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Motor Stories
Thrilling Adventure Motor Fiction
No. 6 Apr. 3, 1909
Five Cents
MOTOR MATT'S RED FLIER
OR ON THE HIGH GEAR
by
STANLEY R. MATTHEWS
Street & Smith,
Publishers,
New York.
[Illustration: _"Leaf dot alone!" yelled Carl, floundering to get to
the girl's aid, "dot pelongs to Moder Matt!"_]
Motor Stories
Thrilling Adventure Motor Fiction
_Issued Weekly. By subscription $2.50 per year. Entered according to
Act of Congress in the year 1909, in the Office of the Librarian of
Congress, Washington, D. C., by_ STREET & SMITH, _79-89 Seventh Avenue,
New York, N. Y._
No. 6. NEW YORK, April 3, 1909. Price Five Cents.
MOTOR MATT'S RED FLIER
OR,
ON THE HIGH GEAR.
By the author of "MOTOR MATT."
CONTENTS
CHAPTER I. STRANDED "UNCLE TOMMERS."
CHAPTER II. THE RED FLIER GETS A LOAD.
CHAPTER III. THE STOLEN RUNABOUT.
CHAPTER IV. THE COAT IN THE RUMBLE.
CHAPTER V. MATT BEGINS A SEARCH.
CHAPTER VI. LOSING THE BOX.
CHAPTER VII. A MYSTERIOUS DISAPPEARANCE.
CHAPTER VIII. SPIRITED AWAY.
CHAPTER IX. AN UNEXPECTED MEETING.
CHAPTER X. A DARING PLAN.
CHAPTER XI. ON THE ROAD.
CHAPTER XII. A CLOSE CALL.
CHAPTER XIII. CAR AGAINST CAR.
CHAPTER XIV. DOWN THE MOUNTAIN.
CHAPTER XV. MOTOR MATT'S TEN-STRIKE.
CHAPTER XVI. MORE TROUBLE FOR THE "UNCLE TOMMERS."
CHAPTER XVII. CONCLUSION.
A SNOWBALL FIGHT.
SECRETS OF TRICK SHOOTING.
REELFOOT LAKE.
A FLOATING SLUM.
WILD HORSES OF NEVADA.
CHARACTERS THAT APPEAR IN THIS STORY.
=Matt King=, concerning whom there has always been a mystery--a lad
of splendid athletic abilities, and never-failing nerve, who has won
for himself, among the boys of the Western town, the popular name of
"Mile-a-minute Matt."
=Carl Pretzel=, a cheerful and rollicking German lad, who is led by a
fortunate accident to hook up with Motor Matt in double harness.
"=Legree=," a member of the stranded "Uncle Tom" Company, about whom
something mysterious seems to hover.
"=Little Eva=," who turns out to be other than appearances would seem
to indicate.
"=Eliza=," }
"=Uncle Tom=," } other members of the unlucky road combination
"=Topsy=," } helped by Motor Matt.
=Brisco=, } a brace of reckless adventurers with whom Matt and his
=Spangler=, } Dutch pard have a particularly exciting inning.
=O'Grady=, an inn-keeper.
=Lem Nugent=, the owner of the stolen runabout.
CHAPTER I.
STRANDED "UNCLE TOMMERS."
"Help! Some ob yo' folks ahead, dar! Unc' Tawm's in de ruvver! He
drapped de box, an' went in afteh hit head first lak er frawg. He's
drowndin', he sholey is! By golly! Legree! Eliza! Come back hyeh dis
minyit! Unc' Tawm's drowndin'!"
Topsy was making a terrific commotion. While she screeched for help she
ran circles on the river-bank, tossing her hands wildly. If she had put
some of her aimless energy into helping Uncle Tom, the kinky-headed
old negro in the water would have been a whole lot better off. He was
floundering and thrashing and making a good deal of noise himself.
"Hit's ovah mah haid!" he spluttered. "Ah's done got de crampus en
mah lef' laig an' Ah's monsus bad off! Bl-r-r-r! Dat's twicet Ah's
gawn down, en de nex' time Ah's gwine down tuh stay. Doan' put yo'se'f
out none--doan' scramble so ha'd yo' lose yo' bref. Hit's only a coon
whut's drowndin', so take yo' time gittin' hyeh an'----"
Uncle Tom swallowed a bucket of water, more or less, just then, and his
language was submerged.
