eaten to-day. You can make a pie of that fellow on the ground."
"No! We eat you," cried the chief, angrily. "You cut rope, but no get
away; no boat!"
"I don't need a boat, thank you," said the boy; and then, as the other
native sprang forward, he pointed the tube and laid him out beside his
first victim.
At this act the chief stood an instant in amazed uncertainty. Then he
turned and rushed from the hut.
Laughing with amusement at the waddling, fat figure, Rob followed the
chief and found himself standing almost in the center of the native
village. A big fire was blazing merrily and the blacks were busy making
preparations for a grand feast.
Rob was quickly surrounded by a crowd of the villagers, who chattered
fiercely and made threatening motions in his direction; but as the
chief cried out to them a warning in the native tongue they kept a
respectful distance and contented themselves with brandishing their
spears and clubs.
"If any of your fellows come nearer," Rob said to the fat chief, "I'll
knock 'em over."
"What you make do?" asked the chief, nervously.
"Watch sharp, and you'll see," answered Rob. Then he made a mocking bow
to the circle and continued: "I'm pleased to have met you fellows, and
proud to think you like me well enough to want to eat me; but I'm in a
bit of a hurry to-day, so I can't stop to be digested." After which,
as the crowd broke into a hum of surprise, he added: "Good-day, black
folks!" and quickly turned the indicator of his traveling machine to
the word "up."
Slowly he rose into the air, until his heels were just above the gaping
blacks; but there he stopped short. With a thrill of fear he glanced
at the indicator. It was pointed properly, and he knew at once that
something was wrong with the delicate mechanism that controlled it.
Probably the pressure of the rope across its face, when he was bound,
had put it out of order. There he was, seven feet in the air, but
without the power to rise an inch farther.
This short flight, however, had greatly astonished the blacks, who,
seeing his body suspended in mid-air, immediately hailed him as a god,
and prostrated themselves upon the ground before him.
The fat chief had seen something of white men in his youth, and had
learned to mistrust them. So, while he remained as prostrate as the
rest, he peeped at Rob with one of his little black eyes and saw that
the boy was ill at ease, and seemed both annoyed and frightened.
So he muttered some orders to the man next him, who wriggled along the
ground until he had reached a position behind Rob, when he rose and
pricked the suspended "god" with the point of his spear.
"Ouch!" yelled the boy; "stop that!"
He twisted his head around, and seeing the black again make a movement
with the spear, Rob turned his electric tube upon him and keeled him
over like a ten-pin.
The natives, who had looked up at his cry of pain, again prostrated
themselves, kicking their toes against the ground in a terrified tattoo
at this new evidence of the god's powers.
The situation was growing somewhat strained by this time, and Rob did
not know what the savages would decide to do next; so he thought it
best to move away from them, since he was unable to rise to a greater
height. He turned the indicator towards the south, where a level space
appeared between the trees; but instead of taking that direction he
moved towards the northeast, a proof that his machine had now become
absolutely unreliable. Moreover, he was slowly approaching the fire,
which, although it had ceased blazing, was a mass of glowing red embers.
In his excitement he turned the indicator this way and that, trying
to change the direction of his flight, but the only result of his
endeavor was to carry him directly over the fire, where he came to a
full stop.
"Murder! Help! Fire and blazes!" he cried, as he felt the glow of the
coals beneath him. "I'll be roasted, after all! Here; help, Fatty,
help!"
The fat chief sprang to his feet and came to the rescue. He reached up,
caught Rob by the heels, and pulled him down to the ground, away from
the fire. But the next moment, as he clung to the boy's feet, they both
soared into the air again, and, although now far enough from the fire
to escape its heat, the savage, finding himself lifted from the earth,
uttered a scream of horror and let go of Rob, to fall head over heels
upon the ground.
The other blacks had by this time regained their feet, and now they
crowded around their chief and set him upright again.
Rob continued to float in the air, just above their heads, and now
abandoned all thoughts of escaping by means of his wrecked traveling
machine. But he resolved to regain a foothold upon the earth and take
his chances of escape by running rather than flying. So he turned the
indicator to the word "down," and very slowly it obeyed, allowing him,
to his great relief, to sink gently to the ground.
