The Banner Boy Scouts in the Air

“Of course they’re all right. Give them time to come out. They still have five minutes.”

But when the five minutes were up, the two boys still had not emerged yet. Paul waited. Five minutes later he called the boys together to discuss the situation. It was decided that they would wait fifteen minutes more and if Jack and Wallace were not out by then, Paul and Bluff were to go in after them, the others were to remain outside.

In the meanwhile, let us see what happened to Jack and Wallace. Having crept into the cave on their hands and knees, Jack used his flashlight, throwing the beam of light straight ahead. The cave was about forty feet deep and beginning at the entrance it gradually widened until it attained a maximum width of about ten feet. The two boys crept forward until they came to about the middle of the cave. Playing their flashlight all around them, they found the place truly empty—absolutely bare of anything. The two boys looked at each other dumbfounded. Jack laughed good naturedly. “Can you imagine anything like it? If we knew nothing about that gang, we couldn’t suspect a thing by coming into the cave.”

“You’re right,” answered Wallace. “But I have a suspicion that this is not the whole of the cave.”

Jack snapped his finger enthusiastically. “Those are just my sentiments,” he cried. “It’s evident that they use this place for a store room and a hideout. Now if this was all there was to the cave and they stored their stuff right here, then they would be discovered by the first person who happened to come upon them. On the other hand, the fact that they have operated successfully and were not caught shows that there must be another place leading out from here where they can quickly hide.”

“I agree with you. And I have been thinking how we can start trying to find it.”

“And what’s your plan?”

Wallace rested on his haunches. “Notice how simple and smooth the walls seem to be?”

“That’s right.”

“Well, another part of this cave would have to lead off somewhere through that wall. And my hunch is that it’s near where we are now, on both sides and to the end of the cave.”

“Very good. Then you start on that wall, I’ll start on this one, and we’ll examine carefully every spot. We’ll work so that we meet at the far end of the cave.”

Wallace agreed and they set to work. With their hands, they went over every inch of the wall. They had been working like that for perhaps ten minutes when Jack suddenly screamed, “Wallace! I’ve got it! Here it is!”

Wallace jumped across to his friend’s side. A thick door, about two feet wide and four feet high, had swung out and remained open. Both were so excited with their discovery that neither one thought of determining exactly how it worked. Jack didn’t know what it was that swung the door open. It just happened. Wallace walked through the door first, followed by Jack. So enthused were they that neither one paused long enough to make sure of their exit. As they stepped into this newly discovered additional cave, Wallace used his flashlight. The beam flew back and forth, all around the place. The ceiling here was about three feet higher than in the outside cave. And all around the walls were stored large cases, boxes, utensils of many sorts and such things. Wallace gasped, “Look at all that stuff!”

Jack grasped his friend by the elbow. “Yeh,” he muttered. “Let’s take a look.”

They approached the large cases first. Jack carried his small hatchet with him. Wallace whispered, “Open up one of these cases first, and do it so we can nail it up again and make it look as if no one touched it.”

“Right.”

Jack set to work. In the meanwhile, Wallace roamed about, describing things to Jack as he came across them—cooking utensils, bedding, several iron cots, some clothing, two leather jackets, two holsters and automatics. Jack had pried open one board. He called, “Wallace, come here!”

They looked into the box. It was full of rifles. Their eyes met in astonishment; even though this was what they had been expecting. Jack gasped, “Well, that’s that.”

Wallace said, “Now close it again. Do it so there won’t be any suspicion that it was opened.”

When the job was completed, Wallace looked at his watch. “Hey!” he cried. “We have been away forty-five minutes already. Let’s get out.”

They looked around for the door but they couldn’t see it. It had swung to without their being aware of it. Both boys rushed over to where they thought the door would be; they pounded and pushed against the wall, but in vain. Wallace exclaimed, “Can you imagine a thing like that! We were so excited we forgot we had to come out again and took no precaution.”

Jack agreed. “Yes, it’s our fault. But let’s not get excited. We’ll get out.”

“I suppose so. But the boys out there will become worried if we don’t show up.”

“Then they’ll come after us.”

“But suppose they don’t find the door?”

