A slender form appeared in the doorway, hands upraised. Jack shot the rays of his flashlight upward. A Chinese youth in American clothes appeared. He was spectacled.
The youth stepped across the low sill of the station, hands still upraised. Jack motioned to Frank to search him, and the latter ran his hands over the other’s form, abstracting a revolver and a long knife.
Bob spun the young Chinaman around, pulled out his belt and tied his hands together with it.
“Keep an eye on him,” said Jack. “I’m going to have a look at the station.”
First casting the rays of his flashlight over the interior and verifying the Chinaman’s statement that he was alone, Jack went inside. Presently Bob and Frank heard him exclaim, and then he appeared in the doorway lugging a heavy square wooden box.
“Look what I found,” he cried delightedly. “A portable radio outfit for field work. This is the very latest equipment. I’ve examined it hastily, and it seems to have everything—antennae coiled up and ready for stringing, some jointed steel poles to attach it to the box and powerful storage batteries.”
“I don’t know yet, but I have a hunch it will come in handy. Well, now I guess we better go down to the boat and tell this man Robbins what we have discovered and what we suspect. Then we can talk to our prisoner, too.”
The latter’s face was impassive. In appearance and judging by the choice of words he had employed, he was an educated youth. Perhaps something could be gotten out of him by questioning. It was worth trying.
“All right,” said Bob. “Frank, you watch our prisoner and I’ll lend Jack a hand with this radio outfit.”
CHAPTER XXV—A FORLORN HOPE --------------------------
“Wow. Now that we’re down, I don’t see how we made it with this.”
Bob put down his end of the box containing the portable radio transmission set, and Jack followed suit.
“Must weigh all of two hundred pounds,” said Bob.
“Well, the batteries are heavy,” said Jack. “The light poles weigh little, and the coil contains not much more than a pound of wire. But there are eight ‘B’ batteries of twenty-two and one-half volts each, and they weigh about five pounds apiece.”
“Don’t see what use the darned contraption will be, anyhow,” grumbled Bob. “Where can we use it?”