But finally the last coat of varnish was applied and given time to dry. Not all the fittings were in place, but that was a small matter. The big twelve-cylinder motor was connected and the brake test had been satisfactory.
Then one evening, as Ned was about to leave to go to his home, Tom remarked to him:
"Can you spare the time to make a trip with me, Ned?"
"A trip where and how?"
"I don't know just where, but as to how—in the House on Wheels."
"Is she all ready?"
"We'll give her a tryout to-morrow. Maybe the thing won't work as well as I planned, but we'll soon know. If it comes anywhere near the mark I've set, will you go with me?"
"On a trip? Sure!"
"All right," said Tom, pacing the floor of his office. "Well have the tryout to-morrow. After that—well, we'll see!"