power. But to all this the young inventor and
his friends paid no attention. Their eyes were fixed on the ragged
figure of the white man who was rushing toward their hut as fast as
his legs, manacled as they were, would let him.

"Come on! Come on!" cried Tom.

"Look out!" yelled Ned. "Some of the giants are after him, Tom!"

Several of the big men, after their first fright, had recovered
sufficiently to pursue the captive so strangely released by the
explosion.

"Hand me an electric rifle, Ned!" cried Tom,

"Bless my shoe laces!" cried Mr. Damon. "You're not going to kill
any of the giants; are you, Tom?"

"Well, I'm not going to let them capture Jake Poddington again," was
the quick answer, "but I guess if I stun a few of them with the
electric bullets that will answer."

Poddington (for later the white captive did prove to be the missing
circus man) ran on, and close behind him came two of the giants,
taking long strides. Tom aimed his electric rifle at the foremost
and pulled the trigger. There was no sound, but the big man crumpled
up and fell, rolling over and over. With a yell of rage his
companion pressed on, but a moment later, he, too, went down, and
then the others, who had started in pursuit of their recent captive,
turned back.

"I thought that would fix 'em," murmured Tom gleefully.

In another five seconds Poddington was inside the hut, gasping from
his run. He was very thin and pale, and the sudden exertion had been
too much for him.

"Water--water!" he gasped, and Mr. Damon gave him some. He sank on
one of the skin-covered benches, and his half-exhausted breath
slowly came back to him.

"Boys," he gasped. "I don't know who you are, but thank heaven you
came just in time. I couldn't have stood it much longer. I heard you
yell something about Preston. Is it possible he sent you to find
me?"

"Partly that and partly to get a giant," explained Tom. "We didn't
know you were in that hut, or we'd never have blown up the one next
to it, though we suspected you might be held captive somewhere
around here, from the queer way the giants acted when we asked about
you."

"And so you blew up that hut?" remarked the circus agent. "I thought
it was struck by lightning. But it did me a good turn. I was chained
to the wall of the hut next door, and your explosion split the beam
to which my chains were fastened. I didn't lose any time running
out, I can tell you. Oh, but it's good to be free once more a