A Soberside Story

Press, Volume LXXIII, Issue 22241, 4 November 1937, Page 7 (Supplement)

A Soberside Story

“Now,” Joe Dabblin rapped out. Joe, Johnny Dyne, and Tiny Tanning clapped their hands to their ears, as they crouched behind the bank under which they were sheltering. Fizzsch-plop!

Johnny Dyne, known at Mangahapara High School as Soberside, detective, glanced at Tiny Tanning, one of the biggest boys in the school. Tiny glanced back at Soberside, then they both looked at Joe Dabblin, who was the grandson of an able scientist. Joe, still holding one hand to his head, released the other so that he could see his wristlet watch.

Thes had expected a terrible detonation from a time bomb invented by Joe, who had also made the explosive it contained. He called the explosive, Dabblinite. “Something’s 1 gone wrong somewhere,” Joe muttered, looking at his watch closely. “Should have gone off 53 seconds ago.”

Tiny laughed. Soberside, who never laughed and never even smiled, blinked through his blackrimmed spectacles, then looked over the top of the bank. Tiny and Joe followed suit. A stream of black smoke drifted across the paddock.

“Huh!” Tiny exclaimed. “It was only a fizzer.” “A smoke screen,” Soberside corrected. „ , , Joe scratched his head, fished a notebook from his pocket, and turned over the pages. “Can’t understand it,’ he grumbled, as he studied some pencilled figures. . . . . Then his lips expanded into a smile. . , “Oh, I know,” he said. “I forgot to put in the Dafcblinoronozone, No. 2. That is a most necessary ingredient to Dabblinite, and causes the detonation. You know, when I perfect Dabblinite, it will be the strongest explosive in existence. If I had made that time bomb up to full strength, there would have been sufficient Dabblinite in it to blow out a crater as big as Mount Ruapehu’s.” A sudden sound made them turn. “Do you really mean that?” asked a * musical voice, in an effected drawl. , , The boys looked up into the face of a dapper stranger. His face was young and plump, his upper lip decorated with a whipcord moustache. He held his chin imperiously, and his little beady eyes shifted from one boy to another. He twirled a silver-tipped cane. “Yes,” Joe said, bubbling over with enthusiasm. “And it went off to the very second.” “Will you,” the man asked, “make one—er —two of those for m e?" Tiny pursed his lips and whistled. Joe opened his mouth and his eyes, and gulped. Soberside just blinked. Noting their surprise, the man laughed. “Oh, it’s all right,” he said. Im not an assassin. I want the bombs for the foundation day celebrations in Kopuanui to-morrow.’! That was the name of a township several miles from Mangahapara. , . . “I am on my way from Christchurch to Kopuanui,” the man continued, "to spend the rest of the week with my uncle, Mr Burganoyd. Know him?” The boys shook their heads.

THE CROWNING OF JOE DABBLIN

(By V. B. Murray)

“He is a member of the celebrations committee in Kopuanui,” the dapper man went on, *‘and he asked me to take some novel suggestion for to-morrow afternoon. It was not until just now when I heard you talking of your time bomb that I got an idea. I want two time bombs, one to, go off at 2.30, and another at 2.45', to signal two particular stages in the celebrations. Will you do it? I shall pay you well.” , Joe was delighted. He agreed immediately. “And,” tire man added, “they must explode exactly at 2.30 and 2.45. I shall get them from you to-morrow morning. And make ’em strong.” ... “Don’t worry,” Joe assured him, “Dabblinite is the strongest explosive known, and I shall make it full strength.” : After they had arranged the time and place of delivery, the man

walked across the paddock to a car waiting on the roadside. Soberside looked after the man suspiciously, but the schoolboy detective at that moment was wondering more about the Mangahapara arrangements. Because of an epidemic, no , children or high school pupils were allowed in the crowd, and the problem was how to see the procession without joining the crowd. The problem was still unsolved next afternoon, when the .three boys, with the addition of Soberside’s young brother. Hector, assembled on their bicycles in a deserted side street leading into River parade, which was the route of the procession. River parade was a semi-circular stretch of road following the river bank. Along the parade had been erected temporary arches and pillars covered with bunting and silver crowns, and a battery of old field guns. These guns were to Are two salvoes, one at 2.30 p.m., to signal the start of the procession, and, the other a quarter of an hour later to nounce the start of a parade of boats on the rivec. _ _ ~

Suddenly, Hector came from an alleyway with a small black box in his hand.

