y. "Fortunately nothing is broken. I'll see if I can't start it
with the electrical generator. Are you holding her all right, Dick?"

"I think so; yes. I can take four or five minutes more to let her down
easy."

"Well, take all the time you can. Head her up every once in a while.
It will be good practice for you. The stabilizer worked all right,
anyhow."

The airship was not on a level keel, but was inclined with her "bow"
pointed to the earth, going downward on a slant. But Dick knew how to
manage in this emergency, for many times he had practiced volplaning to
earth in ordinary biplanes.

By working the lever of the vertical rudder, he now brought the head,
or bow, of the airship up sharply, and for a moment the downward plunge
was arrested. The Abaris shot along parallel to the plane of the
earth's surface.

This operation, repeated until the ground is reached, is, as I have
already explained, called volplaning.

"Something is wrong," announced Mr. Vardon, as he yanked on the lever
of the starting motor, and turned the switch. Only the hum of the
electrical machine resulted. The gasolene motor did not "pick up,"
though both the gasolene and spark levers were thrown over.

"Never mind," counseled Dick. "I can bring her down all right. There's
really nothing more the matter than if we had purposely stopped the
motor."

"No, that's so," agreed Mr. Vardon. "But still I want to see what the
trouble is, and why it stopped. I'll try the hand starter."

But this was of no use either. The gasolene motor would not start, and
without that the propellers could not be set in motion to sustain the
big craft in the air. Mr. Vardon, and his helper, with the aid of
Innis, Paul and Larry, worked hard at the motor, but it was as
obstinate as the engine of some stalled motor-boat.

"I can't understand it," said the aviator.

"There's plenty of gasolene in the tank, and the spark is a good, fat
one. But the motor simply won't start. How you making out, Dick?"

"All right. We're going to land a considerable distance from home, but
maybe we can get her started when we reach the ground."

"We'll try, anyhow," agreed the aviator. "Is she responding all right?"

"Fine. Couldn't be better. Let some of the other boys take a hand at
it."

"Well, maybe it would be a good plan," agreed the aviator. "You never
can tell when you've got to make a glide. Take turns, boys."

"I don't think I'd better, until I