And, as they looked,
they saw something else--something that filled them with horror.
For, as they gazed at the craft which had so nearly, either by
accident or design, wrecked them, they saw one of the big side
planes crumple up, as does a bird's broken wing. Either the
supports had given way, or a sudden gust of air strained it too
much.
"They're falling!" cried Dick, hoarsely.
The other airship was. The broken plane gave no support on that
side, and as the motor still raced on, whirling the big propellers,
the Larabee, unevenly balanced, in spite of the mercury stabilizers,
tilted to one side.
Then, a hopeless wreck, she turned over and plunged downward toward
the earth. Her race was over.
CHAPTER XXXII
SAVING UNCLE EZRA
For a moment those aboard Dick's airship uttered not a sound. Then,
as they saw the rival craft sifting slowly downward, gliding from
side to side like a sheet of paper, they looked at one another with
horror in their eyes. It seemed such a terrible end.
Dick was the first to speak.
"We'll have to go down and help them," he said simply. "Some of
them may be--alive!"
It meant stopping the race, it meant making the last of the two
landings allowed them. And it was a landing in a wild and desolate
place, seemingly, for there was no sign of city or town below them.
And just now, after her repairs, when everything was running
smoothly, it behooved Dick and his associates to take advantage of
every mile and minute they could gain.
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