The Boy Scouts of the Flying Squadron Part 8

"Would these foreign spies dare attempt to ruin your war aeroplane, or try to blow you all up with some of your own explosive?" asked Ralph.

"I wouldn't put it past them," replied the other. "They are playing a desperate game, you understand, and have their orders from the home Governments to keep us from forging ahead too fast. But I haven't introduced myself as yet. I am Lieutenant Fosd.i.c.k, and I have had some little experience in army aviation."

"I wonder if you can be the same Lieutenant Fosd.i.c.k I've heard so much about from our Scout Master, a retired army officer named Lieutenant Denmead?" Hugh ventured to say eagerly.

"Well, this _is_ a pleasure to be sure!" remarked the other smilingly.

"To be sure I know Denmead. I saw a great deal of him several years ago. And so he is spending his spare time in teaching the young idea how to shoot, but with the arms of peace rather than those of b.l.o.o.d.y war? He was always crazy over boys, and must be a cracking good Scout Master, because he knows so much of Western life among the Indians. He was with Miles in the Sioux War long ago, as you may know. But what was this you said about one of your mates inventing something in connection with the management of aeroplanes?

That would seem to be right in my line, and if he has no serious objections, I'd like to hear about it."

At that, Bud turned fiery red, but with pleasure more than embarra.s.sment. It was a crowning triumph in his career to find himself an object of interest in the eyes of so famous an aviator as Lieutenant Fosd.i.c.k, of whom he remembered reading quite frequently as the most fearless air pilot in the Flying Squadron of Uncle Sam.

Encouraged by the winning smile on the bronzed face of the army officer, Bud only too gladly started to explain what his hopes were.

"I'd like to see this wonderful little model of yours in action, son," the experienced air pilot remarked afterwards. "Suppose all of you come over to our headquarters, which happen to be not more than half a mile away from here. We have a fine open spot where we can ascend and alight with ease, day or night. You will be welcome, I a.s.sure you. We have a dozen men there besides those connected with the war aviation corps, simply to guard against any spies giving us trouble. If you can go now, I'd be pleased to wait for you, so as to pa.s.s you through the lines."

"How long will it take you to get your little machine dismantled, so we can handle it, Bud?" asked Hugh.

"Oh! I can do it in a jiffy, because, you see, it's fixed for taking apart," the inventor of the party hastened to declare.

So Lieutenant Fosd.i.c.k accompanied them to the shack. While Bud busied himself with his model, Ralph and Hugh chatted with the army officer. He asked more questions concerning Bud and the idea he had been trying out.

"It would seem as though your friend might have a touch of genius about him somewhere," the aviator said with a smile, "though I'm afraid that he's too late with that wonderful stability device, because it is very similar to one the Wright Brothers got out some time ago. That's the way it often happens, and many a man has studied some clever thing out only to find that he has been antic.i.p.ated by some earlier inventor. But say nothing about this for the present. Your friend surely deserves to have a little glory out of the game before the blow falls. And I shall be curious to see how he manages with this model of his, for it looks good to me."

Evidently Bud had found favor with the army man. Even though doomed to disappointment with regard to his wonderful invention, the boy might derive satisfaction in knowing that his work had not been entirely in vain.

When half an hour had pa.s.sed, Bud declared everything in readiness for the change of base; and soon the boys were accompanying the skilled aviator through the woods headed for the camp of the Flying Squadron.

CHAPTER IX

FRIENDS IN KHAKI

While they were pus.h.i.+ng laboriously onward through the woods, overcoming all manner of obstacles, Lieutenant Fosd.i.c.k gave the scouts a pleasant surprise.

"One reason why I asked you to visit our camp," he remarked, "was because I fancied all of you might be glad of a chance to take a spin aloft in an aeroplane. You may like that, if it happens that you've never enjoyed the experience up to now."

Hugh immediately turned to the army man and expressed his pleasure.

"I've often hoped to have a chance to go up," he said, "but hardly thought it would happen so soon. And we'll all be only too glad to accept your invitation."

"I should say so," added Ralph.

Bud did not say a single word, and turning to ascertain why, the officer found a smile of the "kind that won't come off" spreading all the way across his face. It was evident that Bud was too happy for words. He had long dreamed of spinning through the upper currents in one of those bustling airs.h.i.+ps that are becoming more common every day; but, like Hugh, he had not expected the golden opportunity to be sprung upon him so soon.

As they walked along, the officer once more started to question them regarding the two strange men who seemed to be hanging about without any known business to keep them up in this unsettled region.

"I think you said that one of them looked in through the window of your shack night before last, and then fled when you let him see that he had been discovered?" he remarked to Hugh.

"Yes, and we made sure that he had been there by examining the soil under the window. It is a part of a scout's education, you know, sir, looking for signs. We found them, too, marks of a long narrow shoe, that told us the man could never be a hobo but must be a gentleman. After they had rummaged through our cabin while we were away, we found the same marks before the door, and indenting tracks of our own, so that proved just when the fellows must have been around."

The army officer nodded his head and laughed softly.

