Motor Matt on the Wing

In Short

Published in 1909 as a weekly five-cent dime novel, Motor Matt on the Wing follows teenage mechanical prodigy Matt King as he champions the destitute widow Mrs. Traquair. Greedy mortgage shark Amos Murgatroyd plots to seize her deceased husband’s experimental aeroplane, but Matt buys into the venture, repairs the aircraft, and heads to Fort Totten to pilot it in a crucial U.S. Army trial. Accompanied by his cowboy friend Joe McGlory and loyal companion Ping Pong, Matt outwits Murgatroyd's hired thug, Siwash Charley, and overcomes sabotage to win fame, financial security, and government recognition.

The Story

The adventure begins in Jamestown, North Dakota, where teenage master mechanic Matt King meets the predatory loan shark Amos Murgatroyd. Murgatroyd holds a devastating mortgage over Mrs. Traquair, the widow of Harry Traquair—an inventor who recently died in a tragic crash while testing his newly designed aeroplane. Murgatroyd intends to bully the widow into surrendering her rights to the aircraft so he can claim the lucrative fifteen-thousand-dollar contract offered by the United States Signal Corps. Recognizing the loan shark’s villainy, Matt intervenes, stepping through a window to intercept the predatory paperwork. Joining forces with Mrs. Traquair, Matt puts up his own funds, along with financial backing from his trusty cowboy chum Joe McGlory, to secure an interest in the machine and protect the widow from ruin.

Matt examines the aircraft—dubbed the June Bug—and sets out to master its flying controls, realizing that handling an aeroplane requires a quick, intuitive knack for balancing dynamic air pressure under its wings. However, Murgatroyd is determined not to let the young hero succeed. He hires a brutish local ruffian named Siwash Charley to stop Matt from ever reaching the flight trials at Fort Totten. Siwash Charley and his gang ambush and attempt to intercept the boys, but Matt and his allies dodge the traps. A friendly local real estate driver named Mr. Black helps transport the team, while an armed military escort under Lieutenant Cameron of the Signal Corps secures the wagon hauling the disassembled biplane.

Upon arriving at Fort Totten, Matt undertakes rigorous practice flights over Devil's Lake, learning to keep the volatile machine upright in unpredictable prairie winds. Despite constant threats, Matt prepares for the official government trial: a demanding requirement to fly continuously for two hours at thirty miles per hour while carrying a passenger. Lieutenant Cameron volunteers to ride alongside Matt as the official government observer.

On the day of the test, Matt and Cameron take to the skies before a cheering crowd, completing a grueling ninety-mile circuit at speeds reaching forty-five miles an hour. Mid-flight, however, subtle damage to the support structure threatens catastrophic failure. Through steady nerves and mechanical instinct, Matt lands the aircraft safely, only to discover that Siwash Charley had secretly filed through the steel guy wires the night before, attempting mid-air murder. With the sabotage exposed and the villainous plot foiled, the military accepts the machine, awarding the contract and securing a small fortune for Mrs. Traquair and fame for Motor Matt.

How It Unfolds

The hero intervenes Matt King discovers loan shark Amos Murgatroyd attempting to intimidate the widowed Mrs. Traquair into signing away her late husband's aeroplane patents. Matt jumps into the room, confronts the extortionist, and pledges his own savings to help the widow retain her rights to the invention.

Preparing for the flight Matt partners with his cowboy friend Joe McGlory to finance the venture and inspects the stored biplane. He studies its design, fully aware that the inventor lost his life operating it, and prepares to master the unfamiliar dynamics of heavier-than-air flight.

Outrunning the thugs Murgatroyd hires the violent Siwash Charley to sabotage the expedition before the aircraft can reach the military base. A high-speed automotive chase across the North Dakota prairie ensues, ending only when Lieutenant Cameron and U.S. troopers arrive to escort the machine safely to Fort Totten.

