E-text prepared by Al Haines AROUND THE WORLD IN TEN DAYS by CHELSEA CURTIS FRASER Author of "Work-a-Day Heroes," "Secrets of the Earth," "Boys' Book of Battles," "Boys' Book of Sea Fights," "The Young Citizens Own Book," etc. The World Publishing Company Cleveland, Ohio ------ New York City Copyright, MCMXXII, By The World Syndicate Publishing Company Printed in the United States of America PREFACE In the infancy of aviation, the early 1920's, no one dreamed that the close of the decade would see it firmly and permanently established--a leader among the nation's industries. Heavier-than-air flight is perhaps the most amazing contribution of the 20th century. It is easy to thrill to the seeming marvels of our own times, but only the short-sighted thinker believes in the perfection of present scientific progress. The 300-mile-an-hour airplane which Fraser conceived in this book for the speed of the Sky-Bird II was little more than so many words when he wrote it. . . . today we have 400-mile-an-hour fighting planes. Today we have in this country an intricate highway system, but perhaps within your own lifetime our highways, and the automobiles which skim over them, will be laughed at as obsolete and useless. Thus it is that "the seemingly impossible of the fiction of today becomes outdone by the facts of tomorrow," as the author aptly phrased it. In 1920 the idea of going around the world in ten days was as preposterous as that projected by Jules Verne in 1873 when he wrote _Around the World in Eighty Days_. But time has a way of hurling ridicule back as effectively as a boomerang. For we have seen and marvelled at the shattering not only of the mythical eighty-day record but even the ten-day record, as progress wends its ceaseless, ambitious, difficult and almost fantastic way through the years. And so it will be gratifying and, no doubt, amazing to many to read this book and realize the advancement made in aviation since this story was written by Mr. Fraser, and how many of the ideas he prophesied for airplane advancement that have materialized in less than a score of years. Around-the-world flyers, even the most recent, have all flown more or less northerly routes, not following the equatorial belt, which is, as we all know, the earth's greatest circumference. It is this course that our four young heroes take in Sky-Bird II, a plane designed and constructed by themselves, containing many features that aeronautics now takes for granted, and some not yet realized, which are, nevertheless, "within the scope of mechanical science," as Fraser says. So, it is our opinion, young readers, that in addition to enjoying an exciting story, you will benefit by carefully reading the technical passages, and in doing so, learn to observe your present-day surroundings with a greater perspective--thus adding infinitely greater interest to your view of the world today! THE PUBLISHERS. CONTENTS CHAPTER