"I understand what you mean, son," he remarked, "and it quite tickles me to know how clever our boys are getting under the influence of this new scout movement. It is bound to wake up most lads and set them to thinking for themselves, years before they would have been aroused under the old way. And I must say I'm heartily in sympathy with the work of the a.s.sociation. It's the finest thing that ever happened for the boys of America. If I had sons, they should everyone of them join one of your troops as soon as they were old enough."

"We forgot to tell you, sir, about hearing those two men rus.h.i.+ng through the dense woods and thickets just after the explosion last night. They seemed to act as if more or less frightened; and I guessed that they may have had a narrow escape from being struck by your bomb."

At that, the other burst into a laugh.

"That is a rich joke," he declared. "Possibly in the excitement of the moment, after being knocked down by the shock, they may have suspected that we knew of their presence and were trying to encompa.s.s their destruction. But I am glad it happened that way.

Perhaps they may have more respect for Uncle Sam's Flying Squadron after this, and fight shy of running their heads into trouble. I'll have the guards at the camp doubled at night time, and any straggler will be apt to find it pretty warm around there: I'd advise all persons who have no business at our headquarters to give the camp a wide berth, or something not down on the bills might happen, to their surprise and consternation as well."

"If you haven't run across these men, sir," Hugh remarked, "of course you could hardly say who they might be."

"I can give a pretty good guess, though," came the prompt reply. "We have been dogged by a pair of spies on former occasions, the one a short j.a.p, and the other, much taller, undoubtedly a German. Both of them happen to be famous aviators in their own countries, which was doubtless why they were sent out to discover what the Flying Squadron was doing up here in secret."

"I suppose their main objects would be to learn the composition of this latest thing in explosives, and to take note of your war aeroplane, so as to steal the improvements," Hugh went on to say, being desirous of learning all he could while the other was in this communicative frame of mind.

"They would actually have to examine the flier before they could learn what it represents to the army aviation corps; and we keep it closely guarded all the time we are not in the air. So much of a secret are several things connected with this monoplane, that I cannot mention them, even to such patriotic chaps as you are."

"And we don't blame you, sir, surely we don't!" exclaimed Bud promptly.

"Us inventors have to be pretty careful how we let people see what we've struck! Lots of ideas have been stolen before now. If my little scheme turns out what I hope it's going to, I think I'll hand it over to the Government for use with their war aeroplanes. Wouldn't it be just great if a pilot could give his whole attention to the job of dropping bombs and such like, never bothering himself about the wind currents or anything else? The little Morgan controller would manage all such things automatically. As the saying is, you press the b.u.t.ton and we'll do all the rest!"

Hugh did not arouse poor Bud from this happy dream. What was the use?

Better let him have a little more pleasure out of it before confronting him with the cold facts acts in the case. He must learn soon enough that he was several years too late, and that those wonderful Fathers of Aviation in America, the Wrights, had covered the identical ground some time previous with their Fool-proof Flier.

Luckily they did not have a great distance to go. The boys, who were staggering under their loads, could not have kept it up much longer, and all of the little party rejoiced when the air pilot announced that they were now within sight of their destination.

Presently they heard voices ahead. Then came a sudden whirr of machinery.

"My a.s.sociate, Lieutenant Green, is going to take a little spin for some reason or other," their escort told them. "You see, we can reconnoiter the ground wonderfully from several hundred feet alt.i.tude; so that we have on several occasions indulged in a flight just in order to scout the land. We discovered your presence some time yesterday, and were at first greatly puzzled on account of your khaki suits. We even tried to figure out how a trio of soldiers belonging to the Home Guard could be camping out in that way. To tell the truth, it was not until I stood by and listened to you talking about that hole in the forest, that I grasped the true state of affairs."

When a large aeroplane built after the monoplane model swiftly arose and went spinning off, Bud stared as though his whole heart was in his gaze. He even dropped the burden he had on his back and rubbed his eyes, as if to make sure it could not be a dream.

"So that's what you call a war aeroplane, is it?" he asked eagerly.

"The company building them for the Government meant them for that particular purpose," Lieutenant Fosd.i.c.k told him.

"Then they are different from all others, I take it?" Hugh advanced.

"In many respects," was the frank reply. "In the first place they are much stronger than the ordinary monoplane. In case an attack is intended on the enemy's redoubts, they may be compelled to carry heavy loads in the shape of combustibles and explosives. Besides that, they have the recent improvements which I mentioned before as being secret, but which will add considerably to their effectiveness.

The wires used as guys are all heavier than customary, the motor is stronger, and the planes better able to resist shocks. I have never seen a Santos Dumont or a Bleriot monoplane anything equal to this new departure."

"It's almost gone out of sight already," declared Bud with a thrill of awe in his ambitious voice.

"Yes, although my colleague was boring upward at the time we last saw him; but the speed of that machine is marvelous. No wonder these foreign spies take the great chances they do, hoping to learn what Uncle Sam is up to. If they could carry back full information concerning the new explosive and the novel features of that splendid monoplane, it would be worth a million dollars, yes, many times that, to their respective governments. Germany, you know, claims to have the best equipped corps of aviators in the world, just as she has the most remarkable army. And j.a.pan, too, is jealous of being left in the mad race, so she sends out spies to learn all that is going on."