[Illustration]
[Illustration]
_CHAPTER SIX_
THE BUCCANEERS
Once more the blacks formed a circle around our adventurer, who coolly
drew his tube and said to the chief:
"Tell your people I'm going to walk away through those trees, and if
any one dares to interfere with me I'll paralyze him."
The chief understood enough English to catch his meaning, and repeated
the message to his men. Having seen the terrible effect of the electric
tube they wisely fell back and allowed the boy to pass.
He marched through their lines with a fine air of dignity, although he
was fearful lest some of the blacks should stick a spear into him or
bump his head with a war-club. But they were awed by the wonders they
had seen and were still inclined to believe him a god, so he was not
molested.
When he found himself outside the village he made for the high plateau
in the center of the island, where he could be safe from the cannibals
while he collected his thoughts. But when he reached the place he
found the sides so steep he could not climb them, so he adjusted
the indicator to the word "up" and found it had still enough power
to support his body while he clambered up the rocks to the level,
grass-covered space at the top.
Then, reclining upon his back, he gave himself up to thoughts of how he
might escape from his unpleasant predicament.
"Here I am, on a cannibal island, hundreds of miles from civilization,
with no way to get back," he reflected. "The family will look for me
every day, and finally decide I've broken my neck. The Demon will call
upon me when the week is up and won't find me at home; so I'll miss
the next three gifts. I don't mind that so much, for they might bring
me into worse scrapes than this. But how am I to get away from this
beastly island? I'll be eaten, after all, if I don't look out!"
These and similar thoughts occupied him for some time, yet in spite of
much planning and thinking he could find no practical means of escape.
At the end of an hour he looked over the edge of the plateau and found
it surrounded by a ring of the black cannibals, who had calmly seated
themselves to watch his movements.
"Perhaps they intend to starve me into surrender," he thought; "but
they won't succeed so long as my tablets hold out. And if, in time,
they should starve me, I'll be too thin and tough to make good eating;
so I'll get the best of them, anyhow."
Then he again lay down and began to examine his electrical traveling
machine. He did not dare take it apart, fearing he might not be
able to get it together again, for he knew nothing at all about its
construction. But he discovered two little dents on the edge, one on
each side, which had evidently been caused by the pressure of the rope.
"If I could get those dents out," he thought, "the machine might work."
He first tried to pry out the edges with his pocket knife, but the
attempt resulted in failure. Then, as the sides seemed a little bulged
outward by the dents, he placed the machine between two flat stones
and pressed them together until the little instrument was nearly round
again. The dents remained, to be sure, but he hoped he had removed the
pressure upon the works.
There was just one way to discover how well he had succeeded, so he
fastened the machine to his wrist and turned the indicator to the word
"up."
Slowly he ascended, this time to a height of nearly twenty feet. Then
his progress became slower and finally ceased altogether.
"That's a little better," he thought. "Now let's see if it will go
sidewise."
He put the indicator to "north-west,"--the direction of home--and very
slowly the machine obeyed and carried him away from the plateau and
across the island.
The natives saw him go, and springing to their feet began uttering
excited shouts and throwing their spears at him. But he was already
so high and so far away that they failed to reach him, and the boy
continued his journey unharmed.
Once the branches of a tall tree caught him and nearly tipped him over;
but he managed to escape others by drawing up his feet. At last he
was free of the island and traveling over the ocean again. He was not
at all sorry to bid good-by to the cannibal island, but he was worried
about the machine, which clearly was not in good working order. The
vast ocean was beneath him, and he moved no faster than an ordinary
walk.
"At this rate I'll get home some time next year," he grumbled.
"However, I suppose I ought to be glad the machine works at all." And
he really was glad.
All the afternoon and all the long summer night he moved slowly over
the water. It was annoying to go at "a reg'lar jog-trot," as Rob called
it, after his former swift flight; but there was no help for it.
Just as dawn was breaking he saw in the distance a small vessel,
sailing in the direction he was following, yet scarcely moving for lack
of wind. He soon caught up with it, but saw no one on deck, and the
craft had a dingy and uncared-for appearance that was not reassuring.
