AN EXCITING STRUGGLE
"I think myself that we've hung round this neck o' the woods about long
enough," agreed Donegan. "And I ain't any too well pleased to have that
radio inspector snooping around the woods. He ain't up to any good if
you ask me. But brace up, Cassey, for this last haul. You ain't
generally chicken-hearted."
"You'll f-f-find that I have my n-n-nerve with me when the pinch comes,"
replied Cassey. "I'd rather be k-k-killed by a bullet than g-g-g-go back
to prison."
The voices receded as the men went on, and soon the sound of their
footsteps ceased. It was evident they were searching for the most
advantageous place for the crime that they contemplated.
"I told you that I had a hunch that that villain would be here,"
whispered Jimmy, when they felt that it would be safe to speak.
"Good thing, too," said Bob grimly. "Cassey'll get to-night what's
coming to him."
Half an hour passed--an hour--an hour and a half. Then far in the
distance the boys heard the hum of a motor engine and the rumble of a
heavy truck.
"There it comes!" ejaculated Joe, throwing caution to the winds in his
excitement.
The rumbling grew louder, and soon the boys knew that it must be close
to the bridge. Then they saw the lamps of an auto truck sending out
their beams of light a hundred feet in advance, and could just discern
above them the massive body of the truck.
It came on at a moderate rate of speed, slowing up somewhat as it struck
the bridge.
Suddenly shots rang out and the boys could see two dark figures standing
on the bridge and waving their hands at the driver, as they bellowed out
orders to stop. At the same time, as though the shots had been a signal,
three other figures came rushing from other directions.
It was impossible for the boys to keep still, and they too sprang to
their feet and started for the scene of the hold-up, running at the top
of their speed.
Just as they left their covert there was a blinding flash that made the
whole bridge as bright as day. A searchlight had been turned on from the
top of the truck full in the faces of the robbers. They staggered as
though they had been struck, and at the same instant there came a volley
of shots and the police were upon the hold-up men.
There was a wild melee of struggling men, as they swayed back and
forth in a desperate struggle. The robbers had been taken completely by
surprise and were outnumbered two to one. There were shouts and the
crack of revolvers, and the thud of pistol butts.
But the battle, though fierce, was of short duration. In a few minutes
the robbers had been subdued. One lay stunned on the bridge and another
lay by him wounded. Two more were held in the grasp of officers.
One, however, tore himself away from the officer who had grappled with
him, and came rushing in the direction of the radio boys. In the glare
from the searchlight they recognized Cassey.
He saw them, too, and fired his revolver at them. The shot went wild. He
pressed the trigger again but with no result. Then, realizing that his
weapon was empty, he hurled it at Bob, who was nearest to him.
Bob dodged, and the next instant grabbed at Cassey's legs. The
expertness that had made him the star of his football team stood him in
good stead. His arms closed round Cassey in a flying tackle, and they
came heavily to the bridge together.
Cassey struggled desperately to rise, but Bob held him in an unbreakable
grip, and a second later his comrades had come to his assistance and the
scoundrel was overpowered and delivered over to the police, who came
rushing up.
The robbers were securely bound and bundled into the auto truck that
they had planned to rob. Then in high spirits the party drove back to
Barberton. The chief was jubilant, and the praises he heaped upon the
radio boys made their ears burn. They stayed long enough at his office
to see the prisoners safely jailed and then, though the hour was late,
rode back to their quarters in the woods with Mr. Brandon.
They slept long and late after their exciting experience, and it was
almost noon the next day when they awoke. Bob was somewhat surprised to
find a letter waiting for him. It bore no stamp, and had evidently been
brought there by one of the lumbermen.
He opened it curiously and glanced at the signature. Then he gave a
shout that brought his comrades quickly to his side.
"What do you think of this, fellows?" he cried. "Buck Looker's writing
to me."
There was a chorus of wondering exclamations.
