“Glad I found you,” he said, and then took a close survey of Tom and of the furnishings of the room. “Heard about you at the town, and being somewhat interested in these new-fangled wireless ideas, I thought you wouldn’t mind a casual visitor.”
“No, indeed,” answered Tom readily. “I am only too glad to meet anybody who is interested as to our little station here.”
“It’s quite a plant,” declared the stranger. “Tell me something about it, will you?”
An enthusiastic boy like Tom was only too ready to enter into a general description of the parts and utilities of the apparatus. The stranger listened intently, approbatively too, it seemed to Tom. He followed the indication of Tom’s finger as it pointed out this and that attachment of the general operating device; and arose and looked closer as Tom explained in detail and very clearly some intricate features of the mechanism.
“That’s pretty interesting,” voiced the man at length, “and you seem to know your business.”
“Oh, I’m only a novice, a mere amateur,” insisted Tom modestly.
“What’s that now?” inquired the visitor, reaching a careless hand very near to the coherer.
“Look out!” shouted Tom warningly.
“What’s the trouble?” calmly interrogated the man.
“Danger. You’ll get a hard shock if you touch that.”