As Frank rounded the point, the waves almost lapping his feet as he
edged along the rocky promontory, he came into full view of the adjunct
to the little settlement which was mentioned in the preceding chapter.
This was nothing more nor less than the hulk of what had once been a
fair-sized schooner. But her masts had vanished, and on her decks
nothing now rose above the bulwarks but a towering structure of
sufficiently odd form to have set the wits of every man in Motthaven who
had seen it at their keenest edge.
This structure began about amidships, where it attained a height of some
thirty feet. From thence its skeleton form sloped sharply down toward
the stern of the dismantled hulk, much in the manner of the "Chute the
Chutes" familiar to most lads throughout the land from their having seen
them at amusement resorts. The old schooner--formerly rejoicing in the
name of _Betsy Jane_--had been picked up for a song in Portland by the
Boy Aviators, who saw in it exactly what they needed for a bit of
experimental apparatus. At their orders the inclined "slide" had been
built, and when this was accomplished the craft had been towed into the
cove, where it now lay anchored by a stout line, about 200 yards off
shore.
As Frank came into view of the black old hull, swinging on her mooring
line on the turning tide, a "Hampton" motor boat came chugging round the
_Betsy Jane's_ stern. In it were three lads. The one in the bow handling
the wheel is already familiar to our readers, who will at once recognize
the cherubic, smiling features of the spectacled Billy Barnes. In the
stern, tending to the engine--a five horse power one of the
make-and-break type--was Harry Chester, Frank's younger brother, and
standing amidships, waving cheerfully to Frank, was a youth best
described as being "tubby" of build, with round rosy cheeks and a most
good-natured expression of countenance.
This last lad was Ulysses--otherwise "Pudge" Perkins, the son of the
aerial scientist who had sent the lads on their strange mission.
"Batter and butterflies!" he shouted, as the boat drew closer and he
spied Frank, "how are you, Frank? Get lonely without your chums?"
"No; I rather enjoyed myself," laughed back Frank, shouting his words
across the water; "you see, while you were away I had some quiet, and a
chance to work out a few problems."
"Mumps and mathematics!" sputtered Pudge amiably, "you don't mean to say
I worry you, Frank?"
By this time the motor boat had approached close to her mooring, at
which swung a small boat of the dory type. The motor boat was speedily
made fast, and the boyish occupants tumbled into the small boat and
Harry rapidly sculled them ashore. Before leaving the motor boat some
sacks of supplies had been thrown in, and the small craft was so heavily
laden that Pudge had to be sternly warned to keep still on peril of
swamping it.
"Dories and dingbats! as if my sylphlike form could bother this staunch
craft! Yo-ho! my lads, yo-ho! pull for the shore and don't bother about
me."
The beach was reached without catastrophe, and while Frank helped the
others unload the supplies he told them of what had occurred during
their absence.
"After you left," he said, "I got busy figuring on that plane problem.
All at once I heard voices, and by listening I soon recognized them as
Zenas Daniels and that precious son of his. As I knew what ugly
customers they were I turned the current into the fence and sauntered
down toward the shore. Sure enough it was Zenas and Zeb and they tried
to rush the fence."
Frank then went on to tell of what had happened. Shouts of laughter
greeted his narrative.
"Sugar and somersaults! But I'd have liked to see those chaps do a
flip-flap," chuckled the rotund Pudge, hugging himself in his joy.
"I guess Zenas must have learned that electricity is good for the
rheumatiz," laughed Billy Barnes gleefully; "I'd like to have had a
picture of them when they hit the wire," he added, swinging his
inevitable camera at the end of its carrying straps.
"It would have been worth while," laughed Harry; "but come on, boys,
let's get this stuff up to the hut. Anything to eat, Frank? I'm hungry
enough to swallow one of old Zenas' lobster pots."
"Sandwiches and sauerkraut! So am I," chimed in Pudge.
"Great Scott!" cried Billy Barnes, "as if we didn't know that. If you
told us you _weren't_ hungry it would be something new."
"Well, I don't see where I've got anything on you when it comes to meal
times," retorted the fat youth.
"Only about six inches more around the waist line," grinned Billy,
dodging a blow from the fleshy youth's fat but muscular arm.
Shouldering the supplies, which consisted of such staples as bacon,
flour, sugar, rice and so forth, the lads made their way up the beach,
having first carried the dory's anchor far up above highwater mark. They
took their way along the electrically-charged fence till they came to a
spot where there was a gate and a switch to break the connection. Frank
turned off the switch, grounded the current, and opened the gate,
through which they passed, and entered on a narrow path winding up among
the rocks. When they had all gone through, Frank closed the gate,
snapped on the switch again and the fence became as mischievous as
before.
In single file, headed by Harry, for Frank had now taken a rear place,
they toiled up the steep path until, at the summit of the rocky little
cliff, it plunged into the woods. Traversing these for a short distance,
and always climbing upward, for the island converged to a point in the
middle, they at length emerged on a clearing, evidently of nature's
workmanship, for there was no trace of recently felled trees or other
human work.
