Tom Swift and His Great Searchlight | Page 3

and I'll show you some new books I got."
The two lads were soon in the Swift homestead, a pleasant and large
old-fashioned residence, in the suburbs of Shopton. Tom brought out
the books, and he and his chum poured over them.
"Mr. Damon gave me that one on electricity," explained the young
inventor, handing Ned a bulky volume.
"'Bless my bookmark!' as Mr. Damon himself would say if he were
here," exclaimed Ned with a laugh. "That's a dandy. But Mr. Damon
didn't give you THIS one," and Ned picked up a dainty volume of verse.
"'To Tom Swift, with the best wishes of Mary--'" but that was as far as
he read, for Tom grabbed the book away, and closed the cover over the
flyleaf, which bore some writing in a girl's hand. I think my old readers
can guess whose hand it was.
"Wow! Tom Swift reading poetry!" laughed Ned.
"Oh, cut it out," begged his chum. "I didn't know that was among the
books. I got it last Christmas. Now here's a dandy one on lion hunting,
Ned," and to cover his confusion Tom shoved over a book containing
many pictures of wild animals.
"Lion hunting; eh," remarked Ned. "Well, I guess you could give them
some points on snapping lions with your moving picture camera, Tom."
"Yes, I got some good views," admitted the young inventor modestly.
"I may take the camera along on some trips in my noiseless airship.
Hello! here comes Koku back. I hope he got what I wanted."
A man, immense in size, a veritable giant, one of two whom Tom Swift

had brought away from captivity with him, was entering the front gate.
He stopped to speak to Mr. Swift, Tom's father, who was setting out
some plants in a flower bed, taking them from a large wheel barrow
filled with the blooms.
Mr. Swift, who was an inventor of note, had failed in his health of late,
and the doctor had recommended him to be out of doors as much as
possible. He delighted in gardening, and was at it all day.
"Look!" suddenly cried Ned, pointing to the giant. Then Tom and his
chum saw a strange sight.
With a booming laugh, Koku picked up Mr. Swift gently and set him
on a board that extended across the front part of the wheel barrow.
Then, as easily as if it was a pound weight, the big man lifted Mr. Swift,
barrow, plants and all, in his two hands, and carried them across the
garden to another flower bed, that was ready to be filled.
"No use to walk when I can carry you, Mr. Swift," exclaimed Koku
with a laugh. "I overtook you quite nice; so?"
"Yes, you took me over in great shape, Koku!" replied the aged
inventor with a smile at Koku's English, for the giant frequently got his
words backwards. "That barrow is quite heavy for me to wheel."
"You after this call me," suggested Koku.
"Say, but he's strong all right," exclaimed Ned, "and that was an
awkward thing to carry."
"It sure was," agreed Tom. "I haven't yet seen any one strong enough to
match Koku. And he's gentle about it, too. He's very fond of dad."
"And you too, I guess," added Ned.
"Well, Koku, did you get that attachment?" asked Tom, as his giant
servant entered the room.
"Yes, Mr. Tom. I have it here," and from his pocket Koku drew a heavy

piece of steel that would have taxed the strength of either of the boys to
lift with one hand. But Koku's pockets were very large and made
specially strong of leather, for he was continually putting odd things in
them.
Koku handed over the attachment, for which his master had sent him.
He held it out on a couple of fingers, as one might a penknife, but Tom
took both hands to set it on the ground.
"I the female get, also," went on Koku, as he began taking some letters
and papers from his pocket. "I stop in the office post, and the female
get."
"Mail, Koku, not female," corrected Tom with a laugh. "A female is a
lady you know."
"For sure I know, and the lady in the post office gave me the female.
That is I said what, did I not?"
"Well, I guess you meant it all right," remarked Ned. "But letter mail
and a male man and a female woman are all different."
"Oh such a language!" gasped the giant. "I shall never learn it. Well,
then, Mr. Tom, here is your mail, that the female lady gave to me for
you, and you are a male. It is very strange."
Koku pulled out a bundle of letters, which Tom took, and then the