“And, again, I can’t spare the time to go to all sorts of wild and impossible places to get the pictures.  It’s all well enough to talk about getting moving pictures of natives in battle, or wild beasts fighting, or volcanoes in action, but it isn’t so easy to do it.  Then, too, I’d have to make some changes in my airship if I went on that trip.  No, I can’t go.  I’ll tell him he’ll have to find some one else.”

Mr. Period pulled out his watch, opened it quickly, snapped it shut again, and exclaimed: 

“Well, how about it, Tom Swift?  When can you start!  The sooner the better for me!  You’ll want some money for expenses I think.  I brought my check book along, also a fountain pen.  I’ll give you a thousand dollars now, for I know making an electric moving picture camera isn’t going to be cheap work.  Then, when you get ready to start off in your airship, you’ll need more money.  I’ll be Johnny-on-the-spot all right, and have it ready for you.  Now when do you think you can start?”

He sat down at a bench, and began filling out a check.

“Hold on!” cried Tom, amused in spite of himself.  “Don’t sign that check, Mr. Period.  I’m not going.”

“Not going?” The man’s face showed blank amazement.

“No,” went on Tom.  “I can’t spare the time.  I’m sorry, but you’ll have to get some one else.”

“Some one else?  But who can I get?”

“Why, there are plenty who would be glad of the chance.”

“But they can’t invent an electric moving picture camera, and, if they could, they wouldn’t know enough to take pictures with it.  It’s got to be you or no one, Tom Swift.  Look here, I’ll make it fifteen thousand dollars above expenses.”

“No, I’m sorry, but I can’t go.  My work here keeps me too busy.

“Oh, pshaw!  Now, look here, Tom Swift!  Do you know who sent me to see you?”

“It was Mr. Nestor, who has a daughter named Mary, I believe.  Mr. Nestor is one of the directors in our company, and one day, when he told me about you sending a wireless message from Earthquake Island, I knew you would be the very man for me.  So now you see you’ll be doing Mr. Nestor a favor, as well as me, if you go on this trip.”

Tom was somewhat surprised, yet he realized that Mr. Period was speaking the truth.  Mr. Nestor was identified with many new enterprises.  Yet the youth was firm.

“I really can’t go,” said our hero.  “I’d like to, but I can’t.  I’d like to oblige Mr. Nestor, for—­well, for more reasons than one,” and Tom blushed slightly.  “But it is out of the question.  I really can’t go.”

“But you must!” insisted the camera man.  “I won’t take ‘no’ for an answer.  You’ve got to go, Tom Swift, do you hear that?  You’ve go to go?”

Mr. Period was apparently very much excited.  He strode over to Tom and smote his hands together to emphasize what he said.  Then he shook his finger at Tom, to impress the importance of the matter on our hero.