“Well, I don’t!” came promptly from Mary. “If you were Jason Jacks, I wouldn’t be out riding with you, Tom Swift!” “Why not?” he demanded quizzically. “Because he’s old, he hasn’t any teeth——” “Well, you don’t want to be bitten, do you?” joked Tom. “No, of course not. But he’s got a mean disposition, he’s homely——” “Thanks!” interrupted Tom, with a laugh. “That’s an implied compliment, I take it.” “Take whatever you like,” laughed Mary. “I’d like to take a few thousands from Millionaire Jason Jacks,” retorted the young man. “Still, if you feel that way about him, Mary, I’m just as glad to be what I am,” and Tom—well, it is affairs of no outsider what he did just then. The look which passed between him and Mary changed in a moment to a glance of alarm as the girl pointed to the carriage ahead of them and exclaimed: “Oh, Tom! I believe that horse is running away!” “I pretty near know it is!” was the answer, as Tom began to speed up the electric runabout. “Oh, Mr. Jacks will be thrown out,” went on Mary. “He doesn’t seem to know how to manage that animal! And there’s a dangerous part of the road just ahead—it goes around a curve and close to the edge of a cliff! Oh, Tom, what are you going to do?” CHAPTER XVII THE AIRLINE STARTS Mary Nestor’s reason for putting her question to the young inventor was because Tom was speeding up the electric auto and guiding it along the road in the direction of the runaway horse. For that the animal was in a frenzy and was now running away was apparent to both the young people. “What are you going to do, Tom?” repeated Mary. “I’m going to save Mr. Jacks if I can before he gets to the dangerous part of the road,” answered the young inventor. “If I can run up alongside of him, I may be able to lift him out of his carriage in case there is a likelihood of his going down the gully. Is the road very narrow there, Mary?” “Yes, it is—hardly wide enough for two between the side of the cliff on the left and the edge of the gully on the right.” “Then there’s not much chance of driving the runabout between him and the edge of the gully,” reasoned Tom. “I might go in myself. Luckily he’s driving on the left side of his buggy and this car has a right-hand drive. I can reach right over and grab him. And when I get near enough to do that, Mary, I want you to take the steering wheel of this car and hold it steady. Can you do that?” “I’ll try, Tom.” “You’ve got to do it if we’re to save his life.” “Very well then, Tom, I will,” returned Mary in a quiet voice, and Tom knew she would not fail him. “How fast the horse is going!” she added.