XII
THE LAY-OVER AT SPOKANE
There was no trouble whatever about getting off after Jack had checkedhis motor and the rest of their ship so as to make certain nothing hadsuffered during the sway of that extraordinary storm.
As they went along, still keeping above the lake shore much of the way,Perk frequently called out as he discovered by use of the binocularssome particular damage done by the unwelcome visitor of the precedingafternoon and night. Trees were down and obstructing the highway betweenthe various towns--several houses he noticed appeared to have chimneystoppled over or, as was the case in one sad instance, have a tree falldirectly on the roof and occasion considerable damage.
Presently they had left the lake in their wake and were also changingthe line of their flight more or less. Jack had laid out his plan andfelt positive of being able to strike their distant goal in due time,even if he did not have the beacons of the air-mail flyers to guide him.
Somewhere about noon they glimpsed a city ahead which of course must benone other than Spokane. Shortly afterwards they were circling above theaviation field and gradually lowering so as to strike the proper spot.In these air-minded times the coming of a strange plane no longerexcited an undue amount of curiosity, since a multitude of privateaircraft were daily scouring all sections of the country from Florida tothe Canadian border and between both oceans--as Perk was fond of sayingthey'd soon become as common as dirt.
No sooner had they made contact with the ground than Jack, followed byhis companion, jumped out to be greeted by several parties in the sameclass as themselves--pilots, mechanics and field workers. It was notrouble to get the use of a hangar, since there chanced to be severalvacant ones for hire. So too did Jack see fit to engage a promisinglooking man to stand by their ship and make certain no one tampered withit. A good judge of faces, Jack felt certain he had picked out adependable man for this duty so that his mind might be free from anyworry while in the city attending to his particular business.
Perk, for some reason or other did not seem to care about accompanyinghim--doubtless in the belief that he would in due time hear everythingfrom his partner. Perhaps too Perk did not happen to have just as muchconfidence in the hired guard as Jack seemed to feel. The remembrance ofthat burned garage and badly injured Pitcairn Mailwing crate may havestill remained too fresh in his memory to let him recklessly abandontheir ship in the midst of a strange airport.
Jack was just as well pleased, for he could carry out his business withbetter results if the talkative Perk were absent although of course Jackwould never be guilty of letting his chum know this little fact.
Perk, having eaten a dry snack before they landed, was not very hungryand he had told Jack to be sure and get his dinner at some restaurantwhile in the city, so that part of the day's doings was taken care ofnicely.
It was several hours afterwards when Jack showed up again. Perk couldnot notice anything about his appearance to suggest that a monkey wrenchhad been dropped in the machinery of their projected flight, hence hetook it for granted Jack must have had a gratifying confab with Mr.Robert Mills Maxwell, to whom he had been directed to apply, aGovernment official who would be able to give him the latest newsconcerning the notorious Hawk and his lawless doings up there in theNorthwest Territory where the Canadian Mounted Police held sway.
Perk beckoned to his pal to join him, for at the time he happened to besitting on a bench not far distant from their hangar and had made up hismind the spot would be an admirable one for them to have their littlecouncil of war, after Jack had detailed his adventures in the city.
"How's things?" Perk started in by asking in a general way.
"All serene," came the ready answer accompanied by a nod. "I spentnearly an hour and a half with Mr. Maxwell and found him a mostagreeable sort of a gentleman. It was certainly a pleasure to sit andchat with him. He gave me the latest information and just now I'll onlysay there is to be no change in our program--the whole thing goesthrough as we figured it." Perk showed signs of sheer pleasure.
"Hot ziggety dog! but I'm right glad to hear that, partner," he remarkedeagerly. "I sure do hate to swap hosses when crossin' a stream an' wegot things pretty well set up as 'tis. How long will we be stickin'round this Spokane airport, I wonder?"
"Perhaps we may take off in the morning, but a good deal depends oncertain things. I may have to see Mr. Maxwell again if he sends out amessage by telephone this afternoon. I'm still using my new name, youunderstand--he thinks it a bright idea, both now and later on when we'llbe running across the trail of the man we want most to strike."
"Huh! Mister John Jacob Astorbilt, o' course an' by the same token I'mGabe Smith, Esq., from the glorious State of Maine an' known as one o'the slickest woods guides goin'. Whoopee! nothin' like layin' it onthick when you're about it. But I want to say that I'll breathe easierafter we cut loose from all these strange airports an' strike the openaway up in the Canadian bush country."
"Nothing to worry about that I can see, brother," Jack said soothingly,"I can guess what's on your mind and that was a sad sight I admit,seeing such a dandy craft nearly ruined by the fire but I've got adependable man to watch things here tonight and even if we have a singleenemy in Spokane, which I doubt, he'll never get a show down to injureour fine ship."
"Mebbe so Jack, an' already I feel a bit more confidence in the chap youpicked up. I've been chattin' with him--he's a married man with a wifean' two kids. More than that I've learned he was raised in that greatold State o' Maine an' not fifty miles, as the crow flies, away from theplace where I fust saw daylight. Guess now he's okay. We both seem tohave knowed a number o' boys an' that kinder makes it feel like we'dbeen neighbors. Yep, I guess Ike Hobbs is on the square. Mebbe now Imight take a notion to run in with you this afternoon, so's to get someeats an' see a picture--been an age since I had a chance to enjoy myselflaughin' at one o' them comics on the screen. How 'bout the place youtook dinner at--good enough to stand an encore, buddy?"
That was the real Perk all over again--food appealed to him as regularlyas the hour rolled around three times a day, and seven days in the week.Jack laughed to hear his comment, and went on to reassure him.
"Plenty good I reckon, Perk old boy and I'll take pleasure in steeringyou around to the place this evening. Be sure to have your appetitealong for they've got a menu almost a yard long so you can have a widechoice."
"Oh! you c'n depend on me carryin' my appetite wherever I wander--jestcan't nohow get away from it--haunts me like my shadow an' has eversince I c'n remember. They tells me I never could get filled up likemost kids, no matter how they chucked it into me. Any real particularnews come your way down thar in town, Jack?"
"A little that was interesting, I'd call it," came the reply, "althoughit may be we'll never be called upon to handle the proposition but Mr.Maxwell did seem to be a heap interested in the game and I sure enoughpromised to help him out, if we chanced to run smack into one of thosemule trains."
"What's that, buddy? Je-ru-sa-lem crickets! an' do we expect to try an'rustle stolen mules this time? Wall, I never 'spected the time'd comewhen I'd be a mule wrangler o' all things!"
"Hold everything and go slow about making up your mind," warned Jack,visibly amused by Perk's evident floundering, "this doesn't happen tohave anything to do with mule punchers or even rustlers. It's only alittle possible sideline that might happen to develop and of which Mr.Maxwell would have to be advised should we strike pay dirt--that's all,Perk."
"In that case," admitted the now reconciled Perk, "mebbe I might standfor even mules in my itemary or whatever it is I'm aimin' to say. I seenthe stubborn critters do some mighty fine work over there inFrance--mules that came all the way from Missouri in the bargain. Butwhatever can it be mules has got to do with coaxin' us to turn asidefrom our main trail, I'd like to know?"
"Just what I'm going to tell you, if you give me half a chance,brother," explained Jack. "Here's a little cl
ipping that will explainthe whole thing that's got Mr. Maxwell keyed up to a high pitch," and hepassed a strip taken from a newspaper to the now deeply interested Perk.