VIII
THE SECRET TELEGRAM
"Alex, will you work for me three or four hours to-night?" requested theBixton night operator of Alex one evening late in October. "I have justhad an invitation to a surprise party at Brodies', and wouldn't care tomiss it."
Alex agreed willingly. "I'll be right in line then for the latest news ofthe chase," he declared. For an attempt had been made that morning to robthe Farmers' Savings Bank at Zeisler, a posse had been sent from Bixtonto aid in the pursuit of the robbers, and reports from the hunt werebeing anxiously looked for.
"Take care you don't get in line for any bullets," laughed the operatoras he left. "It's your weakness, you know, to get mixed up in anyexcitement that's going on within a mile of you."
To Alex's disappointment hour after hour passed, however, and brought nofurther word, either of the pursued, or the pursuers. Finally, justbefore midnight, hearing Zeisler "come in" on the wire to report thepassing of a freight, Alex reached for the key, determined to inquire.
As he did so footsteps sounded on the silent platform without, thewaiting-room door opened, and two strangers appeared at the ticket-window.Glancing in, they turned to the office door, and entered.
"Hello, youngster," said the taller of the two, cordially, leaning overthe parcel-counter. "What's the news from the man-hunt?"
"I was going to ask Zeisler just as you came in," replied Alex, turningagain to the key.
"Well, never mind, then. Just tell them they were captured here,instead."
"What! Captured here?" exclaimed Alex.
"That's it. About an hour ago, just north, by the Bloomsbury posse.Sheriff O'Brien sent us down with the news, so you could send word up anddown the line and call in the other posses. No need of them pluggingaround all night."
But, instead of complying, Alex suddenly turned more fully toward the twomen. "What posse did you say you were with?"
"Bloomsbury! Bloomsbury!" said the smaller man, impatiently.
"Bloomsbury! Don't you mean Bloomsburg?"
"Well, what thundering difference--" The taller man flashed a warninggesture, and in an instant Alex understood.
_He was face to face with the bank robbers themselves!_
For a moment he stared from one to the other in consternation. Then,sharply recovering himself, he turned quickly back to the key. But he wastoo late. He had betrayed his discovery.
Both men laughed. "Your surmise is correct, my young friend," said thetaller man, lightly. "We are the gentlemen who were forced to leaveZeisler so hurriedly this morning.
"But don't let that make any difference," he continued, producing arevolver and placing it significantly on the counter before him. "Goright ahead with the message.
"Or wait, give me a blank, and I'll write it, so you will be sure to haveit right."
"Oh, hold on," interposed his companion. "Now that he knows who we are,how do you know he will send the message as you write it, and not justthe other thing--give us away?"
The first speaker threw down his pen. "Well, I'm an idiot. That's so."
He thought a moment, then, turning toward Alex, eyed him sharply aninstant, and said: "Youngster, I'll give you a dollar a word if you willgive me your solemn promise to send this message just as I write it."
A bare instant Alex hesitated, while the tempter whispered that it wouldmean thirty or forty dollars for a few minutes' work, and that everyonewould take it for granted he had been compelled to send it. Then abruptlyhe leaned back in his chair and shook his head. "I couldn't do it," hesaid quietly but positively.
"Oh, you couldn't, eh, Goody-goody?" exclaimed the smaller man, with asnarl, catching up the revolver and pointing it at Alex's head. "Nowcould you do it?"
The taller man caught his arm. "Don't be a fool, Jake. After all, wecouldn't be sure he wasn't fooling us even if he took the money.
"Look here, I have a scheme."
They stepped back and spoke together in low tones for a moment; then thetaller turned again to Alex, who meantime had remained quiet in hischair, futilely endeavoring to think of some means of spreading thealarm.
"I suppose you are not the only operator at this station, kid?"
"No; there is a day and a night operator. I am only 'subbing' for thenight man," responded Alex, wondering.
"Where is he?"
"At a party."
"Where is the day man?"
