ed chicken thief ran away, and so out of focus. But the
next instant there came another series of flashlight explosions on the
screen, and there, almost as plainly as if our friends were looking at
them, they saw two men stealthily approaching the shop. They, too, as
the chicken thief had done, tried the door, and then, they also,
startled by the flashes, turned around.

"Look!" cried Ned.

"Great Scott!" exclaimed Tom. "Those are the two rivals of Mr. Period!
They are Mr. Turbot and Mr. Eckert!"

"Same men I pushed out!" cried Koku, much excited.

There was no doubt of it, and, as the images faded from the screen,
caused by the men running away, Tom and Ned realized that their rivals
had tried to put their threat into execution--the threat of making Tom
wish he had taken their offer.

"I guess they came to take my camera,--but, instead the camera took
them," said the young inventor grimly.

CHAPTER VIII

PHOTOS FROM THE AIRSHIP

"Well, Tom, how is it going?" asked a voice at the door of the shop
where the young inventor was working. He looked up quickly to behold
Mr. Nestor, father of Mary, in which young lady, as I have said, Tom
was much interested. "How is the moving picture camera coming on?"

"Pretty good, Mr. Nestor. Come in. I guess Koku knew you all right. I
told him to let in any of my friends, but I have to keep him there on
guard."

"So I understand. They nearly got in the other night, but I hear that
your camera caught them."

"Yes, that proved that the machine is a success, even if we didn't
succeed in arresting the men."

"Did you try?"

"Yes, I sent copies of the film, showing Turbot and Eckert trying to
break into my shop, to Mr. Period, and he had enlarged photographs
made, and went to the police. They said it was rather flimsy evidence
on which to arrest anybody, and so they didn't act. However, we sent
copies of the pictures to Turbot and Eckert themselves, so they know
that we know they were here, and I guess they'll steer clear of me
after this."

"I guess so, Tom," agreed Mr. Nestor with a laugh. "But what about the
chicken thief?"

"Oh, Eradicate attended to his second cousin. He went to see him,
showed him a print from the film, and gave him to understand that he'd
be blown up with dynamite, or kicked by Boomerang, if he ever came
around here again, and so Samuel 'Rastus Washington Jackson Johnson
will be careful about visiting strange chicken coops, after this."