"Say, old man, I guess that's right!" admitted Tom. "I
wasn't thinking about it, to tell you the truth."
"Why not?" Ned demanded. "Isn't it great, Tom? Did you
ever see anything like it?"
"Yes."
"You did?" Cried Ned, in surprise. "Where? Say, Tom Swift,
are you keeping something from me?"
"I mean no, Ned. I never have seen a British tank."
"Well, did you ever see a picture like this before?" Ned
persisted.
"No, not exactly like that But--"
"Well, what do you think of it?" cried the young banker,
who was giving much of his time to selling bonds for the
Government. "Isn't it great?"
Tom considered a moment before replying. Then he said
slowly:
"Well, yes, Ned, it is a pretty good machine. But--"
"'But!' Howling tomcats! Say, what's the 'matter with you,
anyhow, Tom? This is great! 'But!' 'But me no buts!' This
is, without exception, the greatest thing out since an
airship. It will win the war for us and the Allies, too, and
don't you forget it! Fritz's barbed wire and dugouts and
machine gun emplacements can't stand for a minute against
these tanks! Why, Tom, they can crawl on their back as well
as any other way, and they don't mind a shower of shrapnel
or a burst of machine gun lead, any more than an alligator
minds a swarm of gnats.
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