"Mercy sakes!" cried Eliza breathlessly, hurrying back through the
brush, closely tagged by Little Eva and Legree. "Do something,
somebody! Oh, I wish we had a rope. Hang onto the box, Uncle Tom," she
added encouragingly; "we'll get you out!"
"Oh, biscuits!" scoffed Little Eva. "Stop t'rowin' yerself around like
dat an' try ter float. De way yous handles yerself, Uncle Tom, gives me
a pain. Can't y' swim?"
Legree was carrying a blacksnake whip.
"Here," he yelled, posting himself on the edge of the bank and reaching
out to throw the whip-lash toward the old negro, "grab hold of that and
I'll snake you ashore too quick for any use."
Uncle Tom was beyond talking, but he shook the water from his eyes, saw
the whip and grabbed it. Thereupon Legree laid back on the handle and
pulled. Uncle Tom was brought upright, his feet on the river-bed. The
water came just above his knees, and he waded ashore.
"Well, de old geezer!" exploded Little Eva. "Say, give me a pair o'
high-heeled shoes an' I'll walk acrost dat roarin' torrent widou' never
wettin' me kicks. How much water does it take ter drown yous, Uncle
Tom? Oh, sister, what a jolt."
Little Eva began to laugh.
"Dat's right," gurgled Uncle Tom, splashing around on one foot to get
the water out of his ear, "laff, laff an' show yo' ignunce. Dat didun'
git away f'um me, nohow," and he threw a small tin box on the ground in
front of Legree.
Eliza stooped and picked up the box.
"You take care of that, Eliza," said Legree. "Uncle Tom must have been
careless. What were you and Topsy walking along by the river for?" he
added, turning to the old negro.
"We reckons we mout hook er fish," explained Topsy, pointing to the
ground where a stick with a fish-line attached to its end had been
dropped.
"Ah'm gettin' pow'ful hongry," complained Uncle Tom, "en Ah doan' see
how we-all's gwine tuh eat if we doan' ketch er fish er kill er possum,
er somepin lak dat. Mah goodness, but Ah'm holla cleah down tuh mah
shoes. If a piece ob bresh hadun' switched dat box out'n mah han', Ah
wouldn't hab got en de ruvver. Anybody dat wants tuh kin tote dat 'ar
box. Ah done had enough ob it."
"Cheer up, Uncle Tom," said Eliza. "When we get to the next town we'll
have something to eat."
"Huccome yo' allow dat, Miss 'Liza? Whah we git de money, huh?"
"I've got a ring," answered Eliza, with a little break in her voice,
"and I'll pawn it."
"No, you don't, Eliza," said Legree. "I've got a watch, and I'll pawn
that."
"Wisht I had somet'in' t' soak," said Little Eva. "Brisco's head
wouldn't be a bad t'ing, eh? Say, mebby I couldn't hand dat mutt a
couple o' good ones if he was handy!"
Legree brought his hand around and boxed the boy's ears--for "Little
Eva," in this case, was a boy of nine.
"Stow it," growled Legree, who happened to be the boy's father. "You
can talk a lot without saying much, kid. Come on, everybody," he added.
"The quicker we get to Fairview the quicker we eat. You and Topsy keep
in the road, Uncle Tom, and don't lag behind."
"How's Ah gwine tuh git dried off?" fretted Uncle Tom. "De rheumatix
is li'ble tuh come pesterin' erroun' if Ah ain't mouty keerful wif
mahse'f."
"Walk fast, Uncle Tom," said Legree, starting back toward the road.
"Ah kain't walk fast," said the old man; "hit's all Ah kin do tuh walk
at all, kase Ah's mighty nigh tuckered. Dishyer walkin'-match is monsus
tough on er ole man, sho' as yo's bawn. Ain't dey no wagons in dis
country? Whaffur dey got er road if dey ain't got no wagons? Ah'd give
a mulyun dollahs if Ah had it fo' a mu-el en a wagon."
Topsy pushed close to Uncle Tom's side, grabbed his wet sleeve and
helped him along. In a few minutes they broke away from the river-bank
into the road.
Little Eva didn't seem to mind walking. He pranced along with a pocket
full of stones, and every once in a while he stopped to make a throw at
a road-runner or a chipmunk.
