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FIBONACCI AND LUCAS
NUMBERS WITH
APPLICATIONS
PURE AND APPLIED MATHEMATICS
A Wiley Series of Texts, Monographs, and Tracts
Founded by RICHARD COURANT
Editors Emeriti: MYRON B. ALLEN III, PETER HILTON, HARRY
HOCHSTADT, ERWIN KREYSZIG, PETER LAX, JOHN TOLAND
A complete list of the titles in this series appears at the end of this volume.
FIBONACCI AND LUCAS
NUMBERS WITH
APPLICATIONS
Volume Two

THOMAS KOSHY
Framingham State University
This edition first published 2019
© 2019 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or
transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or
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The right of Thomas Koshy to be identified as the author of this work has been asserted in
accordance with law.
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Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Names: Koshy, Thomas.
Title: Fibonacci and Lucas numbers with applications / Thomas Koshy,
Framingham State University.
Description: Second edition. | Hoboken, New Jersey : John Wiley & Sons, Inc.,
[2019]- | Series: Pure and applied mathematics: a Wiley series of texts,
monographs, and tracts | Includes bibliographical references and index.
Identifiers: LCCN 2016018243 | ISBN 9781118742082 (cloth : v. 2)
Subjects: LCSH: Fibonacci numbers. | Lucas numbers.
Classification: LCC QA246.5 .K67 2019 | DDC 512.7/2–dc23 LC record available at
https://lccn.loc.gov/2016018243
Cover image: © NDogan/Shutterstock
Cover design by Wiley
Set in 10/12pt, TimesNewRomanMTStd by SPi Global, Chennai, India
Printed in the United States of America
10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
 Dedicated to
the loving memory of
Dr. Kolathu Mathew Alexander
(1930–2017)
CONTENTS

List of Symbols xiii

Preface xv
31. Fibonacci and Lucas Polynomials I 1
31.1. Fibonacci and Lucas Polynomials 3
31.2. Pascal’s Triangle 18
31.3. Additional Explicit Formulas 22
31.4. Ends of the Numbers ln 25
31.5. Generating Functions 26
31.6. Pell and Pell–Lucas Polynomials 27
31.7. Composition of Lucas Polynomials 33
31.8. De Moivre-like Formulas 35
31.9. Fibonacci–Lucas Bridges 36
31.10. Applications of Identity (31.51) 37
31.11. Infinite Products 48
31.12. Putnam Delight Revisited 51
31.13. Infinite Simple Continued Fraction 54
32. Fibonacci and Lucas Polynomials II 65
32.1. Q-Matrix 65
32.2. Summation Formulas 67
32.3. Addition Formulas 71
32.4. A Recurrence for 𝑓n2 76
32.5. Divisibility Properties 82

vii
viii Contents

33. Combinatorial Models II 87

33.1. A Model for Fibonacci Polynomials 87
33.2. Breakability 99
33.3. A Ladder Model 101
33.4. A Model for Pell–Lucas Polynomials: Linear Boards 102
33.5. Colored Tilings 103
33.6. A New Tiling Scheme 104
33.7. A Model for Pell–Lucas Polynomials: Circular Boards 107
33.8. A Domino Model for Fibonacci Polynomials 114
33.9. Another Model for Fibonacci Polynomials 118
34. Graph-Theoretic Models II 125
34.1. Q-Matrix and Connected Graph 125
34.2. Weighted Paths 126
34.3. Q-Matrix Revisited 127
34.4. Byproducts of the Model 128
34.5. A Bijection Algorithm 136
34.6. Fibonacci and Lucas Sums 137
34.7. Fibonacci Walks 140
35. Gibonacci Polynomials 145
35.1. Gibonacci Polynomials 145
35.2. Differences of Gibonacci Products 159
35.3. Generalized Lucas and Ginsburg Identities 174
35.4. Gibonacci and Geometry 181
35.5. Additional Recurrences 184
35.6. Pythagorean Triples 188
36. Gibonacci Sums 195
36.1. Gibonacci Sums 195
36.2. Weighted Sums 206
36.3. Exponential Generating Functions 209
36.4. Infinite Gibonacci Sums 215
37. Additional Gibonacci Delights 233
37.1. Some Fundamental Identities Revisited 233
37.2. Lucas and Ginsburg Identities Revisited 238
37.3. Fibonomial Coefficients 247
37.4. Gibonomial Coefficients 250
37.5. Additional Identities 260
37.6. Strazdins’ Identity 264
38. Fibonacci and Lucas Polynomials III 269
38.1. Seiffert’s Formulas 270
38.2. Additional Formulas 294
38.3. Legendre Polynomials 314
Contents ix

39. Gibonacci Determinants 321

39.1. A Circulant Determinant 321
39.2. A Hybrid Determinant 323
39.3. Basin’s Determinant 333
39.4. Lower Hessenberg Matrices 339
39.5. Determinant with a Prescribed First Row 343

40. Fibonometry II 347

40.1. Fibonometric Results 347
40.2. Hyperbolic Functions 356
40.3. Inverse Hyperbolic Summation Formulas 361

41. Chebyshev Polynomials 371

41.1. Chebyshev Polynomials T n (x) 372
41.2. T n (x) and Trigonometry 384
41.3. Hidden Treasures in Table 41.1 386
41.4. Chebyshev Polynomials U n (x) 396
41.5. Pell’s Equation 398
41.6. U n (x) and Trigonometry 399
41.7. Addition and Cassini-like Formulas 401
41.8. Hidden Treasures in Table 41.8 402
41.9. A Chebyshev Bridge 404
41.10. T n and U n as Products 405
41.11. Generating Functions 410

42. Chebyshev Tilings 415

42.1. Combinatorial Models for U n 415
42.2. Combinatorial Models for T n 420
42.3. Circular Tilings 425

43. Bivariate Gibonacci Family I 429

43.1. Bivariate Gibonacci Polynomials 429
43.2. Bivariate Fibonacci and Lucas Identities 430
43.3. Candido’s Identity Revisited 439

44. Jacobsthal Family 443

44.1. Jacobsthal Family 444
44.2. Jacobsthal Occurrences 450
44.3. Jacobsthal Compositions 452
44.4. Triangular Numbers in the Family 459
44.5. Formal Languages 468
44.6. A USA Olympiad Delight 480
44.7. A Story of 1, 2, 7, 42, 429, … 483
44.8. Convolutions 490
x Contents

45. Jacobsthal Tilings and Graphs 499

45.1. 1 × n Tilings 499
45.2. 2 × n Tilings 505
45.3. 2 × n Tubular Tilings 510
45.4. 3 × n Tilings 514
45.5. Graph-Theoretic Models 518
45.6. Digraph Models 522
46. Bivariate Tiling Models 537
46.1. A Model for 𝑓n (x, y) 537
46.2. Breakability 539
46.3. Colored Tilings 542
46.4. A Model for ln (x, y) 543
46.5. Colored Tilings Revisited 545
46.6. Circular Tilings Again 547
47. Vieta Polynomials 553
47.1. Vieta Polynomials 554
47.2. Aurifeuille’s Identity 567
47.3. Vieta–Chebyshev Bridges 572
47.4. Jacobsthal–Chebyshev Links 573
47.5. Two Charming Vieta Identities 574
47.6. Tiling Models for Vn 576
47.7. Tiling Models for 𝑣n (x) 582
48. Bivariate Gibonacci Family II 591
48.1. Bivariate Identities 591
48.2. Additional Bivariate Identities 594
48.3. A Bivariate Lucas Counterpart 599
48.4. A Summation Formula for 𝑓2n (x, y) 600
48.5. A Summation Formula for l2n (x, y) 602
48.6. Bivariate Fibonacci Links 603
48.7. Bivariate Lucas Links 606
49. Tribonacci Polynomials 611
49.1. Tribonacci Numbers 611
49.2. Compositions with Summands 1, 2, and 3 613
49.3. Tribonacci Polynomials 616
49.4. A Combinatorial Model 618
49.5. Tribonacci Polynomials and the Q-Matrix 624
49.6. Tribonacci Walks 625
49.7. A Bijection Between the Two Models 627
Appendix 631
A.1. The First 100 Fibonacci and Lucas Numbers 631
A.2. The First 100 Pell and Pell–Lucas Numbers 634
Contents xi

A.3. The First 100 Jacobsthal and Jacobsthal–Lucas Numbers 638

A.4. The First 100 Tribonacci Numbers 642

Abbreviations 644
Bibliography 645
Solutions to Odd-Numbered Exercises 661
Index 725
LIST OF SYMBOLS

Symbol Meaning
⇐ or ⇒ marginal symbol for alerting the change in notation
? unsolved problem
end of a proof or solution; end of a lemma, theorem,
or corollary when it does not end in a proof
ℂ set of complex numbers
(a1 , a2 , … , an ) greatest common divisor (gcd) of the positive
integers a1 , a2 , … , an
[a1 , a2 , … , an ] least common multiple (lcm) of the positive
integers a1 , a2 , … , an
√
Δ x2 + 4
x+Δ
𝛼(x)
2
x−Δ
𝛽(x)
2
√
D x2 + 1
𝛾(x) x+D
𝛿(x) x−D
a(x) mod b(x) remainder when a(x) is divided by b(x)
a(x) ≡ b(x) (mod c(x)) a(x) is congruent to b(x) modulo c(x)

xiii
xiv List of Symbols

Symbol Meaning
[a0 ; a1 , … , an ] infinite simple continued fraction
𝑤(tile) weight of tile
𝜇(x) characteristic of the gibonacci family
Fn∗ Fn Fn−1 · · · F1 , where F0∗ = 1
[ ]
n Fn∗
fibonomial coefficient
r Fr∗ Fn−r
∗

𝑓n∗ 𝑓n 𝑓n−1 · · · 𝑓1 , where 𝑓0∗ = 1

[[ ]]
n 𝑓n∗
gibonomial coefficient
r 𝑓r 𝑓n−r
∗ ∗

{ }
n 1 − qm 1 − qm−1 1 − qm−r+1
q-binomial coefficient ⋅ · · ·
r 1−q 1 − q2 1 − qr
q
√
Δ(x, y) x2 + 4y
! switching variables
PREFACE

Man has the faculty of becoming completely absorbed in one subject,

no matter how trivial, and no subject is so trivial that it will not assume
infinite proportions if one’s entire attention is devoted to it.

–Tolstoy, War and Peace

THE TWIN SHINING STARS REVISITED

The main focus of Volume One was to showcase the beauty, applications, and
ubiquity of Fibonacci and Lucas numbers in many areas of human endeavor.
Although these numbers have been investigated for centuries, they continue to
charm both creative amateurs and mathematicians alike, and provide exciting
new tools for expanding the frontiers of mathematical study. In addition to being
great fun, they also stimulate our curiosity and sharpen mathematical skills such
as pattern recognition, conjecturing, proof techniques, and problem-solving. The
area is still so fertile that growth opportunities appear to be endless.

EXTENDED GIBONACCI FAMILY

The gibonacci numbers in Chapter 7 provide a unified approach to Fibonacci

and Lucas numbers. In a similar way, we can extend these twin numeric families
to twin polynomial families. For the first time, the present volume extends
the gibonacci polynomial family even further. Besides Fibonacci and Lucas
polynomials and their numeric counterparts, the extended gibonacci family
includes Pell, Pell–Lucas, Jacobsthal, Jacobsthal–Lucas, Chebyshev, and

xv
xvi Preface

Vieta polynomials, and their numeric counterparts as subfamilies. This unified

approach gives a comprehensive view of a very large family of polynomial
functions, and the fascinating relationships among the subfamilies. The present
volume provides the largest and most extensive study of this spectacular area of
discrete mathematics to date.
Over the years, I have had the privilege of hearing from many Fibonacci
enthusiasts around the world. Their interest gave me the strength and courage
to embark on this massive task.

AUDIENCE

The present volume, which is a continuation of Volume One, is intended for a

wide audience, including professional mathematicians, physicists, engineers, and
creative amateurs. It provides numerous delightful opportunities for proposing
and solving problems, as well as material for talks, seminars, group discussions,
essays, applications, and extending known facts.
This volume is the result of extensive research using over 520 references,
which are listed in the bibliography. It should serve as an invaluable resource for
Fibonacci enthusiasts in many fields. It is my sincere hope that this volume will
aid them in exploring this exciting field, and in advancing the boundaries of our
current knowledge with great enthusiasm and satisfaction.

PREREQUISITES

A familiarity with the fundamental properties of Fibonacci and Lucas numbers,

as in Volume One, is an indispensable prerequisite. So is a basic knowledge of
combinatorics, generating functions, graph theory, linear algebra, number the-
ory, recursion, techniques of solving recurrences, and trigonometry.

ORGANIZATION

The book is divided into 19 chapters of manageable size. Chapters 31 and 32

present an extensive study of Fibonacci and Lucas polynomials, including a
continuing discussion of Pell and Pell–Lucas polynomials. They are followed
by combinatorial and graph-theoretic models for them in Chapters 33 and
34. Chapters 35–39 offer additional properties of gibonacci polynomials,
followed in Chapter 40 by a blend of trigonometry and gibonacci polynomials.
Chapters 41 and 42 deal with a short introduction to Chebyshev polynomials
and combinatorial models for them. Chapters 44 and 45 are two delightful
studies of Jacobsthal and Jacobsthal–Lucas polynomials, and their numeric
counterparts. Chapters 43, 46, and 48 contain a short discussion of bivariate
gibonacci polynomials and their combinatorial models. Chapter 47 gives a brief
Preface xvii

discourse on Vieta polynomials, combinatorial models, and the relationships

among the gibonacci subfamilies. Chapter 49 presents tribonacci numbers and
polynomials; it also highlights their combinatorial and graph-theoretic models.

SALIENT FEATURES

This volume, like Volume One, emphasizes a user-friendly and historical

approach; it includes a wealth of applications, examples, and exercises; numer-
ous identities of varying degrees of sophistication; current applications and
examples; combinatorial and graph-theoretic models; geometric interpretations;
and links among and applications of gibonacci subfamilies.

HISTORICAL PERSPECTIVE

As in Volume One, I have made every attempt to present the material in a his-
torical context, including the name and affiliation of every contributor, and the
year of the contribution; indirectly, this puts a human face behind each discov-
ery. I have also included photographs of some mathematicians who have made
significant contributions to this ever-growing field.
Again, my apologies to those contributors whose names or affiliations are
missing; I would be grateful to hear about any omissions.

EXERCISES AND SOLUTIONS

The book features over 1,230 exercises of varying degrees of difficulty. I encour-
age students and Fibonacci enthusiasts to have fun with them; they may open
new avenues for further exploration. Abbreviated solutions to all odd-numbered
exercises are given at the end of the book.

ABBREVIATIONS AND SYMBOLS INDEXES

An updated list of symbols, standard and nonstandard, appears in the front of

the book. In addition, I have used a number of abbreviations in the interest of
brevity; they are listed at the end of the book.

