grets, that he could not be present at the trial,
stating in his letter that he was the busiest man in the world, and
that his time was worth about a dollar a minute just at present. He,
however, wished Tom all success. Tom's first effort was to sail along,
with the lens of the camera pointed straight toward the earth. He would
thus get, if successful, a picture that, when thrown on the screen,
would give the spectators the idea that they were looking down from a
moving balloon. For that reason Tom was not going to fly very high, as
he wanted to get all the details possible.

"All aboard!" cried the young inventor, when he had seen to it that his
airship was in readiness for a flight. The camera had been put aboard,
and the lens pointed toward earth through a hole in the main cabin
floor. All who were expected to make the trip with Tom were on hand,
Koku taking the place of Eradicate this time, as the colored man was
too aged and feeble to go along.

"All ready?" asked Ned, who stood in the steering tower, with his hand
on the starting lever, while Tom was at the camera to see that it
worked properly.

"All ready," answered the young inventor, and, an instant later, they
shot upward, as the big propellers whizzed around.

Tom at once started the camera to taking pictures rapidly, as he wanted
the future audience to get a perfect idea of how it looked to go up in
a balloon, leaving the earth behind. Then as the Flyer moved swiftly
over woods and fields, Tom moved the lens from side to side, to get
different views.

"Say! This is great!" cried Mr. Nestor, to whom air-riding was much of
a novelty. "Are you getting good pictures, Tom?"

"I can't tell until we develop them. But the machine seems to be
working all right. I'm going to sail back now, and get some views of
our own house from up above."

They had sailed around the town of Shopton, to the neighboring
villages, over woods and fields. Now they were approaching Shopton
again.

"Bless my heart!" suddenly exclaimed Mr. Damon, who was looking toward
the earth, as they neared Tom's house.

"What is it?" asked our hero, glancing up from the picture machine, the
registering dial of which he was examining.

"Look there! At your shop, Tom! There seems to be a lot of smoke coming
from it!"

They were almost over Tom's shop now, and, as Mr. Damon had said, there
was considerable smoke rolling above it.

"I guess Eradicate is burning up papers and trash," was Ne