FLYING DOWN A RAINBOW
By HOMER KING GORDON
Author of “The Sky Pirate,” “The Morgan Kid” etc.
As the old-timer said, “Gold’s a funny old gal. She’ll flirt with you for years and then go throw herself on some total stranger’s neck.” And it seemed as if it were going to be the same even in these days when they go prospecting in airplanes.
Jimmy Devlin handed the pilots of Pacific Field a laugh when he paid four hundred dollars for the old biplane wreck that had been lying in Hangar Number Three ever since the field opened. Jimmy himself indulged in a laugh, but it was a hopeful one. He had gone over the wreck pretty thoroughly and knew exactly what he was buying. The landing gear was pretty much of a mess. One of the lower wings would have to be almost completely replaced. The prop was splintered and the crankshaft of the engine was broken. So were several tie wires, one wing strut, and the tail skid.
It took practically all of his money, two months of his time, several square yards of fabric, and many buckets of dope before Jimmy was able to wheel his wreck out of the hangar and convince a deputy instructor from the Department of Commerce that it was an aeroplane. The inspector stood on the grounds while Jimmy made a couple of flights around the field to prove his contention. It was a successful demonstration and he got a license to carry passengers in it.
That, of course, was just a beginning. In the three or four weeks which followed, Jimmy had but one passenger. Competition was too keen for Jimmy at Pacific Field. His patched and remodeled old flying crate would not stand comparison with the new modern planes used by the other commercial pilots. Nor could he afford to hire salesmen or runners to circulate among the spectators at the airport and solicit business, as did the other pilots.
Had Jimmy been a more determined salesman, he might have circulated among the prospective customers himself and drummed up business, but he was too modest to extol the virtues of his second-hand ship and his own skill as a pilot.