The Project Gutenberg EBook of Tom Swift and his Airship, by Victor Appleton

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Title: Tom Swift and his Airship

Author: Victor Appleton

Posting Date: July 13, 2008 [EBook #3005]
Release Date: January, 2002

Language: English

Character set encoding: ASCII

*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK TOM SWIFT AND HIS AIRSHIP ***

Produced by Tom Szolyga

Tom Swift and His Airship

by

Victor Appleton

Contents

I An Explosion
II Ned Sees Mysterious Men
III Whitewashed
IV A Trial Trip
V Colliding With A Tower
VI Getting Off The Roof
VII Andy Tries A Trick
VIII Winning a Prize
IX The Runaway Auto
X A Bag of Tools
XI The "Red Cloud" Departs
XII Some Startling News
XIII Mr. Damon in Danger
XIV Andy Gives the Clue
XV Fired Upon
XVI Over a Fiery Furnace
XVII "Wanted--For Robbery!"
XVIII Back for Vindication
XIX Wrecked
XX Tom Gets a Clue
XXI On the Trail
XXII The Sheriff on Board
XXIII On To the Camp
XXIV The Raid
XXV Andy Gets His Reward

Chapter 1

An Explosion

"Are you all ready, Tom?"

"All ready, Mr. Sharp," replied a young man, who was stationed near
some complicated apparatus, while the questioner, a dark man, with a
nervous manner, leaned over a large tank.

"I'm going to turn on the gas now," went on the man. "Look out for
yourself. I'm not sure what may happen."

"Neither am I, but I'm ready for it. If it does explode it can't do
much damage."

"Oh, I hope it doesn't explode. We've had so much trouble with the
airship, I trust nothing goes wrong now."

"Well, turn, on the gas, Mr. Sharp," advised Tom Swift. "I'll watch the
pressure gauge, and, if it goes too high, I'll warn you, and you can
shut it off."

The man nodded, and, with a small wrench in his hand, went to one end
of the tank. The youth, looking anxiously at him, turned his gaze now
and then toward a gauge, somewhat like those on steam boilers, which
gauge was attached to an aluminum, cigar-shaped affair, about five feet
long.

Presently there was a hissing sound in the small frame building where
the two were conducting an