"Yes," Tom nodded.
"Well, the other day he came to me and said he had a chance to set up a small laboratory in a vacant shop near the river. He needed a little capital and I lent it to him, as you told me to."
"Glad you did," returned Tom. "But do you suppose his plant is large enough to enable me to work there until mine is in shape again?"
"It wouldn't do any harm to take a look," suggested Ned.
"I'll do it!" decided Tom, more hopefully than he had spoken since the accident.
CHAPTER VII
A FORCED LANDING
Josephus Baxter seemed to have recovered some of his spirits after his narrow escape from death in the fireworks factory blaze. He greeted Tom and Ned with a smile as they entered the improvised laboratory he had been able to set up in what had once been a factory for the making of wooden ware, an industry that, for some reason, did not flourish in Shopton.
"I'm glad to see you, Mr. Swift," said the chemist, who seemed to have aged several years in the few weeks that had intervened since the fire. "I want to thank you for giving me a chance to start over again."