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

' gwine out in yo' flyi

ver to Waterford, and call on Mr. Damon. I haven't seen very much

ober t' Waterfie

ll get out the Butterfly, and see wha

icate Sampson, the colored helper of the Swi

rim little monoplane-one of the speediest craft of the air that had ever skimmed a

or Tom Swift had not only built this monoplane himself, but was

ook all right

a sudden idea came to him, "you've n

an' I ain't gw

y n

s how it ain't he

n enough, to know that it's safe. Why, look at the number of times Mr. Damon and I

yo' WOULDN'T come back, an' den where'd Eradicate

I want you to get used to them. Sometime I may need you to help me. Come, now. Suppose you get up on this seat here, and I promise not to go too

will be monstrous envious ob Eradi

had never shown any desire to take a trip through the air in one of the several craft Tom owned for this purpose. Nor had he ever evinced a longing for a trip under the ocean

d his friends make trips in the monoplane, as well as in the big biplane and dirigible balloon combined-the RED CLOUD. Tom and the others had alwa

ked to see if the oil and gasoline tanks were fil

safe, Massa Tom?" and the colored

n't take you far. I just want you to get used to it, and,

an' as yo' say some of dem proud, stuck-up darkies in Shopton will be too

o sit. I'll start the engine and jump in. Now sit perfectly still, and, whatever you d

won't jump. I-I-Oh, golly, Massa Tom!

of starting drew nearer, made as if he would le

r roared like a salvo of guns, and streaks of fire could be seen shooting f

still more, advancing the spark slightly. The roar increased. The lad darted a look at Eradicate. The colored man'

elling to be heard above

ips. The propeller was now a blur of light. The explosions of the motor became a steady roar, the noise

planes, and, as gracefully as a bird, the little machine mounted upward on a slant until, coming to a

d?" he cried. "

ghty ticklish, Massa Tom-dat's de

mingbird about to launch itself upon a flower, and, indeed, the revolutions of the pr

wists!" cried the young i

monoplane, but Eradicate Sampson, as he sat crouched in the seat, gripping the uprights until his hands ached, was in no condition to appreciate it. Gradu

ike it, Rad?

nswer came with

n' t' like it. Whoop! I guess I do like it! N

e stuck up; eh, Rad?

. Ha! Ha! I suah am stu

d they were flying over the fields, some distance from his house.

of the motor, the machine stopped. The cessation of the racke

luck!"

er?" asked Erad

d," replied the

's falling!" yelle

ther straight, forward motion to the monoplane, and, following

e'll be killed!"

e Tom, calmly. "I've often done it before, higher up than

falls, no sah! An' I ain't gwine t' do none ob dat ball-playin' yo' speak ob, Mass

ere's no danger! I didn't say anything about playing ball. I said I'd VOL-PLANE ba

, to check the downward sweep. The Butterfly shot forward on a gradual slant. Repeating this maneuver several times, the you

h his eye. "I think so. I'll shoot her up a bit and then let her down

e more the air machine glided forward. Then came another long dip, another upward glide and the But

almost before the bicycle wheels had ceased

you going, Rad?

. He's de only kind ob an airship I wants arter dis!" and the col

e the motor fixed, and we'll make another try

mo' airships. Mah mule am good enough fo' me!" shoute

s looking it over, to locate the trouble, the door of

looked for you a moment

ing to the housekeeper, "Rad and I just came back-quite s

that came for y

e, and rapidly scanned th

says he is on his way east to get ready to start on the quest for the Alaskan valley of gold, in the caves of ice. I had a

The messenger brought

tter be looking over the RED CLOUD to see if i

e strange scenes in which he and his friends had recently played a part, in searching for the cav

to start for Alaska with wi

he entrance into the yard, surrounding the

wton!" called

ay off from the bank, and I thought I'd come ov

What

is building

building a

ys it will

e pleases as long as he doesn't bother me.

not,

he shed, and I'll tell you about it. We're going to try to locate a valley of gold

to play such an important part in his life within the next few months. And, had he only known i