"At his boarding-house. But you couldn't get either of them to do it,"Alex declared confidently, thinking he had caught the drift of theirpurpose.
"Never mind what we could or what we couldn't. Where does the dayoperator board? Is it far?"
Momentarily Alex had a mind to refuse to tell; then, on the thought thatsuspicion might be aroused if one of the robbers went to rout the day manout, he replied, "About a quarter of a mile," and described how the housecould be reached.
Again the two men held a whispered consultation, and at its conclusionthe smaller man hurriedly left.
"Now I suppose you are wondering what we propose doing with the dayoperator," said the tall man, with a grin, when they were alone. "Well,it's so good I think I'll tell you. One of the cleverest getaway schemesyou ever heard of, and my own idea. Can you guess?"
Alex shook his head. "If it's not to send the message--and which I knowhe won't--I don't know."
The robber laughed. "You are going to send the message, and he is goingto stand just outside the door here and tell us letter by letter justwhat you make the instruments say. See?"
Alex uttered an exclamation. And, strange as it may seem, it was notentirely of chagrin, for the striking originality and ingenuity of theplan immediately appealed to his own peculiar genius for getting overdifficulties.
"And then," continued the talkative safe-breaker, "we will tie you bothin your chairs, cut the wires, then flag the night express, and departfor the East like respectable citizens, and by the time you have beenfound and the wires restored we will be well out of danger.
"Now, I claim there is some class to that scheme. What?"
Despite himself, Alex could not forbear a smile, even while he at oncesaw that to defeat the plan would be almost an impossibility.Nevertheless, as the bank robber turned his attention to a time-table,Alex determinedly addressed his wits to the problem.
Presently, as he sat looking at the telegraph instruments for aninspiration, he started. That last First of April joke he had played onhis father! The cut-off arrangement of wires was still in place beneaththe instrument table! Could he not use it?
He determined to see whether the connections were still in order.Fortunately he was sitting close to the table, with his feet beneath.Making a move as though tired of his position, he crossed one foot overthe other, and sank a little lower in the chair. Then, the change havingbrought no comment from the man at the counter, he carefully reached outthe upper foot, found the two wires and pressed them together.Immediately came a click from the instruments.
It was in working order! With hope Alex at once addressed himself to itspossibilities, and soon a suggestion came. "Yes, I believe I could doit," he told himself with satisfaction. "I'll make a try anyway. So muchfor never giving up."
At that moment the footfalls of the returning robber and those of anothersounded on the platform without. Both men were talking, and as theyentered the waiting-room Alex heard the evidently still unsuspectingJones say: "Funny, though. I never heard of the boy being troubled withhis heart before."
"COME ON! COME ON!" EXCLAIMED THE MAN IN THEDOORWAY.]
The next moment Jones's casual tones changed to a sharp cry of fright,and Alex knew that the robber had revealed himself. "Now you keep yourtongue between your teeth, and do exactly what you are told, young man,or you get this! You understand?
"Now turn about--your back toward the office door--so." The door wasflung open, and the robber appeared standing sideways, his gun in hishand, pointing at the day operator, who was just out of Alex's sight.
"Now what you are to do is to
read off letter by letter what this youngshaver in here sends on the wire. You are a tab on him. You understand?"
In a trembling voice Jones responded in the affirmative.
"And the first one of you who appears to do anything not straight andaboveboard gets daylight through his head," he added, raising his voicefor Alex's benefit. Then, addressing his partner, he said: "Give the kidthe message, Bill."
The tall man leaned over the counter and tossed the blank on the tablebefore Alex.
"Who will I send it to first?" asked Alex.
"The sheriff, Watson Siding."
"All right. But first, you know, I have to call him," explained Alex,somewhat nervously, now that the critical moment had come. "His call isWS."
Therewith he began slowly calling, that Jones might read off each letteras he sent it, "WS, WS, WS, BX."
"WS, WS--"
"I, I," answered WS.