“Come and look at this funny thing,” he called to Soberside. “It makes a funny ticking sound.” “Golly!” Joe Dabblin exclaimed, rushing up to Hector. “It’s one of my time bombs—the one to go on at 2.30.” “Gee!” Tiny gasped. “It’s that how.” . ’ Hector’s face went white, and for a moment he remained motionless with fear, then in a frenzy of fear he threw the thing from him into the middle of the road, where it lay a few yards from the rear of the (crowd lining the route of the procession’. Joe gulped, and stood horrified. “A crater “ like Ruapehu,” he muttered. “It’ll go off on the tick of half past.” Soberside; acted quickly. “A oomb,” he shouted at the top of his voice. Tiny, Joe, and Hector took up the cry. “A bomb!!!” * At tiie same time Soberside was propelling- his cycle towards the crowd and the bomb. He tilted his cycle to the left and leaned his body to the right.

Going at a great speed he snatched at the bomb. Ding-dong-ding-dong! It was the first half of the 2.30 chime from the town clock.

Soberside heard it, as he straightened himself on his machine. The crown had seen him coming, and had already parted. He dashed into River parade, and threw the bomb from him out to the river.

Ding-dong-ding-dong. The second half of the chime floated across the air just as the bomb was falling towards the water. Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom! The guns roared their salvo. As they did so, a mushroom of black smoke spread across the surface of the river on the spot where Soberside hurled the bomb. It was impossible for the boys to tell how much noise the bomb bad made, for its explosion had been simultaneous with the of artillery. Soberside cycled back through the surprised crowd to And Joe Dabblin, standing with Tiny and Hector, head on one side and forefinger thoughtfully to his mouth. “Found it on the back steps of the Bank of New Zealand,” Hector explained. “It attracted my at-

tention because of the funny, ticking sound.” . “The bank!” Soberside exclaamedL 1 “Gee! Your customer, Joe, didnj go near KopuanuL I think he had a very clever scheme to break open the bank. That bomb was to break the door in. Going off when the 'guns were firing the noise would not be noticed. Beople would think it was just another gim. . “And what.” Tiny asked, “was : the second bonfib for?” * “That,” Soberside suggested, 1 “must have been for the vaultThe second round of guns will go pif at 2.45. The bomb is timed to go off at the same time—” • “No,” Joe interrupted. Two-thirty-five.” ' ' ■ “You’re wrong, Joe, Tiny con--, tradicted. “That fellow said “Golly!” Joe muttered. * thought he said 2.35. The b°®h, will go off in exactly two minuM|! 41 .seconds,” he added, consulting; his watch. , , J “And the bank breaker,’ Soberside said, “will be carrying it round, in his pocket waiting for an opportunity of getting rid of it will not dare go to the bank npw. because he must have heard us yeu out about the bomb, and he win think he has another quarter of an hour to get rid of it.” “He’ll be blown to smithereens. Joe moaned. “It’s made of the best Dabblinite, the greatest expioave on earth, and hundreds of otoer people will be killed with hun.• “Let’s call a policeman,’ aW was them at that moment to mvestigaw the finding of the bomb. All taut ing at once, they tried to As Tiny told the story. Sober side and Joe slipped away to tod the man with the bomb before to tragedy could occur. j The procession had begun, ana Soberside and Joe walked back of the crowd lining the roeo. At last, as the band came w abreast of them by. a decorated arch, they spotted their man toox ing this way and that, a®. ing some easy means of escape from the crowd. , > . -t Together, the boys rushed d»;

hl ™The bomb'-” shouted SobersidA desperately. “It will go off aoy second now." , mis- “ Yes,” Joe said. I made a mis take and set it for 2.35.’ an( j The man dropped his guard, looked swiftly at his_ watchblood drained from his ?fs eV,onehis eyes flashed about him hj P le ?hen he let out > ““US'S cry, rushed past the two by* j n to across the footpath, and burst xnw the crowd, at the same tim d ling at his pocket. He was ma with fear. narred bf Finding his P ro b fhe bomb the crowd, the man threw the horo^ b °The frightened ones were even above the music of The crowd scattered this way that. The band stopped P la Joe and Soberside darted after “The bomb went the arch. It became caught decorations and lay susp th Fizzßsch.plopl The bomb ploded harmlessly, m a WSM *~ cloud of black smoke, depr ed When the smoke had away they found Soberside on the back of the man. and Dahblin was squatting m middle of the road, with the coral ions on his shoulders. » “Something’s wrong he muttered, examining tne “ . book. -