not understand the
rest.

"Burglar tools? I wonder how Andy could say that?" he asked Mr. Damon.

"Wait until we get back, and we'll ask John Sharp," suggested his
companion. "This is very strange. I am going to sue some one for
spreading false reports about me! Bless my ledgers, why I have money on
deposit in that bank! To think that I would rob it!"

"Poor dad!" murmured Tom. "This must be hard for him. But what about
ordering food? Maybe if we buy any they will trail us, find the airship
and capture it. I don't want to be arrested, even if I am innocent, and
I certainly don't want the airship to fall into the hands of the
police. They might damage it."

"We must go see Mr. Sharp," declared Mr. Damon, and back to where the
Red Cloud was concealed they went.

To say that the balloonist was astonished is putting it mildly. He was
even more excited than was Mr. Damon.

"Wait until I get hold of that Andy Foger!" he cried. "I'll make him
sweat for this! I see he's already laid claim to the reward," he added,
reading further along in the article. "He thinks he has put the police
on our trail."

"So he seems to have done," added Tom. "The whole country has been
notified to look out for us," the paper says. "We're likely to be fired
upon whenever we pass over a city or a town."

"Then we'll have to avoid them," declared the balloonist.

"But we must go back," declared Tom.

"Of course. Back to be vindicated. We'll have to give up our trip. My,
my! But this is a surprise!"

"I don't see what makes Andy say he saw me with burglar tools,"
commented Tom, with a puzzled air.

Mr. Sharp thought for a moment. Then he exclaimed "It was that bag of
tools I sent you after--the long wrenches, the pliers, and the brace
and bits. You--"

"Of course!" cried Tom. "I remember now. The bag dropped and opened,
and Andy and Sam saw the tools. But the idea of taking them for burglar
tools!"

"Well, I suppose the burglars, whoever they were, did use tools similar
to those to break open the vault," put in Mr. Damon. "Andy probably
thought he was a smart lad to put the police on our track."

"I'll put him on the track, when I return," declared Mr. Sharp. "Well,
now, what's to be done?"

"We've got to have food," suggested Tom.

"Yes, but I think we can manage that. I've been looking over the ship,
as best I could in the dark. It seems to be all right. We can start
early in the morning without anyone around here knowing we p