APPENDIX

The Appendix contains four tables: the first 100 Fibonacci and Lucas num-
bers; the first 100 Pell and Pell–Lucas numbers; the first 100 Jacobsthal and
Jacobsthal–Lucas numbers; and a table of 100 tribonacci numbers. These
should be useful for hand computations.
xviii Preface

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

A massive project such as this is not possible without constructive input from
a number of sources. I am grateful to all those who played a significant role in
enhancing the quality of the manuscript with their thoughts, suggestions, and
comments.

My gratitude also goes to George E. Andrews, Marjorie Bicknell-Johnson,

Ralph P. Grimaldi, R.S. Melham, and M.N.S. Swamy for sharing their brief
biographies and photographs; to Margarite Landry for her superb editorial
assistance; to Zhenguang Gao for preparing the tables in the Appendix; and
to the staff at John Wiley & Sons, especially Susanne Steitz (former mathe-
matics editor), Kathleen Pagliaro, and Jon Gurstelle for their enthusiasm and
confidence in this huge endeavor.

Finally, I would be grateful to hear from readers about any inadvertent errors
or typos, and especially delighted to hear from anyone who has discovered new
properties or applications.

Thomas Koshy
[email protected]
Framingham, Massachusetts
August, 2018

If I have been able to see farther, it was only

because I stood on the shoulders of giants.
–Sir Isaac Newton (1643–1727)
 31

FIBONACCI AND LUCAS

POLYNOMIALS I

A man may die,

nations may rise and fall,
but an idea lives on.
–John F. Kennedy (1917–1963)

The celebrated Fibonacci polynomials 𝑓n (x) were originally studied beginning in

1883 by the Belgian mathematician Eugene C. Catalan, and later by the German
mathematician Ernst Jacobsthal (1882–1965). They were further investigated by
M.N.S. Swamy at the University of Saskatchewan, Canada. The equally famous
Lucas polynomials ln (x) were studied beginning in 1970 by Marjorie Bicknell of
Santa Clara, California [37].

Fibonacci and Lucas Numbers with Applications, Volume Two. Thomas Koshy.
© 2019 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. Published 2019 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

1
2 Fibonacci and Lucas Polynomials I

Eugène Charles Catalan (1814–1894) was

born in Bruges, Belgium, and received his
Doctor of Science from the École Polytech-
nique in Paris. After working briefly at the
Department of Bridges and Highways, he
became professor of mathematics at Collège
de Chalons-sur-Marne, and then at Collège
Charlemagne. Catalan went on to teach
at Lycée Saint Louis. In 1865, he became
professor of analysis at the University of
Liège. He published Éléments de Géométrie
(1843) and Notions d’astronomie (1860), as
well as many articles on multiple integrals,
the theory of surfaces, mathematical analysis,
calculus of probability, and geometry. Catalan
is well known for extensive research on spher-
ical harmonics, analysis of differential equations, transformation of variables
in multiple integrals, continued fractions, series, and infinite products.

M.N.S. Swamy was born in Karnataka,

India. He received his B.Sc. (Hons) in Math-
ematics from Mysore University in 1954;
Diploma in Electrical Engineering from the
Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore, in
1957; and M.Sc. (1960) and Ph.D. (1963) in
Electrical Engineering from the University of
Saskatchewan, Canada.
A former Chair of the Department of Elec-
trical Engineering and Dean of Engineering
and Computer Science at Concordia Univer-
sity, Canada, Swamy is currently a Research
Professor and the Director of the Center
for Signal Processing and Communications.
He has also taught at the Technical University of Nova Scotia, and the
Universities of Calgary and Saskatchewan.
Swamy is a prolific problem-proposer and problem-solver well known to
the Fibonacci audience. He has published extensively in number theory, cir-
cuits, systems, and signal processing and has written three books. He is the
editor-in-chief of Circuits, Systems, and Signal Processing, and an associate
editor of The Fibonacci Quarterly, and a sustaining member of the Fibonacci
Association.
Fibonacci and Lucas Polynomials 3

Swamy received the Commemorative Medal for the 125th Anniversary of

the Confederation of Canada in 1993 in recognition of his significant contri-
butions to Canada. In 2001, he was awarded D.Sc. in Engineering by Ansted
University, British Virgin Islands, “in recognition of his exemplary contribu-
tions to the research in Electrical and Computer Engineering and to Engineer-
ing Education, as well as his dedication to the promotion of Signal Processing
and Communications Applications.”

Marjorie Bicknell-Johnson was born in

Santa Rosa, California. She received her B.S.
(1962) and M.A. (1964) in Mathematics from
San Jose State University, California, where
she wrote her Master’s thesis, The Lambda
Number of a Matrix, under the guidance of
V.E. Hoggatt, Jr.
The concept of the lambda number of
a matrix first appears in the unpublished
notes of Fenton S. Stancliff (1895–1962)
of Meadville, Pennsylvania. (He died in
Springfield, Ohio in 1962.) His extensive
notes are pages of numerical examples without proofs or coherent defi-
nitions, that provided material for further study. Bicknell developed the
mathematics of the lambda function in her thesis [40].
A charter member of the Fibonacci Association, Bicknell-Johnson has
been a member of its Board of Directors since 1967, as well as Secretary
(1965–2010) and Treasurer (1981–1999). In 2012, she wrote a history of the
first 50 years of the Association [39].
Bicknell-Johnson has been a passionate and enthusiastic contributor to
the world of Fibonacci and Lucas numbers, as author or co-author of F11
research papers, 32 of them written with Hoggatt. Her 1980 obituary of
Hoggatt remains a fine testimonial to their productive association [38].

31.1 FIBONACCI AND LUCAS POLYNOMIALS

As we might expect, they satisfy the same polynomial recurrence gn (x) =

xgn−1 (x) + gn−2 (x), where n ≥ 2. When g0 (x) = 0 and g1 (x) = 1, gn (x) = 𝑓n (x);
and when g0 (x) = 2 and g1 (x) = x, gn (x) = ln (x). Table 31.1 gives the first ten
Fibonacci and Lucas polynomials in x. Clearly, 𝑓n (1) = Fn and ln (1) = Ln .
In the interest of brevity and clarity, we drop the argument in the functional
notation, when such deletions do not cause any confusion. Thus gn will mean
gn (x), although gn is technically a functional name and not an output value. ⇐
4 Fibonacci and Lucas Polynomials I

TABLE 31.1. First 10 Fibonacci and Lucas Polynomials

n 𝑓n (x) ln (x)
1 1 x
2 x x2 + 2
3 x2 + 1 x3 + 3x
4 x3 + 2x x4 + 4x2 + 2
5 x4 + 3x2 + 1 x5 + 5x3 + 5x
6 x5 + 4x3 + 3x x6 + 6x4 + 9x2 + 2
7 x6 + 5x4 + 6x2 + 1 x7 + 7x5 + 14x3 + 7x
8 x7 + 6x5 + 10x3 + 4x x8 + 8x6 + 20x4 + 16x2 + 2
9 x8 + 7x6 + 15x4 + 10x2 + 1 x9 + 9x7 + 27x5 + 30x3 + 9x
10 x9 + 8x7 + 21x5 + 20x3 + 5x x10 + 10x8 + 35x6 + 50x4 + 25x2 + 2

For the curious-minded, we add that 𝑓n is an even function when n is odd, and
an odd function when n is even; and ln is an odd function when n is odd, and even
when n is even.

TABLE 31.2. Triangular Array A

k 0 1 2 Row Sums
n
1 1 1
2 1 1
3 1 1 2
4 1 2 3
5 1 3 1 5
6 1 4 3 8
7 1 5 6 1 13
8 1 6 10 4 21
↑ ↑
tn Fn

Table 31.1 contains some hidden treasures. To see them, we arrange the
nonzero coefficients of the Fibonacci polynomials in a left-justified array A;
see Table 31.2. Column 2 of the array consists of the triangular numbers
tn = n(n + 1)∕2, and the nth row sum is Fn .
Fibonacci and Lucas Polynomials 5

Let an,k denote the element in row n and column ( k of the)array. Clearly,
n−k−1
an,k is the coefficient of xn−2k−1 in 𝑓n ; so an,k = . Recall that
( ) k
∑ n−k−1
= Fn [287].
k≥0
k
Consequently, it can be defined recursively:

a1,0 = 1 = a2,0
an,k = an−1,k + an−2,k−1 ,

where n ≥ 3 and k ≥ 1; see the arrows in Table 31.2. This can be confirmed; see
Exercise 31.1.
Let dn denote the nth rising diagonal sum. The sequence {dn } shows an inter-
esting pattern: 1, 1, 1, 2, 3, 4, 
6 , 9, 13, …; see Figure 31.1. We can also define
dn recursively:

d1 = d2 = d3 = 1
dn = dn−1 + dn−3 ,

where n ≥ 4.
1
1
1 1
2
1 3
1 1 4

6
1 2
1 3 1
1 4 3
1 5 6 1
1 6 10 4

Figure 31.1.

( )
n−k−1
Since an,k = , it follows that
k

⌊(n−1)∕3⌋
∑
dn = an−k,k
k=0
⌊(n−1)∕3⌋ ( )
∑ n − 2k − 1
= .
k=0
k
6 Fibonacci and Lucas Polynomials I

( ) ( ) ( ) ( )
∑
2
7 − 2k 7 5 3
For example, d8 = = + + = 9.
k=0 k 0 1 2
The falling diagonal sums also exhibit an interesting pattern: 1, 2, 4, 8, 16, …;
see Figure 31.2. This is so, since the nth such sum is given by

n−1 ( )
∑
n−1
∑ n−1
an+k,k =
k=0 k=0
k

= 2n−1 ,

where n ≥ 1.

1
1
1 1
1 2
1 3 1
1
1 4 3
2
1 5 6 1
4
1 6 10 4
8

Figure 31.2.

The nonzero elements of Lucas polynomials also manifest interesting proper-

ties; see array B in Table 31.3.

TABLE 31.3. Triangular Array B

k 0 1 2 3 4 Row Sums
n
1 1 1
2 1 2 3
3 1 3 4
4 1 4 2 7
5 1 5 5 11
6 1 6 9 2 18
7 1 7 14 7 29
8 1 8 20 16 2 47
↑
Ln
Fibonacci and Lucas Polynomials 7

Let bn,k denote the element in row n and column k, where n ≥ 1 and k ≥ 0.
Then
⌊n∕2⌋
∑
1) bn,k = Ln .
k=0
2) bn,k = bn−1,k + bn−2,k−1 , where b1,0 = 1 = b2,0 , b2,1 = 2, n ≥ 3, and k ≥ 0.
3) Let xn denote the nth rising diagonal sum. Then x1 = 1 = x2 , x3 = 3, and
xn = xn−1 + xn−3 , where n ≥ 4.
⌊(n−1)∕3⌋ ( )
∑ n − k n − 2k
4) xn = .
k=0
n − 2k k

( ) ( ) ( ) ( )
∑ 2
7 − k 7 − 2k 7 7 6 5 5 3
For example, x7 = = + + = 12.
k=0
7 − 2k k 7 0 5 1 3 2
In the interest of brevity, we omit their proofs; see Exercises 31.2–31.5.
Next we construct a graph-theoretic model for Fibonacci polynomials.

Weighted Fibonacci Trees

Recall from Chapter 4 that the nth Fibonacci tree Tn is a (rooted) binary tree [287]
such that

1) both T1 and T2 consist of exactly one vertex; and

2) Tn is a binary tree whose left subtree is Tn−1 and right subtree is Tn−2 , where
n ≥ 3. It has 2Fn − 1 vertices, Fn leaves, Fn − 1 internal vertices, and 2Fn − 2
edges.
Figure 31.3 shows the first five Fibonacci trees.

T1 T2 T3 T4 T5

Figure 31.3.

We now assign a weight to Tn recursively. The weight of T1 is 1 and that of T2

is x. Then the weight 𝑤(Tn ) of Tn is defined by 𝑤(Tn ) = x ⋅ 𝑤(Tn−1 ) + 𝑤(Tn−2 ),
where n ≥ 3.
For example, 𝑤(T3 ) = x ⋅ 𝑤(T2 ) + 𝑤(T1 ) = x2 + 1; and 𝑤(T4 ) = x ⋅ 𝑤(T3 ) +
𝑤(T2 ) = x3 + 2x.
Since 𝑤(T1 ) = 𝑓1 , and 𝑤(T2 ) = 𝑓2 , it follows by the recursive definition that
𝑤(Tn ) = 𝑓n , where n ≥ 1. Clearly, 𝑤(Tn ) gives the number of leaves of Tn when
x = 1.
8 Fibonacci and Lucas Polynomials I

Binet-like Formulas
Using the recurrence gn = xgn−1 + gn−2 and the initial conditions, we can derive
explicit formulas for both 𝑓n and ln ; see Exercises 31.6 and 31.7:
𝛼n − 𝛽 n
𝑓n = and ln = 𝛼 n + 𝛽 n ,
𝛼−𝛽
x+Δ x−Δ
where 𝛼 = 𝛼(x) = and 𝛽 = 𝛽(x) = are the solutions of the equation
2 √ 2
t − xt − 1 = 0 and Δ = Δ(x) = x + 4. Notice that 𝛼 + 𝛽 = x, 𝛼 − 𝛽 = Δ, and
2 2

𝛼𝛽 = −1.
Since 𝛼 = 𝛼𝑓1 + 𝑓0 and 𝛼 2 = 𝛼x + 1, it follows by the principle of mathe-
matical induction (PMI) that 𝛼 n = 𝛼𝑓n + 𝑓n−1 , where n ≥ 1; see Exercise 31.8.
Similarly 𝛽 n = 𝛽𝑓n + 𝑓n−1 .
Using the Binet-like formulas, we can extend the definitions of Fibonacci and
Lucas polynomials to negative subscripts: 𝑓−n = (−1)n−1 𝑓n and l−n = (−1)n ln .
Using the Binet-like formulas, we can also extract a plethora of properties of
Fibonacci and Lucas polynomials; see Exercises 31.14–31.97. For example, it is
fairly easy to establish that
𝑓n ln = 𝑓2n ;
𝑓n+1 + 𝑓n−1 = ln ; (31.1)
x𝑓n−1 + ln−1 = 2𝑓n ; (31.2)
n
l2n + 2(−1) = ln2 ;
𝑓n+1 𝑓n−1 − 𝑓n2 = (−1)n ;
ln+1 ln−1 − ln2 = (−1)n−1 (x2 + 4).

The last two identities are Cassini-like formulas. It follows from the Cassini-like
formula for 𝑓n that every two consecutive Fibonacci polynomials are relatively
prime; that is, (𝑓n , 𝑓n−1 ) = 1, where (a, b) denotes the greatest common divisor
(gcd) of the polynomials a = a(x) and b = b(x).

