ning finger. Tom's heart almost stopped beating. He was
aware that Dr. Gladby came from the room where Mr. Swift lay.

"Is he--is he--am I too late?" gulped Tom.

"Hush!" cautioned the nurse.

Tom reeled, and would have fallen had not the doctor caught him, for
the lad was weak and worn out.

"He is going to get well!" were the joyful words he heard, as if in a
dream, and then his strength suddenly came back to him. "The crisis is
just passed, Tom," went on Dr. Gladby, "and your father will recover,
and be stronger than ever. Your good news of winning was like a tonic
to him. Now let me congratulate you on the race." Tom had flashed by
wireless a brief message of his success.

"Dad's news is better than all the congratulations in the world," he
said softly, as he grasped the doctor's hand.

* * * * *

It was a week later. Mr. Swift improved rapidly once the course of the
disease was permanently checked, and he was soon able to sit up. Tom
was with him in the room, talking of the great race, and how he had
won. He fingered the certified check for ten thousand dollars that had
just come to him by mail.

"You certainly did wonderfully well," said the aged inventor, softly.
"Wonderfully well, Tom. I'm proud of you."

"You may well be," added Mr. Damon. "Bless my shoelaces, but I thought
Andy Foger had us there one spell; didn't you, Tom?"

"Indeed I did. But you helped me win, Mr. Damon."

"Nonsense!" exclaimed the odd man.

"Yes, you did. You helped me a lot."

"Well, are you going to keep after more air-prizes, Tom, or are you
going to try for something else?" asked his father.

"I don't believe I'll go in any more aeroplane races right away,"
answered the young inventor. "For some time I've been wanting to
complete and perfect my electric rifle. I think I'll begin work on that
soon."

"And go hunting?" asked Mr. Damon.

"I think so," answered Tom, dreamily. "I don't know just where, though."

Where he went, and what he shot, will be told in the next volume of
this series, to be called: "Tom Swift and His Electric Rifle; or,
Daring Adventures in Elephant Land."

For a few moments after Tom's announcement no one spoke, then the young
inventor said:

"It's too bad that first set of plans were stolen. If I had them I
could make a good deal with the Government about my little aeroplane.
But they don't want to take up with it as long as there is a chance of
some foreign n