“He was sneakin’ around to see father’s engine work. He’s been s-s-spyin’ around a year, he has. He works for some engineerin’ company in Pittsburg.”
“I have been watching Mr. Tidd’s progress with his turbine,” said the stranger, in a make-believe honest kind of voice. “I represent capital, and Mr. Tidd will need capital to market and manufacture his invention. It was my desire to see how he came out before I raise his hopes by offering him financial support.”
“It was a queer way you took,” Mr. Whiteley said, and his voice sounded unpleasant. “You’ve found out it works, all right. Now git!” He took a step forward, and the stranger looked like he was startled plenty. He didn’t wait to make any more explanations, but hurried out of the engine-room.
“Tidd,” said Mr. Whiteley, “you want to look out. The best thing you can do is to get off after your patent and protect yourself. If you don’t you’ll just be another inventor cheated out of the profits of his invention—and yours is a big one.”
“I guess,” answered Mr. Tidd, “that you’re right.” His eyes looked sorry—sorry, I guess, to find out anybody was so dishonest. “You’re right. I’ll go to-morrow—to-morrow.”
He did go next day, down to Detroit to see a patent lawyer that Mr. Whiteley told him was all right. Before he went he brought his turbine back to his shop in the barn and put a new padlock on both doors. It was while he was away that the things happened which gave the Ku Klux Klan a chance to show what it was made of.
CHAPTER IX
Next day Mr. Tidd went packing off to Detroit to see the patent lawyer, and we were all at the depot to send him off. So was Mrs. Tidd. She always came to see him off, she said, because if she didn’t there was no knowing whether he went or not, or where he went to. Once, she told us, he had started alone to go to a town twenty miles east of where they lived, and two days after she had got a letter from him saying he was in another town thirty miles west and wanted to know what he came there for.
She stood by him while he bought his ticket, and then pinned it inside his coat pocket with the end sticking out a little so the conductor could see it.
“If the end don’t show,” she said to him, “you’ll never find it, and like as not you’ll git put off the train. Now when the conductor comes along he can see it and tell you where it is.”