Cassini-like Formulas Revisited

√
Since ln (2i) = 2in , it follows that (x ± 2i) ∤ ln , where i = −1. Consequently, by
the Cassini-like formula for ln , every two consecutive Lucas polynomials are
relatively prime, that is, (ln , ln+1 ) = 1.
The Cassini-like formulas have added dividends. For instance, (𝑓n+4k + 𝑓n ,
𝑓n+4k−1 + 𝑓n−1 ) = l2k . To see this, we have
( )
Δ(𝑓n+4k + 𝑓n ) = 𝛼 n+4k − 𝛽 n+4k + (𝛼 n − 𝛽 n )
( )
= 𝛼 n+2k − 𝛽 n+2k (𝛼 2k + 𝛽 2k )
𝑓n+4k + 𝑓n = 𝑓n+2k l2k .
Fibonacci and Lucas Polynomials 9

Replacing n with n − 1, this implies 𝑓n+4k−1 + 𝑓n−1 = 𝑓n+2k−1 l2k . Thus

(𝑓n+4k + 𝑓n , 𝑓n+4k−1 + 𝑓n−1 ) = l2k ⋅ (𝑓n+2k , 𝑓n+2k−1 )

= l2k ⋅ 1
= l2k . (31.3)

Similarly,
(ln+4k + ln , ln+4k−1 + ln−1 ) = l2k ; (31.4)

see Exercise 31.102.

It follows from properties (31.3) and (31.4) that

(Fn+4k + Fn , Fn+4k−1 + Fn−1 ) = L2k ;

(Ln+4k + Ln , Ln+4k−1 + Ln−1 ) = L2k .

For example, (L23 + L7 , L22 + L6 ) = (64079 + 29, 39603 + 18) = 47 = L8 .

Pythagorean Triples
The identities ln+1 + ln−1 = Δ2 𝑓n and l2n = Δ2 𝑓n2 + 2(−1)n (see Exercises 31.32
and 31.49) can be employed to construct Pythagorean triples (a, b, c). To see
this, let c = Δ2 𝑓2n+3 and a = xl2n+3 − 4(−1)n . We now find b such that (a, b, c)
is a Pythagorean triple.
Since c = l2n+4 + l2n+2 , we have

c + a = l2n+4 + (xl2n+3 + l2n+2 ) − 4(−1)n

= 2[l2n+4 − 2(−1)n+2 ]

= 2Δ2 𝑓n+2
2
;

c − a = (l2n+4 − xl2n+3 ) + l2n+2 + 4(−1)n

= 2[l2n+2 − 2(−1)n+1 ]

= 2Δ2 𝑓n+1
2
.

Therefore, b2 = c2 − a2 = (2Δ2 𝑓n+2 2 )(2Δ2 𝑓 2 ) = 4Δ4 𝑓 2 𝑓 2 ; so we obtain

n+1 n+2 n+1
b = 2Δ2 𝑓n+2 𝑓n+1 .
Thus (a, b, c) = (xl2n+3 − 4(−1)n , 2Δ2 𝑓n+2 𝑓n+1 , Δ2 𝑓2n+3 ) is a Pythagorean
triple.
Clearly, Δ2 |b and Δ2 |c; so Δ4 |(c2 − b2 ). Consequently, Δ4 |a2 and hence Δ2 |a.
Thus (a, b, c) is not a primitive Pythagorean triple.
10 Fibonacci and Lucas Polynomials I

H.T. Freitag (1908–2005) of Roanoke, Virginia, studied the Pythagorean triple

for the special case x = 1 in 1991 [168].
Fn+1
Recall from Chapter 16 that lim = 𝛼. So what can we say about
n→∞ Fn
𝑓n+1
lim ? Next we investigate this.
n→∞ 𝑓n
𝛽 x−Δ 1 − x∕Δ
Suppose x > 0. Then 0 < x∕Δ < 1. Since = =− , |𝛽∕𝛼| < 1.
𝛼 x+Δ 1 + x∕Δ
Consequently,

𝑓n+1 𝛼 n+1 − 𝛽 n+1

=
𝑓n 𝛼n − 𝛽 n
𝛼 n+1 1 − (𝛽∕𝛼)n+1
= ⋅
𝛼n 1 − (𝛽∕𝛼)n
𝑓n+1 1−0
lim =𝛼⋅
n→∞ 𝑓n 1−0
= 𝛼.

ln+1
Similarly, lim = 𝛼. Thus
n→∞ ln

𝑓n+1 ln+1
lim = 𝛼 = lim , (31.5)
n→∞ 𝑓n n→∞ ln

where x > 0.
For the curious-minded, we add that

{
𝑓n+1 (0) 0 if n is odd
=
𝑓n (0) undef ined otherwise;
{
ln+1 (0) undef ined if n is odd
=
ln (0) 0 otherwise.

It follows by the recursive definition that deg(𝑓n ) = n − 1 and deg(ln ) = n,

where deg(hn ) denotes the degree of the polynomial hn (x) and n ≥ 1. Suppose
a, b ≥ 2. Then (a − 1)(b − 1) ≥ 1; consequently, ab > a + b − 1. Suppose also that
x ≥ 1. Since deg(𝑓a 𝑓b ) = deg(𝑓a ) + deg(𝑓b ) = a + b − 2, it follows that 𝑓ab > 𝑓a 𝑓b .
Likewise, lab > la lb . √
The facts that 2𝛼 = x + Δ, 2𝛽 = x − Δ, and Δ = x2 + 4 can be used to
develop two interesting identities, one involving Fibonacci polynomials and the
other involving Lucas polynomials.
Fibonacci and Lucas Polynomials 11

To begin, we have

(x2 + 4)n = (2𝛼 − x)2n

2n ( )
∑ 2n
= (2𝛼)k (−x)2n−k . (31.6)
k=0
k

Similarly,
2n ( )
∑ 2n
(x2 + 4)n = (2𝛽)k (−x)2n−k . (31.7)
k=0
k

It follows by equations (31.6) and (31.7) that

2n ( )
∑ 2n
2(x2 + 4)n = (−2)k lk x2n−k (31.8)
k=0
k
2n ( )
∑ 2n
0= (−2)k 𝑓k x2n−k ; (31.9)
k=0
k

see Exercise 31.71.

For example,

4 ( )
∑ 4
(−2)k lk x4−k = l0 x4 − 8l1 x3 + 24l2 x2 − 32l3 x + 16l4
k=0
k

= 2(x4 + 8x2 + 16)

= 2(x2 + 4)2 .

Identity (31.8), in particular, yields

2n ( )
∑ 2n
(−2)k Lk = 2 ⋅ 5n .
k=0
k

J.L. Brown of Pennsylvania State University found this result in 1965 [59].
The next example is an interesting application of identity (31.1).

Example 31.1. Prove that

⎧ln − ln−2 + ln−4 − · · · − l2 + 1 if n ≡ 0 (mod 4)

⎪
⎪ln − ln−2 + ln−4 − · · · − l3 + x if n ≡ 1 (mod 4)
𝑓n+1 =⎨
⎪ln − ln−2 + ln−4 − · · · − l2 − 1 if n ≡ 2 (mod 4)
⎪
⎩ln − ln−2 + ln−4 − · · · − l3 − x otherwise.
12 Fibonacci and Lucas Polynomials I

Proof. Suppose n is even. Let Sn = ln − ln−2 + ln−4 − · · · + (−1)(n−2)∕2 . Using

identity (31.1), we can rewrite Sn as a telescoping sum:

Sn = (𝑓n+1 + 𝑓n−1 ) − (𝑓n−1 + 𝑓n−3 ) + · · · + (−1)(n−2)∕2 (𝑓3 + 𝑓1 )

= 𝑓n+1 + (−1)(n−2)∕2 𝑓1
{
𝑓n+1 − 1 if n ≡ 0 (mod 4)
=
𝑓n+1 + 1 if n ≡ 2 (mod 4).

This yields the desired formulas when n is even.

The formulas when n is odd follow similarly; see Exercise 31.72.
In 1996, R. Euler of Northwest Missouri State University studied this example
for the case x = 1 [152].
In particular, let n = 7. Then

l7 − l5 + l3 − x = (x7 + 7x5 + 14x3 + 7x) − (x5 + 5x3 + 5x) + (x3 + 3x) − x

= x7 + 6x5 + 10x3 + 4x

= 𝑓8 .

Generalized Cassini-like Formulas

The Cassini-like formulas can be generalized as follows:

𝑓m 𝑓m+n+k − 𝑓m+k 𝑓m+n = (−1)m+1 𝑓n 𝑓k ; (31.10)

lm lm+n+k − lm+k lm+n = (−1)m (x2 + 4)𝑓n 𝑓k ; (31.11)

see Exercises 31.73 and 31.74.

It follows that both 𝑓m 𝑓m+n+k − 𝑓m+k 𝑓m+n and lm lm+n+k − lm+k lm+n are
divisible by 𝑓n 𝑓k . In particular, both 𝑓m 𝑓m+2n − 𝑓m+n
2 2
and lm lm+2n − lm+n are
divisible by 𝑓n2 . It also follows that Fm Fm+n+k − Fm+k Fm+n = (−1)m+1 Fn Fk and
Lm Lm+n+k − Lm+k Lm+n = (−1)m 5Ln Lk .
It follows from identities (31.10) and (31.11) that

𝑓m 𝑓n+1 − 𝑓m+1 𝑓n = (−1)n 𝑓m−n ; (31.12)

lm ln+1 − lm+1 ln = (−1)n (x2 + 4)𝑓m−n . (31.13)

Identity (31.12) is a generalization of the d’Ocagne identity Fm Fn+1 − Fm+1 Fn =

(−1)n Fm−n , named after the French mathematician Philbert Maurice d’Ocagne
(1862–1938).
Fibonacci and Lucas Polynomials 13

It also follows from identities (31.10) and (31.11) that

𝑓n+k 𝑓n−k − 𝑓n2 = (−1)n+k+1 𝑓k2 ; (31.14)

ln+k ln−k − ln2 = (−1)n+k (x2 + 4)𝑓k2 ; (31.15)

see Exercises 31.76 and 31.77.

These two identities imply that

𝑓2n+1 = 𝑓n+1
2
+ 𝑓n2 ; (31.16)
2
xl2n+1 = ln+1 − (x2 + 4)𝑓n2 (31.17)

= (x2 + 4)𝑓n+1
2
− ln2 ; (31.18)

2
see Exercises 31.78–31.80. Consequently, ln+1 + ln2 = (x2 + 4)𝑓2n+1 .
The next example features a neat application of identity (31.10). It was origi-
nally studied in 1969 by Swamy [489].

Example 31.2. Prove that

( )( )
∑
n
1 ∑
n
x2
1+ 1− = 1.
k=1
𝑓2k−1 𝑓2k+1 k=1
𝑓2k 𝑓2k+2

Proof. It follows from identity (31.10) that

𝑓a+1 𝑓a−2 − 𝑓a 𝑓a−1 = (−1)a+1 x. (31.19)

Consequently, we have

x 𝑓2k+2 𝑓
= − 2k
𝑓2k−1 𝑓2k+1 𝑓2k+1 𝑓2k−1
∑
n
x 𝑓2n+2 𝑓2
= −
k=1
𝑓2k−1 𝑓2k+1 𝑓2n+1 𝑓1
𝑓2n+2
= −x
𝑓2n+1
∑
n
1 𝑓2n+2
1+ = . (31.20)
k=1
𝑓2k−1 𝑓2k+1 x𝑓2n+1
14 Fibonacci and Lucas Polynomials I

It also follows by identity (31.10) that

x 𝑓2k+3 𝑓2k+1
− = −
𝑓2k 𝑓2k+2 𝑓2k+2 𝑓2k
∑
n
x 𝑓2n+3 𝑓3
− = −
k=1
𝑓2k 𝑓2k+2 𝑓2n+2 𝑓2
x𝑓2n+2 + 𝑓2n+1 x2 + 1
= −
𝑓2n+2 x
𝑓2n+1 1
= −
𝑓2n+2 x
∑
n
x2 𝑓2n+1
1− =x . (31.21)
k=1
𝑓2k 𝑓2k+2 𝑓2n+2

The given result now follows by equations (31.20) and (31.21).

The formula in Example 31.2 has a Lucas counterpart:

[ ][ ]
∑
n
x2 (x2 + 4) 1 ∑ x2 + 4
n
2
x +2− 2
+ = 1;
k=1
l2k−1 l2k+1 x + 2 k=1 l2k l2k+2

see Exercise 31.148.

A quick look at Table 31.1 reveals that the constant term in 𝑓n is 1 if n is odd,
and 0 if n is even; and the constant term in ln is 0 if n is odd, and 2 if n is even.
We now confirm these observations.

Ends of the Polynomials 𝒇n and ln

Since Δ(0) = 2, 𝛼(0) = 1 = −𝛽(0). Therefore, by the Binet-like formula for 𝑓n ,
𝛼 n (0) − 𝛽 n (0) 1 − (−1)n
𝑓n (0) = = . So 𝑓n ends in 1 if n is odd, and 0 if n is even.
𝛼(0) − 𝛽(0) 2
On the other hand, let

{
0 if n is odd
𝜅n =
2 otherwise.

Then ln (0) = 1 + (−1)n = 𝜅n . So ln ends in 0 if n is odd, and 2 otherwise.

Next we develop two bridges linking 𝑓n and ln , by employing a bit of differen-
tial and integral calculus.
Fibonacci and Lucas Polynomials 15

Links Between 𝒇n and ln

Since Δ′ = x∕Δ, it follows that 𝛼 ′ = 𝛼∕Δ and 𝛽 ′ = −𝛽∕Δ, where the prime
denotes differentiation with respect to x. By the Binet-like formula for ln , we
then have
𝛼 𝛽
ln′ = n𝛼 n−1 ⋅ − n𝛽 n−1 ⋅
Δ Δ
= n𝑓n . (31.22)

It follows from identity (31.22) that ln′ (1) = nFn .

For example, l6 = x6 + 6x4 + 9x2 + 2; so l6′ = 6(x5 + 4x3 + 3x) = 6𝑓6 ; and
l6 (1) = 6 ⋅ 8 = 6F6 .
′

To see a related link, property (31.22) implies that we can recover ln from 𝑓n
by integrating both sides from 0 to x:
x x
ln′ (y)dy = n 𝑓n (y)dy
∫0 ∫0
x
ln − ln (0) = n 𝑓n (y)dy
∫0
x
ln = 𝜅n + n 𝑓n (y)dy. (31.23)
∫0

It follows from (31.23) that

1
1
𝑓n dx = (L − 𝜅n ). (31.24)
∫0 n n
x x
For example, l5 = 0 + 5 𝑓5 (y)dy = 5 (y4 + 3y2 + 1)dy = x5 + 5x3 + 5x;
∫0 ∫0
x 1
and l6 = 2 + 6 (y5 + 4y3 + 3y)dy = x6 + 6x4 + 9x2 + 2. Clearly, 𝑓6 dx =
∫0 ∫0
1
8 1
(x5 + 4x3 + 3x)dx =
= (L − 2).
∫0 3 6 6
We can use the Binet-like formula for 𝑓n , coupled with property (31.22), to
develop a second-order differential equation for ln .

