Dick Hamilton's Airship; Or, A Young Millionaire in the Clouds Read online

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  DICK HAMILTON'S AIRSHIP;

  OR, A YOUNG MILLIONAIRE IN THE CLOUDS

  BY

  Howard R. Garis

  CONTENTS

  I THE FALLING BIPLANE II THE COLONEL'S OFFER III DICK'S RESOLVE IV THE ARMY AVIATORS V SUSPICIONS VI DICK'S FIRST FLIGHT VII A QUEER LANDING VIII AT HAMILTON CORNERS IX UNCLE EZRA'S VISIT X BUILDING THE AIRSHIP XI A SURPRISE XII LARSON SEES UNCLE EZRA XIII UNCLE EZRA ACTS QUEERLY XIV THE TRIAL FLIGHT XV IN DANGER XVI DICK IS WARNED XVII OFF FOR THE START XVIII UNCLE EZRA FLIES XIX UNCLE EZRA'S ACCIDENT XX IN NEW YORK XXI OFF FOR THE PACIFIC XXII UNCLE EZRA STARTS OFF XXIII AN IMPROMPTU RACE XXIV GRIT'S GRIP XXV A FORCED LANDING XXVI ON LACK MICHIGAN XXVII A HOWLING GALE XXVIII ABLAZE IN THE CLOUDS XXIX THE RIVAL AIRSHIP XXX AN ATTACK XXXI THE WRECK XXXII SAVING UNCLE EZRA XXXIII WITH UNCLE EZRA'S HELP

  CHAPTER I

  THE FALLING BIPLANE

  "She sure is a fine boat, Dick."

  "And she can go some, too!"

  "Glad you like her, fellows," replied Dick Hamilton, to the remarks ofhis chums, Paul Drew and Innis Beeby, as he turned the wheel of a newmotor-boat and sent the craft about in a graceful sweep toward a smalldock which connected with a little excursion resort on the Kentfieldriver.

  "Like her! Who could help it?" asked Paul, looking about admiringly atthe fittings of the craft. "Why, you could go on a regular cruise inher!"

  "You might if you kept near your base of supplies," remarked Dick.

  "Base of supplies!" laughed Innis. "Can't you forget, for a while,that you're at a military school, old man, and not give us the sort ofstuff we get in class all the while?"

  "Well, what I meant," explained the young millionaire owner of themotor-boat, "was that you couldn't carry enough food aboard, and haveroom to move about, if you went on a very long trip."

  "That's right, you couldn't," agreed Paul. "And of late I seem to haveacquired the eating habit in its worst form."

  "I never knew the time when you didn't have it," responded Dick. "I'mgoing to give you a chance to indulge in it right now, and I'm going toprofit by your example."

  "What's doing?" asked Innis, as he straightened the collar of hismilitary blouse, for the three were in the fatigue uniforms of theKentfield Military Academy, where Dick and his chums attended. Lessonsand practice were over for the day, and the young millionaire hadinvited his friends out for a little trip in his new motor-boat.

  "I thought we'd just stop at Bruce's place, and get a sandwich and acup of coffee," suggested Dick. "Then we can go on down the river andwe won't have to be back until time for guard-mount. We'll be betterable to stand it, if we get a bite to eat."

  "Right you are, old chap!" exclaimed Paul, and then he, too, began tosmooth the wrinkles out of his blouse and to ease his rather tighttrousers at the knees.

  "Say, what's the matter with you dudes, anyhow?" asked Dick, who, afterglancing ahead to see that he was on the right course to the dock,looked back to give some attention to the motor.

  "Matter! I don't see anything the matter," remarked Innis in casualtones, while he flicked some dust from his shoes with a spare pockethandkerchief.

  "Why, you two are fussing as though you were a couple of girls at yourfirst dance," declared Dick, as he adjusted the valves of the oil cupsto supply a little more lubricant to the new motor, which had not yetwarmed up to its work. "Innis acts as though he were sorry he hadn'tcome out in his dress uniform, and as for you, Paul, I'm beginning tothink you are afraid you hadn't shaved. What's it all about, anyhow?Old man Bruce won't care whether you have on one tan shoe and one blackone; or whether your hair is parted, or not."

  Then Dick, having gotten the motor running to his satisfaction, lookedtoward the dock which he was rapidly nearing in his boat. The nextmoment he gave a whistle of surprise.

