gain raised the little hatchet, which was like an Indian tomahawk,
and poised it for an instant over the delicate framework and planes of
the air craft. Then his arm began to descend.

"Stop!" yelled Tom, and at the same time he fired in the air.

The man turned as suddenly as though a bullet had struck him, and for a
moment Tom was afraid lest he had hit him by accident; but an instant
later the intruder grabbed up his flashlight, and holding it before
him, so that its rays shone full on Tom and Mr. Jackson, while it left
him in the shadow, sprang toward them, the hatchet still in his hand.

"Look out, Tom!" cried Mr. Jackson.

"Out of my way!" shouted the man.

Bravely Tom stood his ground. He wished now that he had a club instead
of his revolver. The would-be vandal was almost upon him. Mr. Jackson
clubbed his rifle and swung it at the fellow. The latter dodged, and
came straight at Tom.

"Look out!" yelled the engineer again, but it was too late. There was
the sound of a blow, and Tom went down like a log. Then the place was
in darkness, and the sound of footsteps in rapid flight could be heard
outside the shed.

The intruder, after wounding the young inventor, had made his escape.

Chapter Twelve

Miss Nestor Calls

"What's de mattah? Shall I come in? Am anybody hurted?" yelled
Eradicate Sampson as he pounded on the rear door of the aeroplane shed.
"Let me in, Massa Tom!"

"All right! Wait a minute! I'm coming!" called Mr. Jackson. He tried to
peer through the darkness, to where a huddled heap indicated the
presence of Tom. Then he thought of the electric lights, which were run
by a storage battery when the dynamo was shut down, and a moment later
the engineer had switched on the incandescents, filling the big shed
with radiance.

"Tom, are you badly hurt?" gasped Mr. Jackson.

There was no answer, for Tom was unconscious.

"Let me in! Let me git at dat robber wif mah club!" cried the colored
man eagerly.

Knowing that he would need help in carrying Tom to the house, Mr.
Jackson hurried to the back door. He had a key to it, and it was
quicker to open it than to send Eradicate away around the shed to the
front portals.

"Whar am he?" gasped the faithful darky, as he took a firmer grasp of
his club and looked around the place. "Let me git mah hands on him!
I'll feed him t' Boomerang, when I gits froo wif him!"

"He's gone," said the engineer. "Help me look after Tom. I'm afraid
he's bad