"Oh! Percy wants you to know he ain't stingy," sang out Larry. "Look
your fill, from a distance, but you can't come any nearer."

"Don't bother your head about him, Andy," remarked Frank. "It's giving
him heaps of pleasure, and doesn't hurt us a whit. In fact, I don't
care how long he keeps it up; for by degrees I'll be able to understand
some things I'd like to know about that make of biplane. You can see
it differs from ours in lots of ways. Some things may be a bit better,
and others not so good."

"But, Frank, you don't think it could beat us out, do you?" Andy
quickly demanded.

Frank shook his head.

"I hope not," he said, quietly; "but you can't always tell. That's a
great machine Percy has there now, and it would be silly to deny it. A
good deal depends on how it's going to be run."

"That's the ticket, Frank!" exclaimed Larry. "And I'm dead sure that
no matter which biplane you handled in a race you'd come out ahead."

"Sure he would," added Elephant, emphatically. "Because he keeps his
head about him, and knows just what to do in a tight pinch; while Perc
gets rattled, and loses his judgment."

"That's good of you to say such things, boys; but I don't think I
deserve them," Frank laughed.

"You sure do!" declared Andy, who ought to know better than any one
else the good qualities of his chum, since he had seen him under fire
many a time.

"L-l-look at 'em!" burst out Nat just then, surprising himself by his
ability to actually speak clearly.

The biplane had again headed across the field at a height of about
three hundred feet; only this time, instead of cutting corners it was
coming on directly, and gave promise of passing over the shed.

"Hey! what's that Sandy's got in his fist?" cried Larry.

"He's going to drop something, as sure as you live!" echoed Elephant.

"Mem-mebbe it's a b-b-bomb!" burst out Nat, his mind filled with
accounts he had been reading of what was being done over in Africa by
the Italians in their war against the Turks and Arabs.

At that Elephant seemed seized with a panic. He was not a valiant boy,
generally speaking, and something about the ridiculous suggestion
concerning a bomb seemed to fill him with sudden terror.

Uttering a howl he started to run one way, and then changing his mind
darted in another direction; only to come back and finally crawl under
a pile of boards that chanced to be lying near.

"Hey! what you thinkin' of doing, Sandy?" shou