Jessie had bought a galena crystal mounted, as that was more satisfactory, the book said. After all the parts of the radio set had been assembled and the connections made, the first essential operation, if they were to make use of the invention at once, was to adjust the tiny piece of wire—the “cat’s whisker”—which lightly rests on the crystal-detector, to a sensitive point.
Jessie, who had read the instruction book carefully, knew that this adjustment might be made in several different ways. One satisfactory way is by the use of a miniature buzzer transmitter.
“What are we going to hear?” Amy demanded eagerly. “How you going to tune her, Jess?”
“As there are only three sets of head phones,” grumbled Burd, “one of us is bound to be a stepchild.”
“We can take turns,” Jessie said, eagerly. “What time is it, Darry?”
“It points to eight, Jess.”
“Then there is a concert about to start at that station not more than thirty miles away from here. We ought to hear that fine,” declared the hostess of the party.
“What is the wave length?” Amy asked.
“Three-sixty. We can easily get it,” and Jessie adjusted the buzzer a little, the phones at her ears.
Eagerly they settled down to listen in. At least, three of them listened. Darry said he felt like the fifth wheel of an automobile—the one lashed on behind.