which she asked to be remembered to you and to convey to you her best
wishes for your success."

"Thank you," politely answered Frank, "but I am afraid we are out of
the race."

He hastily explained the loss of the lever and the old man shook his
head sympathizingly. He examined the aeroplane carefully but was
unable to suggest a substitute for the missing lever.

"If you had been able to race, I had some advice for you," he said.
"As I told you when you visited me at the hospital, I am the inventor
of the Buzzard and the plans and patents were wrongfully obtained from
me by a trick. I know the Buzzard's strong points but I also know her
weak ones. When going at full speed she cannot steer round into the
wind which is, I hear, one of your aeroplane's good features. Now, if
you had gone into the race to-day, with the direction in which the
wind is blowing, you could have outgeneraled Malvoise by forcing him
to make such a maneuver. I would give anything to see the man who
robbed me of my designs robbed, in his turn, of the cup."

The old man clenched his fists as he spoke and his eyes shone.

"If only we had the lever we might still defeat his attempt to put us
out of the race, for I am now certain that Sanborn was bribed by him
to deprive us of it," exclaimed Frank.

At this moment a sound was heard that brought them all to their feet.
It was a shout from the crowd which grew nearer every minute. As the
boys ran to the door to see what could be the matter, and if the