Trees and brush lined the road on each side, growing so thickly that
it was impossible to see very far into the timber. Eliza and Legree,
talking over the difficulties in which they found themselves and trying
to plan some way for surmounting them, were pretty well in advance,
while Uncle Tom and Topsy were pretty well in the rear. Little Eva
was dodging around in between, now and then shying at something with a
stone.
The strange little party had not proceeded far before the boy heard
a noise in the brush. Heedless of what he might find in such a wild
country, he jumped into the thicket. And then he jumped out again,
yelling like a Comanche.
"Run!" he piped frenziedly, tearing along the road. "Dere's somet'ing
chasin' me an' it's as big as a house an' has a mout' like a church
door. Sprint! Sprint fer yer lives!"
The other four gave their immediate attention to Little Eva, and then
changed it to something that rolled out of the undergrowth directly
behind them.
"A bear!" yelled Legree. "Hunt a tree, kid! Everybody climb a tree!"
This is exactly what everybody proceeded to do. Little Eva shinned up a
sapling, Legree gave Eliza a boost into a scrub oak, and then started
for a neighboring pine himself, and Uncle Tom displayed a tremendous
amount of reserve force, considering his age and his recent experience.
"Ah knows dis trip is gwine tuh be de deaf ob me," he fluttered,
getting astride a limb and hugging the trunk of the tree with both
arms. "Mah goodness!" he chattered, craning his neck to get a good look
at the cause of the disturbance. "Go 'way f'um hyeh, you! We-all doan'
want no truck wif you."
The bear was a grizzly--not a large grizzly, but plenty large enough.
There were lots of bigger bears in that part of Arizona, but this was
the biggest one Fate had to run in among those unlucky "Uncle Tommers."
Having gained a position about half-way up and down the line of treed
actors, the bear sat down in the road and proceeded to enjoy the
situation.
"Are you all right?" sang out Legree from the top of the pine: "is
everybody all right?"
"If bein' hung up like dis is wot yous call all right, dad," answered
Little Eva, "den it's a lead pipe dat we's all t' de good. But, say, I
ain't feelin' real comfertable in me mind."
"Shoo dat animile away, Mistah Legree," begged Topsy. "Hit ain't right
tuh make us stay hyeh lak dis when we's all tiah'd out."
"Go right up to de beah, Legree," suggested Uncle Tom, "en tie dat whip
erroun' his neck an' strangle de life outen him. Beah meat is mighty
nigh as good as possum, an' we kin git fo' er five dollahs fo' de pelt."
"Oh, dear!" murmured Eliza. "I do wish he'd go away. I guess he's
thinking more about making a meal off of us than letting us make one
from him."
"Dey trabbles in paihs," called Uncle Tom in trembling tones, by way of
enlivening the situation. "Hit's lak snakes, en wherebber yo' finds one
yo' sholey is gwine tuh fin' anudder."
"Ah hears de odder!" screamed Topsy. "He's champin' down de road lak er
singed cat. Heah him! Oh, mah golly! We's all as good as daid--we's all
gwine tuh be et up."
Strange noises were coming from along the back track, coming rapidly
and growing louder and louder.
"Dat odder one's bigger 'n a efelunt!" palpitated Uncle Tom, climbing
a couple of limbs higher. "All Ah hopes is dat he ain't big enough tuh
reach up en take me outen de tree. Ah's a gone niggah, Ah feels hit en
mah bones."
The bear heard the approaching noise, and it seemed to puzzle him. He
sniffed the air, shook his head forebodingly, and then dropped down on
all fours and ambled into the brush.
The next moment, to the astonishment of the four actors, a sparkling
red automobile rushed into sight, coming from the direction of Ash Fork
and headed toward Fairview.
A youth in leather cap and jacket was in the driver's seat; beside him
was a young German in a "loud" suit and a red vest.
"Pretzel!" yelled Little Eva; "I'm a jay if it ain't Pretzel!"
"Saved!" cried Eliza.
The big red touring-car came to a halt in about the same place where
the bear had recently held the fort.
The faces of the two boys in the car were pictures of amazement as they
stared at the odd assortment of actors hanging in the trees.
"Vell, py shinks," exclaimed the Dutch boy, "dis vas a jeerful pitzness
und no mistake. It iss der fairst time I efer knowed it bossiple to
pick actor-peoples oudt oof der drees. Vat you t'ink oof dot, Motor
Matt?"