Purchase of this book includes free trial access to www.million-books.com where you can read more than a million books for free. This is an OCR edition with typos. Excerpt from book: CHAPTER III SAM BRINGS NEWS As Tom ran over to his brother's side he could not help but give a glance at the flying machine, which was rising higher and higher in the air, with a noise from the engine that sounded like a battery of gattling guns in action. "Hi! hi! Wot's that ?" came in a startled voice from the other side of the barn, and Jack Ness, the Rovers hired man, came running into view. "By gum, if them boys ain't gone an' flew without waitin' fer that man to show 'em! Who's doin' it? I don't see nobuddy." And the hired man blinked in amazement at the sight before him. "Is Sam in there?"- "Nobody is in the machine," answered Tom, who was kneeling beside his brother. "Oh, gracious! Look at that!" he exclaimed. "There goes the chimbley!" roared Jack Ness, as the biplane swooped just high enough to clear the roof of the Rover homestead. One of thewheels underneath struck a chimney a glancing blow, hurling the bricks in all directions. As they came clattering down, from the house out ran Mrs. Rover, followed by her husband and the hired help. Anderson Rover was away on business. "What is the matter—is it a—er—a cyclone?" gasped Randolph Rover. "I don't know, I'm sure," answered Mrs. Rover. "But it's a terrible noise." "Look! look!" shrieked the cook, pointing upward. "Saints preserve us!" she moaned. "'Tis the end of the world!" "A flying machine!" murmured Randolp Rover. He gazed around hurriedly. Can it be the boys?" "Oh, those boys! They will surely kill themselves!" groaned Mrs. Rover. "They know nothing about airships!" "Say, dar ain't nobuddy in dat contraption!" came suddenly from Aleck Pop. "It am flyin' all by itself!" "By itself?" repeated Randolph Rover. "Impossible, Alexander! A flying machine cannot run itself. There must be so...