Through Space to Mars - Roy Rockwood (life changing books TXT) 📗
- Author: Roy Rockwood
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Book online «Through Space to Mars - Roy Rockwood (life changing books TXT) 📗». Author Roy Rockwood
Washington laid down the hammer he had come in to borrow to fix
the chicken coop. He looked around on the circle of smiling
faces.
“I—I ‘spects I’d bettah be lookin’ fo’ annudder place,
perfesser,” he said quietly.
“Why, you aren’t afraid to go to Mars, when you went with us in
the Flying Mermaid down into the earth, are you?” asked Jack.
“‘Scuse me, Massa Jack,” said the colored man solemnly, “dis trip
am wuss dan any ob de udders. It suah am. Good land a’ massy!
T’ t’ink ob being projected transmigatorially in de obverse
tangent ob de parallelism circumdelegated on de inverse side ob a
duodecimo. It’s too altogether imparipinated fo’ dis chile!
I’se afraid dat’s what I is! I’se too much afraid t’ go,” and
Washington started to run from the shop, as if he feared that the
big projectile would take after him.
A STRANGE EXPLOSION
“Here, come back, Washington,” called Mr. Henderson.
“No, sah! I ain’t gwine t’ entrust mahself ‘n any sech t’ing as
dat!” cried Washington. “I ain’t gwine t’ be shot up froo de sky.
Why, good land a’ massy! ‘Sposin’ we was t’ hit a star, or land
on de moon? I’d look purty, wouldn’t I, hangin’ on one ob de
moon’s horns? How’s I eber gwinee git down? I axes yo’ dat.
How’s I gwine f git down?”
“Well,” said Professor Henderson with a laugh, “if you did get
caught on one of the horns of the moon, Washington, I guess it
would be a pretty hard matter to get down.”
“Dat’s what I done said,” insisted the colored man.
“You could slide down a moonbeam,” said Jack with a laugh.
“Yes, an’ mebby git hit by a comet or be kamked sensible by a
piece ob star,” objected Washington, as if Jack’s plan was a
feasible one. “No, sah, I ain’t gwine along nohow. Dis ole
earth am good enough fo’ me. I don’t want to die an’ go floatin’
through space. When I dies I wants t’ be buried decent-like. I
ain’t gwine wid yo’ at all.”
It began to look as if Washington’s revolt was a settled fact.
Yet they depended on him to go. However, Professor Henderson
solved the problem for him.
“Who will cook my meals for me, if you don’t go, Washington?” he
asked solemnly.
“Is you really goin’, perfesser?”
“I certainly am.”
“An’ yo’ t’ink it’s safe?”
“Yes, or I shouldn’t go. But I can’t have much comfort if I
don’t have my meals right, for I can’t cook very well, and as for
Jack and Mark—”
“Hu! Dem boys can’t cook wuff a cent. Is dey gwine t’ go
‘long?”
“We sure are,” answered Jack.
“Hu! Den I ‘spects I’se got t’ go,” said the colored man,
scratching his head in perplexity. “I can’t let de perfesser go
alone, wid nobody t’ do his cookin’ fer him. Well, I’ll go,
but—but I’se mighty skeered, jest de same.”
“You needn’t be, Washington,” said Mr. Henderson kindly. “We
will be perfectly safe in the Annihilator, and when we get to Mars
I am sure you will like it there.”
“I’ve got to, wedder I does or not,” said Washington simply.
“Well, t’ t’ink ob me seein’ dis work goin’ on, day after day,
an’ me nebber suspectin’ dat yo’ was goin’ on sech a transmigatory
flight in de direction ob an interplanetary sphere what transmits
effulgent rays transversely an’ pyritiferilously changes ‘em inter
crimson light most advantageously.”
“I guess you’re all right now, after getting that out of your
system,” observed Mark.
It was two days after this that Jack and Mark, who were working
in the shop with Mr. Roumann, suddenly heard him utter a cry.
“Has anything happened?” called Jack, dropping his tools and
hastening to the engine-room, where the scientist was.
“Yes!” cried the German.
“What?”
He was pacing rapidly up and down the contracted space, waving a
piece of metal above his head. Jack thought he might have hurt
himself.
“I have discovered what was the matter with my Etherium motor!”
exclaimed Mr. Roumann. “I didn’t bend this piece of metal
properly. That was why the machine did not work satisfactorily.
Now it is all right. We can start in a week.”
“That’s good!” said Mark, who had joined his chum. “Are you sure
it will work now, Mr. Roumann?”
“Quite sure. But we will have a test to make certain. Send
Professor Henderson here, Please.”
The other scientist came from the house, and the test was made.
To the delight of all the Etherium motor worked perfectly. The
slight adjustment of the piece of metal had been all that was
needed.
“Now we can get ready to leave in a week,” repeated the German
enthusiastically.
In fact, the projectile was finished, and all that was necessary
was to put in the stores and some supplies, turn on the power,
and they would be off through space.
The actual starting of the Annihilator was, of course, to be left
entirely to Mr. Roumann. He had not disclosed to his companions
the secret of the force that was to make it move, nor had he told
them how to work the Etherium and atmospheric motors. He would
start the machinery in operation, and he had promised to show the
professor and the boys how to control it, but the secret of the
wonderful power he kept to himself.
