“Well, of all astounding things,” exclaimed Tom as, having brought the car to a stop, he examined it carefully. It was undoubtedly the same car which had been used by the men who had caused all their troubles. But what had become of them? How did the car come to be running itself? How had it kept on a straight course?
The last of these questions was answered when Tom discovered that, attached to the steering knuckles, was a device which, by an irony of fate, he and Jack Chadwick had invented and marketed. This device was in pretty general use and was known as the Automatic Steersman. It consisted of stout springs attached to each steering knuckle, and connected with the “helm” of the auto in such a manner that, provided the wheel was not turned, the car would automatically be kept on a straight course. The device had been thought out by the boys as an aid to beginners in auto driving; but it had been found so useful that many skilled drivers had adopted it. This, then, explained how the car had kept to the road with no one at the wheel.
But the deeper mystery of how it came to be where it was, and minus its occupants, was far from a solution.
“There’s something mighty out of the ordinary in all this,” decided Tom Jesson, in a puzzled tone, as he stood beside the machine on the dusty road.
CHAPTER XV—TOM MAKES A DISCOVERY
“This is the most puzzling thing yet.”
Tom uttered the words as Mr. Bowler, who had alighted from the Flying Road Racer, joined him at the side of the yellow car.
“It certainly is,” he rejoined; “it’s piling mystery on mystery. Where can the car have come from?”
“Not very far, that is, by itself,” rejoined Tom instantly; “you see this automatic steerer would only keep it on the road on a straight course. It couldn’t help it to negotiate any turns.”
“That’s so. When did you first sight it?”