"That of being spies and tampering with the aeroplane last night!" came the startling answer.

CHAPTER XVIII

PURSUIT

As the Eagle circled about in a widening spiral Harry and Jack looked over the rim of the fuselage at the country spreading like a gigantic map in bas-relief beneath them.

A tiny glow from the cowl lamp in front of the pilot's position showed Ned that the Eagle was now headed almost directly west, while the indicators showed an alt.i.tude of approximately three thousand feet. At a speed approximating forty miles per hour the great bird-like machine winged its way with its burden of adventurers.

"Tell you what, boys," Jack said presently, growing weary of trying to discover features in the obscurity below that covered the landscape, "this makes me feel just like I imagine that old guy must have felt when he went out after the Golden Fleece or something or other."

"Who was that?" asked Harry as he reached for the binoculars for the purpose of scanning their position in the hope of discerning some indication of their whereabouts. "What are you talking about?"

"Well, I guess it was Jason," answered Jack. "Remember the stories Ned was reading to us about those old Greeks and others?"

"Oh, yes, now I do remember. But where do we resemble him?"

"Well, he went out after a great prize, and we are after the same sort of thing, only with us we want live game. We are after the prize of Jimmie's freedom and safety."

"Good thought!" cried Ned. "And, like the chap in the story, I am sure we'll go after the prize with the same determination and resolve to win out at all costs."

"You're right, we will!" exclaimed Harry with vigor. "We won't rest content until we have Jimmie away from those German Uhlans!"

"And Dave, too!" put in Jack. "We can't forget the fact that he wants to get back as well as Jimmie. And he's done us pretty good service, while we're speaking about him."

"That he has," declared Ned. "I wonder just where those two young rascals may be at this minute. I hope we're not running ahead of them and missing them in the running."

"They were going west by train unless Jimmie was greatly mistaken when he gave us those signals from the hilltop," said Jack. "Now, if they got going soon after we dropped Dave into their camp, we ought to be able to see their train soon."

"Are we anywhere near the line of railroad?" asked Harry, peering through the gla.s.ses in an effort to sweep the surrounding country.

"We are not a great distance away, at any rate," answered Ned as he gave a touch to the levers to straighten the Eagle from a dip due to running into an air pocket. "It should be near here, I think."

"I think I can see an illumination away to the southward that looks like it might be a locomotive," announced Harry.

"Let me have the gla.s.ses a moment," requested Jack. "Maybe I can pick up something. But," he added, "I think the railroad will be more to the northward. We pa.s.sed Cracow some time ago."

"Guess you're right, after all," agreed Harry. "Take a look over to the northward and see what you can see."

"More than likely," said Jack, preparing to shift his position slightly, the better to observe the landscape to the northward, "it'll be a case of the bear going over the mountain to see what he could see.

The other side of the mountain is about all we can discover. In this darkness we can't get much of a view."

"It won't do any harm to look, anyway," ventured Harry.

Jack accordingly raised the binoculars and swept the northward section of the country. Nothing could be seen that was of interest, and he swung around, the better to complete his view.

"Great smokes!" he e.j.a.c.u.l.a.t.ed as he peered toward the rear. "If they're not coming after us, I'll be a Dutchman myself!"

"Who?" asked Ned eagerly. "Can you see the train?"

"Train nothing!" declared Jack. "It's those bloomin' Dutchmen from the village! They've evidently got a supply of gasoline to replace what we stole and are coming up like a greyhound after a rabbit. That's some speedy plane they've got!"

"Can you see how many men are riding?" asked Ned.

"Can't make them out," replied Jack. "Suppose you look a bit. My eyes get tired from the strain. Guess I look too hard."

"Take the levers a minute," requested Ned, "and I'll see what I can see. Maybe they're not after us at all."

"Well, if they're not after us, they stick to the trail most remarkably close, that's all I can say!" remarked Jack as he prepared to take Ned's place at the pilot's position.

"I can see them now," announced Ned as he leveled the gla.s.ses at the pursuing plane. "They are getting nearer all the while. It seems to me I can discover three men in it, too."

"I suppose they're too far away to discover what they look like,"

suggested Harry, "I can just see the machine now myself."

"It's pretty hard to tell what they are," said Ned, "only they seem to be pretty well protected with helmets and heavy clothes."

"Wish we were in the same comfortable condition," smiled Harry. "I'm slightly chilly myself and hope you are the same, thank you."

"Greatly obliged," returned Ned. "You are entirely correct."

"Look here," interposed Jack, "if you fellows are sufficiently frozen, I've got a scheme to propose. Want to hear it?"

"Slip us an earful," said Harry in response to Jack's query, although he winced slightly at Ned's reproachful glance, for he knew well the older lad's aversion to slang.

"Suppose the railroad is over there to the northward," went on Jack.

"In that case, Jimmie and Dave'll be in that direction. Now, by running over that way we can get nearer to them and at the same time discover whether that other machine is following us."

"Fine!" declared Ned. "Head to the northward, and if they are after us we'll quickly find it out. Then we can determine what to do."

Accordingly Jack shifted the levers and the Eagle swung sharply to the northward. Ned kept the gla.s.ses leveled at the following machine in an effort to discover the movements of its pilot.

Scarcely had the Eagle regained a level keel after the sharp turn before Ned's exclamation of dismay attracted the attention of his chums.

"They're after us as sure as shooting!" he cried. "They're cutting across the corner of the angle. That'll give them some advantage. It won't pay us to try any more dodging if we want to outrun them."

"Sure!" declared Jack. "The pursuer always has the shorter course to travel if the one running away tries to tack about any."

"In that case it would be best to keep straight ahead and trust to our speed to carry us away from them," suggested Harry.

"Yes," agreed Jack, "stern chases are always long chases."

"Do you suppose we can give them the slip somehow without using up all our gasoline?" asked Jack. "I don't want to get too far away from Jimmie and Dave, either. Can't we work it somehow?"

"If it were only a little lighter," ventured Harry, "we might land somewhere and argue it out with them from behind a stone wall or trench."