e said in an anxious
tone:

"Do you think, sir, those people set the fire? It would be a
catastrophe if the plane burned just at this particular time, wouldn't
it? There. All ready."

"Mighty good of you," said Captain Folsom. "Lead on, then, and I'll
follow. As to the fire, I'll reserve opinion until I get the facts.
But these liquor smugglers are unscrupulous, and if they feared the
airplane was being used against them, they would have no compunctions
about burning it."

From the side of the house on which their rooms were located, Jack and
his guest were unable to see anything of the fire, as the hangar lay
in an opposite direction. But the moment they emerged outdoors, the
blaze showed dully against the sky above an intervening grove of
trees.

Without wasting breath in further speculation, Jack and Captain Folsom
started running for the scene. The hangar stood a considerable
distance away, and so fast had they covered the ground that they
arrived pretty well blown.

They found the airplane standing like a singed bird on the sands in
front of the hangar, and gathered about were Frank and Bob, Tom
Barnum, and Old Davey, Mr. Hampton's gardener.

"The wings are gone, Jack," said Bob, turning as his chum approached.
"But, thanks to Tom's rapid work with the extinguisher, the fire did
not reach the tank, and the old bus will be able to fly again after
she sprouts new wings."

Jack turned his gaze to the hangar. The sides and roof were of
corrugated iron. Practically the only wood in the construction was
that employed in the skidway. It needed only a glance to tell him the
latter had been torn up and piled inside the hangar where it was still
smouldering.

"What happened?" he asked.

There were excited answers from all, but presently the story was made
clear. Some miscreant apparently had forced open the doors of the
hangar, torn up the wooden planks and flooring of the skidway, piled
them inside and then set them afire. Probably whoever was guilty
employed this method in order to give himself time to escape before
the fire should attract attention. He had overlooked, however, the
presence of a large tank of chemicals with which to fight fire stored
at the rear of the hangar, and Tom Barnum, after telephoning the
Temple home, had appeared so quickly at the hangar that, by employing
the chemical extinguisher, he had managed to save the airplane from
being blown up. Old Davey, a light sleeper, had hurried over