Barby broke in faintly through the noise. "Rick! I've been listening. What's that noise?"
He explained quickly. "We planted one unit in a box of cereal and Jerry put it in the barbershop."
Barby gasped. "In a box of cereal? What kind?"
"Crummies. Your favorite."
"Oh, Rick!" The girl's voice rose to a wail. "Don't you remember the commercial? Crisp, crackly Crummies! The cereal that sings for your breakfast!"
He got it, then. "Okay, Barby." To the others, he said unhappily, "Well, it was a great idea. Only I forgot one thing. I didn't pick a quiet breakfast food. That noise is the radio settling through the Crummies—the loudest cereal on the market."
The three looked at each other helplessly. There wasn't a thing that could be done about it.
"Noisy breakfast food," Scotty said unbelievingly.
Jerry promised, "I'll never eat it again!" The reporter straightened his coat and tie and gave his hatbrim a jaunty flick. "Well, here I go for my haircut. Might as well do something constructive."
The crackling, popping, snapping continued unabated. "Listen to it," Rick said hopelessly.