The Young Wireless Operator—Afloat Or, How Roy Mercer Won His Spurs in the Merchant Marine

Roy Mercer sat by a window in a fast express-train that was rushing across the Newark meadows on the way to New York City. Three years previously Roy had made a similar trip. As...

“It’s the same old story,” muttered Roy to himself, after a time. “I wonder if they will ever stop saying ‘You’re only a boy.’ That’s what they said at Camp Brady. Yet the wirel...

So engrossed in the life about him was Roy that for the moment he forgot all about his troubles. On the street he encountered again the multitudinous traffic that had so depress...

“Now,” thought Roy, as he sought out a shady bench and sat down, “if this book will tell me, I’m going to find out why this park is called Battery Park. I’ve often wondered.”

It was characteristic of Roy that he did not spend much time bewailing his misfortune. “If the captain objects to my looks now,” thought he, “how will he feel to-morrow, when th...

Thanks to the purser’s kind and skilful ministrations, Roy’s eye was not long in returning to an almost normal appearance. But Roy had little time to worry over his looks. As th...

Roy adjusted his receivers, threw over his switch, and listened in. A grin came over his face. The air was as noisy as the old football field at home when Central City was winni...

Like Mount Zion, this great seaport was beautiful for situation. Located on the eastern tip of an island some thirty miles long, that lay not far off the mainland and parallel w...

There seemed small chance that his opportunity would come while the _Lycoming_ was in port, however, for the great ship lay peacefully in her dock, day after day, while the proc...

“Absolutely, Mr. Robbins. You see, the belt on the donkey-engine was slipping. I noticed that at the start. The slipping of the belt produced undue friction and that, in turn, d...

It was long after daybreak when Roy awoke. He sat up on the edge of his bunk to look at his timepiece, but almost immediately fell back on his pillow. Something was wrong with h...

Poor Roy! No matter how hard he tried, it seemed, the captain would still be dissatisfied with him. To Roy the captain’s harsh remark seemed the very essence of injustice. He di...

On went the _Lycoming_, creeping cautiously through the fog. For hours Roy sat at his instrument and kept in touch with the steamers he had already talked to. Again he went over...

Without further incident of note, the _Lycoming_ ran on down the Atlantic coast, passed through the Florida Straits, and bore straight across the Gulf to her destination. When s...

But Roy was soon to find that the captain’s favor, like success, could be gained by no royal road. It was true that the captain’s feeling toward Roy was perhaps altered somewhat...

Roy fought his way back to the wireless house, pausing on the way to appraise the damage. The aerial was entirely gone, spreaders and all. Fortunately the halyards that held the...

On rushed the little craft. Aboard the _Lycoming_ the seas had seemed terrible. To Roy, in an open boat, they were stupefying in their awfulness. No power of imagination could c...

The rising waters forced him again to seek safety. He struggled through them and reached dry land. He was almost exhausted. He had had no food since supper time the night before...

Poor Roy! He had come back expecting a warm welcome from the captain and had been greeted with a reprimand. He backed out of the captain’s room, and hot tears welled to his eyes...