"Watch," was his chum's reply. "I haven't used my high speed
gear yet. I'm afraid the fuses won't stand it, but here goes for
a try, anyhow."
He threw over a switch, changed a lever and then, having pushed
into place the last gear, he grasped the steering wheel more
firmly.
There was need of it, for, in an instant, the electric
runabout, with the motors fairly roaring, swept up the road,
after the gasolene car that was almost hidden from sight in a
cloud of dust. Faster and faster went Tom's car. The young
inventor was listening with critical ear to the song of the
machinery. He wanted to learn if it was running sweet and true,
for that is how a careful mechanic tests his apparatus. Foot by
foot the distance between the two cars lessened. Now the electric
was lapping the rear wheels of the gasolene machine, but the
driver did not know it. His whole attention was on the road ahead
of him.
"Half a mile more!" cried Ned, naming the distance which yet
remained of the straight stretch. "Can you do it, Tom?"
His chum nodded. He shoved the controller handle over to the
last notch, and then waited an anxious second. Would the fuse
carry the extra load? It seemed so, for there was a slight
increase of power.
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