u can come if you like. I don't care about spying on
other people's property--"

"I wasn't spyin'!" exclaimed Harry quickly. "I just happened to look.
And then I seen something."

"Well, come on," suggested Ned. "If there's anything there, we'll have
a peep at it."

His idea was not to try to see what Tom was evidently endeavoring to
conceal, but it was to observe whence Harry had made his observation,
and be in a position to tell Tom to guard against unexpected lookers-on
from that direction.

During the walk back along the course over which Harry had run so
rapidly a little while before, Ned and the boy talked of what the
latter had seen.

"Do you think it could be some new kind of elephant?" asked Harry. "You
know Tom Swift brought back a big giant from one of his trips, and
maybe he's got a bigger elephant than any one ever saw before."

"Nonsense!" laughed Ned. "In the first place, Tom hasn't been on any
trip, of late, except to Washington, and the only kind of elephants
there are white ones."

"Really?" asked Harry.

"No, that was a joke," explained Ned. "Anyhow, Tom hasn't any giant
elephants concealed up his sleeve, I'm sure of that."

"But what could this be?" asked Harry. "It moved just like some big
animal."

"Probably some piece of machinery Tom was having carted from one shop
to another," went on the young bank clerk. "Most likely he had it
covered with a big piece of canvas to keep off the dew, and it was that
you saw."

"No, it wasn't!" insisted Harry, but he could not give any further
details of what he had seen so that Ned could recognize it. They kept
on until they reached the hill, at the bottom of which was the Swift
home and the grounds on which the various shops were erected.

"Here's the place where you can look down right into the yard with the
high fence around it," explained Harry, as he indicated the spot.

"I can't see anything."

"You have to climb up the tree," Harry went on. "Here, this is the one,
and he indicated a stunted and gnarled pine, the green branches of
which would effectually screen any one who once got in it a few feet
above the ground.

"Well, I may as well have a look," decided Ned. "It can't do Tom any
harm, and it may be of some service to him. Here goes!"

Up into the tree he scrambled, not without some difficulty, for the
branches were close together and stiff, and Ned tore his coat in the
effort. But he finally got a position where, to his surpris