A Differential Equation for ln

By the Binet-like formula, we have
( )
𝛼n 𝛽 n x
nΔ + − (𝛼 n − 𝛽 n )
Δ Δ Δ
𝑓n′ =
Δ2
1 ′′ nln − x𝑓n
l = (31.25)
nn x2 + 4
16 Fibonacci and Lucas Polynomials I

( )
x
(x2 + 4)ln′′ = n nln − ln′
n
(x2 + 4)ln′′ + xln′ − n2 ln = 0. (31.26)

It follows from equation (31.26) that ln′′ (1) = n(nLn − Fn )∕5.

For example, l6 = x6 + 6x4 + 9x2 + 2; l6′ = 6x5 + 24x3 + 18x; l6′′ = 30x4 +
72x2 + 18. Then (x2 + 4)l6′′ + xl6′ − 36l6 = 0; and l6′′ (1) = 6(6 ⋅ 18 − 8)∕5 = 120.

Alternate Explicit Formulas

Fibonacci and Lucas polynomials can be defined explicitly in alternate ways:
⌊n∕2⌋ ( )
∑ n − k n−2k
𝑓n+1 = x ; (31.27)
k=0
k
⌊n∕2⌋ ( )
∑ n n − k n−2k
ln = x . (31.28)
k=0
n−k k

Both can be confirmed using PMI; see Exercises 31.96 and 31.97.
We now establish both, using different techniques.

Alternate Methods
To establish the Lucas-like formula (31.27), we employ a bit of operator theory
[284, 498]. To this end, let
⌊n∕2⌋ ( )
∑ n − k n−2k
Sn = Sn (x) = x .
k=0
k

Let D(Sn ) = Sn+1 − xSn . Then

[( ) ( )]
∑ n+1−k n−k
D(Sn ) = − xn−2k+1
k≥0
k k
( )
∑ n−k
= xn−2k+1
k≥0
k − 1
( )
∑ n−j−1
= xn−2j−1 ;
j≥0
j

D2 (Sn ) = D(D(Sn ))
= D(Sn+1 − xSn )
= D(Sn+1 ) − xD(Sn )
Fibonacci and Lucas Polynomials 17

[( ) ( )]
∑ n+1−k n−k
= − xn−2k+2
k≥0
k − 1 k − 1
( )
∑ n−k
= xn−2k+2
k≥0
k − 2
( )
∑ n−j−1
= xn−2j .
j≥0
j − 1

Consequently,
) (
[( )]
∑
n−j−1 n−j−1
2
D (Sn ) + xD(Sn ) = + xn−2j
j≥0
j j−1
( )
∑ n−j
Sn+2 − xSn+1 = xn−2j
j≥0
j
= Sn .

Thus Sn satisfies the Fibonacci polynomial recurrence. Since S0 = 1 = 𝑓1 and

S1 = x = 𝑓2 , this implies Sn = 𝑓n+1 . This yields the Lucas-like formula.
Formula (31.28) follows by a similar argument; see Exercise 31.98.
Interestingly, we can recover formula (31.28) from (31.27) by using equation
(31.23):
x
ln = 𝜅n + n 𝑓n (y)dy
∫0
x ⌊(n−1)∕2⌋ ( )
∑ n − k − 1 n−2k−1
= 𝜅n + n y dy
∫0 k
k=0
⌊(n−1)∕2⌋ ( )
∑ n n − k − 1 n−2k
= 𝜅n + x
k=0
n − 2k k
⌊(n−1)∕2⌋ ( )
∑ n n − k n−2k
= 𝜅n + x
k=0
n−k k
⌊n∕2⌋ ( )
∑ n n − k n−2k
= x ,
k=0
n−k k

as desired.
( It follows
) from formula (31.27) that the coefficient of xn−5 in 𝑓n is
n−3
= tn−4 , where tk denotes the kth triangular number and n ≥ 5.
2
For example, the coefficient of x4 in 𝑓9 is t5 = 15; see Table 31.1. Likewise, the
coefficient of xn−3 in 𝑓n is n − 2, where n ≥ 3.
18 Fibonacci and Lucas Polynomials I

Formulas (31.24) and (31.27) Revisited

It follows by the Lucas-like formula (31.27) that

⌊(n−1)∕2⌋ ( )
1 ∑ 1 n−k−1
𝑓n (x)dx = .
∫0 n − 2k k
k=0

This, coupled with formula (31.24), yields the summation formula

⌊(n−1)∕2⌋ ( )
∑ 1 n−k−1 1
= (Ln − 𝜅n ).
k=0
n − 2k k n

( ) ( ) ( ) ( )
∑
2
1 5−k 1 5 1 4 1 3 16 1
For example, = + + = = (L6 − 2).
k=0
6 − 2k k 6 0 4 1 2 2 6 6
( )
∑ 1
3
6−k 29 1
Similarly, = = (L7 − 0).
k=0
7 − 2k k 7 7

31.2 PASCAL’S TRIANGLE

Fibonacci Polynomials
It follows by ) that 𝑓n+1 can be found by adding up the binomial
( (31.27)
n−k
coefficients along the northeast diagonal n, with weights xn−2k , where
k
0 ≤ k ≤ ⌊n∕2⌋.
For example,
( ) ( ) ( )
4 4 3 2 2 0
𝑓5 = x + x + x
0 1 2
=
1 x4 + 
3 x2 + 
1 1;

see Figure 31.4. Clearly, 

1 +
3 +
1 = 5 = F5 .

1
1 1
𝑓5
1 2 1
1 3 3 1
1 4 6 4 1
1 5 10 10 5 1
1 6 15 20 15 6 1

Figure 31.4. Pascal’s Triangle.

Pascal’s Triangle 19

This method of finding Fibonacci polynomials can be re-phrased slightly dif-

ferently. This time, we construct a left-justified triangular array A. Its nth row
n ( )
∑ n n−r
consists of the terms in the binomial expansion of (x + 1)n = x ; see
r=0
r
Figure 31.5.

1
x 1
𝑓6
x2 2x 1
x3 3x2 3x 1
x4 4x3 6x2 4x 1
x5 5x4 10x3 10x2 5x 1

Figure 31.5.

( Let
) A(n, r) denote the element in row n and column r of array A. Then A(n, r) =
n n−r
x , where 0 ≤ r ≤ n.
r
Array A can be defined recursively as well:

A(0, 0) = 1, A(1, 0) = x
A(n, r) = xA(n − 1, r) + A(n − 1, r − 1),

where 0 ≤ r ≤ n and n ≥ 1; see the arrows in Figure 31.5.

The nth rising diagonal sum dn (x) of the array is given by
⌊n∕2⌋
∑
dn (x) = A(n − r, r)
r=0
⌊n∕2⌋ ( )
∑ n − r n−2r
= x
r=0
r
= 𝑓n+1 ,

where n ≥ 0.
2 ( )
∑ 5 − r 5−2r
For example, d5 (x) = x = x5 + 4x3 + 3x = 𝑓6 ; see Figure 31.5.
r=0
r

Lucas Polynomials
( ) ( ) ( )
n n−k n−k n−k−1
Since = + , it follows by formula (31.28)
n−k k k k−1
that
⌊n∕2⌋ [( ) ( )]
∑ n−k n−k−1
ln = + xn−2k .
k=0
k k − 1
20 Fibonacci and Lucas Polynomials I

Consequently, we can find the coefficients in ln by adding the adjacent entries on

the alternate diagonals n − 1 and n − 3. Multiplying the sums with xn−2k and then
adding the products yields ln .
For example,

l6 = (1 + 0)x6 + (5 + 1)x4 + (6 + 3)x2 + (1 + 1)x0

= 1 x6 + 6 x4 + 9 x2 + 2 ;

see the loops in Figure 31.6. Clearly, L6 = 1 + 6 + 9 + 2 = 18.

1
1 1
1 2 1
1 3 3 1
1 4 6 4 1
1 5 10 10 5 1
1 6 15 20 15 6 1

Figure 31.6. Pascal’s Triangle.

As we saw earlier, this technique can be re-phrased a bit differently. To this

end, we construct a new triangular array B using array A. Let B(0, 0) = 2. We
obtain the elements B(n, r) of array B in row n by adding the corresponding ele-
ments in rows n − 1 and n of array A, where n ≥ 1. Thus row n of array B consists
of the (distinct)
[( ) terms
( in)] the sum (x + 1)n−1 + (x + 1)n = (x + 2)(x + 1)n−1 ; thus
n n−1
B(n, r) = + xn−r ; see Figure 31.7.
r r−1

2
x 2
l5
x2 3x 2
x3 4x2 5x 2
x4 5x3 9x2 7x 2
x5 6x4 14x3 16x2 9x 2

Figure 31.7.
Pascal’s Triangle 21

The nth rising diagonal sum bn (x) of array B is given by

⌊n∕2⌋
∑
bn (x) = B(n − r, r)
r=0
⌊n∕2⌋ [( ) ( )]
∑ n n−1
= + xn−2r
r=0
r r−1
= ln ,

where n ≥ 0.
Next we find formula (31.28) for ln in yet another way.

Lockwood’s Identity
In 1967, E.H. Lockwood developed the identity

⌊n∕2⌋ [( ) ( )]
∑ n−k n−k−1
u + 𝑣 = (u + 𝑣) +
n n n
(−1) k
+ (u𝑣)k (u + 𝑣)n−2k
k=1
k k−1

from the binomial theorem [333]. This can be rewritten as

⌊n∕2⌋ ( )
∑ n n−k
u +𝑣 =
n n
(−1) (u𝑣)k (u + 𝑣)n−2k .
k
(31.29)
k=0
n − k k

Letting u = 𝛼 and 𝑣 = 𝛽, this yields the Lucas-like formula

⌊n∕2⌋ ( )
∑ n n − k n−2k
ln = x .
k=0
n−k k

Lockwood’s identity has an added byproduct. To see this, we let u = 𝛼 and

𝑣 = −𝛽, but change n to 2n + 1. Then equation (31.29) yields an interesting
formula for 𝑓2n+1 :
( )
∑
n
2n + 1 2n − k + 1 n−2k+1
Δ𝑓2n+1 = (−1)k Δ
k=0
2n − k + 1 k
( )
∑n
k 2n + 1 2n − k + 1
𝑓2n+1 = (−1) (x2 + 4)n−k . (31.30)
k=0
2n − k + 1 k
22 Fibonacci and Lucas Polynomials I

( )
∑
3
7 7−k
For example, 𝑓7 = (−1)k (x2 + 4)7−2k = x6 + 5x4 + 6x2 + 1.
k=0
7−k k
It follows from formula (31.30) that
( )
∑
n
2n + 1 2n − k + 1 n−k
F2n+1 = (−1) k
5 .
k=0
2n − k + 1 k

31.3 ADDITIONAL EXPLICIT FORMULAS

The Binet-like formulas, coupled with the binomial theorem, can be used to
develop explicit formulas for 𝑓n and ln (see Exercises 31.99 and 31.100):

⌊(n−1)∕2⌋ ( )
1 ∑ n
𝑓n = (x2 + 4)k xn−2k−1 ; (31.31)
2n−1 k=0
2k + 1
⌊n∕2⌋ ( )
1 ∑ n
ln = (x2 + 4)k xn−2k . (31.32)
2n−1 k=0
2k

2 ( )
1 ∑ 5
For example, 𝑓5 = (x2 + 4)k x4−2k = x4 + 3x2 + 1; and
16 k=0 2k + 1
2 ( )
1 ∑ 5
l5 = (x2 + 4)k x5−2k = x5 + 5x3 + 5x.
16 k=0 2k
It follows from formulas (31.31) and (31.32) that
⌊(n−1)∕2⌋ ( )
1 ∑ n
Fn = 5k ;
2n−1 k=0
2k + 1
⌊n∕2⌋ ( )
1 ∑ n
Ln = 5k .
2n−1 k=0
2k

Consequently, 2n−1 Fn ≡ n (mod 5) and 2n−1 Ln ≡ 1 (mod 5).

⌊(n−1)∕2⌋ ( ) ⌊n∕2⌋ ( )
∑ n
n−1 ∑ n
Since 2 = = , formulas (31.31) and (31.32)
k=0 2k + 1 k=0
2k
can be rewritten with different looks:
⌊(n−1)∕2⌋ ( )
∑ n
(x2 + 4)k xn−2k−1
k=0 2k + 1
𝑓n =
⌊(n−1)∕2⌋ ( ) ;
∑ n
k=0 2k + 1
Additional Explicit Formulas 23

⌊n∕2⌋ ( )
∑ n
(x2 + 4)k xn−2k
k=0 2k
ln = .
⌊n∕2⌋ ( )
∑ n
k=0 2k

Using the binomial theorem, we can develop formulas for l2n ± ln , as the next
example shows.

Example 31.3. Prove that

⌊n∕2⌋ ( ) ( )
∑ n ( ) ⌊(n−1)∕2⌋
∑ n ( )
l2n + ln = l2k x2k + xn−2k + l2k+1 x2k+1 − xn−2k−1 ;
k=0
2k k=0
2k + 1
(31.33)
⌊n∕2⌋ ( ) ( )
∑ n ( ) ⌊(n−1)∕2⌋
∑ n ( )
l2n − ln = l2k x2k − xn−2k + l2k+1 x2k+1 + xn−2k−1 .
k=0
2k k=0
2k + 1
(31.34)

Proof. By the binomial theorem, we have

n ( )
∑ n n−k k
(u + 𝑣) = n
u 𝑣
k=0
k
⌊n∕2⌋ ( ) ⌊(n−1)∕2⌋ ( )
∑ n ∑ n
= un−2k 𝑣2k + un−2k−1 𝑣2k+1 . (31.35)
k=0
2k k=0
2k + 1

Recall that 1 + 𝛼x = 𝛼 2 . Letting u = 1 and 𝑣 = 𝛼x, this yields

⌊n∕2⌋ ( ) ⌊(n−1)∕2⌋ ( )
∑ n ∑ n
𝛼 2n
= 2k
(𝛼x) + (𝛼x)2k+1 .
k=0
2k k=0
2k + 1

Similarly,

⌊n∕2⌋ ( ) ⌊(n−1)∕2⌋ ( )
∑ n ∑ n
𝛽 2n
= 2k
(𝛽x) + (𝛽x)2k+1 .
k=0
2k k=0
2k + 1

Adding these two equations, we get

⌊n∕2⌋ ( ) ⌊(n−1)∕2⌋ ( )
∑ n ∑ n
l2n = 2k
l x + l2k+1 x2k+1 . (31.36)
k=0
2k 2k k=0
2k + 1
24 Fibonacci and Lucas Polynomials I

Since 𝛼 + 𝛽 = x, letting u = x and 𝑣 = −𝛼 in equation (31.35), we get

⌊n∕2⌋ ( ) ⌊(n−1)∕2⌋ ( )
∑ n ∑ n
𝛽 =
n
𝛼 x
2k n−2k
− 𝛼 2k+1 xn−2k−1 . (31.37)
k=0
2k k=0
2k + 1

Similarly,

⌊n∕2⌋ ( ) ⌊(n−1)∕2⌋ ( )
∑ n ∑ n
𝛼 =
n
𝛽 x
2k n−2k
− 𝛽 2k+1 xn−2k−1 . (31.38)
k=0
2k k=0
2k + 1

Adding equations (31.37) and (31.38), we get

⌊n∕2⌋ ( ) ⌊(n−1)∕2⌋ ( )
∑ n ∑ n
ln = l2k xn−2k − l2k+1 xn−2k−1 . (31.39)
k=0
2k k=0
2k + 1

The given identities now follow by combining equations (31.36) and (31.39).

