April 7, 2025 • 14 mins
In this international Boy Scout mystery, Harry and his new British friends decode heliographs, outsmart spies, and uncover secrets that could change the course of a war. Discover hundreds of ad-free audiobooks, soothing sounds for sleep and meditation, and more—unwind and learn at www.adfreebooks.com!
Mark as Played
Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:02):
Recording by Kangaroo six ninety two treasureous deed. Harry Fleming
had of course given up all hope of catching Graves
by a direct pursuit by the time he accepted the
offer of the ride in the motor truck that was
(00:24):
carrying vegetables for the troops and quarters in London. His
only hope now was to get his information to Colonel
Throckmorton as soon as possible. At the first considerable town
they reached, where he found a telegraph office open, he
wired up to the colonel using the code which he
(00:46):
had memorized. The price of a couple of glasses of
beer had induced the driver and the soldier to consent
to slight delay of the truck, and he tried also
to ring up Jack Young's house and find out what
had happened to Dick. When he found that the line
was out of order, he leaped at once to the
(01:08):
same conclusion that Jack and Dick had reached, that it
had been cut on purpose. He could not stay to
see if it would be repaired. Soon a stroke of
luck came his way, however, In this place, boy scouts
were guarding the gas works, and an electric light and
power plant, and he found one squad just coming off duty.
(01:33):
He explained something of his errand to the patrol leader
and got the assurance that the telephone people should be
made to repair the break in the wire. We'll see
to it that they find out what is the trouble fleming,
said the patrol leader, whose name was Bridge. By the way,
(01:54):
I know a scout in your troop, Graves. He was
on a scout with us a few weeks when he
was visiting. Down here seemed to be no end of
a good fellow. Harry was surprised, for he had heard
nothing of this before. But then that was not strange.
(02:15):
He and Graves were not on terms of intimacy of
any means. He decided quickly not to say anything against Graves.
It could do no good and might do harm, right,
he said, I know him. Yes, I'll be going. Then
(02:36):
you'll give my message to Mercer or Young if there's
any way of getting line clear. Yes, if I sit
up until my next turn of duty, said Bridge with
a smile, good luck flaming. Then Harry was off again.
(02:57):
Down was very near now that behind him was already
lighted up with streaks of glowing crimson dark clouds were
masked there, and there was a feeling in the air
that carried a foreboding of rain, strengthening the thread of
a red sky. Harry was not sorry for that. There
(03:20):
would be work at Bray Park that might wellfare better
if it was done under lead in skies. As he wrote,
he puzzled long and hard over what he had learned.
Seemed to him that these German spies were taking desperate
chances for what promised to be at best the small reward.
(03:44):
What information concerning the British plans could they get that
would be worth all? They were risking the wireless at
Bray Park, the central station over Williston. Whence the reports
were healed, it was an amazing complete chain, and Harry
(04:06):
knew enough of modern warfare to feel that the information
could be important only to enemy within striking distance. That
was the point. It might be interesting to the German
staff to know the locations of British troops in England,
and more especially their destinations if they were going abroad
(04:30):
as part of an expeditionary force to France or Belgium,
but the information would not be vital. It didn't seem
to Harry that it was worth all the risk implied.
But if, on the other hand, there was some plan
for a German invasion of England, then he would have
(04:51):
no difficulty in understanding it. The knowledge of word to strike,
of what points were guarded and what were not, would
be invaluable. But what a juggin's I am, he said.
They can't invade England, even if they could spare the troops.
(05:12):
Not while the British fleet controls the sea. They'd have
to fly over. And with that half laughing expression he
got the clue he was looking for fly over. Why not?
Flight was no longer a theory, a possibility of the future.
(05:36):
It was something definite that had arrived. Even as he
thought of the possibility, he looked up and saw not
more than a while away, two monoplanes of a well
known English Army type flying low. I never thought of that,
(05:57):
he said to himself. And now the idea had come
to him, he began to work out all sorts of possibilities.
He thought of a hundred different things that might happen.
