“Do we go, Rob?” gasped Tubby, with intense eagerness in his whole manner.
“Without losing a single minute!” declared the other.
“Well, I should remark,” added Andy. “We’ve been up to our ears interested in this affair of Hiram’s from the day we left home; and we mean to see him through his troubles to boot.”
“So let’s be on the move,” suggested Rob.
“That suits me,” breathed Tubby. “You see, I’ve gotten over my tired feeling. There’s nothing can revive a weary scout half so quick as a chance to get in the swim. Why, I feel as fresh as a daisy, whatever that can mean.”
“Well, toddle along with us then, Tubby,” said Andy; “and take my advice—don’t talk so much when you’re hurrying; it’s a bad thing, because you need every bit of breath you c’n get.”
Evidently Tubby realized this fact for himself, because he subsided from that moment; all they heard from him were frequent heavy sighs that accompanied his strenuous efforts to keep at their heels.
They knew the way to the aviation field, and took as direct a course as possible when aiming for that favorite portion of the grounds. There could always be found a large crowd watching the bird-men in their preparations for going aloft, and making landings after showing what their airships were capable of doing.
As a rule most of the spectators were debarred from getting too close to the aëroplanes, for many reasons; but Hiram had made himself so useful on former occasions that no one questioned his right inside the ropes. So also the other three scouts would doubtless be allowed to loiter near the starting point, where there were always a dozen or two air-pilots gathered, comparing notes and joking each other after the manner of daring adventurers, which all of them undoubtedly are, since they take their lives in their hands every time they ascend.
Hiram was waiting for them on the border of the great throng of deeply interested spectators. They saw immediately that the inventor scout was very much worked up over something or other, and naturally all of the other boys were deeply curious to know what had happened to excite him.