"I am only too pleased to be of any service, I assure you. I myself should be quite prepared to deliver No. 14 to you; but I hope you'll understand my position."
"Certainly, Harden, certainly. Just as clearly as I do my own. I shouldn't think of taking it until he comes. He's a good man to keep in with; a bit crochetty, but influential. It placed you in a nasty fix, and you couldn't do otherwise than you have."
"It's a great relief to me to hear you say that, and please don't talk about obligation."
"That's all right; but Schiller's a useful man to oblige. What sort of a plane is this?" I asked as we reached the men.
"An old type, but quite reliable. We use it for lessons chiefly. The petrol tank filled, Max?" he asked the foreman.
"Yes, sir; but there's something wrong with the engine; keeps missing fire," was the reply.
Pleasant news, seeing that in about ten minutes the mysterious Schiller would be on the scene raising Cain!
"Take long to put right, Max?" asked Harden.
"Can't exactly say, sir. I can't quite get at the mischief yet."
"Let's have a look at her," said Harden; and he and the man wasted five of the invaluable minutes over the examination.