t the stage.

Poor old Sandy Ellis suffered death for his temerity.

A bullet struck him in the breast, and he uttered a groan and fell to
the ground, never to rise again.

"They've killed Sandy!" cried Jack.

His words aroused the rage of the inmates of the Terror.

"B'ar down on ther pirates!" gasped Tim.

Jack sent the machine racing after the bandits.

There was one of the masked riders directly in front of the Terror, and
the villain turned in his saddle, aimed a revolver point-blank at Jack,
and was just upon the point of firing when the ram struck his horse.

It toppled the bandit from the animal's back, his pistol was
discharged, the ball flew up in the air, and the horse was impaled and
killed.

As the Terror pushed ahead, the two front wheels ran over the bandit's
neck, almost putting an end to him.

Back recoiled the stage, the ram was withdrawn from the horse, and then
she dashed ahead again in hot pursuit of the gang who all rode like fury
now, to escape.

As they plunged ahead, the inmates of the stage kept up a pitiless
fusillade of shots against the flying outlaws.

CHAPTER XIII.
THE STRANDED COUNTRYMAN.

"We can't run any further!"

"Gee whiz, lad, then ther bandits'll escape!"

"I can't help that, Tim; there's something the matter."

The Terror had scarcely emerged from the canyon, when the lights
suddenly went out, the machinery ceased to work, and the electric stage
came to an abrupt pause.

All the bandits had been seen bunched far ahead, going down the slope at
a breakneck pace.

When the light went out they vanished.

That was the last our friends saw of them that night, and every one
began to bombard Jack with questions.

"What's the matter?"

"Can't you go ahead?"

"Do you want them to escape?"

"What are you stopping for?"

These and similar questions assailed the inventor.

He almost lost patience with them, as he cried:

The machinery for some reason has broken down.

"Vat vos pusted--dot trifin' rod!" asked Fritz.

"I don't know yet, but I'll find out."

"Here," said Timberlake, "take one of the stage coach lanterns."

Jack alighted with Fritz, and they made a critical examination of the
machinery situated on the outside of the Terror.

But they failed to find the cause of the mishap there.

Then they went inside to look.

Nor was anything broken here.

Jack was intensely puzzled.

"What does this mean anyway?" he muttered. "I can't find a so