98 TOM SWIFT AND HIS ATOMIC BLASTER
asked Blake, pointing to several rows of big tubes neatly stacked for use.
“What are they for?”
“As the blaster digs into the hill, those sections of tubing will be connected, one by one, to form a single, long, flexible tube,” replied the young inventor. “And the ground-up dirt and rock will be blown out through it.”
A picked crew of workmen from Swift Enterprises was standing by, waiting for operations to begin. The blaster itself was poised against the hillside with several sections of tubing already hooked on.
About twenty yards from the blaster, on level ground, was Tom’s remote-control shack, mounted on a movable dolly.
As Tom walked to the shack and climbed inside, his heart was hammering with excitement. He knew that everything depended on the outcome of today’s test.
Through the window of the control shack, Tom looked at the foreman of the work crew and received an “All Clear” signal in reply.
Taking a deep breath, Tom turned on the starter switch, then pushed down a lever. Instantly the blaster roared into life with a thunderous whine. As the nose end of the machine bit deep into the hillside, a stream of pulverized dirt and rock began to spurt out the rear end of the tube.
A CRUCIAL TEST 99
Realizing that the long-needed tunnel was at last under way, the crowd broke into a wave of spontaneous cheers and applause. But the noise could scarcely be heard above the din of the blaster.
In a matter of seconds, the machine had burrowed half its length into the hillside on a downward slant.
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