m and his chum learned that this was so--that Mr. Foger had
engaged the services of an expert to make the airship. This man had
been taken to Sitka with the Fogers, and had materially aided them
in re-assembling the craft.

"Do you think he can beat us?" asked Ned, anxiously.

"No!" exclaimed Tom, confidently. "There's only one craft that can
beat my RED CLOUD and that's my monoplane the BUTTERFLY. But I have
in mind plans for a speedier machine than even the monoplane.
However I haven't any fear that Andy can keep up to us in this
craft. I haven't begun to fly yet, and I'm pretty sure, from the way
his is going, that he has used his limit of speed."

"Then why don't you get ahead of him?" asked Mr. Damon. "Bless my
tape-measure! the way to win a race is to beat."

"Not this kind of a race," and the young inventor spoke seriously.
"If I got ahead of Andy now, he'd simply trail along and follow us.
That's his game. He wants me to be the path-finder, for, since I
cast a doubt on the correctness of the map, a copy of which he
stole, he isn't sure where he's going. He'd ask nothing better than
to follow us."

"Then what are you going to do if you don't get ahead of him?" asked
Ned.

"I'm going to press him close until night," answered Tom, "and when
it's dark, I'm going to shoot ahead, and, by morning we'll be so far
away that he can't catch up to us."

"Good idea! That's th' stuff!" cried Abe with enthusiasm.

"He's a sneak!" burst out Mr. Damon. "I'd like to see him left
behind."

Tom carried out his plan. The remainder of the day he hung just on
Andy's flank, sometimes shooting high up, almost out of sight, and
again coming down, just to show what the RED CLOUD could do when
pressed.

As for those aboard the ANTHONY, they seemed to be trying to
increase their speed, but, if that was their object they did not
have much success, for the big, clumsy triplane only labored along.

"I wonder who he's got with him?" said Ned, as darkness was closing
down. "I can't make out any one by this glass. They stick pretty
closely to the cabin."

"Oh, probably Andy's father is there," said "and, perhaps, some of
Mr. Foger's acquaintances. I guess Mr. Foger is as anxious to get
this gold as Andy is."

"He certainly needs money," admitted Ned. "Jove! but I hope we beat
him!"

But alas for Tom's hopes! His plan of waiting until night and then
putting on such speed as would leave Andy behind could not be
carried out. It