The Brighton Boys in the Radio Service | Page 8

Sergeant Martin was in the
water with him, and trying to raise his body over the side of the launch;
then he relapsed again, for what seemed to him hours, but what was
actually only about two minutes, and was awakened to his real senses
by the shouts of Slim, on shore.
"Slim's got him," Jerry almost shouted. "Hurry, captain, right off this
way to the shore. Slim must have him. Listen to Slim's bellow."
And if there wasn't a first-class ruction in progress just upon the spot
from which Slim's vocal signals were emanating, then Slim's voice was
deceptive, indeed.
As a matter of fact, there was the finest sort of a fracas afoot.
Slim, on shore, had been a silent and anxious witness to the sudden
turning on of the navy yard searchlight, and to all that it exposed--the
boat, the man at work in it, Joe in the water, and his discovery by the
boat's occupant.
And then, as the light was extinguished, and the whole affair was
engulfed in darkness, Slim heard the rapid beating of the oars upon the
water, and the rower heading toward shore--and Slim.
Unable to see the craft approaching, he traced its course by sound, and
when the man stepped ashore Slim was only a few yards away.
Discerning a shadow just ahead of him, the youth threw himself at it
with his whole weight, only to grunt his pain and disgust as he came
into violent contact with the trunk of a dead tree.

The sound, however, startled the enemy into an exclamation which
revealed his whereabouts, and a moment later the two were locked
together and rolling over the ground, Slim with a desperate grip upon
the stranger's throat, and the latter landing blow after blow upon Slim's
stomach.
It was during this mêlée that Slim spied the searchlight of the launch
and let out his first call. After that most of his "bellows" were
involuntary and but punctuated the rapid-fire attack with which the
other man was landing his blows just above Slim's waist-line, or where
his waist-line should have been.
As the launch headed toward shore, its searchlight trained over the bow,
the man of the rowboat resorted to more desperate tactics. With a
tremendous jerk he managed to free his throat from Slim's grasp. An
instant later he gave the youth's neck a twist which almost broke it.
Then he landed a vicious kick which put poor Slim out of business.
Just as the marines from the launch were climbing ashore the fellow
sped off into the denseness of the night; and as his footsteps died away
all present trace of him was gone. A dozen of them searched for an
hour, but without result, and further investigation along that line had to
be abandoned until the following day.
Meanwhile, however, all three lads were hurried back to the navy yard
for fresh clothing and other repairs; having received which, together
with hot coffee from the cook at the barracks mess, they were permitted,
at their own earnest solicitation, to return to the scene with four
marines who were to be stationed along that section of the shore for the
balance of the night.
What they saw upon their arrival astounded them. Three additional
launches had arrived upon the scene, and the commandant of the navy
yard was himself directing matters.
He had in his hand a slight rope that ran down into the water, and close
beside it was a hose line attached to an apparatus in the boat. The boys
knew at once that a diver was at work down on the river bed.

From the side of another launch anchored parallel with the first, and
fifteen feet distant, four husky bluejackets were waiting expectantly to
divide their strength on two stout ropes that were being attached to
something down in the water. The third launch played its flashlight
upon the work, while the fourth steamed about, doing patrol duty.
Even as the boys watched, the commandant gave a signal and the
sailors began hauling upward on the two heavy ropes. In a moment an
oblong box, about two feet long, a foot wide and of the same depth,
came dripping from the water. As it was brought to the boat's side two
other men grasped it carefully and placed it in the bottom of the launch.
Then the ropes, which were attached to a guide line, were hauled down
into the river again.
"What does it mean?" Joe asked of Sergeant Martin, who had changed
his clothes and arrived back ahead of them.
"What does it mean?" repeated the big sergeant. "It means that you
three young men are due for several credits and early recognition, or
I'm much mistaken. The man you discovered has