Tom Swift and his Electric Runabout: Chapter 12: THE TRYOUT

Tom Swift and his Electric Runabout: Chapter 12: THE TRYOUT
Tom Swift and his Electric Runabout: Chapter 12: THE TRYOUT

Other Chapters: Chapters1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25
CHAPTER XII

THE TRY OUT


Once the current was cut off it was safe to approach the body of the
young inventor. Mr. Sharp stooped over and lifted Tom's form from the
floor, for Mr. Swift was too excited and trembled too much to be of any
service. Our hero was as one dead. His body was limp, after that first
rigid stretching out, as the current ran through him; his eyes were
closed, and his face was very pale.

"Is--is there any hope?" faltered Mr. Swift.

"I think so," replied the balloonist. "He is still breathing--faintly.
We must summon a doctor at once. Will you telephone for one, while I
carry him in the house?"

As Mr. Sharp emerged from the shop, bearing Tom's body, an automobile
drew up in front of the place.

"Bless my soul!" exclaimed a voice. "Tom's hurt! How did it happen?
Bless my very existence!"

"Oh, Mr. Damon, you're just in time!" exclaimed Mr. Sharp, "Tom's had a
bad shock. Will you go for a doctor in your auto?"

"Better than that! Let me take Tom in the car to Dr. Whiteside's
office," proposed the eccentric man. "It will be better that way."

"Yes, yes," agreed Mr. Swift eagerly. "Put Tom in the auto!"

"If only it doesn't break down," added Mr. Damon fervently.  "Bless my
spark plug, but it would be just my luck!"

But they started off all right, Mr. Swift riding in front with Mr.
Damon, and Mr. Sharp supporting Tom in the tonneau. Only a little
fluttering of the eyelids, and a slow, faint breathing told that Tom
Swift still lived.

Mr. Damon never guided a car better than he did his auto that day.
Several speed laws were broken, but no one appeared to stop them, and,
in record time they had the young inventor at the physician's house.
Fortunately Dr. Whiteside was at home, and, under his skillful
treatment Tom was soon out of danger. His heart action was properly
started, and then it was only a question of time. As the doctor had
plenty of room it was decided to let the lad remain that night, and Tom
was soon installed in a spare bedroom, with the doctor's pretty
daughter to wait on him occasionally.

"Oh, I'm all right," the youth insisted, when Miss Whiteside told him
it was time for his medicine. "I'm all right."

"You're not!" she declared. "I ought to know, for I'm going to be a
nurse, some day, and help papa. Now take this or I'll have to hold your
nose, as they do the baby's," and she held out a spoonful of unpleasant
looking mixture, extending her dainty forefinger and thumb of her other
hand, as if to administer dire punishment to Tom, if he did not obey.

"Well, I give in to superior strength," he said with a laugh, as he
noted, with approval, the laughing face of his nurse.

Then he fell into a deep sleep, and was so much better the next morning
that he could be taken home in Mr. Damon's auto.

"But mind, no hard work for three or four days," insisted the
physician. "I want your heart to get in shape for that big race you
were telling me about. The shock was a severe strain to it."

Tom promised, reluctantly, and, though he did no work, his first act,
on reaching home, was to go out to the shop, to inspect the battery and
motor. To his surprise the motor was running for the lad had
established the connection, in spite of his shock and his father and
Mr. Sharp had decided to let the machinery run until he came back.

"And look at the record it's made!" cried Tom delightedly as he glanced
at the gauge "Better than I figured on. That battery is a wonder. I'll
have the fastest electric runabout you ever saw."

"If the wires don't get crossed again," put in Mr. Sharp.  "You'd
better make an examination, Tom," and, for the first time, the young
inventor learned how he had been shocked.

"Crossed wires! I should say they were crossed!" he exclaimed as he
looked at the switches and copper conductors. "Somebody has been
tampering with them. No wonder I was shocked!"

"Who did it?" asked Mr. Sharp.

Tom considered for a moment, before answering. Then he said:

"I believe it was Addison Berg. He must have wanted to do some damage,
to get even with us for getting that treasure away from him."

"Berg?" questioned the balloonist, and Tom told of the night he had
been tripped into the brook, and exhibited the watch charm he had
secured. Mr. Sharp recognized it at once. A further examination
confirmed the belief that the submarine agent had sneaked into Tom's
workshop, and had altered the wires.

"They were all right when I came out of the shop that night," declared
Tom. "I left the old connections just as I thought I had arranged them,
and only added the new ones, when I went to try my battery. The old
connections were crossed, but I didn't notice it. Then when I turned on
the current I got the shock. I don't s'pose Berg thought I'd be so
nearly killed. Probably he wanted to burn out my motor, and spoil it.
If it was Andy Foger I could understand it, but a man like Berg--"

"He's probably wild with anger because his submarine got the worst of
it in the race for the gold," interrupted the balloonist. "Well, we'll
have to be on our guard, that's all.  What was the matter with
Eradicate, that he didn't see him enter the shop?"

"Rad went to a colored dance that night," said Tom. "I let him off. But
after this I'll have the shop guarded night and day. My motor might
have been ruined, if that first charge hadn't gone through my body
instead of into the machinery."  The improper connections were soon
removed and others substituted.

