mselves, they could make out what the
two men in the aeroplane were doing.

"Pretty lucky, Bill!" said one of them. "This is a good landing-place,
and we can get an idea of the situation and cut the telegraph wire to
send back word."

"Right, Harry!" said the other. "I guess the coast is clear. The brigade
isn't more than five miles back, and with three train loads, they'll be
able to make that Fessenden Junction look like a desert before
night--theoretically."

"It's all theory, Bill, but it's pretty good fun, at that. I tell you,
we would be in a tight place if they'd guarded this approach at all.
That brigade of ours would be cut off in a minute. But if we can mess up
Fessenden Junction for them, they'll be so busy trying to cover their
line of retreat that they won't have any time to bother about our
fellows."

"What's the matter with that engine, anyhow?"

"Nothing much, I guess. But sometimes, if she starts missing, the way
she did when we were up there, you can fix things and avoid a lot of
trouble by a little timely tinkering. I was up once when my engine began
missing that way, and I didn't pay any attention to it. Then, about
twenty minutes later, she went dead on me while I was over the water,
and I had to drop, whether I wanted to or not. The water was cold, too,
I don't mind saying."

"You hear that?" said Jack, in a tense whisper. "Now, as soon as they
go, we've got to destroy that railroad track, right across the road. We
may have half an hour; we may have only a few minutes. And while two of
us do that--you and Tom, Pete--the other will have to cut the telegraph
wire and send word to Fessenden Junction. General Bean is in the best
position to get over there. I don't think we can hold them up more than
an hour or so, but that ought to be enough. At least, if there's nothing
else to be done, the fellows at Fessenden Junction can tear up a lot of
track."

For five breathless minutes they watched the two aviators tinkering with
their engine. Then the big bird rose in the air again, and winged its
way eastward. In a moment Jack was out of the hay and calling to his
companions to follow him.

"Get your tools from the car, now," he said. "Mark a rail torn up for
every ten minutes you spend there. I'll get busy with the telegraph
wire."

It took Jack twenty minutes to finish his task, which was exceedingly
quick work. But he had had practice in it, and he worked feverishly,
since he did not know at