"WS answers," interpreted Jones.
Steadying himself with a deep breath, Alex proceeded to carry out hisplan. Carefully reaching forth with his foot beneath the table, hepressed the two wires together, then loudly clicked his key. Theinstruments, thus "cut out," of course failed to respond.
"The wire appears to have opened," announced Jones. "Probably the man atWS has opened his key while getting a blank or a pen."
Again Alex clicked the key as though in a futile effort to send, thenleaving it open, thus holding the instruments on the table "dead," beganticking his foot against the impromptu key beneath the table.
And while the instruments at Bixton remained momentarily silent, thesurprised operator at Watson Siding read in draggy but decipherablesignals the words:
"Read every other word."
"Come on! Come on!" exclaimed the man in the doorway, turningsuspiciously. Immediately Alex withdrew his foot and closed the key, andat the resulting audible click Jones announced: "The wire has closed. Hecan send now."
"All right. Come ahead," commanded the short man, impatiently.
Then very deliberately, with a pause after each word, seemingly to enableJones to interpret, but really to give himself time to send another word,unheard, beneath the table, Alex sent on the key, and Jones read aloud,the following message:
"Sheriff,
"Watson Siding:
"Safe-blowers have been captured near here. Call in your posse.
"(Signed) O'Brien,
"Sheriff Quigg County."
What the at first puzzled and then thunderstruck operator at WatsonSiding read off his instrument ran very differently. It read:
"Safe THEY blowers ARE have HERE been IN captured STATION near INTEND here. GOING call OUT in BY your NIGHT posse. EXPRESS.
"(Signed) 'PHONE O'Brien, "BACK Sheriff HERE Quigg QUICK County."
A moment after giving his "OK" the Watson Siding operator was at thetelephone calling for Bixton central.
Meantime, having thus sent the message to WS to the bank-breakers'satisfaction, Alex proceeded to call and send it by turns to Zeisler,Hammerton, and other stations on the line. Sending slowly, to make themost of his time, it was within fifteen minutes of the hour the expresswas due when Alex had sent the last of the messages.
"Now you can step in and see your friend," said the man in the doorway,addressing Jones, who appeared, white and trembling, and coming behindthe counter, dropped into a chair facing Alex. The speaker then once moredisappeared, and presently an opening click of the instruments told thenature of his errand. The wires had been cut.
He soon returned, and rummaging about, while the taller man stood guardover them, he found some ropes, and proceeded to bind Alex and the dayoperator tightly in their chairs.
Just as the task was completed there came a long-drawn whistle from thewest. Both robbers promptly turned to the door. "Well, good night,gentlemen," said the smaller, grimly. "Much obliged for your kindservices."
"And I would just pause to repeat," said the taller, jocosely, "thatthere is some class to this getaway scheme, should any one ask you. Goodnight."
"_Yes, there is class--but it isn't first!_"
Uttering a cry the two bank robbers staggered back from the door, andwith a bound the deputy sheriff and a constable were upon them, bore themto the floor, and after a brief but terrific struggle disarmed andhandcuffed them.
"Yes," said the sheriff, rising, and with his knife quickly freeing thetwo prisoners, "there was class to it, but it was _second_.
"Our young friend here takes '_first_.'"
"HOW DID YOU DO IT, SMARTY?" SNAPPED THE SHORTER MAN.]
The robbers turned upon Alex with furiously flashing eyes. "How did youdo it, smarty?" snapped the shorter man.
Alex laughed, kicked one foot beneath the table, and the instrumentresponded with a click. "A little First of April trick. What do you thinkof it?"
Whatever the two renegades might have said through their gritting teeth,there was no doubt as to what the sheriff and the others thought. Nor thebank officials at Zeisler, when, a day later, there came to Alex a highlycommendatory letter and a check for two hundred dollars.
But better even than this, in Alex's estimation, a few mornings after thechief despatcher called him to the wire and announced his appointment asnight operator at Foothills, a small town on the western division.