“It’s merely a question of experimenting, boys,” he declared. “We were on the right track during the war, but radio’s jumped ahead a lot since then and whatever the government experts accomplish is kept mighty quiet. I’m glad that single control works out so well. We’ll have to thank the Huns for that. We found one on a captured U-boat, but as far as I know the government never took it up seriously—don’t know why unless it was because there was no particular need of it. We never did find out what the Germans used it for—for all we know they may have been experimenting along under-sea lines too. And if that new tube of Michelson’s proves good he’ll make a fortune and have you boys to thank for it. I’m coming down to see your outfit just as soon as we get a breathing space. We’re rushed to death just now.”
With nothing else to do the boys amused themselves listening at their sets which, with so many other interests, had been sadly neglected of late, and, out of pure curiosity and never expecting to
hear anything, Tom turned his loop aërial to the southeast and tuned for the short wave lengths used by the mysterious talker they had once followed and tried to locate so persistently. To his surprise, the sound of words came clearly over the set.
“There he is again!” Tom exclaimed to Frank who was listening to a broadcasted speech. “Get him and we’ll see what he says.”
But despite the fact that the boys could both hear the man plainly his words were meaningless, for he was speaking some guttural, harsh-sounding tongue.
“Oh, pshaw!” ejaculated Tom disgustedly after a few minutes of this. “Who cares what he’s saying. I guess it’s some crazy foreigner.”
So saying, he again picked up the broadcasting station and forgot all about the incident in his interest as he listened to a lecture on new developments in radio.
“Some night we’ll be listening to that fellow talking about the new under-sea radio,” chuckled Frank as the talk ceased and the boys laid aside their receivers. “Say, won’t it be sport to hear
him telling about us and know all the fellows are listening to it?”
“Well, we won’t count our chickens just yet,” declared Tom sagely. “Just because that receiving set works isn’t any proof the sending set will. And without being able to talk back a diver isn’t any better off—or at least much better off—if he can hear what’s going on in the air.”