once felt relieved, both
because the action of swallowing equalized the pressure on the ear
drums, and because the airship was soon in a more dense atmosphere,
more like that of the earth.

"How are you now?" asked the man of the lad, as the craft was again on
an even keel.

"All right," replied Tom, briskly. "I didn't know what ailed me at
first."

"I was troubled the same way when I first went up in a balloon,"
commented Mr. Sharp. "We'll run along for a few miles, at an elevation
of about five hundred feet, and then we'll go to within a hundred feet
of the earth, and see how the Red Cloud behaves under different
conditions. Take a look below and see what you think of it."

Tom looked low, through one of several plate glass windows in the floor
of the car. He gave a gasp of astonishment.

"Why! We're right over Lake Carlopa!" he gasped.

"Of course," admitted Mr. Sharp with a laugh. "And I'm glad to say that
we're better off than when I was last in the air over this same body of
water," and he could scarcely repress a shudder as he thought of his
perilous position in the blazing balloon, as related in detail in "Tom
Swift and His Motor-Boat."

The lake was spread out below the navigators of the air like some
mirror of silver in a setting of green fields. Tom could see a winding
river, that flowed into the lake, and he noted towns, villages, and
even distant cities, interspersed here and there with broad farms or
patches of woodlands, like a bird's-eye view of a stretch of country.

"This is great!" he exclaimed, with enthusiasm. "I wouldn't miss this
for the world!"

"Oh, you haven't begun to see things yet," replied Mr. Sharp. "Wait
until we take a long trip, which we'll do soon, as this ship is
behaving much better than I dared to hope. Well, we're five hundred
feet high now, and I'll run along at that elevation for a while."

Objects on the earth became more distinct now, and Tom could observe
excited throngs running along and pointing upward. They were several
miles from Shopton, and the machinery was running smoothly; the motor,
with its many cylinders purring like a big cat.

"We could have lunch, if we'd brought along anything to eat," observed
Tom.

"Yes," assented his companion. "But I think we'll go back now. Your
father may be anxious. Just come here, Tom, and I'll show you how to
steer. I'm going down a short distance."

He depressed the rudder, and the Red Cloud shot earthward. Then, as t