nutes of flying over the city brought the aviators within sight
of the big beautiful Zoological Park which is the pride of New York.
Below Dick and his chums stretched out the green expanses, the gardens,
the little lakes, and the animal enclosures.

"There's a good place!" exclaimed Dick, pointing to a green expanse
near the wild-fowl pond.

"Then you take the wheel and make it," suggested Innis, who had been
steering.

Dick did so, but his hand accidentally touched the gasolene lever,
cutting off the supply to the motor. In an instant the machine went
dead.

"Never mind!" cried the young millionaire. "I'll go down anyhow. No
use starting the motor again. I'll volplane and land where I can."

And, as it happened, he came down in New York, in the midst of the
Bronx Park buffalo range.

It was a perfect landing, the Abaris reaching the ground with scarcely
a jar. But the big, shaggy buffaloes snorted in terror, and ran in all
directions. That is, all but one big bull, and he, with a bellow of
rage, charged straight for the airship!

CHAPTER XXI

OFF FOR THE PACIFIC

"Look out for him!"

"Go up in the air again!"

"Has anybody got a gun?"

"Start the motor!"

These, and other excited cries, came from those in Dick Hamilton's
airship as they saw the charging buffalo. The animal was the largest
in the captive herd, probably the leader. It seemed a strange thing
for a modern airship to be threatened with an attack by a buffalo in
these days, but such was the case.

"He may damage us!" cried Dick. "We've got to do something!"

But there seemed nothing to do. Before they could get out of the cabin
of the airship, which now rested on the ground within the buffalo
range, the frightened and infuriated animal might rush at the craft.

And, though he would probably come off second best in the odd battle,
he might damage some of the frail planes or rudders.

"Come on!" cried Paul. "Let's all rush out at him at once, and yell as
hard as we can. That may scare him off."

But there was no need of this. Before the buffalo had time to reach
the airship a mounted police officer rode rapidly up to the fence of
the enclosure, and, taking in the situation, novel as it was, at a
glance, he fired several shots from his revolver at the rushing animal.

None of the bullets was intended to hit the buffalo, and none did. But
some came so close, and the noise of the shots was so loud, that the
beast stopped