Part 5 (1/2)

CHAPTER IV

THE HOUSE OF THE HELIOGRAPH

”You know your way about London?” he asked.

”Yes, sir,” said Harry.

”I shall have messages for you to carry,” said the colonel, then. ”Now I want to explain, so that you will understand the importance of this, why you are going to be allowed to do this work. This war has come suddenly--but we are sure that the enemy has expected it for a long time, and has made plans accordingly.

”There are certain matters so important, so secret, that we are afraid to trust them to the telephone, the telegraph--even the post, if that were quick enough! In a short time we shall have weeded out all the spies. Until then we have to exercise the greatest care. And it has been decided to accept the offer of Boy Scouts because the spies we feel we must guard against are less likely to suspect boys than men. I am going to give you some dispatches now--what they are is a secret. You take them to Major French, at Waterloo station.”

He stopped, apparently expecting them to speak. But neither said anything.

”No questions?” he asked, sternly.

”No--no, sir,” said d.i.c.k. ”We're to take the dispatches to Major French, at Waterloo? That's all, is it, sir? And then to come back here?”

The colonel nodded approvingly.

”Yes, that's all,” he said. ”Except for this, Waterloo station is closed to all civilians. You will require a word to pa.s.s the sentries. No matter what you see, once you are inside, you are not to describe it. You are to tell no one, not even your parents, what you do or what you see. That is all,”

and he nodded in dismissal.

They made their way out and back to the railway station. And d.i.c.k seemed a little disappointed.

”I don't think this is much to be doing!” he grumbled.

But Harry's eyes were glistening.

”Don't you see?” he said, lowering his voice so that they could not be overheard. ”We know something now that probably even a lot of the soldiers don't know! They're mobilizing. If they are going to be sent from Waterloo it must mean that they're going to Southampton--and that means that they will reach France. That's what we'll see at Waterloo station--troops entraining to start the trip to France. They're going to fight over there.

Everyone is guessing at that--a lot of people thought most of the army would be sent to the East Coast. But that can't be so, you see. If it was, they would be starting from King's Cross and Liverpool street stations, not from Waterloo.”

”Oh, I never thought of that!” said d.i.c.k, brightening.

When they got on the train at Ealing they were lucky enough to get a compartment to themselves, since at that time more people were coming to Ealing than were leaving it. d.i.c.k began at once to give vent to his wonder.

”How many of them do you suppose are going?” he cried. ”Who will be in command? Sir John French, I think. Lord Kitchener is to be War Minister, they say, and stay in London. I bet they whip those bally Germans until they don't know where they are--”

”Steady on!” said Harry, smiling, but a little concerned, none the less.

”d.i.c.k, don't talk like that! You don't know who may be listening!”

”Why, Harry! No one can hear us--we're all alone in the carriage!”

”I know, but we don't know who's in the next one, or whether they can hear through or not. The wall isn't very thick, you know. We can't be too careful. I don't think anyone knows what we're doing but there isn't any reason why we should take any risk at all.”

”No, of course not. You're right, Harry,” said d.i.c.k, a good deal abashed.

”I'll try to keep quieter after this.”

”I wonder why there are two of us,” said d.i.c.k, presently, in a whisper. ”I should think one would be enough.”