“We found it, so why shouldn’t they?”

“It was an accident the way we found it. And it is possible that they may not.”

“Well, let’s not cross our bridges before we get there. Let’s do the best we can and look carefully.”

The boys spent fully a half hour pounding their fists against the wall, clawing with their fingers. But all in vain. They sat down on the hard ground to rest a bit and take counsel together. But just then Jack felt a slight puff of cool air and he turned his face to see the door swinging out. He jumped up and grasped it. Simultaneously Paul and Jack cried out. Wallace exclaimed, “Hold it! Let’s see how it works.”

Only a few minutes was necessary to discover that the door worked on an axis and the slightest push anywhere along the rim of the door, set it swinging. But to make sure, two of the boys remained on the other end, the door was swung to, then Jack swung it open again from the inside.

Jack remained at the door and held it open. Wallace showed Paul and Bluff around. They guessed that all the large cases—there were six of them—contained rifles, while the smaller boxes contained cartridges. In about five minutes, they were all prepared to leave again. Jack said, “Wait a minute, fellows. Take a deep breath, then I’ll ask you something.”

The boys breathed in. “All right. Now what?” asked Paul.

“How does the air appear to be, fresh or stale?”

Wallace sniffed the air again and answered, “Fresh,” to which the others agreed.

“Now,” said Jack, “when we first entered here, do you recall whether the air was stale?”

Wallace scratched his head. “I really don’t remember,” he answered.

“That proves that the air was not stale but fresh.”

“How do you figure it out.”

“Because if the air had been stale, it would have hit you right away and you would remember it.”

“What are you trying to prove?” demanded Paul.

Jack exclaimed. “Standing here I felt a very slight draft. That’s clue number one. Secondly, if the air was fresh when we first entered here, then it proves that air is coming in from somewhere.”

“Gee,” exclaimed Paul, “that’s very good reasoning.”

“Yes. But there’s more to it. I’m convinced that there is an exit leading to the outside from this inner room. The reason for it is obvious. The gang had to have an avenue of escape if they were ever cornered.”

“That’s very logical,” added Wallace. “Let’s look for it.”

“Before we do that,” interposed Paul, “I suggest that one of us go out and tell the boys not to worry and be patient. Two of us should conduct the search while one stands guard at this door.”

They agreed and it was decided that Bluff was to return to their companions, Wallace was to stand guard at the door and Jack and Paul were to conduct the search. Bluff left for the outside. “Now,” said Paul, “let’s find the exit.”

Using their flashlights, they scanned the walls and found no clues. So the two boys got busy looking behind the piled cases and boxes. In a few minutes, Paul shouted that he had discovered it. Hidden by a sort of net, the mouth of the tunnel was just large enough for one individual to creep along on his belly. Paul crept in, followed by Jack. Five minutes later, Jack re-appeared and called to Wallace to follow. The tunnel was about thirty feet long, the other end hidden by a lot of shrubbery. Looking around, the three boys discovered that, the camping site which Bud (the stranger) urged them to leave, was right there in front of them, on the other side of the stream.

CHAPTER XIV

Flying Solo

Major McCarthy was quite sure of his pupils. He was certain of their ability to land, to take off, to fly, to know what to do in case of an emergency. He had taught them to be not merely flyers, but all around pilots. For that reason he had insisted that they spend many hours learning the intricate parts and mechanics of a motor. His plans went further. He wanted them to learn more of the technical affair that an airplane is. When the time came, he would teach them as much as he knew about navigation, how to fly blind, and many other things that had to do with flying. But all that was a sort of post-graduate course. For the present, they had earned their wings—and how!

He had absolute confidence in his young aviators. And William was his star pupil. Technically, not one of his pupils had as yet gone up solo. However, each one of them had gone up at least once, taken off, flew, performed a couple of simple stunts, and landed again with McCarthy in the rear seat, who didn’t say a word or move a muscle; on that one flight he was merely a passenger. Therefore his confidence in the boys was based not merely upon his affection for them or his opinion of their ability, but upon the fact that they had proven their ability. For that reason he made elaborate arrangements for their solo flight. It was to be on Wednesday, at about five in the evening, when the weather is usually not very bumpy and quite mild. Secretly he had invited the parents of the boys, the Mayor, a few other notables, and let it be known that the public was welcome. As for the boys, they were not merely going to fly solo, but to do other things. He had arranged everything. This was to be their graduation exercises.