The last paragraph caught Bob's eye and he read it aloud:
"As for Bob Layton and those other chumps, all we've got to do is to
stand pat. No one saw us put the stones in the snowballs, and if we just
deny it, they can't pin anything on us. They'll have to pay for the
window, and that'll even up things for what they did to us at Mountain
Pass.
"Yours,
"Buck."
Bob was utterly dumbfounded. Then he glanced at the heading of the
letter and let out a whoop.
"Oh, this is too rich!" he cried, almost choking with laughter. "This
letter is directed to Carl Lutz. You know he went home two or three days
ago. Buck has written two letters, one to Lutz and the other to
me--probably a roast--and he's put them in the wrong envelopes. Oh, how
he's given himself away!"
Bob's comrades were fairly convulsed, and Jimmy grew so purple in the
face that they had to slap him vigorously on the back. They had scarcely
got him into a calmer frame, before he threatened to go off again, for
he saw Buck Looker strolling along the road.
"Probably's come along to see how you were bearing up under the roast,"
chuckled Joe.
Bob ran over toward Buck, followed by his comrades. Buck looked alarmed
and put himself in a posture of defense.
"Oh, we're not going to hurt you," said Bob. "I only wanted to tell you
that I got your letter."
"I hope it blistered your hide," growled Buck.
"It made me nearly laugh myself to death," replied Bob. "But let me
advise you, Buck, to make sure the next time that you get the right
letter in the right envelope."
"What do you mean by that?" asked Buck, in apprehension.
"Only that I got the letter you meant for Carl Lutz," replied Bob.
"Maybe you've forgotten what you said, so I'll read the last paragraph,"
and, dwelling on every word, he read it over deliberately.
Before he had quite finished, Buck made a desperate grab at the letter,
but Bob was too quick for him.
"No, you don't!" he exclaimed, as he folded it and put it carefully into
his pocket. "That letter's going to cost you about two hundred dollars,
for that's what it will cost to pony up for the broken window. We've got
you dead to rights, and you'd better pay up and pay up quick. So long,
Buck. And do be more careful next time to get the right letter in the
right envelope."
With all his bluster knocked out of him, Buck slunk away. The boys were
not surprised to learn in the next letter from home that the insurance
company had been paid.
"Some excitement we have had here," remarked Bob. "Wonder if we'll ever
have such strenuous times again."
"Sure," declared Joe promptly, and he was right, as we shall see in the
next volume of this series, to be called, "The Radio Boys with the
Forest Rangers." In that volume we shall see how they fought a fire that
came close to ending tragically.
After a good dinner, the boys lay sprawled out on the grass basking in
the spring sunshine and utterly at peace with themselves and the world.
"Well, it's been hard work, but we've had pretty good luck at trailing a
voice," observed Bob.
"Yes," agreed Joe with a grin, "and s-s-s-such a v-v-v-voice!"
And Jimmy whistled.
THE END
* * * * * *
THE RADIO BOYS SERIES
(Trademark Registered)
By ALLEN CHAPMAN
Author of the "Railroad Series," Etc.
Illustrated. Individual Colored Wrappers For Each Story.
Every Volume Complete in Itself.
A new series for boys giving full details of radio work, both in sending
and receiving--telling how small and large amateur sets can be made and
operated, and how some boys got a lot of fun and adventure out of what
they did. Each volume from first to last is so thoroughly fascinating,
so strictly up-to-date and accurate, we feel sure all lads will peruse
them with great delight.
Each volume has a Foreword by Jack Binns, the well-known radio expert of
the New York Tribune.
THE RADIO BOYS' FIRST WIRELESS;
Or, Winning the Ferberton Prize.
THE RADIO BOYS AT OCEAN POINT;
Or, The Message That Saved the Ship.
THE RADIO BOYS AT THE SENDING STATION;
Or, Making Good in the Wireless Room.
THE RADIO BOYS AT MOUNTAIN PASS;
Or, The Midnight Call for Assistance.
THE RADIO BOYS TRAILING A VOICE;
Or, Solving a Wireless Mystery.
THE RADIO BOYS WITH THE FOREST RANGERS;
Or, The Great Fire on Spruce Mountain.
