JERROLD GIVES HIS AID. "You've got me in a monkey's fist again," spoke up Ferral. "What's all this about the Eagle and Hamilton Jerrold?" "Don'd you rememper, Tick," said Carl, "I toldt you aboudt dot odder feller in Sout' Chicago vat hat inventioned an air ship? His ship iss der Eagle, und——" "Aye, aye, mate, now I rise to you," interrupted Ferral. "Fine idea, that of chasing one air craft with another. The only point is, will this man Jerrold let Matt take his air ship?" "Dot feller vouldt do anyt'ing for Matt," averred Carl. "Matt got pack der plue brints for him, und he t'inks der King oof der Modor Poys iss der greadest feller vat efer habbened." "The quicker we can see Jerrold," suggested Matt, "the sooner we shall know whether or not he can help us. Not only that, but I've got to report the theft of the air ship to the police." "Who loses der air ship?" queried Carl. "Der bolice, oder Matt und Tick?" "Matt and Dick," answered Ferral. "We had bought the machine, and if it had been stolen no more than a minute after the money had been turned over, we would still have been the ones to lose it. I don't know what sort of case you're in, Matt, but I've got a head that feels as big as a barrel. If I could soak it awhile in cold water I think it would do it good." "My head was pretty near knocked off my shoulders," answered Matt, "and then to inhale all that gas on top of the pounding, gave us a whole lot to stand. Work is what we need, Dick. If we can get busy we'll forget our troubles." The doors of the empty balloon house were closed, Matt and Carl gathered up their satchels, and they started back toward South Chicago, Ferral helping Helen Brady over the road. "Some beople vill be surbrised ad seeing us come in valking mit ourselufs," observed Carl, "ven ve vas going to rite der odder vay in der Hawk. Ve nefer know vone minid vat iss going to happen der next." This remark of Carl's was generally agreed to. "What are you going to do now, Helen?" asked Matt, dropping alongside the girl and Ferral. "Your father has gone away and left you, and you will have to do something for yourself." "I know it," answered the girl. "What has become of your brother?" "I don't know where he has gone. He may go across the lake with dad, or he may stay in Chicago. When dad talked with Whipple, I didn't hear him say what Hector was to do." "It's a good thing your father has left you, Helen," said Matt, "and if all I hear about your brother is true, I hope he won't come around to bother you." A sad look crossed the girl's face. With her father and her brother both criminals, her position was forlorn, indeed. "I have friends in Chicago," said she, "and I could go and stay with them for a time." "That's the thing to do," approved Matt. Taking two ten-dollar bills from his pocket, he forced them into the girl's hand. "You've got to take the money," said he. "Sometime, if you feel as though you ought to, you can pay me back, but don't let the debt bother you." "Here," called Ferral, diving into his own pocket and bringing up some money, "I'm in on this." "Und me, too," said Carl. "I vill dake five tollars' vort'." Helen thanked all the boys, with tears in her eyes, but Matt's was the only money she would take. "This will be enough for my immediate needs," said she, "and while I am staying in Chicago, I can arrange to get something to do." By that time the little party was well into South Chicago. The satchels were returned to the hotel, and Carl was left with Helen, to take her to a restaurant where she could get something to eat, and then to put her aboard a train for Chicago. After that, Carl was to make his way to Jerrold's house. Matt and Dick, when they left their Dutch chum and the girl, hurried to police headquarters. When the chief saw Matt, he threw up his hands. "Did your air ship give out on you?" he asked. "I thought you were well on your way to New York by this time." What Matt had to say about the air ship nearly took the chief's breath. Then, when he realized all that recent events meant, his temper got the better of him. "I've got a fine force of roundsmen and detectives," said he sarcastically, "when a pack of scoundrels we're looking for can pull off a trick like that right in the outskirts of town!" Matt eased the chief's anger somewhat by telling him of the clue they had received as to Brady's whereabouts, and he explained how he and his friends were going to get Jerrold's air ship and follow the clue across the lake. "Now that sounds mighty good," said the chief, a flicker of hope crossing his face, "and of course the South Chicago police department ought to be represented in the expedition. Suppose I send Harris, in plain clothes, along with you? He knows St. Jo, Benton Harbor, Grand Haven, and all those places across the lake like a native. He'll be a help. Unless I'm mightily mistaken, this man Ochiltree is an old-time crook, and has served a term or two in the 'pen.' Anyhow, his name is familiar to me. But you boys are in a hurry and I won't detain you. Go on to Jerrold's. I'll have Harris get into civilian's clothes and join you there." Fifteen minutes later, Matt and Dick were at the inventor's rambling old house. Hamilton Jerrold himself answered Matt's ring, caught him by the hand with