He could see all at once, the usefullest bray Park
might have. Why the place was like a volcano, It
(06:21):
might erupt at any minute, spreading ruin and destruction in
all directions. It was a hostile fortress set down in
the midst of a country that, even though it was
at war, could not believe that war might come born
to it. He visualized, as the truck kept in its
(06:42):
plotting way, the manner in which warfare might be directed
from a center lake Bray Park. Thence aeroplanes skillfully fashioned
to represent the British planes, and so with scape quick
detection might set forth. They could carry a man or two,
(07:03):
elude guards who thought the airline's slave, and drop bombs there, there,
everywhere and anywhere. Perhaps some such aerial raid was responsible
for the explosion that had freed him only a very
few hours before. Warfare in England, carried on thus by
(07:28):
a few men would be done, nonetheless steadily, because it
would not involve fighting. There would be no pitched battles,
that much, he knew, and said. There would be swift
stabbing raids, waterworks, gas works would be blown up, Attempts
(07:51):
would be made to drop bombs in the barracks. Perhaps
certainly every effort would be made to destroy the great
warehouses in which food was stored. It was named the
sort of warfare It defied the imagination. And yet it
was the warfare that, once he thought of it seemed
(08:12):
certain that the Germans would wage. He gritted his teeth
and thought of it. Perhaps all was fair in love
and war, as the probl proverb said, But this seemed sneaky,
unfair fighting to him. There was nothing about it of
(08:34):
the glory of warfare. He was learning for himself that
modern warfare is an ugly thing. He was to learn
later that it still held possibilities of glory and of heroism. Indeed,
for that matter, he was willing to grant the heroism
(08:55):
of the men who dared these things that seemed to
be so horrible. They took their lives in their hands,
knowing that if they were caught, they would be hung
as spies. The truck was well into London now, and
the dawn was full. A faint drizzle was beginning to fall,
(09:18):
and the streets were covered with a fine film of mud.
People were about, and London was arousing itself to meet
the new day. Harry knew that he was near his
journey's end. Tired as he was, he was determined to
make his report before he thought of sleep. And then
(09:38):
suddenly around a bend came a sight that brought Harry
to his feet, scarcely able to believe his eyes. It
was Graves on a bicycle. At the sight of Harry
on the truck, he stopped. Then he turned. Here he is,
he cried, that's the wane. A squad of men on cycles,
(10:01):
headed by a young officer, came after Graves. Stop, called
the officer to the driver. Harry stared down, wondering, you there,
you boy scout, Come down, said the officer. Harry obeyed,
wondering still more. He saw the gleam of malignant triumph
(10:23):
on the face of Graves, but not even the presence
of the officer restrained him. Where are those papers you
stole from me, you sneak, he cried. You keep away
from me, said Graves. You yankee here, no quarreling, said
(10:43):
the officer. Take him in. Two of the soldiers closed
on on Harry. He stared at them, and then at
the officer, stupefied. What what's this, he stammered. You're on
under the arrest, my lad, on a charge of espionage,
(11:04):
said the officer. Espionage in conspiracy to give aid and
comfort to the public enemy. Anything you say may be
used against you. For a moment, such a rush of
words came to Harry. Then he was silent by the
sheer inability to decide which to other first. But then
(11:27):
he got control of himself. Who makes this charge against me?
He asked thickly, his face flushing scarlet in anger. You'll
find that out in due time, my lad forward march.
But I've got important information. I must be allowed to
(11:50):
see Colonel Throckmorton at once. Oh you've got no idea,
how unimportant that it may be. My orders are to place
you under You can make application to see anyone later,
but now I have no discretion. Come. If you really
want to see Colonel Throckmorton, you had better come on.
(12:15):
Harry knew as well as anyone the useless of appealing
from such an order, but he was frantic, realizing the
importance of the news he carried, and beginning to glimpse
vaguely the meaning of Graves and his activity. He was
almost beside himself. Make Graves there, give the back the
(12:38):
papers he took from me, He cried. I did take
some papers, Lieutenant, said Graves, with engaging frankless, but they
were required to prove what I had suspected from the
first that he was a spy. He was leading an
English scout from his own put troll into trouble too.
(13:02):
I suppose he thought he was more likely to escape
suspicion if he was with an englishman. It's not my affair,
said the lieutenant, shrugging his shoulders. He turned to Harry,
Come along, my lad. I hope you can clear yourself,
but I've only one thing to do, and that is
to obey my orders. Harry gave up then for the moment.
(13:27):
He turned and began walking along, a soldier on each side.
But as he did so, Graves turned to the lieutenant.
I'll go and get my breakfast, then, sir, he said,
I'll come on to ealing later. Though of course they
know all I can tell them already, all right, said
(13:48):
the officer indifferently. You're never going to let him go,
exclaimed Harry aghast. Don't you know he'll never come back?
All the better it for you if he doesn't, said
the officer. That's enough of your lip, my lad. Keep
a quiet tongue in your head. Remember you're a prisoner,
(14:10):
and don't try giving orders to me. End of Chapter thirteen.
