lever, a
streak of blue flame shot out through an opened port, and, an
instant later, the small craft of the smugglers was seen to stagger
about, dipping to one side.

"There they come!" cried Mr. Whitford. "They're done for!"

"One shot more," said Tom grimly. "It won't hurt 'em!"

Again the deadly electric rifle sent out its wireless charge, and
the airship slowly fluttered toward the earth.

"They're volplaning down!" cried Tom. "That's the end of them. Now
to catch the other!"

"Take the lantern!" cried Mr. Whitford. "I'm going to send a
wireless to my men to get after this disabled craft."

Tom swung the beam of the searchlight forward and a moment later had
picked up the big aeroplane. It was some distance in advance, and
going like the wind. He heard the automatic camera clicking away.

"They speeded her up as soon as they saw what was on!" cried Tom.
"But we haven't begun to go yet!"

He signalled to Mr. Damon, who pulled over the accelerating lever
and instantly the Falcon responded. Now indeed the race was on in
earnest. The smugglers must have understood this, for they tried all
their tactics to throw the pursuing airship off the track. They
dodged and twisted, now going up, and now going down, and even
trying to turn back, but Tom headed them off. Ever the great beam of
light shone relentlessly on them, like some avenging eye. They could
not escape.

"Are we gaining?" cried Mr. Whitford.

"A little, and slowly," answered Tom. "They have a bigger load on
than when we chased them before, but still they have a speed almost
equal to ours. They must have a magnificent motor."

Faster and faster sped on the Falcon. The other craft kept ahead of
her, however, though Tom could see that, inch by inch, he was
overhauling her.

"Where do they seem to be heading for?" asked the government agent.

"Shopton, as near as I can make out," replied the youth. "They
probably want to get there ahead of us, and hide the goods. I must
prevent that. Mr. Damon is steering better than he ever did before."

Tom shifted the light to keep track of the smugglers, who had dipped
downward on a steep slant. Then they shot upward, but the Falcon was
after them.

The hours of the night passed. The chase was kept up. Try as the
smugglers did, they could not shake Tom off. Nearer and nearer he
crept. There was the gray dawn of morning in the sky, and Tom knew,
from the great speed they had traveled that they must be near
Sh