But after hovering over it for some time Rob decided to board the ship
and rest for a while. He alighted near the bow, where the deck was
highest, and was about to explore the place when a man came out of the
low cabin and espied him.
This person had a most villainous countenance, and was dark-skinned,
black-bearded and dressed in an outlandish, piratical costume. On
seeing the boy he gave a loud shout and was immediately joined by four
companions, each as disagreeable in appearance as the first.
Rob knew there would be trouble the moment he looked at this evil
crew, and when they drew their daggers and pistols and began fiercely
shouting in an unknown tongue, the boy sighed and took the electric
tube from his coat pocket.
The buccaneers did not notice the movement, but rushed upon him so
quickly that he had to press the button at a lively rate. The tube
made no noise at all, so it was a strange and remarkable sight to
see the pirates suddenly drop to the deck and lie motionless. Indeed,
one was so nearly upon him when the electric current struck him that
his head, in falling, bumped into Rob's stomach and sent him reeling
against the side of the vessel.
[Illustration: It was a strange sight to see the pirates drop to the
deck and lie motionless]
He quickly recovered himself, and seeing his enemies were rendered
harmless, the boy entered the cabin and examined it curiously. It was
dirty and ill-smelling enough, but the corners and spare berths were
heaped with merchandise of all kinds which had been taken from those so
unlucky as to have met these cruel and desperate men.
After a short inspection of the place he returned to the deck and again
seated himself in the bow.
The crippled condition of his traveling machine was now his chief
trouble, and although a good breeze had sprung up to fill the sails
and the little bark was making fair headway, Rob knew he could never
expect to reach home unless he could discover a better mode of
conveyance than this.
He unstrapped the machine from his wrist to examine it better, and
while holding it carelessly in his hand it slipped and fell with a
bang to the deck, striking upon its round edge and rolling quickly
past the cabin and out of sight. With a cry of alarm he ran after it,
and after much search found it lying against the bulwark near the edge
of a scupper hole, where the least jar of the ship would have sent it
to the bottom of the ocean. Rob hastily seized his treasure, and upon
examining it found the fall had bulged the rim so that the old dents
scarcely showed at all. But its original shape was more distorted than
ever, and Rob feared he had utterly ruined its delicate mechanism.
Should this prove to be true, he might now consider himself a prisoner
of this piratical band, the members of which, although temporarily
disabled, would soon regain consciousness.
He sat in the bow, sadly thinking of his misfortunes, until he noticed
that one of the men began to stir. The effect of the electric shock
conveyed by the tube was beginning to wear away, and now the buccaneer
sat up, rubbed his head in a bewildered fashion and looked around him.
When he saw Rob he gave a shout of rage and drew his knife, but one
motion of the electric tube made him cringe and slip away to the cabin,
where he remained out of danger.
And now the other four sat up, groaning and muttering in their
outlandish speech; but they had no notion of facing Rob's tube a second
time, so one by one they joined their leader in the cabin, leaving the
boy undisturbed.
By this time the ship had begun to pitch and toss in an uncomfortable
fashion, and Rob noticed that the breeze had increased to a gale. There
being no one to look after the sails, the vessel was in grave danger
of capsizing or breaking her masts. The waves were now running high,
too, and Rob began to be worried.
Presently the captain of the pirates stuck his head out of the cabin
door, jabbered some unintelligible words and pointed to the sails. The
boy nodded, for he understood they wanted to attend to the rigging. So
the crew trooped forth, rather fearfully, and began to reef the sails
and put the ship into condition to weather the storm.
Rob paid no further attention to them. He looked at his traveling
machine rather doubtfully and wondered if he dared risk its power to
carry him through the air. Whether he remained in the ship or trusted
to the machine, he stood a good chance of dropping into the sea at any
moment. So, while he hesitated, he attached the machine to his wrist
and leaned over the bulwarks to watch the progress of the storm. He
might stay in the ship until it foundered, he thought, and then take
his chances with the machine. He decided to wait until a climax arrived.
