Chums, Vol. XXVI, No. 1,306

# "When Sudbury came Back" by Captain Frank H. Shaw

This boys' school story, serialized in The Magnet (September 1917), follows two fifteen-year-old schoolboys, Ellis and the narrator ("Blinkers"), inspired by their former schoolmate Sudbury's Victoria Cross award for WWI heroism. When the Head arranges for them to perform secret munitions factory work at Fairlegh, they feel they're contributing to the war effort. While returning home one evening, they witness mysterious signal flashes emanating from the abandoned Orviller House and observe a silent aircraft landing in its park. Investigating despite their fear, they discover a large foreign man in heavy clothing meeting with the house's caretaker and overhear German conversation, suggesting enemy espionage activity. The narrative combines patriotic enthusiasm, youthful adventure, and incipient wartime intrigue, with the boys contemplating whether to report their discovery to school authorities.