Recording by kangaroo six ninety two,
Recording by Kangaroo six ninety two treasureous deed. Harry Fleming
had of course given up all hope of catching Graves
by a direct pursuit by the time he accepted the
offer of the ride in the motor truck that was
(00:24):
carrying vegetables for the troops and quarters in London. His
only hope now was to get his information to Colonel
Throckmorton as soon as possible. At the first considerable town
they reached, where he found a telegraph office open, he
wired up to the colonel using the code which he
(00:46):
had memorized. The price of a couple of glasses of
beer had induced the driver and the soldier to consent
to slight delay of the truck, and he tried also
to ring up Jack Young's house and find out what
had happened to Dick. When he found that the line
was out of order, he leaped at once to the
(01:08):
same conclusion that Jack and Dick had reached, that it
had been cut on purpose. He could not stay to
see if it would be repaired. Soon a stroke of
luck came his way, however, In this place, boy scouts
were guarding the gas works, and an electric light and
power plant, and he found one squad just coming off duty.
(01:33):
He explained something of his errand to the patrol leader
and got the assurance that the telephone people should be
made to repair the break in the wire. We'll see
to it that they find out what is the trouble fleming,
said the patrol leader, whose name was Bridge. By the way,
(01:54):
I know a scout in your troop, Graves. He was
on a scout with us a few weeks when he
was visiting. Down here seemed to be no end of
a good fellow. Harry was surprised, for he had heard
nothing of this before. But then that was not strange.
(02:15):
He and Graves were not on terms of intimacy of
any means. He decided quickly not to say anything against Graves.
It could do no good and might do harm, right,
he said, I know him. Yes, I'll be going. Then
(02:36):
you'll give my message to Mercer or Young if there's
any way of getting line clear. Yes, if I sit
up until my next turn of duty, said Bridge with
a smile, good luck flaming. Then Harry was off again.
(02:57):
Down was very near now that behind him was already
lighted up with streaks of glowing crimson dark clouds were
masked there, and there was a feeling in the air
that carried a foreboding of rain, strengthening the thread of
a red sky. Harry was not sorry for that. There
(03:20):
would be work at Bray Park that might wellfare better
if it was done under lead in skies. As he wrote,
he puzzled long and hard over what he had learned.
Seemed to him that these German spies were taking desperate
chances for what promised to be at best the small reward.
(03:44):
What information concerning the British plans could they get that
would be worth all? They were risking the wireless at
Bray Park, the central station over Williston. Whence the reports
were healed, it was an amazing complete chain, and Harry
(04:06):
knew enough of modern warfare to feel that the information
could be important only to enemy within striking distance. That
was the point. It might be interesting to the German
staff to know the locations of British troops in England,
and more especially their destinations if they were going abroad
(04:30):
as part of an expeditionary force to France or Belgium,
but the information would not be vital. It didn't seem
to Harry that it was worth all the risk implied.
But if, on the other hand, there was some plan
for a German invasion of England, then he would have
(04:51):
no difficulty in understanding it. The knowledge of word to strike,
of what points were guarded and what were not, would
be invaluable. But what a juggin's I am, he said.
They can't invade England, even if they could spare the troops.
(05:12):
Not while the British fleet controls the sea. They'd have
to fly over. And with that half laughing expression he
got the clue he was looking for fly over. Why not?
Flight was no longer a theory, a possibility of the future.
(05:36):
It was something definite that had arrived. Even as he
thought of the possibility, he looked up and saw not
more than a while away, two monoplanes of a well
known English Army type flying low. I never thought of that,
(05:57):
he said to himself. And now the idea had come
to him, he began to work out all sorts of possibilities.
He thought of a hundred different things that might happen.
He could see all at once, the usefullest bray Park
might have. Why the place was like a volcano, It
(06:21):
might erupt at any minute, spreading ruin and destruction in
all directions. It was a hostile fortress set down in
the midst of a country that, even though it was
at war, could not believe that war might come born
to it. He visualized, as the truck kept in its
(06:42):
plotting way, the manner in which warfare might be directed
from a center lake Bray Park. Thence aeroplanes skillfully fashioned
to represent the British planes, and so with scape quick
detection might set forth. They could carry a man or two,
(07:03):
elude guards who thought the airline's slave, and drop bombs there, there,
everywhere and anywhere. Perhaps some such aerial raid was responsible
for the explosion that had freed him only a very
few hours before. Warfare in England, carried on thus by
(07:28):
a few men would be done, nonetheless steadily, because it
would not involve fighting. There would be no pitched battles,
that much, he knew, and said. There would be swift
stabbing raids, waterworks, gas works would be blown up, Attempts
(07:51):
would be made to drop bombs in the barracks. Perhaps
certainly every effort would be made to destroy the great
warehouses in which food was stored. It was named the
sort of warfare It defied the imagination. And yet it
was the warfare that, once he thought of it seemed
(08:12):
certain that the Germans would wage. He gritted his teeth
and thought of it. Perhaps all was fair in love
and war, as the probl proverb said, But this seemed sneaky,
unfair fighting to him. There was nothing about it of
(08:34):
the glory of warfare. He was learning for himself that
modern warfare is an ugly thing. He was to learn
later that it still held possibilities of glory and of heroism. Indeed,
for that matter, he was willing to grant the heroism
(08:55):
of the men who dared these things that seemed to
be so horrible. They took their lives in their hands,
knowing that if they were caught, they would be hung
as spies. The truck was well into London now, and
the dawn was full. A faint drizzle was beginning to fall,
(09:18):
and the streets were covered with a fine film of mud.