The climax came the next moment, for while he leaned over the bulwarks
the buccaneers stole up behind him and suddenly seized him in their
grasp. While two of them held his arms the others searched his pockets,
taking from him the electric tube and the silver box containing his
tablets. These they carried to the cabin and threw upon the heap of
other valuables they had stolen. They did not notice his traveling
machine, however, but seeing him now unarmed they began jeering and
laughing at him, while the brutal captain relieved his anger by giving
the prisoner several malicious kicks.
Rob bore his misfortune meekly, although he was almost ready to cry
with grief and disappointment. But when one of the pirates, to inflict
further punishment on the boy, came towards him with a heavy strap, he
resolved not to await the blow.
Turning the indicator to the word "up" he found, to his joy and relief,
that it would yet obey the influence of the power of repulsion. Seeing
him rise into the air the fellow made a grab for his foot and held it
firmly, while his companions ran to help him. Weight seemed to make
no difference in the machine; it lifted the pirate as well as Rob; it
lifted another who clung to the first man's leg, and another who clung
to him. The other two also caught hold, hoping their united strength
would pull him down, and the next minute Rob was soaring through the
air with the entire string of five buccaneers dangling from his left
leg.
At first the villains were too astounded to speak, but as they realized
that they were being carried through the air and away from their ship
they broke into loud shouts of dismay, and finally the one who grasped
Rob's leg lost his hold and the five plunged downward and splashed into
the sea.
Finding the machine disposed to work accurately, Rob left the
buccaneers to swim to the ship in the best way they could, while he
dropped down to the deck again and recovered from the cabin his box
of tablets and the electric tube. The fellows were just scrambling on
board when he again escaped, shooting into the air with considerable
speed.
Indeed, the instrument now worked better than at any time since he had
reached the cannibal island, and the boy was greatly delighted.
The wind at first sent him spinning away to the south, but he continued
to rise until he was above the air currents, and the storm raged
far beneath him. Then he set the indicator to the northwest and
breathlessly waited to see if it would obey. Hurrah! away he sped at
a fair rate of speed, while all his anxiety changed to a feeling of
sweet contentment.
His success had greatly surprised him, but he concluded that the jar
caused by dropping the instrument had relieved the pressure upon the
works, and so helped rather than harmed the free action of the electric
currents.
While he moved through the air with an easy, gliding motion he watched
with much interest the storm raging below. Above his head the sun was
peacefully shining and the contrast was strange and impressive. After
an hour or so the storm abated, or else he passed away from it, for
the deep blue of the ocean again greeted his eyes. He dropped downward
until he was about a hundred feet above the water, when he continued
his northwesterly course.
But now he regretted having interfered for a moment with the action
of the machine, for his progress, instead of being swift as a bird's
flight, became slow and jerky, nor was he sure that the damaged machine
might not break down altogether at any moment. Yet so far his progress
was in the right direction, and he resolved to experiment no further
with the instrument, but to let it go as it would, so long as it
supported him above the water. However irregular the motion might be,
it was sure, if continued, to bring him to land in time, and that was
all he cared about just then.
When night fell his slumber was broken and uneasy, for he wakened more
than once with a start of fear that the machine had broken and he
was falling into the sea. Sometimes he was carried along at a swift
pace, and again the machine scarcely worked at all; so his anxiety was
excusable.
The following day was one of continued uneasiness for the boy, who
began to be harrassed by doubts as to whether, after all, he was moving
in the right direction. The machine had failed at one time in this
respect and it might again. He had lost all confidence in its accuracy.
In spite of these perplexities Rob passed the second night of his
uneven flight in profound slumber, being exhausted by the strain and
excitement he had undergone. When he awoke at daybreak, he saw, to his
profound delight, that he was approaching land.
The rising sun found him passing over a big city, which he knew to be
Boston.
He did not stop. The machine was so little to be depended upon that
he dared make no halt. But he was obliged to alter the direction from
northwest to west, and the result of this slight change was so great a
reduction in speed that it was mid-day before he saw beneath him the
familiar village in which he lived.
