“I know, but we had arranged such an ovation for you up at the field,” explained Mr. Davis.
“What were going to ovate about, Mr. Davis?” inquired Ben quickly.
“Shall I tell him?” inquired the aviator, and the doctor nodded assentingly, and the blunt fellow blurted out proudly:
“The Dart won the long distance event by two hundred miles!”
“Say—say, that’s great!” aspirated Ben, his face beaming. “We’re all rich.”
“And famous,” added the old aviator. “Oh, boy, it was a gallant run!”
The grand news was enough to make any boy well. Ben was sure he would be able to be up and around in two days. The next morning he was interested when a visitor was announced as Mr. Knippel.
Ben was struck with the great change in the appearance of this man since the time he had last seen him. All the shrewd forcible look was subdued. He trembled like a child, and tears stood in his eyes and his voice broke as he poured out his gratitude to the boy who had saved his only darling child from a terrible death.
“It has changed my whole life,” he declared. “I am about to give up my business. It has been a bad business. This is a warning. I shall leave the country. Lad, I’m not a poor man. Ask what you will, it shall be yours.”
“Do you mean that?” inquired Ben, fixing his eyes on Knippel.