It was agreed between Tom and Mr. Sharp that they would say nothing
regarding Mr. Berg to Mr. Swift. The aeronaut caused cautious inquiries
to be made, and learned that the agent had been discharged by the
submarine firm, because of some wrong-doing in connection with the
craft Wonder, and it was surmised that the agent believed Tom to be at
the bottom of his troubles.

In a few days the young inventor was himself again, and as further
trials of his battery showed it to be even better than its owner hoped,
arrangements were made for testing it in the car on the road.

The runabout was nearly finished, but it lacked a coat of varnish, and
some minor details, when Tom, assisted by his father, Mr. Sharp and Mr.
Jackson, one morning, about a week later, installed the motor and
battery units. It did not take long to gear up the machinery, connect
the battery and, though the car was rather a crude looking affair, Tom
decided to give it a tryout.

"Want to come along, Dad?" he asked, as he tightened up some binding
posts, and looked to see that the steering wheel, starting and reverse
levers worked properly, and that the side chains were well lubricated.

"Not the first time," replied his father. "Let's see how it runs with
you, first."

"Oh, I want some sort of a load in it," went on the lad. "It won't be a
good test unless I have a couple of others besides myself. How about
you, Mr. Damon?" for the old gentleman was spending a few days at the
Swift homestead.

"Bless my shoe buttons! I'll come!" was the ready answer.  "After the
experience I've been through in the airship and submarine, nothing can
scare me. Lead on, I'll follow!"

"I don't suppose you'll hang back after that; will you, Mr. Sharp?"
asked the lad, with a laugh.

"I don't dare to, for the sake of my reputation," was the reply, for
the balloonist who had made many ascensions, and dropped thousands of
feet in parachutes, was naturally a brave man.

So he and Mr. Damon climbed into the rear seats of the odd-looking
electric car, while Tom took his place at the steering wheel.

"Are you all ready?" he asked.

"Let her go!" fired back Mr. Sharp.

"Bless my galvanometer, don't go too fast on the start," cautioned Mr.
Damon, nervously.

"I'll not," agreed the young inventor. "I want to get it warmed up
before I try any speeding."

He turned on the current. There was a low, humming purr, which
gradually increased to a whine, and the car moved slowly forward.  It
rolled along the gravel driveway to the road, Tom listening to every
sound of the machinery, as a mother listens to the breathing of a child.

"She's moving!" he cried.

"But not much faster than a wheelbarrow," said his father, who
sometimes teased his son.

"Wait!" cried the youth.

Tom turned more current into the motor. The purring and humming
increased, and the car seemed to leap forward. It was in the road now,
and, once assured that the steering apparatus was working well, Tom
suddenly turned on much more speed.

So quickly did the electric auto shoot forward that Mr. Damon and Mr.
Sharp were jerked back against the cushions of the rear seats.

"Here! What are you doing?" inquired Mr. Sharp.

"I'm going to show you a little speed," answered Tom.

The car was now moving rapidly, and there was a smoothness and
lightness to its progress that was absent from a gasolene auto.  There
was no vibration from the motor. Faster and faster it ran, until it was
moving at a speed scarcely less than that of Mr. Damon's car, when it
was doing its best. Of course that was not saying much, for the car
owned by the odd gentleman was not a very powerful one, but it could
make fast time occasionally.

"Is this the best you can do?" asked Mr. Damon. "Not that it isn't
fast," he hastened to add, "and I was wondering if it was your limit."

"Not half!" cried Tom, as he turned on a little more power.  "I'm not
trying for a record to-day. I just want to see how the battery and
motor behaves."

"Pretty well, I should say," commented Mr. Sharp.

"I'm satisfied--so far," agreed the lad.

They were now moving along the highway at a good speed--moving almost
silently, too, for the motor, save for a low hum, made no noise. So
quiet was the car, in fact, that it was nearly the cause of a disaster.
Tom was so interested in the performance of his latest invention, that,
before he knew it, he had come up behind a farmer, driving a team of
skittish horses. As the big machine went past them, giving no warning
of its approach, the steeds reared up, and would have bolted, but for
the prompt action of the driver.

"Hey!" he cried, angrily, as Tom speeded past, "don't you know you got
to give warnin' when you're comin' with one of them ther gol-swizzled
things! By Jehossephat I'll have th' law on ye ef ye do thet ag'in!"

"I forgot to ring the bell," apologized Tom, as he sent out a peal from
the gong, and then, he let out a few more amperes, and the speed
increased.

"Hold on! I guess this is fast enough!" cried Mr. Damon, as his hat
blew off.

"Fast?" answered Tom. "This is nothing to what I'll do when I use the
full power. Then I'll--"

He was interrupted by a sharp report, and a vivid flash of fire on a
switch board near the steering wheel. The motor gave a sort of groan,
and stopped, the car rolling on a little way, and then becoming
stationary.

"Bless my collar button!" ejaculated Mr. Damon.

"What's the matter?" inquired Mr. Sharp.

"Some sort of a blow-out," answered Tom ruefully, as he shoved the
starting handle over, trying to move the car. But it would not budge.
The new auto had "gone dead" on her first tryout. The young inventor
was grievously disappointed.