The Radio Boys at Mountain Pass; Or, The Midnight Call for Assistance

by William Osborn Stoddard

  CHAPTER XXII

  PUTTING IT THROUGH

  The boys stared at him for a moment as though he had gone suddenlycrazy. Then the light of adventure dawned in their eyes, and theygrinned joyously.

  "Say, old boy," said Joe in an awed voice, "that sure is some swellidea. But do you think we could swing it? We know a lot aboutreceiving, but when it comes to sending----"

  "We're a bunch of nuts," finished Jimmy, decidedly.

  "Maybe," retorted Bob. "But at this time, even a bunch of nuts mightbe better than nothing."

  "We've been studying the code," said Joe thoughtfully. "We might beable to handle it all right. It isn't the first time, if we're notexperts. Of course we can do it."

  "But not for old Salper," said Herb. "He's so impatient he'd make usforget in five minutes everything we ever knew."

  "Maybe," said Bob again, adding, stoutly: "But I'm game to make a tryat it anyway. There's no one else to do it, and Mr. Salper stands tolose his wife and a lot of money besides if some one doesn't help himout."

  "Well, let's make him the proposition," suggested Joe, pausing andlooking back at the Salper house. "I'm with Bob in this thing."

  "So say we all of us," sang Herb cheerily, as they turned back.

  "So long as Bob's the goat," finished Jimmy.

  They found Mr. Salper in the living room of the bungalow, savagelysmoking a cigar. He scarcely looked at the boys when the girls letthem in, and Bob was forced to speak his name before he gave them hisattention.

  "Well, what is it?" he said gruffly, his tone adding plainly: "Whatare you doing here anyway? I wish you'd get out."

  The tone made Bob mad, as it did the other boys, and when he spoke hisown tone was not as pleasant as usual.

  "We've decided to try to help you out, if we can, Mr. Salper," hesaid, and the man looked at him with a mixture of surprise andincredulity.

  "In what way?" he asked, in the same curt tone.

  "We know something about sending and receiving messages by radio," Bobwent on, getting madder and madder. "And we thought maybe we might geta message through for you to a doctor and to your brokers, as well. Ofcourse," he added, modestly, "we haven't had very much experience----"

  Bob was too modest to say anything about how he had once sent messagesto some ships at sea, (as related in detail in "The Radio Boys atOcean Point,") and how he had tried to send on other occasions.

  "Experience be hanged!" cried Mr. Salper, so suddenly that the boysjumped. "You mean to tell me you can operate that radio contraption?"

  "I think so," said Bob, still modestly. "We haven't done much alongthat end of it----"

  "You'll do," cried Mr. Salper, while Edna and Ruth stared at him withtear-reddened eyes. "Are you ready to go with me right away to thestation?"

  The boys nodded and the older man shrugged into his great coat,reaching quickly for his cap.

  "Take care of your mother," he said to the girls. "I'll stop on my wayover to the hotel and send a nurse over for her. I hear there are twoof them there. Don't see why the physician there didn't send some oneto take his place if he had to leave."

  In a moment the radio boys found themselves once more in the freezingair of the out-of-doors, being hurried along by the erratic Mr.Salper.

  Poor Jimmy suffered on that forced march. Although he uttered no wordof protest, his face was purple and his breath came in little puffinggasps before they had reached the hotel.

  Once there, they had a little respite, however, while Mr. Salper wentto arrange about having a nurse sent over to his wife. Jimmy waited inthe hotel lobby in a state nearing collapse while the other boys wentup to inquire once more about their friend, the operator.

  They found him no better--worse, if anything--and their faces werevery solemn when they rejoined Jimmy in the lobby.

  "Guess it will be nip and tuck if he gets through at all," said Bob,anxiously. "I don't see why such hard luck had to pick him out for thevictim."

  "I suppose they'll appoint another operator right away," suggestedHerb.

  "I suppose so," agreed Jimmy. "But it will be hard to get any one fora week or more on account of the heavy weather."

  "And in a week's time without communication with the outside world alot of Mr. Salper's money will probably have gone up in smoke," saidJoe.

  "Yes, it's us on the job all right," said Bob, looking a bit worried."I only hope we can live up to what's expected of us."

  "All right, boys," said Mr. Salper, on returning, in his eyes thepreoccupied look of the man of affairs. "If you can help me out ofthis fix, I will surely be deeply in your debt."