“I think we can let the two machinists go now,” said Mr. Henderson
at the conclusion of the tests. “We shall not need them any more if
we are almost ready to start.”
“No, we can dispense with their services,” agreed Mr. Roumann;
and, accordingly, Ned and Sam were paid off, and left, promising
to say nothing of the wonderful apparatus on which they had been
working.
The next week was a busy one. Mr. Roumann spent most of his time
in the engine-room, assembling the machinery of the two motors,
and arranging the connections between them and the pilot house in
the “nose” of the projectile. The strange gas had been forced in
between the two shells of the projectile, to absorb the heat that
would be generated by friction, and nearly all the stores had
been put aboard.
The electric guns were installed, ready to be run out of the
openings of the living-room to repel any attack of the Martians,
and then the ports were closed tightly.
Finishing touches were being put on the Annihilator, and Mr.
Henderson and his German friend were kept very busy. As for the
boys, they helped wherever they could, and did considerable work,
for they had been well trained by their guardian.
Andy remained on guard at the door with his gun. He said he was
going to take no more chances with the crazy machinist.
Nothing further had been seen or heard of the mysterious thief
who had stolen the plates, and it was supposed that he was unable
to make any use of them.
One afternoon, about three days before the time set to start for
Mars, Mr. Roumann was working alone in the machine shop. The
boys and Professor Henderson had done all there was for them to
do, and the Annihilator was practically finished.
“Are you going to take along any extra-sized bullets, Andy?”
asked Jack of the old hunter, who was on guard, as usual, at the
door.
“I don’t see why I should. I guess the regular ones will do when
I get to Mars.”
“I don’t know about that,” went on Jack. “We may find bigger
game than elephants or sea lions there.”
“If we do, I’ll use a new kind of explosive electric bullet Mr.
Roumann told me about,” declared Andy. “It has a charge of
electricity in it, and he says it will kill the biggest animal
that ever lived, with one shot.”
“Then you’re all right,” said Mark. “Well we’ll soon be on our
way now.”
“I suppose Washington will want to take some of his chickens
along?” ventured Jack.
“Well, I don’t see why he can’t,” said Andy. “They take pigeons up
in balloons, and I guess chickens would live in the Annihilator—at
least, until we ate them,”
They stood about the entrance to the machine shop, talking of
various topics, but they always came back to the subject of the
wonderful journey before them.
Suddenly Jack, who had strolled a little away from the door,
looked toward the rear of the big shed that housed the projectile,
and uttered a cry. Mark heard him, and ran to his chum’s side.
“Look!” exclaimed Jack, pointing to two men who were running away
from the shop. “Who are those men?”
“One is that crazy machinist!” cried Mark.
“And the other is the tramp we saw looking in the window that
night!” added Jack. “Come on! Let’s catch them! They may
have done some damage! Andy! Here! With your gun! Quick!”
The old hunter hastened to join the boys. He reached them in time
to see the two intruders making for the woods back of the shed.
“Hold on there!” cried Andy, quickly raising his gun and firing
over their heads.
But the men did not stop. Hardly had the echoes of Andy’s weapon
died away, than there sounded a loud explosion from the shop. A
cloud of smoke poured from the windows.
“They’ve blown up the projectile!” cried Mark. “Come on!”
They ran toward the place where the explosion had occurred. As
they neared the end of the shed Washington came running out. He
showed great fear.
“Come quick! Come quick!” he cried.
“What’s the matter?” shouted Jack.
“Somebody’s blowed de place up, an’ Mr. Roumann am killed!” was
the answer.
THE ELECTRIC REMEDY
“Get Professor Henderson!” directed Jack, “Where is Mr. Roumann,
Washington?”
“In heah!” exclaimed the colored man, pointing to the shop. “He
am all blowed to pieces!”
Jack and Mark were terribly afraid. The smoke of the explosion
hung all about. They rushed through it, and into the shop. Part
of the side of the wooden building had been blown out.
“Where is he?” asked Mark. “I can’t see anything.”
“Over here,” called Jack, as he saw a huddled heap in one corner.
As the smoke cleared away he could see pieces of machinery
scattered all about.
“Is the projectile damaged?” asked Mark anxiously.
“Doesn’t seem to be—at least, on the outside,” answered Jack, as
he looked at the huge shape of the Annihilator looming up before
him. “But I’m afraid it’s all up with Mr. Roumann.”
He bent over the German scientist. The man seemed lifeless.
There was quite a cut on his head and his clothes were torn.
“He’s breathing a little!” cried jack. “We must get Professor
Henderson here. He’ll know what to do—if anything can be done
for him.”
“They must have exploded a bomb in here,” said Mark, as he looked
around at the ruin about, them.
“Something like that,” admitted jack. “Here, help me carry Mr.
Roumann out of the fumes,” for there was a choking smell in the
shop.
The two boys found it hard work to carry that limp form out, but
they managed it. Just as they got outside the shop they saw
Professor Henderson running toward them, followed by Washington
and Andy.
“What has happened?” asked the inventor, for he had not been able
to learn much from Washington’s excited account.
“I don’t know,”
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