THE RADIO BOYS WITH THE ICEBERG PATROL;
Or, Making Safe the Ocean Lanes.
Grosset & Dunlap, Publishers, New York
* * * * * *
THE TOM SWIFT SERIES
By VICTOR APPLETON
Uniform Style of Binding.
Individual Colored Wrappers For Each Story.
Every Volume Complete in Itself.
Every boy possesses some form of inventive genius. Tom Swift is a bright,
ingenious boy and his inventions and adventures make the most interesting
kind of reading.
TOM SWIFT AND HIS MOTOR CYCLE
TOM SWIFT AND HIS MOTOR BOAT
TOM SWIFT AND HIS AIRSHIP
TOM SWIFT AND HIS SUBMARINE BOAT
TOM SWIFT AND HIS ELECTRIC RUNABOUT
TOM SWIFT AND HIS WIRELESS MESSAGE
TOM SWIFT AMONG THE DIAMOND MAKERS
TOM SWIFT IN THE CAVES OF ICE
TOM SWIFT AND HIS SKY RACER
TOM SWIFT AND HIS ELECTRIC RIFLE
TOM SWIFT IN THE CITY OF GOLD
TOM SWIFT AND HIS AIR GLIDER
TOM SWIFT IN CAPTIVITY
TOM SWIFT AND HIS WIZARD CAMERA
TOM SWIFT AND HIS GREAT SEARCHLIGHT
TOM SWIFT AND HIS GIANT CANNON
TOM SWIFT AND HIS PHOTO TELEPHONE
TOM SWIFT AND HIS AERIAL WARSHIP
TOM SWIFT AND HIS BIG TUNNEL
TOM SWIFT IN THE LAND OF WONDERS
TOM SWIFT AND HIS WAR TANK
TOM SWIFT AND HIS AIR SCOUT
TOM SWIFT AND HIS UNDERSEA SEARCH
TOM SWIFT AMONG THE FIRE FIGHTERS
TOM SWIFT AND HIS ELECTRIC LOCOMOTIVE
TOM SWIFT AND HIS FLYING BOAT
TOM SWIFT AND HIS GREAT OIL GUSHER
Grosset & Dunlap, Publishers, New York
* * * * * *
THE OUTDOOR CHUMS SERIES
By CAPTAIN QUINCY ALLEN
The outdoor chums are four wide-awake lads, sons of wealthy men of a
small city located on a lake. The boys love outdoor life, and are
greatly interested in hunting, fishing, and picture taking. They have
motor cycles, motor boats, canoes, etc., and during their vacations go
everywhere and have all sorts of thrilling adventures. The stories give
full directions for camping out, how to fish, how to hunt wild animals
and prepare the skins for stuffing, how to manage a canoe, how to swim,
etc.
Full of the spirit of outdoor life.
THE OUTDOOR CHUMS
Or The First Tour of the Rod, Gun and Camera Club.
THE OUTDOOR CHUMS ON THE LAKE
Or Lively Adventures on Wildcat Island.
THE OUTDOOR CHUMS IN THE FOREST
Or Laying the Ghost of Oak Ridge.
THE OUTDOOR CHUMS ON THE GULF
Or Rescuing the Lost Balloonists.
THE OUTDOOR CHUMS AFTER BIG GAME
Or Perilous Adventures in the Wilderness.
THE OUTDOOR CHUMS ON A HOUSEBOAT
Or The Rivals of the Mississippi.
THE OUTDOOR CHUMS IN THE BIG WOODS
Or The Rival Hunters at Lumber Run.
THE OUTDOOR CHUMS AT CABIN POINT
Or The Golden Cup Mystery.
12mo. Averaging 240 pages. Illustrated. Handsomely bound in Cloth.
Grosset & Dunlap, Publishers, New York
* * * * * *
THE BOYS OF COLUMBIA HIGH SERIES
By GRAHAM B. FORBES
Never was there a cleaner, brighter, more manly boy than Frank Allen, the
hero of this series of boys' tales, and never was there a better crowd of
lads to associate with than the students of the School. All boys will read
these stories with deep interest. The rivalry between the towns along the
river was of the keenest, and plots and counterplots to win the champions,
at baseball, at football, at boat racing, at track athletics, and at ice
hockey, were without number. Any lad reading one volume of this series
will surely want the others.