  "Ah, ha! No wonder!" he cried. "The girls? So that's why you fellowswere fixing up, and getting yourselves to look pretty. And you let memonkey with the motor, and get all grease and dirt while you-- Say, Iguess we'll call off this eating stunt," and he swung over the steeringwheel.

  "Oh, I say?" protested Innis.

  "Don't be mean?" added Paul. "We haven't seen the girls in some time,and there's three of 'em--"

  Dick laughed. On the dock, under the shade of an awning, he had caughtsight of three pretty girls from town--girls he and his chums knewquite well. They were Mabel Hanford, in whom Dick was more thanordinarily interested, Grace Knox, and Irene Martin.

  "I thought I'd get a rise out of you fellows," the young millionairewent on. "Trying to get me in bad, were you!"

  The boat swerved away from the dock. The girls, who had arisen,evidently to come down to the float, and welcome the approachingcadets, seemed disappointed. One of them had waved her handkerchief inresponse to a salute from Paul.

  "Here, take some of this and clean your face," suggested Paul, handingDick some cotton waste from a seat locker.

  "And here's a bit for your shoes," added Innis, performing a likeservice. "You'll look as good as we do."

  "What about my hands?" asked Dick. "Think I want to go up and sitalongside of a girl with paws like these?" and he held out one that wasblack and oily.

  "Haven't you any soap aboard?" asked Innis, for he, like Paul, seemedanxious that Dick should land them at the dock where the girls were.

  "Oh, well, if you fellows are as anxious as all that I s'pose I'll haveto humor you," agreed Dick, with a grin. "I dare say Bruce can let mewash up in his place," and he turned the craft back on the course hehad previously been holding. A little later the motor-boat was madefast to the float, and the three cadets were greeting the three girls.

  "Look out for my hands!" warned Dick, as Miss Hanford's light summerdress brushed near him. "I'm all oil and grease. I'll go scrub up, ifyou'll excuse me."

  "Certainly," said Mabel Hanford, with a rippling laugh.

  When Dick returned, he ordered a little lunch served out on the end ofthe dock, where they could sit and enjoy the cool breezes, and look atthe river on which were many pleasure craft.

  "Where were you boys going?" asked Grace Knox, as she toyed with herice-cream spoon.

  "Coming to see you," answered Paul promptly.

  "As if we'd believe that!" mocked Irene. "Why, you were going rightpast here, and only turned in when you saw us!"

  "Dick didn't want to come at all," said Innis.

  "He didn't! Why not?" demanded Mabel.

  "Bashful, I guess," murmured Paul.

  "No, it was because I didn't want to inflict the company of these twobores on you ladies!" exclaimed Dick, thus "getting back."

  There was much gay talk and laughter, and, as the afternoon was stillyoung, Dick proposed taking the girls out for a little jaunt in his newcraft He had only recently purchased it, and, after using it atKentfield, he intended taking it with him to a large lake, where he andhis father expected to spend the Summer.

  "Oh, that was just fine!" cried Mabel, when the ride was over, and theparty was back at the pier. "Thank you, so much, Dick!"

  "Humph! You have US to thank--not him!" declared Paul. "He wouldn'thave turned in here if we hadn't made him. And just because his handshad a little oil on!"

  "Say, don't believe him!" protested the young millionaire. "I hadproposed coming here before I knew you girls were on the dock."

  "Well, we thank all THREE of you!" cried Irene, with a bow thatincluded the trio of cadet
s.

  "Salute!" exclaimed Paul, and the young soldiers drew themselves upstiffly, and, in the most approved manner taught at Kentfield, broughttheir hands to their heads.

  "'Bout face! Forward--march!" cried Grace, imitating an officer'sorders, and the boys, with laughs stood "at ease."

  "See you at the Junior prom!"

  "Yes, don't forget."

  "And save me a couple of hesitation waltzes!"

  "Can you come for a ride tomorrow?"

  "Surely!"

  This last was the answer of the girls to Dick's invitation, and theexclamations before that were the good-byes between the girls and boys,reference being made to a coming dance of the Junior class.

  Then Dick and his chums entered the motor-boat and started back for themilitary academy.

  "You've got to go some to get back in time to let us tog up forguard-mount," remarked Paul, looking at his watch.