Identities (31.33) and (31.34) have Fibonacci counterparts:

⌊n∕2⌋( ) ( )
∑ n ( ) ⌊(n−1)∕2⌋
∑ n ( )
𝑓2n + 𝑓n = 𝑓2k x2k − xn−2k + 𝑓2k+1 x2k+1 + xn−2k−1 ;
k=0
2k k=0
2k + 1

⌊n∕2⌋ ( ) ( )
∑ n ( 2k ) ⌊(n−1)∕2⌋
∑ n ( )
𝑓2n − 𝑓n = 𝑓 x +x n−2k
+ 𝑓2k+1 x2k+1 − xn−2k−1 .
k=0
2k 2k k=0
2k + 1
(31.40)

In the interest of brevity, we omit their proofs; see Exercise 31.101.

We can similarly show that

⌊(n−1)∕2⌋ ( )
∑ n ( )
𝑓3n − A + B + C − D = l2(n−2k) 𝑓2k 1 − x2k +
k=0
2k + 1

⌊(n−1)∕2⌋ ( )
∑ n ( )
l2(n−2k−1) 𝑓2k+1 1 + x2k+1 , (31.41)
k=0
2k + 1

where ΔA = [(x2 − 1)𝛼 + 2x]n , ΔB = [(x2 − 1)𝛽 + 2x]n , ΔC = (2𝛼x − x2 + 1)n ,

and ΔD = (2𝛽x − x2 + 1)n ; see Exercise 31.177.
Ends of the Numbers ln 25

It follows from equations (31.33), (31.34), and (31.41) that

⌊n∕2⌋ ( )
∑ n
L2n + Ln = 2 L ;
k=0
2k 2k

⌊(n−1)∕2⌋ ( )
∑ n
L2n − Ln = 2 L ;
k=0
2k + 1 2k+1

⌊(n−1)∕2⌋ ( )
∑ n
n
F3n + 2 Fn = 2 L F .
k=0
2k + 1 2(n−2k−1) 2k+1

H.T. Leonard, Jr. and Hoggatt developed these three special cases in 1968
[319].
Next we show how the Lucas recurrence and a suitable modulus can be effec-
tively used to find the ends of the numbers ln , where x is a positive integer such
that x2 + s = A ⋅ 10t for some positive integers s, t, and A.

31.4 ENDS OF THE NUMBERS ln

Suppose we would like to compute the units digit in ln , where x is a positive

integer. We choose x2 + 1 as the modulus. Since l0 = 2 and l1 = x, it follows by the
Lucas recurrence that the sequence {ln (mod x2 + 1)}n≥0 is periodic with period
12; see Table 31.4. Consequently, l12n+r ≡ lr (mod x2 + 1), where 0 ≤ r < 12. We
can confirm this using induction.

TABLE 31.4.
n 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11
2
ln (mod x + 1) 2 x 1 2x −1 x −2 −x −1 −2x 1 −x

For example, l2035 = l12⋅169+7 ≡ l7 ≡ −x (mod x2 + 1). Consequently,

l2035 (3) ≡ −3 ≡ 7 (mod 10); thus l2035 (3) ends in 7.
On the other hand, suppose we would like to determine the last three digits
in ln . Since 1142 + 4 = 13,000, we will choose Δ2 = x2 + 4 as the new modulus.
Then the sequence {ln (mod Δ2 )}n≥0 is periodic with period 4; see Table 31.5.
Consequently, l4n+r ≡ lr (mod Δ2 ), where 0 ≤ r < 4. This can be confirmed using
PMI.

TABLE 31.5.
n 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7
2
ln (mod Δ ) 2 x −2 −x 2 x −2 −x
26 Fibonacci and Lucas Polynomials I

Thus
⎧ 2 (mod Δ2 ) if n ≡ 0 (mod 4)
⎪ 2
⎪ x (mod Δ ) if n ≡ 1 (mod 4)
ln = ⎨
2
⎪−2 (mod Δ ) if n ≡ 2 (mod 4)
⎪
⎩−x (mod Δ2 ) otherwise.

As an example, l2779 = l4⋅694+3 ≡ l3 ≡ −x (mod Δ2 ). In particular, l2779 ≡

−114 ≡ 12,886 (mod 13,000); so l2779 (114) ends in 886.

An Important Observation
It follows from Table 31.5 that ln ≢ 0 (mod Δ2 ); so no Lucas polynomial is divis-
ible by x2 + 4. Consequently, no Lucas number ends in 0 or 5.
Next we find generating functions for the sequences {𝑓n } and {ln }.

31.5 GENERATING FUNCTIONS

∑
∞
Let g(z) = gn zn , where gn = gn (x). Then, by the Fibonacci recurrence, we have
n=0

(1 − xz − z2 )g(z) = g0 + (g1 − xg0 )z

g0 + (g1 − xg0 )z
g(z) = .
1 − xz − z2

Thus
g0 + (g1 − xg0 )z ∑
∞
= gn zn .
1 − xz − z2 n=0

In particular,

z ∑ ∞

2
= 𝑓n zn ; (31.42)
1 − xz − z n=0

2 − xz ∑ ∞

2
= ln z n .
1 − xz − z n=0

The generating function (31.42), together with differentiation, can be used to

develop a summation formula for 𝑓n′ , as Swamy did in 1965 [475].
 Pell and Pell–Lucas Polynomials 27

A Summation Formula for 𝒇n′

Differentiating both sides of (31.42) with respect to x, we get

∑
∞ ( )2
z
𝑓n′ zn =
n=0
1 − xz − z2
(∞ )2
∑
= 𝑓n z n

n=0
( n )
∑ ∑
∞
= 𝑓k 𝑓n−k zn .
n=0 k=0

Equating the coefficients of zn from both sides, we get the desired formula:

∑
n−1
𝑓n′ = 𝑓k 𝑓n−k .
k=1

∑
4
For example, 𝑓k 𝑓5−k = 𝑓1 𝑓4 + 𝑓2 𝑓3 + 𝑓3 𝑓2 + 𝑓4 𝑓1 = 2[(x3 + 2x) +
k=1
x(x2 + 1)] = 4x3 + 6x = 𝑓5′ .
Now we introduce briefly two interesting subfamilies of the Fibonacci–Lucas
family [285].

31.6 PELL AND PELL–LUCAS POLYNOMIALS

Pell polynomials pn (x) and Pell–Lucas polynomials qn (x) are defined by pn (x) =
𝑓n (2x) and qn (x) = ln (2x), respectively. Both satisfy the same second-order
recurrence gn (x) = 2xgn−1 (x) + gn−2 (x), where n ≥ 2. When g0 (x) = 0 and
g1 (x) = 1, gn (x) = pn (x); and when g0 (x) = 2 and g1 (x) = 2x, gn (x) = qn . Again,
⇒ we delete the argument from the functional notation when such a notational
switch causes no confusion. Table 31.6 gives the first ten Pell and Pell–Lucas
polynomials.
Correspondingly, the Pell numbers Pn and Pell–Lucas numbers Qn are given
by Pn = pn (1) = 𝑓n (2) and 2Qn = qn (1) = ln (2). Table 31.7 gives the first ten Pell
and Pell–Lucas numbers. Table A.2 in the Appendix gives the first 100 Pell and
Pell–Lucas numbers. Clearly, pn (1∕2) = Fn and qn (1∕2) = Ln .
Pell polynomials were mistakenly named after the English mathematician
John Pell (1611–1685). Although Pell numbers occur in the study of the (Pell’s)
equation u2 − 2𝑣2 = (−1)n , the attribution of Pell’s name to this equation,
and hence to Pell numbers, is due to an innocent error by the great Swiss
mathematician L. Euler.
28 Fibonacci and Lucas Polynomials I

TABLE 31.6. First 10 Pell and Pell–Lucas Polynomials

n pn (x) qn (x)
1 1 2x
2 2x 4x2 + 2
3 4x2 + 1 8x3 + 6x
4 8x3 + 4x 16x4 + 16x2 + 2
5 16x4 + 12x2 +1 32x5 + 40x3 + 10x
6 32x5 + 32x3 + 6x 64x6 + 96x4 + 36x2 + 2
7 64x6 + 80x4 + 24x2 +1 128x7 + 224x5 + 112x3 + 14x
8 128x7 + 192x5 + 80x3 + 8x 256x8 + 512x6 + 320x4 + 64x2 + 2
8 6 4 2
9 256x + 448x + 240x + 40x + 1 512x9 + 1152x7 + 864x5 + 240x3 + 18x
10 512x9 + 1024x7 + 672x5 + 160x3 + 10x 1024x10 + 2560x8 + 2240x6 + 800x4 + 100x2 + 2

TABLE 31.7. First 10 Pell and Pell–Lucas Numbers

n 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
Pn 1 2 5 12 29 70 169 408 985 2378
Qn 1 3 7 17 41 99 239 577 1393 3363

Leonhard Euler (1707–1783) was born in

Basel, Switzerland. His father, a Calvinist
pastor and a mathematician, wanted him
to become a pastor. Although young Euler
had his own ideas, he followed his father’s
wishes and studied Hebrew and theology
at the University of Basel. His exceptional
mathematical ability brought him to the atten-
tion of the well-known mathematician Johann
Bernoulli (1667–1748). Recognizing the young Euler’s remarkable talents,
Bernoulli succeeded in persuading the father to change his mind, and Euler
pursued his passion for mathematics.
At age 19, Euler published his first paper. Although it failed to win the
prestigious Paris Prize in 1727, he won it twelve times in later years.
In 1727, Euler became the chair of mathematics at St. Petersburg Academy,
founded by Peter the Great. Fourteen years later, he accepted the invitation
of Frederick the Great to run the Prussian Academy in Berlin.
Euler was undoubtedly one of the most prolific mathematicians in history,
making significant contributions to every branch of mathematics. He is known
as the father of graph theory. With his phenomenal memory, he had every for-
mula at his finger tips, and his genius enabled him to work anywhere and under
any conditions. His productivity did not diminish when he became totally
blind in 1768. Among mathematicians, Euler belongs in a class by himself.
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But while Henry was disconsolately considering the matter, things
were moving briskly in the wireless shack. Though he was now really
sick, the chief electrician continued on duty. Alone on his watch, he
was working patiently to uncover the difficulty with his grounded
coil. Once more he had examined this coil thoroughly, yet he could
see no external indications of impairment.
Slowly he now unwound the covering cords that formed the outer
casing for the wrapped wires within. There was still nothing visibly
wrong. But when he had cleared the cords away, and had gotten to
the coil itself, his sharp eye detected a shining little dot, hardly
bigger than a large pinhead, among the wire wrappings. With the
point of his knife-blade he picked at this shining point and found it
was hard, like metal. He believed he had found the difficulty.
Getting a large wooden spool, he began to unwind the copper
wire from the coil, rolling it up on the empty spool as he unrolled it
from the coil. Swiftly he transferred the wire from one cylinder to the
other. As his coil grew thinner he saw that he had found the
difficulty. The bright dot was the head of a long, thin finishing nail.
Presently it was sticking up a half inch above the winding of the coil.
The chief electrician started to pull it out, then thought better of it
and desisted. But even his first slight tug at the nail showed him it
was pretty tight. He went on unwinding. But now he examined the
wire carefully as it unrolled. In piercing the coil, the nail had cut the
insulation of practically every wire it had touched. In one or two
places it had even severed the wire wrapping itself. When at last the
chief electrician unwrapped the last winding of the coil, the nail
dropped to his desk. Its end was bent over at an angle, and the
metal core was scratched where the nail had been bent sidewise.
The whole thing was as plain as day now. Some one had driven the
nail through the coil, finishing the job with one or two hard blows
that had bent the point against the core of the coil, sinking the head
far below the corded cover. The question was, who had done it.
 As soon as he had made this discovery, Mr. Sharp carefully
removed all traces of his work, locked the parts of the damaged coil
in his private drawer, bundled himself up, and sought the captain.
The nail he had in his pocket.
“I have found the trouble, Captain Hardwick,” the chief electrician
reported, when he was alone with the captain in the cabin. “There it
is,” and he laid the bent nail before his commander.
“You look half sick, Sparks,” said the latter, looking at him keenly.
“Be careful of yourself.”
“It’s that wretched cold I got from my ducking at Cape Cod,”
laughed the chief electrician. “I’ll be all right soon.”
The captain picked up the nail and examined it curiously. “Well?”
he said inquiringly.
“That was in the grounded coil,” said the chief electrician. “That is
what grounded it. Some one drove that nail into the coil.”
The captain stared at the nail long and fixedly. “It beats me,” he
said at last. “You think that it was done maliciously, don’t you? Is
there a possibility that it might have been done in an experimental
way? Now, young Harper is very ambitious and desirous of learning.
Might he have been experimenting, trying to learn something, by
fooling with the outfit?”
“In my opinion, Captain, whoever did this did it with perfect
knowledge of what would happen. I cannot think it was done for any
purpose except to put the wireless out of commission.”
The captain frowned. “I fear you are right, Sparks. But who would
want to put the wireless out of commission? I can think of only two
reasons why any one should do that. Some one might have it in for
me or for the operator. If it weren’t that young Black was asleep
when this was done, I’d think he did it. You know he and Harper had
some words.”
“That would explain everything,” said the chief radio man, “but
the facts won’t fit the case.”
“So far as we know, not a soul was on deck except the men on
watch. If some one entered the radio room while Henry was up in
the chart room with me, he would have had to be both sly and slick.
He would have had to watch young Harper’s every movement, and
be all prepared to run in and drive this nail home. It was a terrible
risk to run, for it was certain that the wireless man wouldn’t be away
from his key for more than a minute or two. Discovery was almost
certain. The more I consider it, the more it seems to me that young
Harper must have been experimenting. Did you find anything else
out of its usual order?”
“Now that you speak of it, I did find some loose screws, as
though some of the other instruments had been tampered with.”
“I hate to think of it,” replied the captain, “but it looks very much
as though young Harper took advantage of his position to tinker with
the instruments.”
“That might be true about the other instruments, Captain, but he
would certainly know what would result from driving a nail into a
field coil.”
“Maybe so, maybe so, but he may not know half as much about
wireless as you think. All I can do is to go according to the facts.
They point to young Harper. But we shall have to have more
evidence on the matter before I decide what to do. Furthermore, the
situation is so very unusual that I am puzzled as to what should be
done, even if I knew Harper to be the culprit. In a sense he was a
regular operator. I made him one temporarily. But he is under age,
and we did not have the consent of his mother to his enlistment.
And finally, I should have to take into consideration the very real
service he rendered us during the storm. Strictly, I suppose, he was
only a volunteer that I put in charge for a time.”
“I can’t help feeling that the lad is innocent,” urged the chief radio
man. “He undoubtedly knows a lot about wireless, and no one who
knows anything about it would have done what he did unless he
intended to cripple the service.”
“We must go by the facts, young man, not by theories,” said the
captain a little testily. “But let’s get all the facts. Say nothing. Let no
one know you have discovered the cause of the trouble. If the culprit
thinks he is undiscovered, he may give himself away.”
 CHAPTER XVII
A SHIP IN DISTRESS

