CHAPTER VIII
A SUSPECTED PLOT
The officer's words were so filled with meaning that Tom started. NedNewton, too, showed the effect he felt.
"Do you really mean that?" asked the young inventor, looking around tomake sure his father was not present. On account of Professor Swift'sweak heart, Tom wished to spare him all possible worry.
"I certainly do mean it," insisted Lieutenant Marbury. "And, while I amrather amazed at the news of the fire, for I did not think the plotterswould be so bold as that, it is in line with what I expected, and whatwe suspected in Washington."
"And that was--what?" asked Tom.
"The existence of a well-laid plot, not only against our government,but against you!"
"And why have they singled me out?" Tom demanded.
"I might as well tell it from the beginning," the officer went on. "Aslong as you have not received any official warning from Washington youhad better hear the whole story. But are you sure you had no word?"
"Well, now, I won't be so sure," Tom confessed. "I have been workingvery hard, the last two days, making some intricate calculations. Ihave rather neglected my mail, to tell you the truth.
"And, come to think of it, there were several letters received with theWashington postmark. But, I supposed they had to do with some of mypatents, and I only casually glanced over them. There was one letter,though, that I couldn't make head or tail of."
"Ha! That was it!" cried the lieutenant. "It was the warning in cipheror code. I didn't think they would neglect to send it to you."
"But what good would it do me if I couldn't read it?" asked Tom.
"You must also have received a method of deciphering the message," theofficer said. "Probably you overlooked that. The Secret Service mensent you the warning in code, so it would not be found out by theplotters, and, to make sure you could understand it, a method oftranslating the cipher was sent in a separate envelope. It is too badyou missed it."
"Yes, for I might have been on my guard," agreed Tom. "The red shedmight not have burned, but, as it was, only slight damage was done."
"Owing to the fact that Tom put the fire out with sand ballast from hisdirigible!" cried Ned. "You should have seen it!"
"I should have liked to be here," the lieutenant spoke. "But, if I wereyou, Tom Swift, I would take means to prevent a repetition of suchthings."
"I shall," Tom decided. "But, if we want to talk, we had better go tomy office, where we can be more private. I don't want the workmen tohear too much."
Now that the firing was over, a number of Tom's men from the shops hadassembled around the cannon. Most of them, the young inventor felt,could be trusted, but in so large a gathering one could never be sure.
"Did you come on from Washington yesterday?" asked Tom, as he, Ned andthe officer strolled toward the shed where was housed the aerialwarship.
"Yes, and I spent the night in New York. I arrived in town a short timeago, and came right on out here. At your house I was told you were overin the fields conducting experiments, so I came on here."
"Glad you did," Tom said. "I'll soon have something to show you, Ihope. But I am interested in hearing the details of this suspectedplot. Are you sure one exists?"
"Perfectly sure," was the answer. "We don't know all the details yet,nor who are concerned in it, but we are working on the case. The SecretService has several agents in the field.
"We are convinced in Washington," went on Lieutenant Marbury, when he,Tom and Ned were seated in the private office, "that foreign spies areat work against you and against our government."
"Why against me?" asked Tom, in wonder.
"Because of the inventions you have perfected and turned over to UncleSam--notably the giant cannon, which rivals anything foreign Europeanpowers have, and the great searchlight, which proved so effectiveagainst the border smugglers. The success of those two alone, to saynothing of your submarine, has not only made foreign nations jealous,but they fear you--and us," the officer went on.
"Well, if they only take it out in fear--"
"But they won't!" interrupted the officer--"They are seeking to destroythose inventions. More than once, of late, we have nipped a plot justin time."
"Have they really tried to damage the big gun?" asked Tom, referring toone he had built and set up at Panama.
"They have. And now this fire proves that they are taking othermeasures--they are working directly against you."
"Why, I wonder?"
"Either to prevent you from making further inventions, or to stop youfrom completing your latest--the aerial warship."
"But I didn't know the foreign governments knew about that," Tomexclaimed. "It was a secret."
"Few secrets are safe from foreign Spies," declared Lieutenant Marbury."They have a great ferreting-out system on the other side. We are justbeginning to appreciate it. But our own men have not been idle."
"Have they really learned anything?" Tom asked. "Nothing definiteenough to warrant us in acting," was the answer of the government man."But we know enough to let us see that the plot is far-reaching."
"Are the French in it?" asked Ned impulsively.
"The French! Why do you ask that?"
"Tell him about Eradicate, and the man who wanted to buy the mule,Tom," suggested Ned.
Thereupon the young inventor mentioned the story told by Eradicate. Healso brought out the fire-bomb, and explained his theory as to how ithad operated to set the red shed ablaze.
"I think you are right," said Lieutenant Marbury. "And, as regards theFrench, I might say they are not the only nation banded to obtain oursecrets--yours and the government's!"
"But I thought the French and the English were friendly toward us!" Nedexclaimed.
"So they are, in a certain measure," the officer went on. "And Russiais, too. But, in all foreign countries there are two parties, the warparty, as it might be called, and the peace element.
"But I might add that it is neither France, England, nor Russia that wemust fear. It is a certain other great nation, which at present I willnot name."
"And you think spies set this fire?"
"I certainly do."
"But what measures shall I adopt against this plot?" Tom asked.
"We will talk that over," said Lieutenant Marbury. "But, before I gointo details, I want to give you another warning. You must be verycareful about--"
A sudden knock on the door interrupted the speaker.
Tom Swift and His Aerial Warship; Or, The Naval Terror of the Seas Page 8