The floor of this clearing was of rock, and off at one side a clear
spring bubbled cheerfully over into a barrel set so as to catch the
overflow. In the center of the open space stood a small but
substantially-built portable house--one of the sectional kind. This
formed the living quarters of the young island dwellers. Above it rose,
like gaunt, leafless trees, two iron poles set thirty feet apart and
stayed by stout guy wires. Between those two poles were suspended, by
block and tackle, the aerials, or antennae, by which messages were caught
and sent. Within the hut was the rest of the wireless apparatus, which,
with the exception of some improvements of Frank's devising, was of the
portable kind--the same in fact that they had used in Florida. Outside
the hut was a small shelter covering a four horse-power gasolene engine,
which generated the power for the station.
As most boys are familiar nowadays with the rudiments of wireless
telegraphy we are not going into technical details concerning the plant.
Suffice it to say that the boys were able to converse with Portland,
under favorable conditions, and judged that, in suitable weather, they
had a radius of some two hundred and fifty miles.
But it was off to one side of the clearing, the side nearest to the
cove, that the most interesting structure on the island was situated.
This was more of a covering than a shed, for it consisted merely of a
roof supported with uprights; but in bad weather canvas curtains could
be drawn so as to make its interior stormproof.
This shed was now open, and under the roof could be seen what was
perhaps at the moment the most unique machine of its kind in the world.
Looking into that shed you would have said at first that it housed a
boat. For the first object that struck your eye was a double-ended,
flat-bottomed craft of shimmering aluminum metal, about thirty feet in
length and built on the general lines of one of our life-saving craft.
That is to say, with "whalebacks" at each end containing air chambers,
and plenty of beam and room within the cockpit. A peculiar feature,
however, was the addition of four wheels.
But the boat theory would have had to be abandoned the next moment, for
above the hull of the whaleboat-shaped craft was what appeared to be the
understructure of an aeroplane. But the planes--the broad
wings--themselves were lacking. The twin propellers connected to a motor
within the boat were, however, in place. Apparently they were driven by
chains, similar to, but stouter than, the ordinary bicycle variety.
All about was a litter of tools and implements of all kinds. Several
large frames leaning against one side of the shed appeared to be the
skeleton forms of the wings which were soon to be added to the
superstructure.
"Tamales and terrapins!" cried Pudge admiringly, as he gazed at the
uncompleted craft, "but she begins to look like something, eh, Frank?"
"Yes," nodded the young aviator, "but until your father arrives we
cannot adjust the wings. There is a lot of theoretical work connected
with them that he will have to do. By the way, I wonder if Portland's
got any answer to our message yet?"
Followed by the others, Frank entered the living hut, which proved to be
a snug, neat compartment about fifteen feet in length, by ten in width.
It had four windows, two on a side, and a door at one end. At the other
end was the wireless apparatus, with its glittering bright metal parts,
and businesslike-looking condensers and tuning coils. Along the walls
were four bunks, two on a side, one above the other. In the center were
a table and camp chairs, and from the ceiling hung a large oil lamp.
A shelf held a good collection of books on aero and wireless subjects,
and at one side of the door was a blue-flame kerosene stove. On the
other side of the door was a cupboard containing crockery, knives, forks
and cooking utensils. Altogether, if the boys had not been there for a
more serious purpose, the place might have been said to form an almost
ideal camp for four healthy, active lads.
"Start up the motor, Harry," said Frank, as soon as they had deposited
their burdens, "and we'll try and get some track of Dr. Perkins. His
answer to our message ought to be in Portland by now."
The younger Chester lad hastened outside, and soon the popping of the
motor announced that it was running. Frank sat down at the key and,
depressing it, sent a blue-white flame crackling across the spark gap.
Out into space, from the aerials stretched above, the message went
volleying. It was the call of the Portland station that Frank was
sending. He flashed it out three times, as is customary, and then signed
it F-C., the latter being Brigg Island's agreed-upon signature. Then,
while the others gathered round, Frank adjusted the "phones," the
delicate receivers that clamp over the ear and through which, by way of
the detector, any message vibrating in the air may be caught as it
encounters the antenna.
Frank listened some time but--save for the conversation of two wireless
operators far out at sea--he could hear nothing. With a gesture of
impatience Frank began adjusting his tuning coil. All at once he broke
into a smile of satisfaction. At last Portland was answering:
"F--C! F--C! F--C!"
"All right," rejoined Frank, sending a volley of sparks crashing and
flashing across the gap as soon as he could break in, "is there any
answer to my message?"
"Yes. Perkins will be at Motthaven to-morrow night. He wants you to meet
him," came back the answer, winging its way over the intervening miles
of space.
"Is that all?"
"That's all."
Frank removed the "phones," grounded his key and told Harry he could
stop the motor.
"I'll be glad when the doctor does get here," he confided to the others,
after he had communicated the message, "for I'm beginning to think that
we are in for some sort of trouble. Those two Daniels are pretty
influential in the village, and it only needs a word from them to turn
the whole crowd against us."
"We could stand 'em off," bragged Pudge grandiloquently, "lassoes and
lobsters, we could stand 'em off. I half wish they would come--buttons
and buttercakes, but I do!" and Pudge doubled up his fists and looked
fierce.
"You forget, Pudge," said Frank, "that we are here in positions of
responsibility. All this property is your father's. It is our duty to
see that no harm comes to it. A bunch of those fishermen inflamed by
anger might be able to do more harm here in an hour than could be
repaired in months, not to mention the cost."
"Surely you don't think they'd come down to actual violence, Frank?"
inquired Harry.
"I don't know. The two Daniels looked mighty savage to-day, I can tell
you. If it hadn't been for the electric fence they might have made
trouble. At all events I'll be glad to have some advice."