The day succeeding that on which Mr. Sharp found the nail in the
field coil was another of those cold, stormy days so typical of the
fall. The heavens were gray with threatening clouds. Fitfully the wind
moaned and sobbed, and there was a rawness in the atmosphere
that penetrated even the warmest of woolen clothing. Everything
portended the approach of a storm.
The weather itself was enough to make one gloomy. But Henry,
already worried sadly by the misfortune that had befallen him, was
almost sick with apprehension. If only he could have done
something toward unraveling the mystery that surrounded him, time
would have passed more quickly and not so dismally. But there
seemed to be nothing he could do except wait.
The day’s newspapers, brought aboard with the mail, told of gales
raging farther along the coast, and of storm warnings posted along
the entire Atlantic. Evidently another gale was sweeping the ocean.
Terrible as had been the storm Henry had so recently witnessed, he
felt that he would almost rejoice at an opportunity to go out and
face another. Then there would be a chance to do something, there
would be an opportunity for action.
It seemed to Henry as though he simply could not endure to
remain idle. Naturally he wanted to get to the bottom of the mystery
of the field coil. But what he should do or what he should try to do
he could not even imagine. To talk about the matter was useless.
That would get him nowhere and advertise something that was
known only to a few. Furthermore the captain himself was
continuing his investigations, and had given strict orders not to talk
about the affair.
 When Henry chanced to pass the stateroom of the wireless
operators, he thought he would stop and inquire how Mr. Sharp was.
The latter had quite evidently been sick the preceding day, though
he stuck to his post. Henry knocked at the door. A feeble voice
invited him to come in. Henry entered, and found the chief
electrician alone. Belford was on watch. Henry did not know where
Black was. It did not matter. He saw at once that Mr. Sharp was very
sick. His cheeks were flushed. Henry stepped to the bunk and laid
his hand on the man’s forehead. It was dry and very hot, and his
eyes had that burned-out, almost plaintive look, that fever sufferers
sometimes have.
“Why, Mr. Sharp,” said Henry, “you’re sick; you’re real sick. You
must have a high fever.”
“I guess that I am about all in,” agreed the chief electrician. “I’ve
been taking some dope that the doctor gave me for this cold, and I
thought that I could throw it off, but I guess it’s got me.”
“Have you reported sick to the doctor?”
“No. I thought a while ago that I had better do so, but there
wasn’t any one here to take a message, and I felt so rocky I just
hadn’t gumption enough to get up and go to the doctor myself.”
“Let me call the doctor for you,” urged Henry.
“All right. I’ll be obliged to you.”
Delighted to find something to do, Henry stepped from the room
and hurried aft to the wardroom. There he found the doctor, who
came at once. When the latter had taken Mr. Sharp’s temperature
and examined him otherwise, he said: “Sparks, it’s you for the sick
bay, quick. What do you mean by lying here half dead and not
sending for help?”
“You can’t put me in any sick bay,” protested the chief electrician
weakly. “I’ve got to go on duty shortly.”
At that the doctor exploded. “Humph!” he snorted. “Duty! Yes, on
a white cot! You’ll be lucky if you see the radio room again in a
fortnight.”
Henry saw his chance. “Let me take your turns at the key, Mr.
Sharp,” he begged. “I promise you nothing more shall happen to the
instruments when I am on watch. I’ll never leave the room for a
second, after this.”
When the chief electrician seemed to hesitate, Henry continued
his pleading. “Mr. Sharp, you don’t believe that I had anything to do
with damaging that coil, do you?”
“No, I do not,” said the chief electrician decisively. “And I’m
perfectly willing to have you go back on duty, but I don’t know what
the skipper will think about it.”
“Will you ask him if I may go back on duty?” begged Henry.
“Yes,” murmured Mr. Sharp weakly.
Henry fairly raced for the captain’s cabin and told the commander
that Mr. Sharp was sick and would like to speak to him. Captain
Hardwick at once went forward. Henry stepped outside the
stateroom and the captain conferred with the chief electrician. The
result of that talk was that Mr. Sharp, who was now suffering from
pneumonia, went to the sick bay and Henry again went on duty in
the wireless house.
The very first message he caught was an order from headquarters
for the Iroquois to proceed to sea at once and take the oil tanker
Rayolite in tow. Henry was going to have his desire fulfilled. The
cutter was to go out and once more wrestle with the ocean. The
Rayolite, an unfinished tanker, was being towed from Nova Scotia to
New York. In the storm the towing tug had deserted her, and the
ship was somewhere out on the ocean, driving helplessly before the
wind. Her position was given in the despatch as approximately forty-
one north, seventy-one west. There were some maps in the wireless
shack, so after he had sent the message to the imperiled tanker
Henry looked up her position. It seemed to be almost due east of
the eastern end of Long Island. The wind was east of north, so that
the helpless tanker would be blown along almost parallel with the
coast line. Henry was glad of that. He did not want to see any more
ships piled up on the shore.
Within a very few minutes after the receipt of this message, the
Iroquois was once more heading out to sea. Clad in thick woolen
garments and oilskins, the captain stood on the bridge, conning the
cutter through the channel. He was needed there. The passage, so
fair and easy on a clear day, now called for the utmost caution.
Lowering clouds of fog were driving in from the sea, increasing in
density with every minute. Snow had begun to fall, at first coming in
gusty squalls. Then it fell steadily, the dancing flakes driven in
swirling clouds before the sweeping winds. At times the snow
changed to rain, and was flung in blinding sheets against the little
cutter.
Cautiously the Iroquois nosed her way down the channel, the
water becoming rougher and rougher as she approached the open
sea. Looking into the swirling, blinding curtain of fog and snow,
Henry did not see how the captain could possibly find his way. But
with chart and compass to direct him, and his wonderful seaman’s
sense of direction to aid him, he took the cutter from buoy to buoy,
along the channel, straight out again to the Ambrose Lightship.
With the open sea before him, the captain now confidently set the
cutter upon the course he had plotted to reach, a point to leeward of
the position forty-one north, seventy-one west, whither the Rayolite
would likely have drifted. All the while wind and sea were making
up, more and more tumultuously. In the wireless shack Henry tried
again and again to reach the Rayolite. No one on board knew
whether the unfinished tanker was equipped with wireless, but hour
after hour, at intervals, Henry persisted in his attempt to get word
from the helpless vessel. As the Iroquois continued on her way, the
wind began to shift to the east, a fact that Henry noted with
apprehension. He had seen all that he wanted to see of raging
storms that blew directly toward the shore. Regardless of wind and
wave, the Iroquois drove on through the storm, hour after hour, until
at last, as nearly as the commander could tell by dead reckoning,
the cutter had attained the desired point to leeward of the position
forty-one north, seventy-one west.
Long ago night had fallen. Again and again Henry had swept the
stormy skies with the wireless, seeking to get some answering
vibration from the Rayolite, but always his efforts had been futile.
Now, as the cutter rolled in the seas, at the point where the captain
had figured the Rayolite ought to be, there was neither light nor
sound to suggest the presence of another ship. Tumultuous waves
and driving curtains of fog and snow shut in the Iroquois. Again and
again Henry combed the atmosphere with his flashing signals, but
no answering sound returned through the night. Henry could not see
how it would be humanly possible to find a ship under such
circumstances in such a welter of raging water.
But nothing seemed to dismay Captain Hardwick. When he had
swept the seas with his searchlight, and blown his siren again and
again, without getting any response, he methodically set about
finding the lost tanker, making a grid as he had done when
searching for the derelict. All night long the cutter followed the
pattern of the grid, and all night long the storm grew worse, and
wind and sea made up more furiously than ever. The captain was
very careful to lay his course so that mostly he was either bucking
the heavy seas or running before them.
Dawn brought no cessation of the storm. With undiminished fury
it lashed the sea and clutched at the staunch little cutter. Nor was
there any sign of the lost Rayolite, until young Black, standing his
watch in the radio shack, caught a very faint call for help. He
magnified the sound to the maximum, but was able to get nothing
more. At once Henry was summoned. He threw over his switch and
flashed out an answering call, asking for the vessel’s name and
position. His message carried true, for almost immediately came a
hardly audible answer. The message was from the lost tanker. She
did not know her position. She had sixteen men aboard, with no
machinery, no ballast, and forty feet of freeboard. There was little
food and almost no water left. She had a small radio set, operated
by a small storage battery, that might carry fifty miles at most. She
was wallowing fearfully and driving helpless before the storm.
Henry remained on watch while Black took the message to the
captain. “Try to get a bearing with the radio compass,” ordered the
captain.
Black hurried to rejoin Henry. “Tell the Rayolite we want to get a
compass bearing,” said Black.
 Henry turned to his key and flashed the call of the Rayolite.
Hardly audible was the acknowledgment. “Iroquois wants compass
bearing,” telegraphed Henry. “Flash letters MO continuously several
minutes. Stand by for answer.”
“Will flash let——” came the reply, so faint that Henry hardly
caught the signals. The end of the message was lost altogether.
“She’s gone,” said Henry, aghast. Then he added: “Maybe she’s
only gone out of hearing. We must be heading away from her. Tell
the captain.”
Black rushed for the captain. Henry turned to his key. Again and
again he flashed out the call of the Rayolite, but no answering signal
came through the storm. Without turning from his instruments he
knew that the Iroquois was changing her course. She began to roll
fearfully in the trough of the sea. Henry had to cling to his desk to
keep from sliding out of his chair. Once such rolling of the ship would
have filled him with terror. Now he thought little of it. He was too
intent on what he was doing.
For a long time they drove on through the storm. Belford relieved
Black in the wireless shack. Suddenly Henry became aware that
something unusual was happening. Again he sensed the fact that
the ship was turning, but this time he knew that it was different.
Now the motion of the cutter was terrifying. At times she was almost
on her beams’ ends. Henry peered out through the windows. He
noticed that life-lines had been run along the deck, to grip when
passing. He had not realized how truly awful the sea had become.
When he glanced over the side of the ship, his heart fairly stood still.
They were almost in the breakers. Evidently the captain had been
wrong in his reckoning. The cutter had almost piled up on the
shoals. She was coming about, very, very slowly. Now Henry
understood why she rolled so terribly. He clung to his desk and
watched the sea and the boiling breakers in silence, fascinated,
almost paralyzed with horror. Was the Iroquois going to be where
the Capitol City had so recently been?
At last the ship was headed about, bow to the sea, but the waves
had drifted her so close to the surf that every second Henry
expected to feel the ship jar and pound on the sands. In the pilot
house the captain stood with nerve of iron, though his cheeks had
gone white, directing every movement of the Iroquois. The instant
she was nose to the sea, he signaled for full speed ahead. The cutter
drove forward, and a huge wave, sweeping completely over her bow,
tore aft along her deck, smashing and rending. The two small boats
were snatched bodily from their davits and hurled far astern into the
raging sea. A third was torn loose, and hung by its after-fall,
swinging back and forth with the motion of the Iroquois, like a
monster pendulum, pounding the ship’s rail to pieces.
“Look!” cried Henry. “That boat will batter a hole in the side of the
ship. I must tell the captain.”
He dashed out of the radio house, leaving Belford on watch.
Before Henry had taken two steps he realized how reckless he had
been to jump out on the deck so thoughtlessly. He could not stand
erect without support. Wildly he clutched for a life-line, caught it,
and started for the bridge. But the captain was well aware of what
had happened. Already he was making preparations to cut away the
swinging boat. Sailors were issuing on deck with axes. The captain
himself came down from the bridge.
“Stand back,” roared the commander. “That boat’s liable to tear
loose and kill somebody.”
Quickly a rope was tied about the body of a sailor, and cautiously
he approached the swinging boat. Watching his opportunity, he
swung his axe against the fall, severing it. The lifeboat dropped
outboard like a plummet. An upshooting wave lifted it and flung it
aft. The sailors turned to seek shelter. A cross comber broke over the
side of the ship, drenching everybody. Henry alone was not in
oilskins. He was soaked to the skin. Quick as thought he darted to
the stateroom and grabbed up a dry jacket. He didn’t know whose it
was. Back in the radio shack, he drew off his own dripping coat and
slipped on the borrowed garment. In the warm radio shack he knew
he would soon dry out.
Steadily the Iroquois headed into the wind. That outlying shoal
that had all but caught the Iroquois was the eastern tip of Long
Island. Well enough the captain knew that, and now he corrected his
course. Somewhere to the southeast of this point the Rayolite would
likely be.
When he had worked far enough offshore, the captain changed
his course again, heading west of south. All the while Henry was
trying, from time to time, to pick up the Rayolite again with the
wireless. For a long time he got no answer to his messages. Then
came an almost inaudible reply. The Rayolite could hear the Iroquois
plainly and had answered all her calls. Once more Henry instructed
the Rayolite to sound the letters MO while the Iroquois tried to get a
compass bearing. While Henry sat at his key, Belford made his way
to the radio compass room. This was a little, squarish structure
amidships. Inside, the roof was lined with copper screening so that
the body of the operator would not influence the inductance and
affect the compass. The radio compass itself, a great wrapping of
wire on a rectangular frame, like the four sides of a rectangular box,
was mounted on a vertical metal rod, so it could be twirled round in
a circle. Encircling the revolving vertical shaft was a circular plate,
not unlike the steering wheel of a motor-car, upon which were
marked the three hundred and sixty degrees of a circle. The
compass was at zero when its windings or wire-wrapped sides were
parallel with the ship. As the compass was revolved, the listening
operator would hear, with varying degrees of loudness, the signal he
was watching for. Now he heard the sound with maximum
distinctness. Again it grew faint, and, as he twisted the compass
farther around the circle, the signal once more reached its loudest
pitch. The two maximum sound points the operator noted on the
degree-marked circular plate. Halfway between these two maximum
points, or at the point of minimum distinctness, was the desired
bearing, the point whence came the desired signal. A zero bearing
meant that the signal came from either dead ahead or astern.
Now young Belford carefully closed the door of the compass
shack, adjusted the headphones, and slowly revolved the radio
compass. Very indistinct was the signal from the Rayolite. Again and
again the young operator revolved his compass, uncertain when the
sound came loudest, so faint was it at all times. But finally he
decided upon a bearing, and through the speaking tube called up
this bearing to the quartermaster on the monkey bridge. A true
compass was located on the monkey bridge. The compass in the
radio shack deviated from this, so that it was necessary to correct
young Belford’s bearing. This the quartermaster did, and conveyed
the resulting information to the captain. There was a deviation table
in the radio shack that Belford could have consulted, but he had had
little experience with the radio compass.
Now the Iroquois was headed straight in the direction indicated by
the radio compass. Every fifteen minutes Henry flashed out the call
of the Rayolite and got a reply. For some time these replies grew
constantly stronger, and then became fainter, yet the ship signaled
that she could hear the Iroquois with increasing distinctness. It was
evident that the tanker’s wireless was failing.
Henry went up to the bridge and told the captain. The captain
considered a moment, and Henry looked about while he waited. The
storm had abated not a particle. The view was still veiled by shifting,
swirling curtains of snow, but the fog had lifted. The waves were
tremendous, but as the Iroquois was no longer bucking them, they
did not seem so terrifying. Yet the sea was appalling enough to one
so little accustomed to it as Henry was.
Suddenly the captain spoke. “Henry,” he directed, “tell the
Rayolite that her signals are getting weaker, and that her battery is
evidently going bad. Tell her to save her battery. I’m going to fire a
gun every twenty minutes. Tell her to indicate whether or not she
hears it. A single word will answer.”
Henry returned to the radio shack and flashed the message to the
tanker. A moment later there was a terrific explosion that made him
fairly jump in his chair. He began to make the sparks fly under his
key. “Iroquois just fired gun,” he flashed. “Did you hear?”
A long pause followed. Then came the faint reply, “No.”
Twenty minutes later another shot was fired. Once more Henry
called the Rayolite and asked if she had heard it. And again came
the answer, “No.”
 Three times every hour the Iroquois fired a shot, but for a long
time the sound of the reports did not reach the struggling ship.
Meantime the day was passing fast. Late afternoon came, and still
the Iroquois had not found the helpless tanker. But as dusk was
descending there came the joyful word from the Rayolite, “Heard
your shot faintly.”
Again the captain called for a compass bearing. This time the
signals from the tanker came much more distinctly, and the captain
accordingly altered his course. The first faint call had given Belford a
bearing not quite correct. The Iroquois continued to fire her gun.
Forty minutes after the course was changed the Rayolite reported
that she heard the shot from the Iroquois clearly.
When Henry sought the bridge with this cheering news, the
commander said, “Tell the Rayolite operator to set his watch with
yours. At five o’clock I will fire another shot. At the same instant you
are to notify him by wireless. Tell him to note how many seconds
elapse between the time he gets your flash and the time he hears
my gun.”
Once more Henry called the Rayolite and explained the captain’s
plan. “At five exactly we will fire,” concluded Henry.
Five o’clock came. Henry sat at his desk, switch thrown over,
finger on his key. “Bang!” crashed the gun. Flash, went Henry’s
signal. Then he sat in silence, waiting almost breathlessly for the
reply. Five, ten, fifteen seconds elapsed. Half a minute went by.
There was no reply. Another half minute passed and the wireless
was silent. Henry looked worried.
“Do you suppose her wireless has failed altogether?” he asked
Belford. Before the latter could answer, Henry’s headphones began
to speak. “Sixty-five seconds difference,” came the reply, both brief
and faint.
When the captain received the news he did a little figuring.
“Thirteen miles distant,” he commented. “We ought to be up with
her in a couple of hours.”
The two hours passed, and no ship was visible. Still the storm
raged without abatement. Night had come. For two days and a night
the Iroquois had been searching the stormy sea for this tanker that
seemed to evade her so persistently. She ought to be at hand, but
nowhere could she be seen. Through the blinding storm came no
sign of the fugitive vessel. No shaft of light pierced the swirling
curtain of snow and mist.
Then suddenly there was the Rayolite, almost abreast of them,
not more than three hundred yards distant. It was impossible to
send a line to her. No small boat could live in such a sea. It was
doubtful if a shot would carry true. The captain swung the Iroquois
directly to windward of the tanker, and cut down his speed almost to
nothing. In a moment the huge ship was almost out of sight. With
her tremendous freeboard, she drove before the gale almost as fast
as the Iroquois could steam. The captain turned his searchlight
directly on the vanishing tanker, signaled for more speed, and drove
straight at her. And all night long the Iroquois steamed directly at
the Rayolite, which drove furiously ahead, under the pressure of the
gale. The captain left the bridge and threw himself on the cushioned
seats in his cabin, to snatch some sleep. Henry, who had spent long,
long hours on duty, made his way to the operators’ cabin and lay
down, fully dressed, in Black’s bed. The latter and Belford were to
watch through the night, with Henry subject to call, if messages had
to be sent. He was so worn out that he did not even remove his
coat, the jacket he had snatched from the wardrobe after his
wetting.
Daylight saw no cessation of the wind, though the snow had
ceased to fall, and no longer was the face of the deep clouded with
mist. When the captain came on deck again, after a few hours’ rest,
he pushed the cutter straight at the Rayolite until she was close
behind her. Meantime he had sent a wireless to the tanker, telling
her to watch for a line. Now the little brass gun was brought to the
cutter’s forward rail, and that sturdy little craft was pushed still
nearer the tanker, which was driving ahead, broadside to. At a
favorable moment the shot was fired, the slender shot-line went
hurtling squarely over the centre of the huge tanker, and the men on
her seized it and began to draw it home. A heavier line was bent to
it, and soon the end of this had been pulled aboard the Rayolite.
Meantime a heavy towing hawser had been passed out through a
stern chock of the Iroquois, and the bight of it brought forward,
outside of the rail, where it was stopped up or tied with little stops
or small ropes. This was to keep the hawser from fouling the
propeller, when the cutter should swing around, stern to her tow.
Then the hawser was rove round the cutter’s forward bitts. Through
Henry the commander now sent a message to the Rayolite.
“Take hawser in through your forward chock and make it fast
around your foremast,” telegraphed Henry.
The men on the Rayolite bent to their task and soon pulled the
great hawser aboard. They made it fast to the mast.
“Everything ready,” came the message to Henry from the Rayolite.
The captain signaled for more speed. The Iroquois was pushed
ahead to get slack. Then the bight of the hawser was cast off the
bitts, and the speed of the cutter lessened. Gradually the hawser
grew taut. It stretched as tight as a fiddlestring. Then slowly the
giant tanker, pressed by the wind, began to turn. The hawser, led
through her forward chock, held her bow fast. The wind drove her
stern round until she was head to the Iroquois. In another moment
the Iroquois herself began to swing. With a startling snap one of the
slender stops that held the hawser to the rail parted. Another broke
under the strain. The cutter swung further around. One stop after
another parted. Finally the Iroquois lay stern to her tow, the hawser
taut between them, with no danger of its fouling the propeller.
In turning, the little cutter lay for a moment in the trough of the
sea. She rolled alarmingly. At her first pitch Henry’s chair went
sliding across the floor, and pads and pencils flew from the desk. At
the same instant a message from the Rayolite began to sound in the
lad’s ear. He could not reach his fallen pencils. Instinctively he
reached in the pocket of the jacket he was wearing. He found a
mass of trash and drew it forth, hoping to find a pencil. There were
strings, matches, cigarette papers, bits of chalk, and other articles.
Among the mass shone two slender little cylinders of metal that
made Henry’s heart fairly stop beating. They were two slender
finishing nails.
 CHAPTER XVIII
A CLUE TO THE CULPRIT