When the time came, more people turned out than were expected. A special section of ground was roped off for the several hundred spectators. All the boys’ parents were there; even Dr. Morrison had managed to get away from his office. Some few of the spectators were jittery and anxious. McCarthy was as calm and serene as ever, smiling and joking. A few of the boys were at first a bit nervous but they soon got over it. They realized that they were merely going up in the same way as when their instructor went with them. This time, however, they were going alone—solo. And since they were confident of their flying ability and of McCarthy’s teaching, they felt that they had nothing to worry about.

Major McCarthy summoned the boys together and they lined up in front of him. They were wearing their Scout uniforms and flying helmets and goggles. They were all very happy. The Major addressed them. “Boys,” he began, “this is your graduation day. Today you are going to make your first solo flight—that is, you’re going to take up a plane and land her again all by yourselves. Having completed your solo flight successfully, you’ll be presented with your wings; the Mayor will make the presentation. You’re also going to get a letter from me stating your successful completion of the course.” Pause. He looked from one to the other of the boys. “Are you ready?” he asked.

“Yes,” they answered in unison.

“Very well then. Each one of you will go up in the Avro, perform any one simple stunt you choose, bank her several times, then land again. After each one of you has done that, I’ll have you go up in the air again, but about that, later. William, you make the solo flight first.”

Major McCarthy had a definite purpose for designating William to go up first. William was the best of all his pupils, and the others, seeing him perform well, would be heartened and do as well.

The spectators cheered heartily when they saw William walking toward the Avro which had been wheeled out of its hangar and was being warmed up by a mechanic. William climbed in and the chocks were jerked away. He opened the throttle and the mechanic leaped forward along the ground. Shutting off the power by means of the thumb switch, the plane slowed down. He turned the nose into the wind. The next moment he was off, skimming over the field, then the plane rose lightly into the air like a bird. Easily and smoothly, the machine climbed fast. Down below, the spectators craned their necks to see. William climbed until he was about two thousand feet above ground. He banked and flew directly over the airport. After circling it twice, he straightened out, then opened wide the throttle. The machine bounded forward and the nose sprang upwards. As it rose, the forward speed decreased in spite of the fact that the engine continued to run at the maximum revolutions. The machine pointed vertically upwards and for about a moment it appeared to hang onto the rapidly revolving blades of the propeller. The spectators below watched the airplane with their mouths open. Some of them, who had never witnessed such a stunt, were positive that the machine would come crashing down tail first. But suddenly the nose fell over to one side, the tail shot up and the next moment the plane was shooting sharply downward. Two minutes later William was on the ground, and climbing out of the cockpit. The spectators cheered him. His friends shook him by the hand, slapped him on the back and told him it was a fine job. Major McCarthy smiled and called out, “All right, Paul, you’re next.”

Paul went through the same performance, and then the rest of the boys. Not one of them faltered. The spectators were delighted, and the parents were proud. As for Major McCarthy, he said nothing and revealed no emotion. To him, it seemed as though the whole affair was merely the successful completion of his teaching job. Inside, however, he felt very much pleased and proud. It was a pleasure to have such an able group of boys as pupils.

The Major had some other things in store for the boys. He was going to have them do some more flying. He had them lined up in front of him and addressed them. “That was well done, fellows,” he said, “but I expect even more from you. I’m going to have you do more flying. You’re all going up into the air again—and all together.” The boys opened their eyes wide and looked surprised. They wondered what the Major was up to. He smiled and continued, “You’re going up in pairs—Paul and William, Jack and Bobolink, Wallace and Bluff. While I’m talking to you, the mechanics are wheeling out two more machines, another Avro and a Bristol. William and Paul will fly the Bristol because William has already flown the machine. The others will fly the Avros. One of you is going to take the machine up and his partner will land it. You’ll change controls after every stunt. As to what you’re going to do in the air, follow William. Are you ready?”

“Yes!” They answered in unison.

