hat some smuggled goods
came to Shopton, and were shipped out of here again."

"How, by airship?"

"No, by horse and wagon. A lot of cases of valuable silks imported
from England to Canada, where the duty is light, were slipped over
the border somehow, in airships, it is thought. Then they came here
by freight, labeled as calico, and when they reached this town they
were taken away in a wagon."

"But how did they get here?"

"On the railroad, of course, but the freight people had no reason to
suspect them."

"And where were they taken from the freight station?"

"That's what the customs authorities want to find out. They think
there's some secret place here, where the goods are stored and
reshipped. That's why so many detectives are here. They are after the
smugglers hot-footed."

CHAPTER V

THE RAID

Tom Swift dropped the tool he was using, and came over to where Ned
stood, his chum having vaulted in through the open window.

"Ned," said the young inventor, "there's something queer about this
business."

"I'm beginning to think so myself, Tom. But just what do you mean?"

"I mean it's queer that the smugglers should pick out a place like
Shopton--a small town--for their operations, or part of them, when
there are so many better places. We're quite a distance from the
Canadian border. Say, Ned, where was it that Mr. Foger moved to?
Hogan's alley, or some such name as that; wasn't it?"

"Logansville, this state, was the place. I once saw Tom Snedecker
mail Andy a letter addressed to there. But what has that to do with
it?"

Tom's answer was to turn to a large map on the wall of his shop.
With a long stick he pointed out the city of Logansville.

"That isn't very far from the Canadian border; is it, Ned?" he
asked.

"Say, what are you driving at, Tom? It's right on the border between
New York and Canada, according to that map."

"Well, that's a good map, and you can be sure it is nearly right.
And, look here. There's the town of Montford, in Canada, almost
opposite Logansville."

"Well?"

"Oh, nothing, only I'm going to see Mr. Whitford."

"What do you mean, Tom?"

"I mean that the something queer part about this business may be
explained. They have traces of the smugglers sending their goods to
Shopton to be re-shipped here, to avoid suspicion, probably. They
have a suspicion that airships are used to get the goods over the
Canadian border at night."

"But," broke in Ned, "the gov