oss up towards th' stable; it might
git frightened.

"Now," he went on, "ye're about t' witness one of th' wonders of th'
age. Look out, everybody!" and, with a flourish, he pulled the sheet
away.

CHAPTER XIII

DICK'S BRAVE ACT

"Hold on!" cried Dick, as he saw revealed a maze of wheels, levers,
belts and cranks. "What is this? Who are you?"

For an instant he thought the thing might be an infernal machine.

"Who am I?" asked the man. "Why, I'm Silas Kendall, of Manlius Centre,
an' this is my perpetual motion machine. Wait until I take th' chain off
so's it can git inter motion an' ye'll open yer eyes, I reckon."

"Is it dangerous?" asked Bricktop, preparing to run.

"Not a bit, if ye don't put yer fingers in th' wheels. It wouldn't harm
a baby."

He drew from his pocket a key, which he proceeded to insert into a big
lock that held together the ends of a chain which was twisted about the
biggest wheel on the machine.

"Have t' keep it chained up," he said, with a queer sort of smile, "or
it would keep on workin' all th' while. I'll show ye--Silas
Kendall--he'll astonish th' world. Ye got my letter, I reckon," turning
to Dick.

"Letter? No. What letter?"

"Th' one I writ ye about this machine."

"I don't remember--oh, yes," added Dick, quickly. He did recall among
the many letters he had received recently (begging epistles most of
them), one in which the writer said he would soon call to exhibit a new
machine he had invented, and one which was destined to make all
interested in it rich for life. But Dick thought it was just like lots
of other missives he had been receiving from cranks since the advent of
his wealth, and he threw it away. Now, it seemed, the letter was from
Mr. Kendall.

"Is that really a perpetual motion machine?" asked Frank, who, with the
other boys, was much interested in such things.

"Of course it is," replied the man. "I invented it all by myself. I'll
tell ye a little about it before I unchain th' critter an' let it git t'
work. Did ye fasten th' hoss, Mandy?" he asked, as his wife approached.

"Yep, Silas. Now, do be careful of that contraption. I ain't got no
faith in it," she said, turning to the boys.

"No, that's jest th' way with wimmin," remarked Silas. "Yet I really
invented it for her."

"How?" asked Dick.

"Wa'al, I was watchin' her churn one day, an' I thought how awful it was
that wimmin had t' work so hard. So I decided, if I could invent a
machine