“Alright, then. William and Paul will take off first, Jack and Bobolink next, and Wallace and Bluff last. Go to it.”

The Major had discussed his plans with William and had instructed the boy as to every move. The entire flight had been planned in advance and William knew it by heart.

The Bristol was somewhat larger and heavier than the Avro. William got into the front cockpit, Paul in the rear one. William was to take off, and he warmed up the engine. A minute later the chocks were jerked away. Turning into the wind, he skimmed the ground for a distance, then the machine rose gracefully and continued to climb. A minute later, Jack and Bobolink took off, and finally Wallace and Bluff. They were about two thousand feet in the air. William gave the signal and the three machines lined up in formation—the two Avros on either side and a little to the rear of the Bristol. They circled the airport twice. Again William signalled and the three planes lined in a row; they made believe it was a race. The earth seemed to shake with the drone of the motors. After that, they fell into line one behind the other. William signalled and each pilot was ready. The first machine did an Immelmann turn, followed by the second and third planes. Soon they were in the same formation as they had started but flying in the opposite direction. The Bristol now went into a “half-roll.” By pulling the stick back and kicking down the rudder, the machine turned over completely on her back with her nose pointing down. The pilot shoved the nose further down, flying at a steeper angle towards the ground; the pressure of the air against the wings forced the nose up again, and as the pilot kept pulling the nose of the machine up, it leveled out and continued to fly in the opposite direction. Both Avros followed the Bristol.

William next signalled for a “barrel roll.” To those on the ground, it seemed as though the machine, with a kind of cork-screw movement, had wriggled on her back and then wriggled back again. What actually happened was that the machine went through the same tactics as before in the “half-roll,” with the exception that instead of ending up in a dive, the plane continued to turn after being upside down and ended up on a level keel, flying in the same direction as before.

The next stunt the boys did was a “loop the loop.” The nose of the Bristol went up and the next moment was flying upside down, followed by a swift dive earthwards.

When all three planes completed the stunt they fell into formation. William signalled for number three—Wallace and Bluff—to land. Jack and Bobolink landed next. The Bristol with William and Paul became the only machine in the air. They were directly over the airport. William communicated with his friend to take over the controls. A minute later William slipped over the side of the plane and went hurling toward the ground. The spectators let out a scream of dismay. Ten seconds later, William pulled the rip cord of his parachute and went sailing majestically downward to the ground.

Again the boys were lined up, with all the spectators at their backs. The Mayor made a little speech and then presented each boy with his wings. He turned to the major and asked him to say a few words. “Very few,” replied McCarthy. “All I will say, boys, is—I’m proud of you.”

The young aviators were cheered. Then the boys cheered McCarthy. The Mayor held up his hand for quiet and then said, “And I want to add, major, that we, the people of Stanhope, are also proud of these boys and we are also proud of you.”

CHAPTER XV

A Complicated Surprise

After all the ceremonies were completed at the airport, the boys and their parents returned to town and were entertained at dinner by Dr. and Mrs. Morrison. All the trimmings were included, ending up with ice cream and cookies. Nuthin’ leaned back in his chair and patted his belly. “If I’d go up in a plane now,” he remarked jocularly, “The ship would sink like a rock, I feel so heavy.”

The boys laughed heartily. Bobolink said, “That’s nothing. If I got into a plane now, it wouldn’t lift off the ground.”

Some more laughter and a few more clever remarks. Then Ken asked, “Well, what’s on our program now?”

William replied, “Now that we are real pilots, we are going to do some real flying.”

“Not for a few days,” interposed Paul. “We have a swimming match for this coming Saturday and we have to practice up a bit.”

“Yes,” spoke up Jack, “and this time we are going to give that Slavin bunch a good beating.”

“You say that as though you intended to do them physical battle,” remarked Wallace, with a twinkle in his eye.

“Oh, no,” Jack hurried to make himself perfectly understood. “We are going to do it fairly and squarely. The Slavin group is a nice bunch and I don’t hold anything against them.”

“Except that they won the ball game,” said Wallace.

“They deserved it,” added William. “They played a mighty fine game, and Ted has never pitched as well as last Saturday.”