the utmost cordiality, and ushered him and Ferral into the sitting room. "It does my eyes good to see you again, Matt," beamed Jerrold. "You've been making some fine flights with the Hawk for the police department. Jupiter, but you're a wonder when it comes to handling anything that's driven with an explosive engine." Matt flushed and made a deprecatory gesture. "It seems, Mr. Jerrold," said he, "that I never call on you except when I'm in trouble." The inventor took fresh interest. "You're in trouble now?" he asked, showing a good deal of concern. "I'm in the hardest kind of luck," went on Matt, and he proceeded to explain how he and Ferral had bought the Hawk, and how Brady had executed his balloon-house plot, stolen the machine, and almost caused a tragedy. Hamilton Jerrold had been himself entangled with Brady and knew just what kind of a scoundrel he was. His experience with Brady had left much bitterness in its wake, and Jerrold was eager to do whatever he could to bring the leader of the Brady gang to justice. Apart from his own feelings in the matter, Jerrold felt that Motor Matt had a claim on him. "The Hawk," said Jerrold, "is a good machine, but the Eagle is a better one. We can cross the lake in the Eagle and land wherever you want to, and it is needless for me to say, my boy, that both the air ship and myself are at your service." "Thank you, Mr. Jerrold," returned Matt gratefully. "Is the Eagle ready for use?" "During the last week Payne and I have been improving her, and we did the very last tap on the car yesterday. All we have to do is to fill the tanks and put a little more gas in the bag—inside of an hour we can start." The boys accompanied Jerrold into the back yard, where he had the air ship under a canvas shelter. Payne, Jerrold's assistant, was working around the car. As soon "This is a great town for flying machines," remarked Ferral, as he watched the operation of getting the craft ready for a voyage. "Jerrold has done a whole lot toward solving the problem of aËrial navigation," said Matt. "It was his work that made the Hawk as good as it is. You see, Brady used to work for Jerrold, and he stole most of his ideas for the Hawk from the Eagle." "A regular skull-and-cross-bones pirate, that Brady," muttered Ferral. "I hope we can lay him by the heels and cut short his lawless career." While the Eagle was being made ready, Harris and Carl arrived together on the scene of operations. Harris wore civilian clothes and looked like anything but a police officer. "Well," said he, rubbing his hands, "this reminds me of that other time, Matt, when Carl and Jerrold and I went chasing the Hawk in order to get hold of you. I hope we'll have better success this trip than we had before." "Ve vill," declared Carl. "Matt iss mit us, now, und dot means dot ve vill haf more luck. He iss der lucky poy, all der dime." "I don't know about that, Carl," laughed Matt a little grimly, "my luck seems to have taken a turn." "Did you look after Miss Brady, Carl?" queried Ferral. "Vell, I bed you. She hat a good meal, und den I pud her apoardt a drain for der city. She vanted me to say to you dot she vas mooch opliged." "We're under more obligations to her than she is to us," went on Ferral. "Kind of strange, it strikes me, that she should be willing to give us a tip about her father." "You wouldn't think it strange, Dick," said Matt warmly, "if you knew the girl better. She knows that her father, if he is not captured, will go on and on in crime until he does something that will earn him more than a mere prison sentence. She wants him captured, and the Hawk taken away from him. That was her plan when Brady captured me and held me a prisoner in Willoughby's swamp. But she wouldn't leave her father when I came away. She considered it her duty to stay with him up to the very last moment. It's a good thing for her that her father went away like he did. Now Helen can look out for herself, and do it with a clear conscience." "All ready, friends," called Jerrold. "Step into the car and we'll start for Michigan." Payne was not to go with the searching party. Jerrold, Matt, Carl, Harris, and Ferral were to be the passengers. All climbed aboard and took the places to which Jerrold assigned them. Jerrold himself was to run the motor, but he had Matt near by to "spell" him now and then. Carl and Ferral were to act as lookouts, and were placed as far forward as the car would allow them to go. Ferral's position was almost opposite Matt's. The stability of the air ship depended a good deal on its "trim," and the positions taken by the passengers at the start were to be kept throughout the trip. Weighted bags at each end of the cigar-shaped envelope were used for giving the required angle for rising or falling. The pull of a lever drew in the bag at the forward point, and the Eagle inclined upward. Payne had already pulled aside the top of the canvas protection. "All ready," said he. The motor was started, and presently the power was switched into the propeller. The air ship took the push and arose slowly and easily into the air. "Ve're off!" shouted Carl. "I hope, py shinks, nodding goes wrong und ve come down in der lake. Verral und I haf peen in der lake vonce, und it don'd vas any fun, I tell you dot." |