Stand By

s?" asked Big Sandy as he fell

fixings up there are going t

ou ain't sor

, then grinned himself as he saw t

warn't fire from the chimney what burned Miz Bobb's roof, but lightning fire what our telegraph conjured down out of the sky. According to his tell, it ain't Scriptural to be taking electricity out of

erently. "I'm banking turrible strong on this new fixing of Lee's. It's so mysterious-like, it don't seem an

ndy flung open the gate to the Ren

distance at all. With radio, one merely sat at a machine, turned a key and picked up sound that went hurtling through the air with only electrical power to bear it on.

was preparing ground for his next experiment. By degrees he had gathered together in his old workshop such materials as he could lay hands on.

heart, had wanted to buy Lee considerable experimental stuff. But somehow

't let you give me everything. It would be different

ou fooling away time at it when you could be going forward

dollars, but that money wisely expended brought back some very wonderful things through the mail. One time it was two pairs of ordinary telephone receivers; another time it was a piece of crystal; again it was a little can of shellac and some special wire. In addi

interior workings neatly housed in a shining wooden case. In those days Lee had never dreamed of aspiring to ow

ing's Cove "drapped in" on Lee whenever they

in the dusk, and on up to the workshop, they found Tony a

y Zita. "Done did it yesterday. Had

little door right in the roof of this here house. One end of the wire's hitched to a pole that's

n' wire to pick up music out of the air

g wrapping paper into long strips. "We've got to hi

o?" Lem Hicks moved over to th

traption young Renaud was evolving. The younger boys scraped and trimmed a

dio Worlds," propped open to show diagrams full of coils and

hty careful on that." Lee produced a piece of old-fashioned wooden curt

wrapping paper that he had already prepared. As he wound it on, Lem, armed with the little can o

ardest task of all was undertaken-winding on the wire tuning coil itself. The paper strips

e shellac is still some sticky, so it will hold the wire firm." Lee waved his roll o

d the coils in place at each turn. With even the simple machinery of a lathe and foot pedal, it would have been an easy job to wind the core. But with only excited

und, over and over again. This thing had to be right. No use making it if the

w!" Lee said with satisfaction as

w close and gazed

" Big Sandy said, holding the illustration of the tuning coil in a "Radio World" up beside their effort in wi

of store-bought metallic contacts, Lee produced a pair of old metal curta

to, such as cutting the four-inch squares of paraffined paper and tinfoil, alternating these in a stack, then placing these between two blocks of wood and screwing

ical ear was nothing more than a piece of sensitive galena crystal and a wire of phosphor bronze. If this thing that Lee Renaud was buildin

crystal and adjusting the two rods that held the sliding contac

seem possible that this homemade contraption of wood and wire and old curtain f

sions, the young inventor felt "more nervouser

the Cove was packed in that old upstairs workshop. Even a couple of flop-eared 'possum hounds had managed

ndenser, and the terminals for the head phone plugs were arranged and fitted in their proper

ive it a try," muttered Lee to

one of the sliding contacts at the middle of the tu

ones. Jimmy Bobb and Lem Hicks, heads

feel the tenseness of the crowd, could sense the gasp of bitter disappointment from Jimmy and Lem. In desperation, he slowly moved the slider along the tuning coil.

und till others, eager for their

y Bobb sat with the music

ddles, high and sweet, like th

laughed young Renaud. "Let's make a try for Madsden. That

ed in," excitedly swapping phones, eagerly lis

re. A copper rivet slid along a coil of wire, and in a fraction of a second this bunch of boys in

against the outside of the house

peering out of the window. "Something out on the barn roof

gonized Lee, realizing to a certainty what th

t room were flung open and Great-uncle Gem's voice rang out angrily, "What

power belongs up in the sky. The Lord's agin humans what steals his light

houted old Gem. And from that secon

roof. Then footsteps crashing of

old pistol. "Just shot up in the air," he announced angrily. "But I hope