Tom Swift and his house on wheels

by Victor Appleton

Tom and Ned stiffened on hearing this. It seemed to portend something desperate.

"Why, did Jerkin drive the car away?" one of the party wanted to know.

"That's what he did. Those fellows shut off the engine and put out the lights before they dived off that seat. But they didn't put the machinery out of business and Jerkin soon had it going again."

"I'll say they dived off!" chuckled a voice. "I guess we would 'a' done the same with bullets singing around our ears."

"Jerkin oughtn't to be so free with his gun," growled a voice that had not hitherto spoken. "He might have bumped one of them off, and there wasn't any need of that."

"The boss said to get that machine by hook or by crook," commented another. "And I suppose that's what Jerkin was thinking of. But Cun——"

"Go easy on names!" snarled some one. "I told you before!"

"It was going to be Cunningham," whispered Ned.

"Yes," agreed the young inventor. "But what would that Englishman be doing with this bunch of criminals?"

"There's no telling. We're getting an earful of more than rain, all right."