Evening star., 1939-01-14

Will the attack come? First there
are those French troops from Ant
werp. If they come discreetly with
pilot engines ahead and a revolver
at the ear Of every engine driver.
1t won't be so easy to switch them
out OF action. But coming discreetly
means coming slowly. They'll come
along the line and detrain where It
is most convenient. Can they af-
ford the time to come discreetly?
They'll have to rush. If they rush,
they must rush into trouble"
How near is the railway?" he
asked. and then had a bright idea.
Even If he couldn't switch those
French troops of to some remote
destination, as he had imagined at
first, he could get dozen engines
or more If necessary from Amster-
dam, put them on the line, and
simply smash up that troop train
as 1t came up. Before they had time
to detrain. He must see to that in
minute, as soon as he was clear
about everything else
More Than 290 Men.
Something else? They might be
some sort of attack in unknown force
from the town. That would come
by road in cars. It might come
first. 1t might wait for the arrival
Of the French. It might not come
at all. Nothing might come. He
licked off the items on the fingers
Of his open hand. Then he asked
his second in command how many
men he had.
"Seventy-sX on duty. The rest
are falling in over there by the hut
ments. About two hundred and
ninety odd"
Good" said Steenhold. I'VE join
them"
And as they walked across the
airdrome, he arranged for a squad
of men under a competent sergeant
1 to go toward the town, hold up any
cars and wire the road, while an
other squad was to reinforce the
radio guard, If there was a radio
guard, and put itself at the dis
posal of breed. The road party
paraded, six men went of to get
wire from the stores and the rest
marched briskly toward the Amster-
dam road in the most business-like
way. Steenhold ordered a dozen
men to strengthen the force in the
main building and stationed the re-
mainder of hundred and twenty
men in front of the main building
as a reserve force that could be
turned in any direction to meet
whatever trouble might arise. He
! went through the motions of an in
spection of their arms. We've just
got to prevent any disturbance" he
told the young oficer. Then he
went to the planes to assure him.
self that the pilots and mechanics
were on the alert.
He did all this methodically,
watchful of his second In command
and the two orderlies they had an
nexed, to see from their behavior
whether he seemed to be doing
things right. They seemed to think
he was doing things right.
Steenhold spent an active and use
full half hour with a very compe-
tent subordinate and then he
emerged upon the air field again.
Scene of Great Activity.
Then suddenly the central part of
the main building became active.
One of Bellacourt's men with a
megaphone appeared on little bal
cony high-up and began giving
orders to the pilots. They became
exceedingly active and a truck of
petrol appeared out of an archway
below. Three of the men went of
at a run to the smaller plane. Two
more pilots on bicycles shot around
the wing of the main buildings and
joined them.
It looked all right.
Then Rud and Thirp and Olders
appeared upon the steps of the
main building. in the company of
two airmen. The planes, one after
another, began to tune up. Their
propellers leaped to activity with a
happy shudder.
Something was happening now.
The drowsy afternoon woke up. But
| WnaC was happening!
They were going off somewhere
and he did not know where they
were going. He felt like little boy
who for some inscrutable reason has
not been asked to party. Where
were they going? To Reeoly? Per-
haps Rud had been talking to Reed
ly and something had been patched
up. Or to Sweden, where perhaps
Bellacourt was in control of things?
Or in flight before Reedly struck?
Tears Of Vexation.
why can't know" asked Steen-
hold, with a feeling like tears of
vexation in his eyes. HE might have
told me. I stood by him in the old
A sound as though some one had
snapped brittle metallic rod and
a shiver in the air.
Then a shout from among the
planes and revolver shots. Three or
four men were moving about very
quickly there.
Rud was holding up his hand as if
| w AOl UlA oOlllC dCClOll. OdUOGdkC
among the planes? Steenhold ran
toward the scuffle, pulling out his
revolver as he ran, and signaling to
the knot of world police who were
standing or sitting in front of the
main building. There was no further
shooting. and two of the pilots
seemed to be holding a man, the
man, no doubt, who had fired the
shot at Rud. A man in pilots uni
form lodged round the head of the
nearest machine. and he had some-
thing in either hand like a cricket
ball. He threw one of these objects
under the plane, and seemed to hesi-
tate about the other. Steenhold was
running at an angle to the disturb
ance so that he alone saw this man
clearly. He was evidently unobserved
by either the spray of police who