With the call of the Rayolite sounding in his ears, Henry had to
leave the nails for later consideration. He swept all the mass of stuff
back into his pocket and turned to his key. When he had taken the
message, he sent it up to the captain by a sailor. That done, he
stripped off the coat and searched it thoroughly. But nothing else of
interest was to be found. The coat was one of those dark blue sailor
jackets. There were dozens exactly like it on the Iroquois. No name
or identifying initials could be found in it. Henry was not really sure
whose coat it was. Both Black and Belford had been wearing heavy
sweaters. The coat might belong to either. It might even be Mr.
Sharp’s coat. Henry had grabbed it out of the wardrobe when his
own had got wet, with little thought as to who owned it.
Presently Belford came on duty. “I’m much obliged for the loan of
your coat,” said Henry. “I grabbed it and pulled it on yesterday after
I got wet, without stopping to ask your permission.”
Belford looked at the coat a moment, then looked inside. “It’s not
my coat,” he observed. “I have my initials sewed in mine. But you’d
be welcome to it if it were mine.”
Henry drew a deep sigh of relief. “So it’s not yours, eh? Then
whose is it?”
“That’s Black’s, I’m sure.”
“I think I’ll get a breath of fresh air,” said Henry.
“That won’t be difficult. It’s blowing a streak, but nothing like it
did yesterday.”
Henry left the radio shack and made his way to the bridge.
“Captain Hardwick,” he said, “when you find it convenient, I’d like to
talk to you privately.”
 The captain looked at Henry sharply. “Come to my cabin at noon,”
he said.
All the morning long the commander remained at his post on the
bridge. The storm was easing up, but the high seas made the towing
of the Rayolite difficult. Too much strain on the towing hawser would
cause it to part. With too little tension, the Rayolite was harder to
handle. The captain, with his long experience, knew that he dare not
relax his vigilance for a moment, but when mess gear was piped, he
turned the control of the cutter over to Lieutenant Hill with a few
words of caution, and made his way to his cabin.
Impatiently Henry had been waiting for this move, and hardly had
Captain Hardwick reached his quarters before the lad was knocking
at his door.
“Well, Henry,” smiled the commander as the young wireless
operator entered the cabin, “what can I do for you?”
“Do you see this jacket?” asked Henry, with feverish eagerness,
pulling off the garment in question. “When I got wet yesterday while
that small boat was being cut loose, I ran into the stateroom and
grabbed this coat out of the wardrobe. I put it on in place of my own
wet one. This morning I got to feeling around in the pocket in search
of a pencil and this is what I found.”
From the pocket Henry drew out the entire mass of rubbish and
dumped it on the captain’s table. Then he sorted out the two
finishing nails and handed them to the captain. “They looked to me
exactly like the nail Mr. Sharp found in the damaged field coil,”
explained Henry.
The commander examined the nails with interest. Unlocking a
drawer in his desk, he drew out the nail Mr. Sharp had given him and
laid it beside the others. The three were identical, though of course
the one was bent.
“Whose coat is that?” demanded Captain Hardwick.
“I can’t say for sure, sir, but I think it’s Black’s. Belford says it is.”
“I thought I gave orders not to say anything about this matter,”
said the captain severely, an angry frown wrinkling his forehead.
 “I haven’t been talking about it. I merely asked Mr. Belford if the
coat was his. I didn’t tell him about the nails.”
“Who was with you when you found the nails?”
“Nobody, sir.”
“Nobody! Then how do I know that you really found them in the
coat? What was to prevent you from putting them in the coat
yourself and then bringing it to me, to throw suspicion on Black?”
Poor Henry! For a moment he looked heartbroken. Then he
became indignant. “Captain Hardwick,” he cried, “do you think I
would do a trick like that?”
“It doesn’t matter what I think,” replied the commander. “The fact
that you found two finishing nails in Black’s coat doesn’t prove
anything. There may be a dozen other coats on this ship with similar
nails in them. Don’t you see that it is one thing to assert something
and quite another to prove it? This is likely Black’s coat, though you
haven’t proved even that. But it doesn’t follow that Black put the
nails in his coat. Somebody else may have done it, even if you
didn’t.”
“Captain Hardwick,” protested Henry, “don’t you trust me at all?”
The captain smiled. “It isn’t a matter of trust, Henry. You come to
me with something you regard as evidence against Black. I’m glad to
have any evidence in the matter that is evidence, but we must be
sure that it is, before we use it. Don’t you understand what I am
driving at?”
“I see,” said Henry, drawing a breath of relief. “The finding of
these nails isn’t proof of anything. I grasp that all right. But it’s—
suggestive.”
“Now you are on exactly the right tack. It’s very suggestive. You
think that I’ve been a little hard on you, Henry. I want to be fair.
Now I’ll say that I think it much more likely that Black would have
had nails in his coat than that you would have had them about you.
Boys dressed to go visiting don’t ordinarily carry nails with them.”
Henry’s face evidently showed the relief he felt. The captain
smiled again. “It was quite right for you to bring me this coat,” he
continued. “I shall follow up this suggestion. Meantime I want you to
go on about your work and say nothing about the matter.”
Henry thanked the commander and withdrew from the cabin.
Hardly had he left before the captain punched his call-bell and sent
Rollin to summon the quartermaster. The latter was the captain’s
prime favorite and right-hand man among the non-commissioned
officers.
“Quartermaster,” said the commander when his helper appeared,
“immediately after I go back to the bridge, I want you to slip into
the wireless stateroom without being observed, and search the
place. Keep your eyes open, especially for nails like this,” and the
commander held out the two nails Henry had given him. “Look in all
the nooks and corners, the bunks, and elsewhere, and notice
anything out of the ordinary that you find. Above all, as you value
your job, don’t say a word about this to any one.”
When Captain Hardwick passed to the bridge, he poked his head
into the radio shack. “Belford,” he said, “I want you in the chart-
room. And I want you, Black, to stick close to your instruments.
Don’t leave them for a second. The Rayolite may be signaling us at
any time, and it’s important to catch her message instantly. The
hawser is likely to part at any moment if we aren’t careful. Harper is
to stand watch with you.”
Belford followed his commander up to the chart-room, where he
was put to work erasing lines from some old charts. The
quartermaster promptly seized his opportunity to slip into the
stateroom, where he locked the door, hung a cloth over the window,
and got to work. For more than an hour he searched everywhere
and found nothing out of the way. But when he got to work in the
bunks, he found, tucked securely away under the top mattress, a
peculiar little hammer. He put the room to rights again, uncovered
the window-pane, picked up the hammer, and, concealing it in the
palm of his hand, stepped out on deck.
He found himself face to face with the ship’s carpenter. A sudden
lurch of the ship threw them together. Laughing, each grasped the
other. As well as he could the quartermaster kept his fingers closed
over the hammer-head, but the quick eyes of the carpenter saw the
protruding ends of it.
“So you’re the fellow who borrowed that, are you?” he said. “I’ve
been hunting all over for that hammer. Why didn’t you tell me you
had borrowed it?”
For a moment the quartermaster was at a loss. He knew not what
to say. Then he asked the carpenter to come with him to the
captain.
“Captain,” said the quartermaster, when they had mounted to the
bridge, “I have some things I would like to tell you. The carpenter
here can help explain them.”
The captain stepped to the chart-room and dismissed Belford,
who at once departed. Then the captain, the quartermaster, and the
carpenter stepped into the chart-room and closed the doors.
“I found this hammer under the mattress of the top bunk in the
wireless men’s room,” explained the quartermaster. “Black sleeps in
that bunk. As I came out on deck I bumped into the carpenter, here.
I thought that I had the hammer concealed, but he caught sight of it
in my closed fist. It seems he has been looking for this very hammer
for some days. It belongs in his tool kit.”
“When and how did you lose your hammer?” asked the
commander.
“I was using it last Thursday. When evening mess gear was piped,
I had not quite finished the job I was doing, and I left it lying with
my work while I ate my supper. When I went back to finish the job,
the hammer was missing.”
“Where were you at work?”
“Close to the stairway where the men come down from deck, sir. I
pushed my work to one side, where it would not be in the way, and
stepped to the table. I wasn’t away from it half an hour.”
“The hammer was where any one could get it easily, was it?”
“Yes, sir. It was just beside the stairway. Any one going up or
down the stairs could have seen it, and it was necessary to take only
a step to one side of the stairway to reach it. Any one going up the
steps from supper could have picked it up easily without being
noticed.”
“What were you doing with the hammer?”
“I was making a case for the executive officer, sir. He wanted a
case with pigeonholes to hold some of his account books.”
“Then you were using small nails to fasten in the partitions with, I
take it.”
“Yes, sir, some long, thin, finishing nails. They were like these, sir.”
And the carpenter thrust his hand into his pocket, drew forth an
assortment of nails, and fished out a finishing nail that was the
duplicate of those Henry had so recently found.
“Give it to me,” directed the captain.
“It looks to me,” continued the commander, after the carpenter
had handed him the nail, “as though some one coming up to the
deck after eating must have picked up your hammer and perhaps
some nails with it.”
“I can’t say about the nails,—they were scattered about on the
case,—but there is no doubt some one got the hammer.”
“It looks as though young Black got it,” said the quartermaster.
The captain dismissed the two men. “I don’t want a word said
about this,” he warned them. “Be very careful that you do not
mention it to any one.”
The moment he was alone the captain turned to a calendar. “Last
Thursday,” he muttered to himself, “was the day we got back to New
York from Boston. Henry was on duty in the wireless house every
minute that evening. I don’t know that he even got any supper. I
must find out what Black was doing at that hour. I guess the best
way to do it is through the quartermaster.”
Again the quartermaster was called and instructed to find out
from the third-class wireless man, without arousing the latter’s
suspicions, at what time he ate his supper on the preceding
Thursday evening. That was not a difficult thing to do. Later in the
day the quartermaster engaged young Black in conversation and
turned the talk to the events of their run from Boston.
 “You missed your supper the night we got in, didn’t you?” asked
the quartermaster.
“Not on your life,” said Black. “You don’t catch me missing
anything like that. I was one of the first fellows at the table.”
“I’ll bet I’ll be one of the first there this noon,” said the
quartermaster. “I’m hungry enough to eat a bear.”
He said good-bye to Black and reported to Captain Hardwick.
When the commander was alone, he said to himself: “The trail
grows warm. Black went to supper at the first pipe of the whistle. He
likely finished before the others, and went out. Nails and hammer lay
invitingly beside the stairway. Unobserved, he snatched up the
hammer and some nails, and thrust them into his coat. A little later a
nail of that same kind got into the wireless outfit. Later still, nails
and hammer are found in Black’s possession, or, what amounts to
the same thing.”
The captain frowned. “But Black was asleep when that nail got
into the wireless,” he commented. He pondered a moment. “By
George! I wonder if he was asleep,” he exclaimed. “Everything
hinges on that. How am I going to find out?”
 CHAPTER XIX
THE CULPRIT DISCOVERED