“W-w-what a-about Ken?” demanded Bluff. “He p-p-pitched m-m-marv-v-velously.”

“You said it,” agreed Paul. “I’ve never seen Ken pitch better ball than last Saturday.”

Ken said, “If it wasn’t for the boys backing me up as well as they did, it would have been just too bad.”

“Well, why do you think we were out in the field?” asked Bobolink. “Just for ornamentation?”

“Let’s cut the discussion,” announced Paul. “I for one feel tired, and I imagine that all of us are just a bit winded. So let’s break it up, go home and meet tomorrow morning for swimming practice.”

“Agreed!” cried William.

Everybody else seemed to feel that way. As a matter of fact, for the past half hour or so, the boys had begun to squirm in their seats and showed signs of nervousness and anxiety. So it was quite a relief for all of them to rise from the table and go their way. Ostensibly, each one was going home.

About half an hour later, Paul was walking down Main Street. He was all spruced up—wearing his new suit, a bright tie, his shoes shined to a gloss and his hair combed neatly. At Rogers Street he turned to the right. He walked along snappily and whistled a cheerful tune.

At the middle of the block, he met Paul face to face. Surprise showed on both their faces and their eyes almost popped at seeing each other. Quickly, each boy put his right hand behind his back. Finally, after a very embarrassing silence, one of the boys asked, “What are you doing here, Jack? I thought you had gone home.”

“What about you, Paul? I thought you were tired and were going to bed early?”

Silence. The boys squirmed and wriggled. One of them turned and looked at the house they were in front of. The other boy did likewise. Finally Jack asked, “What are you hiding there behind your back?”

Paul fidgeted. “Nothing. What about you?”

“Nothing.”

Again silence and the boys looked around with embarrassment. “You still didn’t tell me what you’re doing here,” remarked Jack.

“Just taking a walk,” replied Paul. “And you?”

“Also taking a walk.” He looked up at the sky and at the horizon. “Beautiful evening, isn’t it?”

“Yes,” replied Paul. “Where did you say you were walking to?”

“Right here. And you?”

“The same.”

The two boys looked at each other, their eyes met and slowly a grin spread over their faces. Finally they laughed and slapped each other on the back. Then Jack said, “Well, let’s go in.”

Paul shook his head. “No, wait a minute.” He noticed someone approaching. “Let’s hide behind the corner of the house.”

Jack and Paul retreated. Half a minute later, a boy came along and without any hesitation, started to cross the lawn to the house. The two boys jumped out of their hiding place. “Where do you think you’re going?” demanded Paul.

William jumped and went pale. Seeing, however, who his assailants were, he gritted his teeth and barked, “Say, what do you think you’re doing, scaring people?”

The two boys smiled. Jack said, “Now don’t get too fresh or we’ll pummel you. Where are you going?”

William made believe he was still angry. “Follow me and you’ll find out.”

“And what’s that little package you have there?” asked Paul.

“Wouldn’t you like to know, though?” was the retort.

“A nickel to a penny it’s a box of candy,” said Jack.

But William was not to be bluffed. “Seems to me,” he remarked dryly, “that you fellows are not carrying flowers in your packages.”

He had guessed right, and the three of them joined in laughing heartily. But just then another boy came up to them. He had approached quietly and had been a witness to the previous scene. “Well, well,” exclaimed Wallace, “are you fellows holding a meeting here tonight or are you just congregating here to be a nuisance? Answer yes or no and don’t be flippant about it either.”

The three boys stared at the new arrival. Jack cried in irritation, “This has gone about far enough. Arline told me that she was inviting only me tonight. What are you guys doing here?”

Wallace held up his package majestically. “Now, Jack, don’t get excited.” He poked a finger at his friend. “She told me the same thing,” he assured the doubter.

“Same here,” echoed Paul.

“And me, too,” added William.

“And who else?” demanded Jack.

The boys shrugged their shoulders and shook their heads. But they were not to be mystified much longer. Just then, Bobolink marched up. He saw the boys but it didn’t ruffle him in the least. He nodded to them and said, “Hello, fellows. Sorry I can’t stop to chew the rag awhile, but I have an important engagement.”