The Aeroplane Boys Flight | Page 2

in school,
working upon the line that seemed to have a strange fascination for
them. Frank's father was one of the best known doctors in town, a man
of considerable means, and with a firm faith in his boys, so that he was
easily convinced whenever Frank wished to do anything.
Andy had been living with his guardian for some time, until the return
of his own father, Professor Bird, who had been lost while attempting a
difficult balloon trip in Central America, and found in a most
miraculous way by the two boys as told in a previous story.
Andy had inherited the passion which his father, a noted professor, had
always had for navigating the air. It was a favorite expression of his "A
bird by any other name would fly as high," and his cousin would retort:
"A Bird takes to the air just as naturally as a duck does to water."

They had been doing some fine "stunts" during the last year or two; and
it may be supposed that the people of Bloomsbury were more than a
little proud of seeing the name of their town mentioned so favorably in
the papers in connection with the doings of the Bird boys.
Of course, as is always the case, there was a rival in the field, who had
been the cause of much trouble in the past, and still watched their work
with an envious eye. This was a boy by the name of Percy Shelley
Carberry, rather a bold fellow too, and as smart as they make them,
only unscrupulous as to the means he employed by which to gain his
ends.
Percy was the only son of a rich widow, who could never refuse him
anything he demanded; and with unlimited cash at his disposal he had
been able to do quite a few feats himself that might have gained him
more or less fame, only that they were eclipsed by the accomplishments
of Frank and Andy; and that was where the shoe pinched with Percy.
His temper was one of his weak spots, also a liking for fast life, which,
of course included tippling; and the aviator who indulges to the
slightest degree in strong drink is next door to a fool; for as he takes his
life in his hands every time he leaves the ground, the necessity for a
clear brain is apparent.
In most of his tricky work young Carberry had for a boon companion
one "Sandy" Hollingshead, a sinewy chap, whose most prominent trait
was his faculty for disappearing suddenly in a pinch. He was
considerable of a boaster, but could always invent a most remarkable
excuse for going before the storm broke. But Percy, no coward himself,
knew how to make use of his sly crony; and despite their numerous
quarrels, that often ended in actual fights, the pair of precious tricksters
still kept company together.
Sandy was freckled had pale eyes and very blonde hair, that gave him a
queer look. Those eyes never could look any one straight in the face,
but shifted uneasily; and other boys said that Sandy, the cigarette
smoker, was always on the watch for a quick "getaway."

The Bird boys, of course, had many friends among the lads of
Bloomsbury; but only two who were close enough to be admitted freely
to the workshop on the grounds of Frank's father's place, where the
young inventors worked out many of their lofty ideas.
These were Larry Geohegan, and a small runt who had been called
"Elephant" by his companions in a spirit of sport, and could not shake
the name. His full name was Fenimore Cooper Small, and as a rule he
had always been rather timid. But Elephant was always having queer
ideas in which he believed fully himself; but which were nearly always
jeered at by more practical Larry.
The two Bird boys had been out on this afternoon, trying some new
arrangement in connection with their hydroplane, when they met with
an accident when attempting to land on the Quackenboss farm, to make
some changes they saw were needed, to improve the working of the
machine.
Neither of them had been even scratched, but a certain amount of
damage had befallen one of the planes, which might have been
remedied on the spot in time to allow them to get back home easily,
only for the unfortunate fact that just when they needed a monkey
wrench the worst kind, it was discovered to be missing; perhaps the
only occasion when such a thing had happened with the boys.
"I just saw somebody go into the barn there," remarked Frank, as they
approached the large outbuildings connected with the successful farm
of Josiah Quackenboss.
"Yes, and it was the farmer himself," added