“Oh, I’ll guarantee him.”
Ben went to the inner office and set to work at once. It was fortunate that he had acted as secretary for his father on occasions similar to the present one. Ben made a rough draft of what he wanted to say, and then he studied and revised it. This took an hour of his time.
When he had copied the description, he felt highly satisfied. He believed that any ordinary draftsman could make drawings of the airship parts from his directions. They made four pages of foolscap.
“Excellent—splendid!” declared Mr. Pearsons, as an hour later he read over Ben’s work. “I’ll send this to Washington over the wires instanter. I shall also instruct my correspondent to telegraph your father if he completes the matter to-day.”
“Thank you, Mr. Pearsons.”
“The thanks all belong to you, Hardy,” insisted the lawyer, with an admiring glance at Ben. “Any time you feel like taking up with the law, there’s a place for you in this office, remember that.”
“I’m too full of the airship fever to think of anything like that just now,” smiled Ben.
“That’s all right, follow your bent as long as it is a legitimate and useful one. I think you can advise your father that we have scooped the enemy on the first move in the game.”
Ben had no intention of disclosing his last action to his father, until he was sure that his plan had met with success. He went home and had lunch with his father. They pottered around the work yard for a spell. Then Ben went down town.
It was about five o’clock, and he was on his way homewards again, when he ran up against Caleb Dunn.