Bud flashed his pal a look of alarm and Tom’s eyes widened in dismay.
“Come on, Bud!” he cried out. “Let’s get going!”
CHAPTER IX
A MAYAN FEAST
MAKING a dash to the jeep, Tom and Bud hopped in. Tom slid behind the wheel, flicked the starter, and threw the car into gear. But the engine merely coughed and died.
With a mutter of annoyance, Tom pressed the starter again, keeping his foot on the gas pedal. This time there was barely a sputter.
“Oh, fine!” Bud exploded. “What’s wrong?”
“Search me,” Tom said, trying again and again to gun the engine into life.
“Battery’s okay. Let’s hope it’s not vapor lock!” He climbed out, adding, “Slide over to the driver’s seat while I take a look under the hood.”
The young inventor checked the ignition and found that the plugs were sparking properly. He also disconnected the feed line briefly to make sure that the fuel pump was squirting gasoline to the carburetor.
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A MAYAN FEAST 77
“What’s the dope?” Bud asked.
“Maybe the carburetor’s fouled up,” Tom conjectured. “Wait a second.” He loosened the clamp and lifted off the air cleaner, then cupped the palm of his hand over the intake to help the suction. “Now try it.”
This time, when Bud pressed the starter, the engine roared to life. But when Tom replaced the air cleaner, the motor died again.
“Maybe I’m nuts!” Tom exclaimed, puzzled.
Bud, also mystified, climbed from behind the steering wheel. He watched as Tom took the air cleaner apart. Moments later, both burst into laughter. A huge jungle insect with wings like parchment had been sucked into the cleaner and was clogging the central air tube!
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