Mastering the air At the fort, Matt conducts daring test flights over the waters of Devil's Lake, systematically learning how to compensate for sudden shifts in air pressure. Lieutenant Cameron agrees to act as the required military passenger for the official trial, despite the obvious danger.

Triumph over sabotage During the final two-hour government test, Matt successfully stays aloft for ninety miles, meeting every military benchmark. Upon landing, he discovers that Siwash Charley had partially sawed through the main guy wires, revealing that only Matt's precise piloting prevented a fatal crash.

The People

Matt King (Motor Matt) A calm, highly skilled young mechanic known as the "king of the motor boys." Driven by a strong moral compass, Matt wants to help Mrs. Traquair retain her property while proving his own piloting abilities. He faces lethal sabotage, bad weather, and untried technology, ultimately emerging victorious through cool judgment and sheer nerve.

Joe McGlory A loyal, warm-hearted cowboy whose humor balances Matt’s intense focus. Joe risks his own savings to back Matt's aerial ambition, standing by his friend through road ambushes and high-stakes standoffs.

Amos Murgatroyd A greedy, deceitful mortgage shark in Jamestown who uses financial leverage to exploit vulnerable people. He wants total control of the Traquair aeroplane to capture the government contract, resorting to criminal conspiracy when Matt thwarts his initial schemes.

Siwash Charley A violent local ruffian employed by Murgatroyd. He seeks revenge against Matt after an early street altercation, willingly taking money to destroy the aircraft and endanger the lives of the aviators.

Lieutenant Cameron An officer in the U.S. Army Signal Corps assigned to evaluate the flying machine. Honest and brave, he trusts Matt's ability completely and willingly steps into the passenger seat for the perilous trial flight.

Mrs. Traquair The grieving widow of inventor Harry Traquair. Terrified of bankruptcy and helpless against Murgatroyd's threats, she finds an unexpected defender in Matt, who saves her home and secures her financial future.

In Its Own Voice

"Leave him alone, I tell you. He's a robber, and you'll get killed."

An anxious clerk warns Matt against dealing with the unscrupulous broker Amos Murgatroyd.

"Air pressure under the wings was never the same for two consecutive moments, and if the swiftly changing centre of air pressure was not met instantly by extending or contracting the wings, disaster would be sure to result."

The text highlights the intense concentration and rapid reflexes required to control early experimental aircraft.

"It was notched with a file, and for more than two hours Cameron and I have been playing with death, hundreds of feet in the air."

Matt inspects the damaged guy wires after the successful flight, realizing how close they came to a fatal mid-air collapse.

What It's Really About

Motor Matt on the Wing reflects early twentieth-century American fascination with technological progress, capturing the cultural excitement surrounding the dawn of aviation. Written right as the Wright brothers' breakthroughs were capturing headlines, the narrative explores the frontier between wild mechanical innovation and practical execution. Underneath its quick-paced plot lies a classic dime-novel sermon on moral integrity: technical skill must be paired with personal honor. Matt succeeds not merely because he understands engines, but because his bravery is harnessed in defense of the weak against predatory greed. The book celebrates self-reliance, mechanical aptitude, and youthful optimism in an era rapidly transforming through industrial invention.

Why Read It Today

This short novel offers readers a fascinating time capsule of popular American fiction from 1909. It appeals to enthusiasts of early aviation history, retro-futuristic technology, and classic juvenile adventure tales. Reading it today provides direct insight into how ordinary readers first digested the thrill and terror of early biplanes, long before commercial flight became mundane.

The prose moves briskly with plain-spoken energy, though modern readers should expect period-typical artifacts of the dime-novel genre. The dialogue features heavy-handed regional vernacular and stereotyped character portrayals—particularly in the depiction of minor figures like the Chinese companion Ping Pong or Western roughnecks—which reflect the unvarnished cultural biases of early twentieth-century pulp publishing.

Despite these period limitations, the core story delivers genuine historical charm. The tense descriptions of open-cockpit piloting, primitive engines, and prairie road races retain their kinetic punch, offering an entertaining look back at the heroic age of American mechanical invention.

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