l, Massa Tom," and, muttering to himself, the aged
colored man endeavored to assume the activity of former years.

"Hark!" exclaimed Ned, as he and Tom were about ready to take part in
the chase. "What's that noise, Tom?"

"Sounds like a motor-cycle."

"It is. That fellow--"

"It's the same chap!" interrupted Tom. "No use trying to chase him on
that speedy machine. He's a mile away from here by now. He must have
had it in waiting, ready for use. But come on, anyhow."

"Where are you going?"

"Out to the shop. I want to see if he got in there."

"But the charged wires?"

"He may have cut them. Come on."

It was as Tom had suspected. The deadly, charged wires, that formed a
protecting cordon about his shops, had been cut, and that by an
experienced hand, probably by someone wearing rubber gloves, who must
have come prepared for that very purpose. During the night the current
was supplied to the wires from a storage battery, through an
intensifying coil, so that the charge was only a little less deadly
than when coming direct from a dynamo.

"This looks bad, Tom," said Ned.

"It does, but wait until we get inside and look around. I'm glad I took
my gun-plans to the house with me."

But a quick survey of the shop did not reveal any damage done, nor had
anything been taken, as far as Tom could tell. The office of his main
shop was pretty well upset, and it looked as though the intruder had
made a search for something, and, not finding it, had entered the house.

"It was the gun-plans he was after, all right," decided Tom. "And I
believe it was the same fellow who has been making trouble for me right
along."

"You mean General Waller?"

"No, that German--the one who was at the machine shop."

"But who is he--what is his object?"

"I don't know who he is, but he evidently wants my plans. Probably
he's a disappointed inventor, who has been trying to make a gun
himself, and can't. He wants some of my ideas, but he isn't going to
get them. Well, we may as well get back to bed, after I connect these
wires again. I must think up a plan to conceal them, so they can't be
cut."

While Tom and Ned were engaged on this, Koku came back, much out of
breath, to report:

"Me not git, Master. He git on bang-bang machine and go off--puff!"

"So we heard, Koku. Never mind, we'll get him yet."

"Hu! Ef I had de fust chanst at him, I'd a cotched dat coon suah!"
declared Eradicate, following the giant. "Koku he done