"Maxwell Grant - The Shadow - 123 - Washington Crime" - читать интересную книгу автора (Grant Maxwell)

"YOU, Colonel Richard Follingsby" - the Judge Advocate looked toward a
rawboned, thin-faced man, whose hands were tightly clasped - "stand accused of
extreme negligence. You were entrusted with the keeping of the National
Emergency Code, commonly known as the NEC. It was stolen from your apartment
during your absence."
Colonel Follingsby was drearily nodding his admission. The Judge Advocate
turned to a bulky man in uniform, whose shoulders showed the two stars of a
major general. The Shadow recognized the bulky officer as General Louis
Darson,
acting chief of staff.
"We would like your testimony, General Darson," requested the Judge
Advocate. "Kindly state just when and why you gave the NEC to Colonel
Follingsby."
General Darson arose; cleared his throat with a gruff, important cough.
"The war department has faced great problems," he announced. "Every army
post and naval base has reported attempts at espionage. Honolulu, the Canal
Zone, Puerto Rico - from every quarter the reports have been the same. Arrests
have been frequent. Evidence against the accused men has been difficult to
obtain.
"One month ago, however, we were forced to the serious conclusion that
every code commonly used in the military service was worthless. The navy had
already discarded many of its codes as obsolete. The army was prepared to do
the same. It was imperative that a master code be ready for immediate use in
case of war.
"We had such a code. It was a comprehensive one, containing more than two
hundred pages of typewritten symbols and key-words. That was the National
Emergency Code, known to the service as the NEC. The only copy was in my
possession."
General Darson paused dramatically. His eyes went to the huddled figure
of
Colonel Follingsby, who seemed shrunken in his civilian attire. There was pity
in Darson's gaze. Plainly, he felt sympathy for Follingsby.
"Years ago," declared Darson, "I was a colonel in the Canal Zone.
Follingsby was a lieutenant in my regiment. I came to Washington to take a
staff position. Follingsby remained in the Zone; he rose to the rank of
colonel.
"I knew that Follingsby was a capable student of codes. The master copy
of
the National Emergency Code required revision before it could be secretly
printed. So I retired Colonel Follingsby from active service and had him come
to Washington. He has been living here as a civilian.
"Three days ago, I had secret service men bring Follingsby to the war
department. There, alone in my office, I informed him of the master copy of
the
NEC, with instructions to revise it. I told him to await at his home; that the
NEC would be delivered to him within an hour. Only Colonel Follingsby and
myself could possibly have known that the code was in his possession. Four
hours afterward, the colonel called me to state that the NEC had been stolen."
Finishing bluntly, General Darson sat down. The Judge Advocate called