"More money! Good land, man! I gave you three dollars and a half last
week to buy something!" cried Uncle Ezra.

"Yes, I know, but that went for guy wires and bolts. I need about ten
dollars for an auxiliary steering wheel."

"A steering wheel?" questioned Uncle Ezra. "You mean a wheel to twist?"

"That's it. There must be two. We have only one."

"Well, if it's only a wheel, I can fix you up about that all right, and
without spending a cent, either!" exclaimed the stingy old man with a
chuckle. "There's an old sewing machine of my wife's down cellar.
It's busted, all but the big wheel. We had an accident with it, but I
made the company give me a new machine, and I kept the old one.

"Now that's got a big, round, iron wheel on it, and we can take that
off, just as well as not, and use it on the airship. That's what
you've got to do in this world--save money. I've spent a terrible
pile, but we'll save some by using the sewing machine wheel."

"It won't do," said the lieutenant. "It's far too heavy. I must have
one made to order of wood. It will cost ten dollars."

"Oh, dear!" groaned Uncle Ezra. "More money," and he looked
distressed. Then his face brightened.

"I say!" he cried. "There's a busted mowing machine out in the barn.
That's got a wooden wheel on it. Can't you use that?"

Lieutenant Larson shook his bead.

"It's no use trying to use make-shift wheels if we are to have a
perfect machine, and win the prize," he said. "I must have the proper
one. I need ten dollars."

"Oh, dear!" moaned Uncle Ezra, as he took out his wallet, and carefully
counted out ten one-dollar bills.

"Couldn't you look around and get a second-hand one?" he asked
hopefully.

"No; we haven't time. We must soon start on the prize trip. We don't
want to be late."

"No, I s'pose not. Wa'al, take the money," and he parted with it,
after a long look. Then he made a memoranda of it in his pocket
cash-book, and sighed again.

Several times after this Lieutenant Larson had to have more money--or,
at least, he said he needed it, and Uncle Ezra brought it forth with
many sighs and groans. But he "gave up."

To give Larson credit, he had really produced a good aircraft. Of
course it was nothing like Dick's, and, after all, the former army man
was more interested in his stabilizers than he was in the airship
itself. But he had to build it right and properly to give his patent a
good test, and he used his bes