THE BOYS OF COLUMBIA HIGH
Or The All Around Rivals of the School
THE BOYS OF COLUMBIA HIGH ON THE DIAMOND
Or Winning Out by Pluck
THE BOYS OF COLUMBIA HIGH ON THE RIVER
Or The Boat Race Plot that Failed
THE BOYS OF COLUMBIA HIGH ON THE GRIDIRON
Or The Struggle for the Silver Cup
THE BOYS OF COLUMBIA HIGH ON THE ICE
Or Out for the Hockey Championship
THE BOYS OF COLUMBIA HIGH IN TRACK ATHLETICS
Or A Long Run that Won
THE BOYS OF COLUMBIA HIGH IN WINTER SPORTS
Or Stirring Doings on Skates and Iceboats
12mo. Illustrated.
Handsomely bound in cloth, with cover design and wrappers in colors.
Grosset & Dunlap, Publishers, New York
* * * * * *
THE MOVING PICTURE BOYS SERIES
BY VICTOR APPLETON
UNIFORM STYLE OF BINDING. INDIVIDUAL COLORED WRAPPERS.
Moving pictures and photo plays are famous the world over, and in this
line of books the reader is given a full description of how the films are
made--the scenes of little dramas, indoors and out, trick pictures to
satisfy the curious, soul-stirring pictures of city affairs, life in the
Wild West, among the cowboys and Indians, thrilling rescues along the
seacoast, the daring of picture hunters in the jungle among savage beasts,
and the great risks run in picturing conditions in a land of earthquakes.
The volumes teem with adventures and will be found interesting from first
chapter to last.
THE MOVING PICTURE BOYS
THE MOVING PICTURE BOYS IN THE WEST
THE MOVING PICTURE BOYS ON THE COAST
THE MOVING PICTURE BOYS IN THE JUNGLE
THE MOVING PICTURE BOYS IN EARTHQUAKE LAND
THE MOVING PICTURE BOYS AND THE FLOOD
THE MOVING PICTURE BOYS AT PANAMA
THE MOVING PICTURE BOYS UNDER THE SEA
THE MOVING PICTURE BOYS ON THE WAR FRONT
THE MOVING PICTURE BOYS ON FRENCH BATTLEFIELDS
MOVING PICTURE BOYS' FIRST SHOWHOUSE
MOVING PICTURE BOYS AT SEASIDE PARK
MOVING PICTURE BOYS ON BROADWAY
THE MOVING PICTURE BOYS' OUTDOOR EXHIBITION
THE MOVING PICTURE BOYS' NEW IDEA
Grosset & Dunlap, Publishers, New York
* * * * * *
THE FAMOUS ROVER BOYS SERIES
BY ARTHUR M. WINFIELD
(Edward Stratemeyer)
OVER THREE MILLION COPIES SOLD OF THIS SERIES
Uniform Style of Binding. Colored Wrappers.
Every Volume Complete in Itself.
