Argosy All-Story Weekly, November 12, 1927 — page 46: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

520 circled about toward the Sheldon hangars. Within a couple of minutes the big car was doing fifty. The alcoholic young man set up a shout, and before the car reached the Sheldon hangars a steady put-put in the rear told Glenn that one of the many bicycle police- men gathered about the field for the big day was on his trail. He pressed the accelerator down to the floor boards. But motorcycle officers are determined men and fast riders. The motorcycle gradually overhauled the big car. “Turn in there!” the officer shouted. Kerry kept going. The officer pulled his automatic, “Turn in there!” he repeated. He was racing alongside, and on his face was the expression of outraged authority. Kerry kept going. * Don’t you see, officer?” he yelled. “Tm one of the Sheldon pilots, Glenn Kerry. I was tricked. Taken up in that plane and kidnaped. Don’t stop me. Sec- onds count.” The officer put his automatic away, but continued alongside until Kerry drew up beside the Sheldon hangars. Then Kerry alighted, gave quick details of the happen- ings of the past few minutes, found that the motorcycle cop was not such a bad fellow after all, and soon after was a pas- senger on the uniformed man’s motorcycle, speeding over the hard field toward his plane. As he neared the latter the milling crowds made the motorcycle useless. Kerry leaped off and ran breathlessly toward his plane, crashing through the mob of hu- manity like a football center. He found Runyon already there, in fe- verish conversation with Samuel Sheldon. A hot wave of indignation swept through him at the man’s treachery. He rushed up to Runyon and staggered him with a blow to the jaw. “More treachery!” he yelled to Dick. “ But we can’t lose any time. I need a new parachute.” “One right here!’ answered Dick. * Don’t stop. Ill explain, and put this dirty viper Runyon where he _ belongs. Betty’s in the plane for the photograph.” ARGOSY-ALLSTORY WEEKLY. Betty Sheldon, wearing her heavy white sweater, and with a pair of goggles and a helmet, was talking to a newspaper pho- tographer. “Come in here, Glenn!” she called. “The signal’s going to sound for your plane. That’s it!’’ she added, as Kerry took his position in the cockpit. “But what—” gasped the astonished Samuel Sheldon. 3 “Have you got my picture, photogra- pher?” asked Betty. “All right. Daddy!” Samuel Sheldon ran forward to lift his daughter from the cockpit. Suddenly she bent forward. “Good-by, daddy dear!” she shouted, and kissed him on the cheek. Then Glenn Kerry “ gave ’er the gun,”’ and the Sheldon plane went roaring down the field. VII, A DEAFENING shout went up from thou- sands of throats as the big white plane with its huge gas tank soared off. Kerry circled the field, and Betty waved her hand- kerchief to her father and brother standing below and gazing aloft. Then Kerry point- ed the nose of the plane west. There was a good tail wind, the weather was clear, and he swooped furiously along. The enemies of Samuel Sheldon had only broken their lances upon him. It was typical of his pilot’s mind that, up here in the air, he now felt perfectly safe, and free from the worries and treach- eries of the past several weeks. He was fueled for fifty-two hours in the air, he had the greatest confidence in the new Sheldon plane, and the girl he loved was by his side. On the flying field Samuel Sheldon stood with a dazed look on his face. He turned to his son, but instead of finding any sur- prise there he found a knowing grin. “What does this mean—Betty doing this sort of thing?” he asked. “ And you knew about it, Dick—I can tell from your expression that you knew about it.” “TT did, dad,” Dick admitted. “I kept the secret—that and one other. Betty was afraid you might have forbidden her to do. what she did. She thought if she just did CORMICLOOOKS (E@)