Tom Swift and His Air Scout | Page 9

Mary smiled at the
young inventor.
"Shucks, that wasn't a real accident!" he laughed. "But I do wonder
what Mr. Damon wanted."
"Better go back and find out, Tom," advised Mary, as they stopped in
front of her house.
"Oh, I want to come in and talk to you. Haven't had a chance for a good
talk today, that motor made such a racket"
"No, go along now, but come back and see me this afternoon if you
like."
"I do like, all right! And I suppose Mr. Damon will be fussing until he
sees me. Well, glad you liked your first ride in the air, Mary--that is,
the first one of any account," for Mary had been in an aeroplane before,
though only up a little way--a sort of "grass-cutting stunt," Tom called
it.
Waving farewell to the pretty girl, the young aviator turned the auto
about and speeded for his home and the shops adjoining it. His father
had not been well, of late, and Tom was a bit anxious about him.
"Mr. Damon may bother him, though he wouldn't mean to," thought
Tom. "He seemed to have his mind filled with some new idea. I wonder
if it is anything like mine? No, it couldn't be. Well, I'll soon find out,"
and, putting his foot on the accelerator, Tom sent the machine along at
a pace that soon brought him within sight of his home.
"Is father all right?" he asked Mrs. Baggert, who was out on the front
porch, as though waiting for him.
"Oh, yes, Tom, he's all right," the housekeeper answered.
"Is Mr. Damon with him ?"

"No."
"He hasn't gone home, has he?"
"No, he's around somewhere. But some one else is with your father.
Some visitors."
"Any relations?"
"No; strangers. They came to see you, and they're rather impatient. I
came out to see if you were in sight. Your father sent me."
"Are they bothering him--talking business that I ought to attend to
when he's ill? That mustn't be."
"Well, I suppose it is business that the strangers are talking over with
your father, Tom," said Mrs. Baggert, "for I heard sums of money
spoken of. But your father seems to be all right, only a trifle anxious
that you should come."
"Well, I'm here now and I'll attend to things. Where are the strangers,
and who are they?"
"I don't know," answered the housekeeper. "I never saw them before,
but they're in the library with your father. Do you think they'll stay to
dinner? If you do, I'll have Eradicate or Koku catch and kill a chicken."
"If you let one do it don't tell the other about it," said Tom with a laugh,
"or you'll have a chicken race around the yard that will make the
visitors sit up and take notice."
There was great rivalry between Eradicate Sampson, the aged colored
man, and Koku, the giant, and they were continually disputing. Each
one loved and served Tom in his own way, and there was jealousy
between them. Koku, the giant Tom had brought with him from the
land where the young inventor had been made captive, was a big,
powerful man, and could do things the aged colored servant could not
attempt. But "Rad," as he was often called, and his mule "Boomerang"

had long been fixtures on the Swift homestead. But old age crept on
apace with Eradicate, though he hated to admit it, and Koku did many
things the colored man had formerly attended to, and Rad was always
on the lookout not to be supplanted. Hence Tom's warning to Mrs.
Baggert about letting the two be entrusted with the same mission of
catching a chicken for the pot.
"Better get the fowl yourself and say nothing to either of them about
it," Tom advised the housekeeper. "Mr. Damon will stay to dinner, as
he always does when he comes, and as it's near twelve now, and as I
may be delayed talking business to these strangers, you'd better get up a
bigger meal than usual."
"I will, Tom," promised Mrs. Baggert. And then the young inventor,
having seen that one of the men took the automobile to the garage,
went into the house.
"Oh, here you are!" was his father's greeting, as he came out into the
hall from the library. "I've been waiting anxiously for you, my boy. I
couldn't think what was keeping you."
"Oh, I had a little trouble with the air machine--nothing serious."
A moment later Tom was standing before two well-dressed,
prosperous-looking business men, who smiled pleasantly at him.
"Mr. Thomas Swift?" interrogated one, the elder, as he held out his
hand.
"That's my name," answered Tom, pleasantly.
"I'm Peton Gale, and this gentleman is Boland Ware," went on the man
who