Adventure Magazine Cover — page 175: what you’re looking at

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

» Fe Aa: . : Direct Methods “Well, good-by,” said Graves, extending his hand to Hayden. Broughton and Hink- ley watched him closely. _ His fist shot up like a flash of light, carry- ing all his weight with it. The big man fell like an ox. At the same time the two flyers leaped in, revolvers in hand, and crashed the butts down on the heads of their re- spective victims. It was such a complete surprize that the ruse was funny in its effectiveness. Somers and Meyer were disarmed in a trice. Before the astonished henchmen of Hayden had recovered from their surprize and covered half the distance between the cabin and the ship the three government men had heaved the unconscious Hayden into the rear cockpit and were scrambling forward over the bomb compartment. Without waiting for belts to be adjusted Broughton jammed on both throttles. Bullets sang close to them; the gang had held their fire at first for fear of hitting Hayden, and now the bomb compartment shielded the flyers completely. Their heads did not show above it. By the time the marksmen had realized this and had veered to go around the wing the ship was in motion. For a few seconds two men wrenched at the rudders in a mad effort to disable the plane, but the sturdy controls held. Then the Martin was moving so fast that the men had to let go. For twenty-five yards Broughton rud- dered the ship straight down the slope. It was extremely steep there, and the heavy ship picked up speed amazingly. Then Jim swung it slightly to the left, to get the benefit of the extra yards that would give him. The trees rushed nearer with terrible swiftness, There came a quivering bounce, and then, with a feeling of infinite relief, he felt the ship leave the ground. He pulled the wheel back as far as it would go. The Martin made it. There was not an inch of margin, for the elevators and rudders swished through the trees and the nose of the ship dropped in a stall. For two hun- dred feet Broughton had all he could do to keep it from dragging in the trees on that nearly sheer mountain side. Then it picked up speed, and with both Libertys still run- ning wide open turned eastward through the thickening shadow, streams of fire from the exhausts trailing behind like banners of triumph, 169 VI THE peak they had left was a trifle ee higher than any of the others, so it was unnecessary for Broughton to waste time getting altitude. The Martin drove steadily eastward over the murky world below. Probably no ship is ever so helpless as when flying over country like that at night, but the successful culmination of their ad- venture was such a tonic to the airmen that the chance of a forced landing seemed only a minor thing, scarcely to be considered. In a few minutes Graves turned and passed a note back to Hinkley. The tall flyer read it with difficulty in the darkness, and then passed it to Broughton, steadying the wheel to give the pilot an opportunity to read it: Although the ammunition and guns in the back are packed where I do not believe Hayden can get at them, I believe it would be wise for me to climb back there in order to take no chances with him. He is desperate, and might try to take us all to —— with him. It would be an easy matter for Graves to get from his cockpit into the flyer’s com- partment, and from there back to the rear cockpit. The roof of the bomb compart- ment provided a four-foot runway which is not a difficult matter for an experienced airman to negotiate. Nevertheless, climb- ing around a ship under the best of condi- tions is no parlor sport. It was a tribute to Graves’ nerve that Broughton looked at Hinkley and then nodded at Graves. The secret agent promptly unbuckled his belt and crawled beneath the instrument board into their cockpit. With the aid of wire and struts he inched himself over the flyers’ heads, and started crawling along the runway. Broughton throttled as low as he dared to kill speed. The air was smooth as glass, as it always is at night, which made Graves’ attempt easier. Finally Hinkley turned to Broughton and nodded with a wide grin. Broughton re- laxed from the strain of keeping the ship absolutely level, and looked around. No one could be seen in the rear cockpit. Then Graves’ head appeared, and the firm mouth was smiling beneath the big goggles. He nodded cheerfully. Apparently everything was all right. Hayden’s head had come into CORMICLOO S (C@