The next few days flew by as though on wings, for every waking hour was crowded. There were many details to be attended to in connection with the approaching trip. Tom had decided to take along with him the flying boat that he had used in his trip to Iceland. It was a bigger one than he ordinarily would have needed, but he wanted to carry along a good deal of material in addition to that which he would send by rail, so that he would lose no time in getting to work on the oil well he proposed to dig. The plane needed a good deal of overhauling to get it into perfect condition, and Tom often found himself wishing that he had a dozen hands instead of only two.
Ned, too, had troubles to adjust and was kept as busy, to use his expression, as a “one-armed paperhanger with the hives.” The contract with the Hankinshaw crowd had been completed and the material was ready for shipment. But the final check in payment was slow in coming. When at last it did come, Ned advised that they should not at once ship the machinery. He telegraphed the bank and found that there was not sufficient money on hand to meet the check when presented. The idea of the sharpers had been, of course, that in the ordinary course the check would not be presented for several days at the California bank. Then, if refused, several days more would elapse before the protested check would get back to Shopton. By that time they figured that the material would be far on its way to Texas and the Swift Construction Company could whistle for its money.
“But anybody that gets the best of Ned Newton in financial matters will have to get up pretty early in the morning, and the Hankinshaw crowd did not get up early enough,” laughed Tom.
Ned’s precautionary telegram thwarted the scheme, and the foiled conspirators, after lame explanations, were forced to pay in actual cash—no check this time—for the final payment. Then the stop order was lifted and the material was put on board the train for its long journey to the oil fields.
“And that’s that,” remarked Ned, with a sigh of relief after the last detail had been attended to. “Thank goodness, that’s off our hands. The Swift Construction Company never had so much bother with a contract in its life. When those fellows want some more machinery, I’d say, let them apply to some one else. We’re fed up with them.”
“Right you are,” agreed Tom. “Just what part of Texas did you ship it to?”
“Copperhead,” answered Ned. “That’s right in the heart of a newly developed oil region.”
“Copperhead,” repeated Tom. “Sounds like a snake.”
“There’ll be some snakes there when the Hankinshaw crowd get on the job,” affirmed Ned.
“I think we’ll make that our destination,” said Tom thoughtfully.