Ned Newton was Tom Swift's particular chum, and our hero had another
friend, a Mr. Wakefield Damon, of the neighboring town of Waterford.
Mr. Damon had the odd habit of blessing everything he saw or could
think of. Another of Tom's friends was Miss Mary Nestor, whom I have
mentioned, while my old readers will readily recognize in Andy Foger
a mean bully, who made much trouble for Tom.

The first book of the series was called "Tom Swift and His
Motor-Cycle," and on that machine Tom had many advances on the road,
and not a little fun. After that Tom secured a motor boat, and had a
race with Andy Foger. In his airship our hero made a stirring cruise,
while in his submarine boat he and his father recovered a sunken
treasure.

When Tom Swift invented a new electric run-about he did not realize
that it was to be the speediest car on the road, but so it proved,
and he was able to save the bank with it. In the book called "Tom
Swift and His Wireless Message," I told you how he saved the
castaways of Earthquake Island, among whom were Mr. and Mrs. Nestor,
the parents of Mary.

Tom Swift had not been long on the trail of the diamond makers
before he discovered the secret of Phantom Mountain, and after that
adventure he went to the caves of ice, where his big airship was
wrecked. But he got home, and soon made another, which he called a
sky racer, and in that he made the quickest flight on record.

With his electric rifle Tom went to elephant land, where he
succeeded in rescuing two missionaries from the red pygmies. A