Tom Swift and His Wireless Message | Page 2

a habit of his when he was thinking,
and had no one to talk to. "Yet it can hardly be that." he went on.
"Guess I'll watch and see what it is."
Nearer and nearer came the dust cloud. Tom peered anxiously ahead, a
puzzled look on his face. A few seconds later there came from the
midst of the obscuring cloud a voice, exclaiming:
"G'lang there now, Boomerang! Keep to' feet a-movin' an' we sho' will
make a record. 'Tain't laik we was a autermobiler, er a electricity car,
but we sho' hab been goin' sence we started. Yo' sho' done yo'se'f proud
t'day, Boomerang, an' I'se gwine t' keep mah promise an' gib yo' de
bestest oats I kin find. Ah reckon Massa Tom Swift will done say we
brought dis yeah message t' him as quick as anybody could."
Then there followed the sound of hoofbeats on the dusty road, and the
rattle of some many-jointed vehicle, with loose springs and looser
wheels.
"Eradicate Sampson!" exclaimed Tom. "But who would ever think that
the colored man's mule could get up such speed as that cloud of dust
indicates. His mule's feet must be working overtime, but he goes
backward about as often as he moves forward. That accounts for it.
There's lots of dust, but not much motion."
Once more, from the midst of the ball-like cloud of dirt came the voice
of the colored man:
"Now behave yo'se'f, Boomerang. We'm almost dere an' den yo' kin sit
down an' rest if yo' laik. Jest keep it up a little longer, an' we'll gib
Massa Tom his telephone. G'lang now, Boomerang."
The tattoo of hoofbeats was slowing up now, and the cloud of dust was
not so heavy. It was gradually blowing away. Tom Swift walked down

to the fence that separated the house, grounds and shops from the road.
As he got there the sounds of the mule's progress, and the rattle of the
wagon, suddenly ceased.
"G'lang! G'lang! Don't yo' dare t' stop now, when we am most dere!"
cried Eradicate Sampson. "Keep a-movin', Boomerang!"
"It's all right, Eradicate. I'm here," called Tom, and when the last of the
dust had blown away, the lad waved his hand to an aged colored man,
who sat upon the seat of perhaps the most dilapidated wagon that was
ever dignified by such a name. It was held together with bits of wire,
rope and strings, and each of the four wheels leaned out at a different
angle. It was drawn by a big mule, whose bones seemed protruding
through his skin, but that fact evidently worried him but little, for now
the animal was placidly sleeping, while standing up, his long ears
moving slowly to and fro.
"Am dat yo', Massa Tom?" asked Eradicate, ceasing his task of jerking
on the lines, to which operation the mule paid not the least attention.
"Yes, I'm here, Rad," replied Tom, smiling. "I came out of my shop to
see what all the excitement was about. How did you ever get your mule
to make so much dust?"
"I done promise him an extra helpin' ob oats ef he make good time,"
said the colored man. "An' he done it, too. Did yo' see de dust we
made?"
"I sure did, but you didn't do much else. And you didn't make very
good time. I watched you, and you came along like an ice wagon after a
day's work on the Fourth of July. You were going fast, but moving
slow."
"I 'spects we was, Massa Tom," was the colored man's answer. "But
Boomerang done better dan I 'spected he would. I done tole him yo'd be
in a hurry t' git yo' telephone, an' he sho' did trot along."
"My telephone?" repeated Tom, wonderingly. "What have you and

your mule Boomerang to do with my telephone? That's up in the
house."
"No, it ain't! it's right yeah in mah pocket," chuckled Eradicate, opening
a ragged coat, and reaching for something. "I got yo' telephone right
yeah." he went on. "De agent at de station see me dribin' ober dis way,
an' he done ast he t' deliber it. He said as how he ain't got no messenger
boy now, 'cause de one he done hab went on a strike fo' five cents mo' a
day. So I done took de telephone," and with that the colored man pulled
out a crumpled yellow envelope.
"Oh, you mean a telegram," said Tom, with a laugh, as he took the
message from the odd colored man.
"Well, maybe it's telegraf, but I done understood de agent t' say
telephone. Anyhow, dere it is. An' I s'pects we'd better git along,
Boomerang."
The mule never moved, though Eradicate yanked on the reins, and used
a