  These genial words--almost the first that they had heard from theself-absorbed man--warmed the boys' hearts and they resolved to do thebest they could for him, and, through him, for his daughters.

  When they reached the station they found it deserted save for one manwho sat at a desk, humped over in a dispirited fashion, reading amagazine.

  At the entrance of Mr. Salper and the boys he looked up, then got upand came over to them as though he were glad of their companionship.

  "How do you do, Mr. Salper?" he said, addressing the older man withmarked respect. "Is there anything I can do for you?"

  "Nothing, unless you can work this contrivance," returned Mr. Salper,with a comprehensive wave of his hand toward the cluttered radiotable.

  "I'm sorry," said the other, a frown of anxiety lining his forehead."The operator is sick, and because of the heavy weather it is doubtfulif we shall be able to secure another one within the week."

  "A week!" cried Mr. Salper. "That amount of time, my friend, may veryeasily spell ruin for me. It is necessary that I communicate with NewYork immediately. Are you ready, boys?"

  The man looked with surprise, first at the radio boys and then back toMr. Salper.

  "Am I to understand----" he began, when Mr. Salper cut him short withan imperative wave of the hand.

  "These boys," he said, "know something of radio. How much they know Iam about to find out.

  "Are you ready?" he asked, sharply, as the boys still hesitated. "Adelay of even a few minutes would be regrettable."

  The boys looked at each other, and since no one else made a move toapproach the apparatus, Bob saw that it was up to him. And right therehe realized the great difference that there is between theory andpractice. Of course they had had some practice in sending and theywere fairly familiar with the code, but never before had they beencalled upon to make use of their knowledge in such a matter as this.

  Then too, Mr. Salper was not the kind of person to inspireself-confidence. He was a driver, and it is hard to do good thinkingwhen one is being driven.

  However, having gone so far, there was no possibility of backing outand with a show of confidence, Bob approached the apparatus. The manwho had addressed Mr. Salper regarded him with not a little distrust.He had heard of the radio boys, as who at Mountain Pass had not, buthe certainly did not think them competent to send a message of anyimportance.

  And at that moment, neither did Bob.

  "Will you send your message phone or code?" he asked, looking up atMr. Salper inquiringly. "We can do either here."

  Mr. Salper hesitated for a moment, then with a significant glance atthe other man, who was hovering curiously near, he snapped out,"Code."

  "Do you know the letters of the station to be called?" asked Bob.

  The broker consulted a notebook which he took from his pocket.

  "Call HRSA," he returned. "That is our Stock Exchange station," heexplained. "They ought to be on the job while the Exchange is open.They will relay a message to my brokers."

  Joe was standing beside Bob and saw that his chum's hand trembledsomewhat as he took hold of the ticker.

  "Don't get rattled, Bob," he whispered. "Take your time and don't lethim scare you. Remember, it's you that's doing the favor."

  Bob grinned, and then began sending out the call. Across the ethertraveled the letters HRSA and the call was presently caught up in NewYork a
nd then another message was relayed to the office of awell-known brokerage firm.

  "Hey, Bill," called a well-dressed young man seated at a desk in thefar end of the office. "Here's WBZA calling us. These are the lettersof the station at Mountain Pass----"

  "Where the Honorable Mr. Gilbert Salper is taking his rest cure,"finished another man, flinging away his cigarette and coming to standbeside his partner. "Do you suppose it's the old boy himself calling?"

  "We'll soon find out," returned the other, and without delay sent in amessage to the New York sending station. In a few seconds they werebeing radioed into the ether.

  Bob's face beamed as he transcribed the dots and dashes into words.The message read thus:

  "WBZA heard from. HRSA awaiting message."

  Mr. Salper, who had been striding up and down, hurried to Bob's sidein answer to the lad's hail. The other boys were peering eagerly overBob's shoulder.

  "I've reached HRSA and through them H. & D.," explained the youngoperator proudly. "H. & D. are waiting for your message."

  "Fine! Fine!" cried Mr. Salper, and his face showed great enthusiasm."Those are my brokers, Hanson and Debbs. Got 'em right off the reel,didn't you, boy? Great work! Can you get my message through at once?"

  "I don't know of anything to stop me," answered Bob. It seemed toogood to be true that he had picked up the right station so quickly.

  "Send this, then," Mr. Salper directed. And in a firm hand he wrotedown the following message:

  "Mohun is a crook and plots to ruin me. Find out his scheme and check him.

  Gilbert Salper."