Night had come before the captain left the bridge. As he paced
back and forth he turned over in his mind the problem of the
finishing nail. Black could not have driven the nail into the field coil if
he was really asleep at the time he was believed to have been. Was
Black asleep or not? How was he ever to discover? Again and again
the commander of the Iroquois asked himself that question, as he
moved about the bridge. He could see no way to solve the problem.
Gradually the wind fell, and with its fall the sea grew less violent.
The cloud rack thinned. Vigilantly the captain watched the sky.
Finally what he was looking for appeared. The clouds parted for a
space, revealing the purple vault of heaven, studded with shining
stars. Quickly he seized his instruments and ascertained his position.
Now he knew exactly where the Iroquois was. The position of the
cutter was but little different from that in which his dead reckoning
put her. The captain rectified his position on the chart, and then,
vastly relieved, he turned the cutter over to Lieutenant Hill and went
to his cabin. The Rayolite was towing securely, wind and sea were
growing calmer with every hour, and the cutter’s position was known
exactly. He had done a hard job and done it well. No wonder the
commander was gratified.
If only he could handle the other problem as satisfactorily. But
how? That was the question he asked himself over and over. Rollin
brought the commander food. When he had eaten, Captain
Hardwick got out the three finishing nails. He sat looking at them for
a while, his brow wrinkled in deep thought. “If Sparks is fit to be
seen,” he said to himself, “I ought to show him these. He might be
able to suggest some course of action that would help.”
 Captain Hardwick arose and went forward to the sick bay. He met
the surgeon at the door. “How’s Mr. Sharp?” asked the commander.
“He’s pretty sick, Captain, but I think he’ll pull through all right.
He’s got a fine constitution and is tough as nails. But we’ll have to
take care of him.”
The captain seemed to hesitate. “I—I suppose it wouldn’t do to
talk to him?” he asked.
“Well, that would depend. It would hardly do any harm to talk to
him a moment and wish him a quick recovery. It wouldn’t be wise to
talk to him, though, if your conversation would excite him.”
“I suppose it wouldn’t do,” said the captain regretfully. “Yet I
wanted very much to talk to him.”
“I don’t want to be inquisitive, Captain, but perhaps if you could
give me an idea of what you want to say to him, I could judge if it
would be best. Perhaps, though, it is a private matter.”
“No, it isn’t, Doctor. It’s a matter that concerns us all. You are one
of my official family, and I may as well tell you. Only please do not
talk about it.”
“Of course I wouldn’t repeat what you say, Captain, but don’t tell
me unless you wish to do so.”
“You recall that we had a little difficulty with the wireless the
evening we got back to New York from Boston, don’t you, Doctor?”
“Yes. That was the evening Sparks, here, got back aboard. I
heard something had gone wrong. But the chief electrician soon
fixed it up, I was told. I supposed that it didn’t amount to anything.”
“In a way, it didn’t. In another way, it was a very serious affair.”
“So?” queried the doctor.
“Yes. The difficulty was merely a grounded coil in the field. But
the coil had been grounded purposely, and grounded by some one
on this ship.” The surgeon was all attention. “We were just coming
up the channel and about to drop anchor. It was early evening—
seven o’clock, to be exact. Young Harper was on watch. He received
a message for me, and, leaving the wireless shack, he ran up to the
bridge to me. I read the message, wrote a reply, and Henry ran back
to his key. A little later he came charging back, to say that his
wireless wouldn’t work. I sent for the other wireless men. Belford
was talking to the quartermaster beside the wheelhouse. Black was
fast asleep in his bunk. But Sharp came aboard in a few moments,
found the trouble, and fixed the outfit up.”
“That is what I had understood,” remarked the doctor.
“Next day,” continued the captain, “Mr. Sharp found out what had
grounded the defective coil. It was this.” And the commander held
out the bent finishing nail. “Some one had driven that nail into the
coil in those few minutes that Henry was up in the chart-room with
me.”
“Can it be possible!” cried the doctor, amazed.
“I regret to say it is. What is more, Henry pulled on a coat of
Black’s after his ducking yesterday, and this morning he found these
in the pocket of that coat.”
“You don’t mean it!” exclaimed the surgeon.
“And what’s still more,” continued the captain, “my quartermaster
found a hammer in Black’s bunk, that the carpenter says was stolen
at supper time of the evening we anchored—just a few minutes
before the coil was ruined. The hammer was lying, with nails like
these, on the carpenter’s work at the foot of the stairs leading to the
mess-table. Furthermore, Black and Harper had words, and Black
threatened to fix Harper for reporting him to me. The thing leads to
Black as straight as a string. But there’s one weak link in the chain of
evidence: Black was asleep at the time this was done.”
“When did you say it happened?”
“At seven o’clock in the evening, just as we were coming to
anchor.”
The surgeon was silent a moment, lost in thought. Then suddenly
he spoke. “I remember it all very well. We were, as you say, just
coming to anchor. I recall it because I had been sent for to look after
one of the sailors who had crushed a finger while working with the
anchor-chain. I remember distinctly that the first thing I heard,
when I put my head out of the companionway, was the ship’s bell. It
was exactly seven o’clock.”
 “That’s exactly the instant Henry was scampering up the ladder to
me,” said the captain.
“I hurried forward,” continued the surgeon. “A few seconds later I
reached the radio shack. A dark figure came tearing around the rear
of that structure and almost bumped into me. The fellow saw me
and drew back. I passed on. The fellow went into the radio room, for
I distinctly heard the door slam after I passed. He was evidently in
too much of a hurry to shut it quietly.”
The surgeon paused. “The fellow!” cried the captain. “Who was
he? Have you any idea?”
“I certainly have. Although it was perfectly dark out on deck, I
saw the man’s face clearly outlined against a light. It was Black.”
 CHAPTER XX
HENRY’S EXONERATION

With such a line of evidence against Black, the outcome of the

court-martial that quickly followed was a certainty. Black was
convicted, dishonorably discharged from the Coast Guard service,
sentenced to serve a prison term, and thrust into the brig, after
being stripped of his uniform.
Quite as naturally Henry was appointed to fill his place. The
appointment, however, could not become really effective until Henry
should receive his mother’s permission to enlist. He had no doubt
her consent would be forthcoming. He had already written to obtain
it, and was expecting a reply soon. Everybody on board seemed
genuinely glad when Henry was completely exonerated, and nobody
was more pleased than Captain Hardwick. He had come to like the
lad immensely.
“Henry,” he said, “I never had more satisfaction in appointing any
one to a position under my command than I have in appointing you.
If you continue to be as faithful as you have been so far, there won’t
be any question, when your probationary three months are up,
about your confirmation as a permanent member of my wireless
staff. With Mr. Sharp and Mr. Belford and you, I shall have one of the
best wireless staffs in the service.”
Nor was Mr. Sharp or Belford one whit less pleased with the
change in the wireless staff. Neither of them had ever liked the third-
class radio man. When Mr. Sharp shook Henry’s hand in
congratulation, Henry said, “Mr. Sharp, I want you to teach me
everything there is to know about wireless.”
The chief electrician laughed. “I can’t do that, Henry,” he smiled.
“I don’t know everything myself. But I’ll be glad to teach you all I do
know. With two such students as you and Jimmy, I’ll have to hustle
to keep ahead of you.”
Even the weather seemed to rejoice with Henry, for the clouds
disappeared, the sun came out clear, and the day following the
rescue of the Rayolite was one of rare beauty. The Iroquois was able
to quicken her speed and bring her tow into New York Harbor before
darkness again fell.
As the cutter steamed up the channel, Henry got into touch with
Roy and flashed him the joyful news that the mystery of the field coil
had been solved, and that he himself had been exonerated and
permanently appointed third member of the radio staff.
There were more good things in store for Henry. Next day the
mail boy brought him two letters. One was from Willie, regretting his
unforeseen absence from New York and announcing his speedy
return; and the other was from Henry’s mother, giving her consent
to his enlistment as a Coast Guard wireless man.
Henry took his mother’s letter to Captain Hardwick. The captain
smiled with satisfaction as he read it. “That settles the matter for
sure,” he said. “This communication makes your appointment
effective, and you are now a regularly appointed member of my
staff. My congratulations, Sparks!”
Henry took the proffered hand. “It will be a great day for me,
Captain,” he said, “when I am a real Sparks like Mr. Sharp. I intend
to be. I’m going to study hard and climb up.”
“Your appointment is a probationary one, you understand,” said
the commander. “But I haven’t the least doubt that at the end of
three months I shall be able to confirm it.”
“I’ll do all I possibly can to deserve such confirmation,” said Henry
stoutly. “We wireless men want to help you all we can, Captain.”
“I wish you could help me catch some dope smugglers that have
been bothering the custom officials here for a long time,” sighed the
captain. “But I don’t know how you could do it. These fellows have
been bringing opium into this port for months from Central America,
and we can’t touch them. Yet we are absolutely certain they are
doing it. I just got another letter this morning from the commandant
of this district, urging me to increase my vigilance.”
“Who are the fellows that bring in the opium, and how do they do
it?” asked Henry.
“The most notorious outfit is the steamer Orient, that plies
between New York and Panama.”
“How do you know she brings in opium?” asked Henry.
“Well, we don’t really know it. We know the stuff gets in, and we
know it comes from Panama by ship. The captain of the Orient has a
shady reputation and associates with men known to be dope
handlers. He never loses any of his crew, and that is suspicious in
itself.”
“I don’t understand,” said Henry.
“Oh, sailors go from boat to boat. They are a roving lot, and it is
seldom that a ship’s master can keep the same crew any length of
time. But there’s something so attractive about service on the Orient
that men seldom leave her. It isn’t because of the high tone of life
aboard, either, for they’re a rummy lot on that ship. We figure they
are all in on the opium business, and that the captain lets them
share in the profits. That’s the only explanation we can see for the
situation.”
“Why don’t you stop the Orient before she gets into the harbor
and search her?” asked Henry.
“We would do that, but her master is foxy. He has a habit of
appearing in the harbor hours before he is expected. He’s here
before we know he’s anywhere near New York. There’s no use
searching him after he’s in the harbor, for he probably passes his
stuff out to fishermen or boatmen before he reaches the Narrows.
Likely he drops it overboard, with buoys to mark it, so his
confederates can go out in small boats and pick it up. We figure he
must do it this way, for the custom guards have watched his ship at
her pier as a cat watches a mouse-hole, and they can never get a
thing that is suspicious.”
“Why don’t you get a compass bearing on the Orient while she is
at sea?” asked Henry. “Then you could steam out and intercept her.”
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