Carefully marking the location of his father's house, he came to a stop
directly over it, and a few moments later he managed to land upon the
exact spot in the back yard whence he had taken his first successful
flight.
[Illustration]
[Illustration]
_CHAPTER SEVEN_
THE DEMON BECOMES ANGRY
When Rob had been hugged and kissed by his mother and sisters, and even
Mr. Joslyn had embraced him warmly, he gave them a brief account of his
adventures. The story was received with many doubtful looks and much
grave shaking of heads, as was quite natural under the circumstances.
"I hope, my dear son," said his father, "that you have now passed
through enough dangers to last you a lifetime, so that hereafter you
will be contented to remain at home."
"Oh, Robert!" cried his mother, with tears in her loving eyes, "you
don't know how we've all worried about you for the past week!"
"A week?" asked Rob, with surprise.
"Yes; it's a week to-morrow morning since you flew into the air and
disappeared."
"Then," said the boy, thoughtfully, "I've reached home just in time."
"In time for what?" she asked.
But he did not answer that question. He was thinking of the Demon, and
that on the afternoon of this very day he might expect the wise and
splendid genius to visit him a second time.
At luncheon, although he did not feel hungry, he joined the family
at table and pleased his mother by eating as heartily as of old. He
was surprised to find how good the food tasted, and to realize what a
pleasure it is to gratify one's sense of taste. The tablets were all
right for a journey, he thought, but if he always ate them he would
be sure to miss a great deal of enjoyment, since there was no taste to
them at all.
At four o'clock he went to his workshop and unlocked the door.
Everything was exactly as he had left it, and he looked at his simple
electrical devices with some amusement. They seemed tame beside the
wonders now in his possession; yet he recollected that his numerous
wires had enabled him to strike the Master Key, and therefore should
not be despised.
Before long he noticed a quickening in the air, as if it were suddenly
surcharged with electric fluid, and the next instant, in a dazzling
flash of light, appeared the Demon.
"I am here!" he announced.
"So am I," answered Rob. "But at one time I really thought I should
never see you again. I've been--"
"Spare me your history," said the Demon, coldly. "I am aware of your
adventures."
"Oh, you are!" said Rob, amazed. "Then you know--"
"I know all about your foolish experiences," interrupted the Demon,
"for I have been with you constantly, although I remained invisible."
"Then you know what a jolly time I've had," returned the boy. "But why
do you call them foolish experiences?"
"Because they were, abominably foolish!" retorted the Demon, bitterly.
"I entrusted to you gifts of rare scientific interest--electrical
devices of such utility that their general adoption by mankind would
create a new era in earth life. I hoped your use of these devices would
convey such hints to electrical engineers that they would quickly
comprehend their mechanism and be able to reproduce them in sufficient
quantities to supply the world. And how do you treat these marvelous
gifts? Why, you carry them to a cannibal island, where even your crude
civilization has not yet penetrated!"
"I wanted to astonish the natives," said Rob, grinning.
The Demon uttered an exclamation of anger, and stamped his foot so
fiercely that thousands of electric sparks filled the air, to disappear
quickly with a hissing, crinkling sound.
"You might have astonished those ignorant natives as easily by showing
them an ordinary electric light," he cried, mockingly. "The power of
your gifts would have startled the most advanced electricians of the
world. Why did you waste them upon barbarians?"
"Really," faltered Rob, who was frightened and awed by the Demon's
vehement anger, "I never intended to visit a cannibal island. I meant
to go to Cuba."
"Cuba! Is that a center of advanced scientific thought? Why did you not
take your marvels to New York or Chicago; or, if you wished to cross
the ocean, to Paris or Vienna?"
"I never thought of those places," acknowledged Rob, meekly.
"Then you were foolish, as I said," declared the Demon, in a calmer
tone. "Can you not realize that it is better to be considered great by
the intelligent thinkers of the earth, than to be taken for a god by
stupid cannibals?"
"Oh, yes, of course," said Rob. "I wish now that I had gone to Europe.
But you're not the only one who has a kick coming," he continued. "Your
flimsy traveling machine was nearly the death of me."