“A gun!� cried Pierce involuntarily; “looks just like a howitzer; or is it an anti-aircraft gun?�
“Anti-airman gun, no doubt,� said Crane; “they heard you were coming down and took precautions.�
“But what the devil can he want with a gun?� muttered Pierce, peering at the dark outline.
“And who the devil is he, if it comes to that?� said the Colonel.
“Why, that window,� explained Pierce. “That’s the window of the room they’ve let to a paying guest, I know. Man of the name of Green, I understand; rather a recluse, and I suppose some sort of crank.�
“Not an anti-armament crank, anyhow,� said the Colonel.
“By George,� said Pierce, whistling softly, “I wonder whether things really have moved faster than we could fancy! I wonder whether it’s a revolution or a civil war beginning after all. I suppose we are an army ourselves; I represent the Air Force and you represent the infantry.�
“You represent the infants,� answered the Colonel. “You’re too young for this world; you and your revolutions! As a matter of fact, it isn’t a gun, though it does look rather like one. I see now what it is.�
“And what in the world is it?� asked his friend.
“It’s a telescope,� said Crane. “One of those very big telescopes they usually have in observatories.