  "That's right," added Innis. "I don't want to get a call-down. I'mabout up to my limit now.

  "We'll do it all right," announced Dick. "I haven't speeded the motoryet. I've been warming it up. I'll show you what she can do!"

  He opened wider the gasoline throttle of the engine, and advanced thetimer. Instantly the boat shot ahead, as the motor ran at twice thenumber of revolutions.

  "That's something like!" cried Paul admiringly.

  "She sure has got speed," murmured Innis.

  On they sped, talking of the girls, of their plans for the summer, andthe coming examinations.

  "Hark! What's that?" suddenly asked Paul, holding up his hand forsilence.

  They were made aware of a curious, humming, throbbing sound.

  "Some speed boat," ventured Dick.

  "None in sight," objected Paul, with a glance up and down the river,which at this point ran in a straight stretch for two miles or more."You could see a boat if you could hear it as plainly as that."

  "It's getting louder," announced Innis.

  Indeed the sound was now more plainly to be heard.

  Paul gave a quick glance upward.

  "Look, fellows!" he exclaimed. "An airship!"

  The sound was right over their heads now, and as all three looked upthey saw, soaring over them, a large biplane, containing three figures.It was low enough for the forms to be distinguished clearly.

  "Some airship!" cried Dick, admiringly.

  "And making time, too," remarked Innis.

  Aircraft were no novelties to the cadets. In fact part of theinstruction at Kentfield included wireless, and the theoretical use ofaeroplanes in war. The cadets had gone in a body to several aviationmeets, and once had been taken by Major Franklin Webster, theinstructor in military tactics, to an army meet where several new formsof biplanes and monoplanes had been tried out, to see which should begiven official recognition.

  "I never saw one like that before," remarked Paul, as they watched theevolutions of the craft above them.

  "Neither did I," admitted Dick.

  "I've seen one something like that," spoke Innis.

  "Where?" his chums wanted to know, as Dick slowed down his boat, thebetter to watch the biplane, which was now circling over the river.

  "Why, a cousin of mine, Whitfield Vardon by name, has the airship crazepretty bad," resumed Innis. "He has an idea he can make one that willmaintain its equilibrium no matter how the wind blows or what happens.But, poor fellow, he's spent all his money on experiments and he hasn'tsucceeded. The last I heard, he was about down and out, poor chap. Heshowed me a model of his machine once, and it looked a lot like this.But this one seems to work, and his didn't--at least when I saw it."

  "It's mighty interesting to watch, all right," spoke Paul, "but we'llbe in for a wigging if we miss guard-mount. Better speed her along,Dick."

  "Yes, I guess so. But we've got time--"

  Dick never finished that sentence. Innis interrupted him with a cry of:

  "Look, something's wrong on that aircraft!"

  "I should say so!" yelled Paul. "They've lost control of her!"

  The big biplane was in serious difficulties, for it gave a lurch,turned turtle, and then, suddenly righting, shot downward for the river.

  "They're going to get a ducking, all right!" cried Innis.

  "Yes, and they may be killed, or drowned," added Paul.

  "I'll do what I can to save 'em!" murmured Dick, as he turned on morepower, and headed his boat for the place where the aircraft was likelyto plunge into the water.

  Hardly had he done so when, with a great splash, and a sound as of anexplosion, while a cloud of steam arose as the water sprayed on the hotmotor, the aircraft shot beneath the waves raised by therapidly-whirling propellers.

  "Stand ready now!"

  "Get out a preserver!"

  "Toss 'em that life ring!"

  "Ready with the boat hook! Slow down your engine, Dick."

  The motor-boat was at the scene of the accident, and when one of theoccupants of the wrecked airship came up to the surface Dick made agrab for him, catching the boat hook in the neck of his coat.

  The next instant Dick gave a cry of surprise.

  "Larry Dexter--the reporter!" he fairly shouted. "How in the world--"

  "Let me get aboard--I'll talk when--when I get rid of--of--some of thiswater!" panted Larry Dexter. "Can you save the others?"

  "I've got one!" shouted Paul. "Give me a hand, Innis!"

  Together the two cadets lifted into the motorboat a limp and bedraggledfigure. And, no sooner had he gotten a glimpse of the man's face, thanInnis Beeby cried:

  "By Jove! If it isn't my cousin, Whitfield Vardon!"