“Leave the car where it is,” he commanded; “for we’ll need it again in a few minutes.”
“Yas, sir;” replied the lad, looking longingly at the willow receptacle.
“I have brought you enough food to last a week,” said the Professor.
“Gee!” muttered Bunk, “it looks as if dere am jest ’nough for breakfast, but I’ll worry ’long if you say so.”
“Help yourself.”
Bunk needed no second invitation. The man passed into the building, leaving him outside. He slid off the cover of the basket and his eyes sparkled at sight of the goodly stock of supplies. He did not pause in his feasting until one-half the contents had been placed where it would do the most good. He was drawing the back of his hand across his mouth when the Professor came out, bringing with him the blanket that had served Bunk while asleep.
“I’m going to take you to your new quarters,” he explained. “My gracious!” he added, glancing at the wrecked food, “have you left anything?”
“I guess dere am ’nough for a bite,” grinned Bunk.
“You’re a wonder that I never saw equalled; let’s be off.”
The blanket and basket were carefully put in place, Bunk took his seat and the Professor after glancing over the machine to make sure that all was right assumed his usual position and set the uplifter spinning. So perfect was the working of the machine that there was no evidence of the increased weight it carried. Straight up in the air it rose for a hundred feet and then headed to the northward. As it approached the wild region to which we have referred several times the aviator slackened his pace as much as he could while retaining buoyancy, leaned out and scanned the ground over which he was sailing. It did not take him long to decide upon a landing place, and he descended at the spot which was visited by Dick Hamilton some days later.