“Something is likely to happen soon,” said Mr. Parker, suddenly, as he gazed at some weather instruments on the cabin wall.

“Bless my soul!  Don’t say that!” cried Mr. Damon.  “What is it?”

“I think, from my observations, that we will soon have a hurricane,” said the scientific man.  “There is every indication of it"’; and he seemed quite delighted at the prospect of his prediction coming true.

“A hurricane!” cried Mr. Damon.  “I hope it isn’t like the one that blew us to Earthquake Island.”

“Oh, I think there will be no danger,” spoke Tom.  “If it comes on to blow we will ascend or descend out of the path of the storm.  This craft is not like the ill-fated Whizzer.  I can more easily handle the Red Cloud; even in a bad storm.”

“I’m glad to hear that,” remarked Mr. Jenks.  “It would be too bad to be wrecked before we got to Phantom Mountain.”

“Well, I predict that we will have a bad storm,” insisted Mr. Parker, and Tom could not help wishing that the scientist would keep his gloomy forebodings to himself.

However the storm had not developed up to noon, when Tom, with Mr. Damon’s help, served a fine meal in the dining-room.  In the afternoon the speed of the ship was increased, and by night they had covered several hundred miles.  Through the darkness the Red Cloud kept on, making good time.  Tom got up, occasionally, to look to the machinery, but it was all automatically controlled, and an alarm bell would sound in his stateroom when anything went wrong.

“Bless my napkin!” exclaimed Mr. Damon the next morning, as they sat down to a breakfast of fruit, ham and eggs and fragrant coffee, “this is living as well as in a hotel, and yet we are—­how far are we above the earth, Tom?” he asked, turning to the young inventor.

“About two miles now.  I just sent her up, as I thought I detected that storm Mr. Parker spoke of.”

“I told you it would come,” declared the scientist, and there was a small hurricane below them that morning, but only the lower edge of it caught the Red Cloud, and when Tom sent her up still higher she found a comparatively quiet zone, where she slid along at good speed.

That afternoon Tom busied himself about some wires and a number of complicated pieces of apparatus which were in one corner of the main cabin.

“What are you doing now?” asked Mr. Jenks, who had been talking with Mr. Parker, and showing that scientist some of the manufactured diamonds.

“Getting our wireless apparatus in shape,” answered the lad.  “I should have done it before, but I had so much to do that I couldn’t get at it.  I’m going to send off some messages.  Dad will want to know how we are doing.”

As he worked away, he also made up his mind to send another message, in care of his father, for there was a receiving station in the Swift home.  And to whom this message was addressed Tom did not say, but we fancy some of our readers can guess.