People were about, and London was arousing itself to meet
the new day. Harry knew that he was near his
journey's end. Tired as he was, he was determined to
make his report before he thought of sleep. And then
(09:38):
suddenly around a bend came a sight that brought Harry
to his feet, scarcely able to believe his eyes. It
was Graves on a bicycle. At the sight of Harry
on the truck, he stopped. Then he turned. Here he is,
he cried, that's the wane. A squad of men on cycles,
(10:01):
headed by a young officer, came after Graves. Stop, called
the officer to the driver. Harry stared down, wondering, you there,
you boy scout, Come down, said the officer. Harry obeyed,
wondering still more. He saw the gleam of malignant triumph
(10:23):
on the face of Graves, but not even the presence
of the officer restrained him. Where are those papers you
stole from me, you sneak, he cried. You keep away
from me, said Graves. You yankee here, no quarreling, said
(10:43):
the officer. Take him in. Two of the soldiers closed
on on Harry. He stared at them, and then at
the officer, stupefied. What what's this, he stammered. You're on
under the arrest, my lad, on a charge of espionage,
(11:04):
said the officer. Espionage in conspiracy to give aid and
comfort to the public enemy. Anything you say may be
used against you. For a moment, such a rush of
words came to Harry. Then he was silent by the
sheer inability to decide which to other first. But then
(11:27):
he got control of himself. Who makes this charge against me?
He asked thickly, his face flushing scarlet in anger. You'll
find that out in due time, my lad forward march.
But I've got important information. I must be allowed to
(11:50):
see Colonel Throckmorton at once. Oh you've got no idea,
how unimportant that it may be. My orders are to place
you under You can make application to see anyone later,
but now I have no discretion. Come. If you really
want to see Colonel Throckmorton, you had better come on.
(12:15):
Harry knew as well as anyone the useless of appealing
from such an order, but he was frantic, realizing the
importance of the news he carried, and beginning to glimpse
vaguely the meaning of Graves and his activity. He was
almost beside himself. Make Graves there, give the back the
(12:38):
papers he took from me, He cried. I did take
some papers, Lieutenant, said Graves, with engaging frankless, but they
were required to prove what I had suspected from the
first that he was a spy. He was leading an
English scout from his own put troll into trouble too.
(13:02):
I suppose he thought he was more likely to escape
suspicion if he was with an englishman. It's not my affair,
said the lieutenant, shrugging his shoulders. He turned to Harry,
Come along, my lad. I hope you can clear yourself,
but I've only one thing to do, and that is
to obey my orders. Harry gave up then for the moment.
(13:27):
He turned and began walking along, a soldier on each side.
But as he did so, Graves turned to the lieutenant.
I'll go and get my breakfast, then, sir, he said,
I'll come on to ealing later. Though of course they
know all I can tell them already, all right, said
(13:48):
the officer indifferently. You're never going to let him go,
exclaimed Harry aghast. Don't you know he'll never come back?
All the better it for you if he doesn't, said
the officer. That's enough of your lip, my lad. Keep
a quiet tongue in your head. Remember you're a prisoner,
(14:10):
and don't try giving orders to me. End of Chapter thirteen.
Recording by kangaroo six ninety two,
Popular Podcasts
Law & Order: Criminal Justice System - Season 1 & Season 2
Season Two Out Now! Law & Order: Criminal Justice System tells the real stories behind the landmark cases that have shaped how the most dangerous and influential criminals in America are prosecuted. In its second season, the series tackles the threat of terrorism in the United States. From the rise of extremist political groups in the 60s to domestic lone wolves in the modern day, we explore how organizations like the FBI and Joint Terrorism Take Force have evolved to fight back against a multitude of terrorist threats.
Dateline NBC
Current and classic episodes, featuring compelling true-crime mysteries, powerful documentaries and in-depth investigations. Follow now to get the latest episodes of Dateline NBC completely free, or subscribe to Dateline Premium for ad-free listening and exclusive bonus content: DatelinePremium.com
NFL Daily with Gregg Rosenthal
Gregg Rosenthal and a rotating crew of elite NFL Media co-hosts, including Patrick Claybon, Colleen Wolfe, Steve Wyche, Nick Shook and Jourdan Rodrigue of The Athletic get you caught up daily on all the NFL news and analysis you need to be smarter and funnier than your friends.