CHAPTER XIX--A STARTLING MESSAGE
"I've come back again," announced the Barber boy, bursting upon Tom andBen breathlessly.
"I see you have," said Tom pleasantly.
"Got something to show you. Maybe it's not important, but I thought itwas, so I hurried here."
"You are doing me a lot of favors, Bill," said Tom.
"Glad to," declared Bill. "Here it is," and he extended a wrinkled-upobject as he spoke.
"Why," cried Ben, peering curiously, "it's another of those toyballoons!"
"Yes," assented Bill. "They've been flying around half the morning.After I left here I ran across a crowd of youngsters chasing two sailingaloft. One of the boys had a bow and arrow, and was trying to hit oneand bring it down. I'm some on shooting, and asked him for the bow.Missed the first time. Next time, though, the arrow went through theballoon, busted it, and sailed to the ground with it."
"And this is it?" questioned Tom.
"Yes. The little fellows ran after it and fought over it. I happened tosee the tag, and was kind of curious about it. By the time I got it,though, the mob had trampled it in the mud, and their feet had torn awayhalf of it. Here's what's left of it. Your name is on it, Tom, and thatand the reward----"
"What reward?" inquired Ben quickly.
"It's on the back of the card," replied Bill.
"Ben," said Tom inspecting it, "this is another of my old cards."
"What's written on the back, Tom?" inquired Ben eagerly.
Tom held the card so Ben could read it as well as himself. A part of thecard was gone, and some of the pencilled words it had originallycontained were blurred and vague. What was left of it read:
"Take this to Tom Barnes and get ten dollars reward. Tom: I am aprisoner--two bad men--about thirty miles--in the--at--in lion'scage--_Harry Ashley_."
Tom scanned the card again and again. Ben noted his serious studiousmanner. Finally Tom turned to their visitor.
"Bill," he said, "you get the reward. I haven't the money with me, butany time to-morrow you call here and get it."
"Oh, I don't want any reward," declared Bill.
"You get it just the same," insisted Tom firmly.
"I'll have to be getting along," said Bill. "I'm watching that launchfor Aldrich to put in an appearance. It's eleven dollars andseventy-five cents or a licking for him, I can tell you."
"I think I know where those balloons came from," said Tom to Ben, whenBill had departed.
"Where, Tom?"
"A circus."
"How so?"
"Those fragments of sentences on the card lead me to believe that themessage should read about this way: 'I am a prisoner in the hands of twobad men about thirty miles from Rockley Cove, in the circus at Wadhams,shut up in the lion's cage.'"
Ben was on his feet in a bound, his face flushed with excitement.
"I'll bet you've solved it, Tom. And there is a circus at Wadhams justnow. Why, it's just the place where these toy balloons would be likelyto be on sale. And the mention of a lion's cage! That fits to a circus,too! I don't understand, though, how Harry has managed to send theballoons aloft, if he was shut up somewhere prisoner."
"We won't try to guess that out now," said Tom. "Here is certainly a bigclue. Harry is an ingenious fellow, and somehow has managed to floatthese messages. I want you to stay here alone for a spell."
"Where are you going?" inquired Ben.
"To report to my father instanter," replied Tom; and he was offspeedily.
It was the middle of the afternoon before Tom returned. Ben wasanxiously awaiting him.
"What's the program?" he asked eagerly.
"You are to go up to the house at once, Ben. My father has the teamhitched up and is waiting for you. A hired man is going, too, and theconstable. Telephone your folks from the house that you may be away tillmorning. When you do come back, report here right away."
"All right, Tom."
"Storm signals are out, and one of us will have to stay on dutyto-night."
The sky had been overcast all the morning. Long before dusk theforewarnings of a heavy storm were discoverable, and Tom realized animpending occasion when he was expected to exercise unusual vigilance.
At dark one of the field hands came to the tower with a warm supper sentby Tom's mother. He chatted with Tom for half an hour and left in a wildflurry of wind and rain.
By eight o'clock the full fury of the gale broke on land, alreadydangerous at sea, as Tom had noticed for some time previous. The windarose to a hurricane, the rain came in sheets, and at times the thunderand lightning became terrific.
Tom was in constant readiness for service. His ear was close to thereceiver. He knew from experience what these tempestuous nights meantfor those at sea.
Suddenly there was a sharp series of sputtering, crackling sounds. Thenthe receiver gave: "y-3----y-3----y-3."
Tom thrilled. It was the first time in his experience as a wirelessoperator that the signal most dreaded had come into Station Z, for thequickly repeated letter and its accompanying numeral meant that somevessel at sea was in dire distress.
Tom clapped the receiver to his ear, and, even before it was in place henoted the clicking of the diaphragm, which told that the electriccurrent was operating through the magnets. Then came a snap, as when acentral telephone operator accidently "rings the bell" into one's ear.It was as though all the powerful current had concentrated itself intothe receiver.
"Great Scott!" cried Tom. "With this storm I may get a shock if I'm notcareful!"
He looked to his instruments, and glanced at the connections. Theyseemed to be in perfect order, and he was as well safeguarded as waspossible.
There was a silence, and then more of the pounding in the receiver. Thelad was forced to move it away from his ear, for it nearly deafened him.
"This is fierce!" he cried, as a terrific clap of thunder, following avivid lightning flash, seemed fairly to shake the tower.
The instrument acted incoherently for the minute succeeding, and Tomcould not make out the message that was coming. He sprang to the ropesthat connected a tackle with the aerials aloft and ran the netting upinto tune.
"She's coming clear now," said Tom.
"Y-3, off Garvey Rocks," ran the message. "Machinery broken anddrifting. Send help. Steamer _Olivia_."
Tom recoiled with a shock. The _Olivia!_! That was the steamer uponwhich Grace Morgan and her aunt were passengers!