THE ROVER BOYS AT SCHOOL
THE ROVER BOYS ON THE OCEAN
THE ROVER BOYS IN THE JUNGLE
THE ROVER BOYS OUT WEST
THE ROVER BOYS ON THE GREAT LAKES
THE ROVER BOYS IN THE MOUNTAINS
THE ROVER BOYS ON LAND AND SEA
THE ROVER BOYS IN CAMP
THE ROVER BOYS ON THE RIVER
THE ROVER BOYS ON THE PLAINS
THE ROVER BOYS IN SOUTHERN WATERS
THE ROVER BOYS ON THE FARM
THE ROVER BOYS ON TREASURE ISLE
THE ROVER BOYS AT COLLEGE
THE ROVER BOYS DOWN EAST
THE ROVER BOYS IN THE AIR
THE ROVER BOYS IN NEW YORK
THE ROVER BOYS IN ALASKA
THE ROVER BOYS IN BUSINESS
THE ROVER BOYS ON A TOUR
THE ROVER BOYS AT COLBY HALL
THE ROVER BOYS ON SNOWSHOE ISLAND
THE ROVER BOYS UNDER CANVAS
THE ROVER BOYS ON A HUNT
THE ROVER BOYS IN THE LAND OF LUCK
THE ROVER BOYS AT BIG HORN RANCH
THE ROVER BOYS AT BIG BEAR LAKE
THE ROVER BOYS SHIPWRECKED
Grosset & Dunlap, Publishers, New York
* * * * * *
THE PUTNAM HALL STORIES
Companion Stories to the Famous Rover Boys Series
By ARTHUR M. WINFIELD
(Edward Stratemeyer)
UNIFORM STYLE OF BINDING. INDIVIDUAL COLORED WRAPPERS.
Being the adventures of lively young fellows at a Military Academy. Open
air sports have always been popular with boys and these stories that
mingle adventure with fact will appeal to every manly boy.
THE MYSTERY OF PUTNAM HALL
Or The School Chums' Strange Discovery
The particulars of the mystery and the solution of it are very interesting
reading.
CAMPING OUT DAYS AT PUTNAM HALL
Or The Secret of the Old Mill
A story full of vim and vigor, telling what the cadets did during the
summer encampment, including a visit to a mysterious old mill, said to be
haunted. The book has a wealth of fun in it.
THE REBELLION AT PUTNAM HALL
Or The Rival Runaways
The boys had good reasons for running away during Captain Putnam's
absence. They had plenty of fun and several queer adventures.
THE CHAMPIONS OF PUTNAM HALL
Or Bound to Win Out
In this volume the Cadets of Putnam Hall show what they can do in various
keen rivalries on the athletic field and elsewhere. There is one victory
which leads to a most unlooked-for discovery.
THE CADETS OF PUTNAM HALL
Or Good Times in School and Out
The cadets are lively, flesh-and-blood fellows, bound to make friends from
the start. There are some keen rivalries, in school and out, and something
is told of a remarkable midnight feast and a hazing with an unexpected
ending.
THE RIVALS OF PUTNAM HALL
Or Fun and Sport Afloat and Ashore
It is a lively, rattling, breezy story of school life in this country,
written by one who knows all about its pleasures and its perplexities, its
glorious excitements, and its chilling disappointments.
Grosset & Dunlap, Publishers, New York
* * * * * *
THE RAILROAD SERIES
By ALLEN CHAPMAN
Author of the Radio Boys, Etc.
Illustrated. Handsomely Bound in Cloth.
Every Volume Complete in Itself.
In this line of books there is revealed the whole workings of a great
American railroad system. There are adventures in abundance--railroad
wrecks, dashes through forest fires, the pursuit of a "wildcat"
locomotive, the disappearance of a pay car with a large sum of money on
board--but there is much more than this--the intense rivalry among
railroads and railroad men, the working out of running schedules, the
getting through "on time" in spite of all obstacles, and the manipulation
of railroad securities by evil men who wish to rule or ruin.
RALPH OF THE ROUND HOUSE;
Or, Bound to Become a Railroad Man.
RALPH IN THE SWITCH TOWER;
Or, Clearing the Track.
RALPH ON THE ENGINE;
Or, The Young Fireman of the Limited Mail.
RALPH ON THE OVERLAND EXPRESS;
Or, The Trials and Triumphs of a Young Engineer.
RALPH, THE TRAIN DISPATCHER;
Or, The Mystery of the Pay Car.
RALPH ON THE ARMY TRAIN;
Or, The Young Railroader's Most Daring Exploit.
RALPH ON THE MIDNIGHT FLYER;
Or, The Wreck at Shadow Valley.
RALPH AND THE MISSING MAIL POUCH;
Or, The Stolen Government Bonds.
GROSSET & DUNLAP, Publishers, NEW YORK