knot in the rope.

"Here comes Ed Foster!" suddenly exclaimed Jack as the puffing of an
auto was heard and a machine came in sight. "Now I guess we're all
here. Hello, Ed!"

"Hello, yourself," replied Ed. "Well, what's up now? Somebody
turned turtle?"

"No, but somebody's turned--" began Jack, on the point of saying
something uncomplimentary about Sid, but Cora interrupted him.

"We had a race, and this is how I--that is, we--won it," she said
with a laugh.

Ed stepped out of his car and walked to where Sid's silent machine
stood.

"Radiator, eh?" he questioned. "A bad break."

"That's what. Cora collided with me--but it was partly my fault,"
added Sid quickly for jack's benefit.

"And look at my nice, new mud guard," spoke Cora. "See how it hangs
down, like a dog's broken leg. Isn't it a shame? I guess we'll have
to tear it off, so we can run."

"Let me look at it," suggested Ed. "Maybe I can spring it back into
place."