Part 22 (1/2)

CHAPTER XXVII

HE PLANS A DESPERATE GAME AND DOES A GOOD JOB

Archer was thoroughly game, Tom knew that, but he did not want to involve him in his own peril unless his friend fully realized what it meant. With himself, as he had said, it was different. But he might have saved himself any worry about his friend. Archer was not only game; he was delighted.

Needless to say, they slept little that night. In the morning they were given a wrench with which they removed the cylinder head amid the gibes of a group of spectators. And there, sure enough, after the piston was disconnected and removed, they found a little, thin crack in the inner cylinder wall.

”Feel o' that,” said Archer, triumphantly rubbing his finger nail across it, for it was more easily felt than seen, ”and then go away back and sit down, the whole bunch of you. We got a _regularr_ chief engineer here now,” he added generously, ”and you better treat him decent while he's here.”

Tom shuddered for fear he would say too much.

”He might get exchanged any time,” said Archer.

”_Some_ boys,” remarked one of the prisoners.

”But findin's ain't fixin's,” said a British soldier.

”Oh, ain't they though!” said Archer. ”We'll have it fixed in---- How long'll it take to fix it, Slady?”

”Maybe a couple of days,” said Tom.

”Mybe a couple o' weeks,” said the Britisher.

”Mybe it won't, yer jolly good bloomin' ole London f.a.g, you!” mimicked Archer. ”It's as good as fixed already.”

”Better knock wood, Archie.”

”I'll knock something thickerr'n wood if you don't get out o' the way!”

said Archer.

One by one they strolled away laughing.

”I'll give that bunch one parting shot, all right!” said Archer.

”Shh!” said Tom, ”look out what you're saying.”

Whether it was because the grim authorities who presided over this unfortunate community believed that the renewed activity of the pump would be advantageous to themselves, or whether it was just out of the goodness of their hearts that they supplied the small quant.i.ty of sal ammoniac, it would be difficult to say, but in the afternoon a small bottle was forthcoming with the label of Herman Schlossen-something-or-other, chemist, of the neighboring town.

The boys smeared some of it on the crack and then poured some into a little vial which had contained toothache drops.

”Things are so bad in Gerrmany they have to use sal ammoniac for files,”

said Archer. ”If the warr keeps up much longer the poor people'll be usin' witch hazel for screw drivers.”

”Shhh!” said Tom. It was about all he ever said now.

After dark, with fast beating hearts, they went down to the place which Tom had selected for their operations. It was near the extreme end of the grounds, at a place where the wire ran through some thick shrubbery.