn't risk his neck for his friends?
This was a race for a fortune. It made little difference to Motor Matt that it was a fortune for the McReadys and not for himself that trembled in the balance.
The hills melted away behind the speeding motor-cycle. ”

“ Matt was in the road, his motor cycle leaning against a tree. A yard in front of him lay a flat cap. He pointed to it.
"What's that to do with a breakneck stop like we just made?" snorted the cowboy. "It's not the headgear we want, pard, but the man that owns it."
"Sure," returned Matt. "Look farther down the road, Joe, and then you'll understand."
A straight drop in the road stretched ahead of the boys for a quarter of a mile. Halfway along the stretch was the automobile. The machine was at a stop, and the driver and the one-eyed man were leaning over the motor. ”

“ An old letter of Bangs', Bangs' notebook and Bangs' pencil helped me out. I'll bet eight big iron louies you never once suspected me of dropping that letter in the mails; and yet, who else was there for you to suspect? Didn't think Jurgens would do it, did you? Or Whistler? Or Bangs? Get wise, Motor Matt, get wise. There's work ahead for the lot of us, and the longer we hang off about it, the harder it's likely to be."
[Pg 18]
Matt and his friends listened to this line of talk with a good deal of wonder, but they were not disposed, just then, to take Dashington's word for anything. ”

“ Carl was grabbed by all the white-caps; then, after he had been thrown on the floor, his feet and hands were tied and a cloth was bound over his eyes.
"Pretzel," went on the voice of the man in the car, "we racing-drivers are particular about those who enter our ranks. If Motor Matt attempts to race for the Borden cup, he will never live to face the tape at the start. ”

“ Captain Nemo, Jr., ought to give you a good slice of that hundred thousand when you tie up the Grampus at the navy-yard wharf."
"I'm not looking for that, Dick," returned Motor Matt earnestly. "It's the idea of making good that appeals to [Pg 16] me beyond anything and everything else. It isn't so much the money that comes to us for what we do, but the way we toe the scratch that counts."
An hour later all preliminaries were finished and the Grampus was off up the bay, tanks emptied and steel hull high in the water, her motors humming and setting a record pace. ”

“ Matt listened. It was marvelous how completely he was in touch with the engine.
"Did you strain the gasoline before you put it into the tank?" he demanded of Clackett.
"Always do that, Matt," was the reply.
"The carburetter valve is clogged. Lay hold here."
In ten minutes the valve was clear, the engine "turned over" and the motor working properly. Matt switched the power into the propeller.
"All right, periscope room!" he called through a tube.
"Bully!" came back the voice of Gaines. "We were almost on the rocks. You're the boy, Matt!"
"Send Dick Ferral down here," ordered Matt curtly. ”

“ Uncle Tom was a grafter, but nevertheless Matt had a warm place in his heart for the old fellow. His peculiarities were all on the humorous side, and Matt could have enjoyed his talk if circumstances had been different.
[21]
While Matt was striding onward, his thoughts keeping pace with his swift gait, he heard suddenly the hum of a motor in the distance.
All motors have the same sort of music. The tempo changes with work at the throttle, but a trained ear can follow the shifting gears; and, now and then, there’s a man who will recognize his car by the croon of the engine alone. ”