r.
Damon, fixed it up, and had many adventures on it, not the least of
which was saving some valuable patent models of his father's which
some thieves had taken.

Then Tom Swift got a motor boat, as related in the second volume of
the series, and he had many exciting trips in that craft. Following
that he made his first airship with the help of a veteran balloonist
and then, not satisfied with adventures in the air, he and his
father perfected a wonderful submarine boat in which they went under
the ocean for sunken treasure.

The automobile industry was fast forging to the front when Tom came
back from his trip under water, and naturally he turned his
attention to that. But he made an electric car instead of one that
was operated by gasolene, and it proved to be the speediest car on
the road.

The details of Tom Swift and his wireless message will be found in
the book of that title. It tells how he saved the castaways of
Earthquake Island, and among them was Mr. Nestor, the father of
Mary, a girl whom Tom thought--but there, I'm not going to be mean,
and tell on a good fellow. You can guess what I'm hinting at, I
think.

It was when Tom went to get Mary Nestor a diamond ring that he fell
in with Mr. Barcoe Jenks, who eventually took Tom off on a search
for the diamond makers, and he and Tom, with some friends,
discovered the secret of Phantom Mountain.

One would have thought that these adventures would have been enough
for Tom Swift, but, like Alexander, he sighed for new worlds to
conquer. How he went to the caves of ice in search of treasure, and
how his airship was wrecked is told in the eighth volume of the
series, and in the next is related the details of his swift sky-racer,
in which he and Mr. Damon made a wonderfully fast trip, and
brought a doctor to Mr. Swift in time to save the life of the aged
inventor.

It was when Tom invented a wonderful electric rifle, and went to
Africa with a Mr. Durban, a great hunter, to get elephants' tusks,
that he rescued Mr. and Mrs. Illingway, the missionaries, who were
held captive by red pygmies.

That was a startling trip, and full of surprises. Tom took with him
to the dark continent a new airship, the Black Hawk, and but for
this he and his friends never would have escaped from the savages
and the wild beasts.

As it was, they had a hazardous time getting the missionary and his
wife away from the jungle. It was this same missionary who, as told
in the first c