noon
The remainder of the night passed without incident , and when morning came the airship was put at her former speed , fifty miles an hour . That may not sound very fast , but it must be remembered that this rate had to be kept up for sixty hours straight , perhaps . After breakfast the wire that had shocked Grit was renewed , and then some observations were taken to determine their position . It was calculated they were about halfway across Indiana by noon . The afternoon was slowly waning , and they were preparing for their second night of the prize trip , congratulating themselves that they had not yet been forced to descend . Suddenly Larry , who was at the wheel , uttered a cry of alarm . `` Something 's wrong ! ''