Speaker 1: Welcome to the Great Adventurers of Old Time Radio from Boise, Idaho.
This is your host, Adam Graham. In a moment, we're
going to bring you this week's episode of Counterspot. But
first I do want to encourage you. If you're enjoying
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as little last two dollars per month. Just go to
Patreon dot Great Detectives dot net. But now, from November two,
nineteen forty two, here is the case of the Gasoline Barge.
Speaker 2: Washington, Washington, counters by Washington, Calling counters By.
Speaker 3: Washington, Calling Encounterspy.
Speaker 4: Hoy Co.
Speaker 5: Cate, counter Work, Cate, Counterpy. A dramatization pact with clos
and adventures, exciting story the cover fighting against Enemy five
within our borders, Lord all over the state suently tonight,
an invisible army of men and women highly trained to
protector from professional enemies fired within our borders. Imagine Chief
counted five of them all, as David Hardy imagine the
storming tonight.
Speaker 3: That's what dates.
Speaker 5: We can't say the World War. Giving out of weather
conditions is now prohibited. There's a bad storm tonight.
Speaker 3: We can tell you it's in the Southern States.
Speaker 6: It's especially bad in the dark, swampy.
Speaker 5: Section where a little shack is got on close out
over a shallow beach on the ocean. It's windy too.
Inspired the shock and then I seated at the table.
But greasily doesn't cod playing Genna.
Speaker 6: Hey, but close the door. Well, how can I think
with the town and a way and a win.
Speaker 4: Okay, I do to story yourself.
Speaker 5: Okay, but your drawnie is taking the queen hats and
taking a quainted hats a saving queen man.
Speaker 3: Yeah, but he gotta tell you want it? Oh who
that is?
Speaker 7: But that's kind of backing up.
Speaker 8: I mean, I want to shut that door. You want
to throw us out of here?
Speaker 7: Well, what do you want this.
Speaker 5: Mister don And I'd like to get my page. I'm
getting too, and I want to give my resignation.
Speaker 6: What's a matter of time? I was paying you enough?
Speaker 5: Yeah, you see him enough. But but I's a man
who's got fourteen.
Speaker 3: Children and two gentlemens in mind. I think I was
gonna retire, And yeah, been your tweets. We just got
your broken Yeah, I said, the out there trying to quit.
Speaker 5: Well, I don't act so many secrets.
Speaker 6: Everybody got secret.
Speaker 3: Things is awful funny. I's a man with fourteen children.
Speaker 5: Ever since I've been mad, I've been going to church
once a month. I don't act the funny thing that's
going on here because I just want them up there
lay in the year time before you started waking for us,
there were two other men waking here.
Speaker 3: They wanted to quit. That was the last time it
was ever height of me. Yes, I knows about that too.
It doesn't work here, and to go away and nobody
knaves him. And I want to quit, but we don't
want you to quit.
Speaker 6: You're not gone at christ.
Speaker 3: I sorry, sir, but my mind's made up.
Speaker 6: That stopped for it when.
Speaker 3: It was only I come straight here. You listen out
there in mortars and a lot of alligators and lessing
twenty feet from you. The shots to me, you don't
want to quit, do you? I does, as a man
with fourteen children. When I makes up, my mind is
made up if you had fourteen children. You know that
when you make up your mind and say something, they
ain't knowing me. Now you listen for the last time.
Speaker 6: If you don't want to be shot, make you change
your mind. Understand.
Speaker 3: Yeah, I just stand or leaving. I was leaving. I
was telling you, as a man with fourteen children.
Speaker 6: What looks like we got to find a new handyman.
Speaker 3: Yeah, but come on, let's day and now we'll get
en up. With that wind blowing in that store. I
don't have any corporate laying around here. Run the sleek okay, yeah,
I got.
Speaker 8: It right into the edge.
Speaker 3: The tide going out, you'll be out of deep water.
And now, yeah, come on, let's get back to our
card game.
Speaker 9: You know it's just gonna go, Jim, that's gonna happen. Yeah, yeah,
oh hundred sixty two thousand, ninety one.
Speaker 7: Thank you, A Paul got over here. We go on.
I want to try it all.
Speaker 5: You want to be placed in the stab car D investigation.
All SLOY is working on offers that just expired.
Speaker 8: Your reports immediately.
Speaker 10: Aging Robert Wallas. Robert Wallas wanted by Chief Harting at
once report to parts by Executive Office Corbintwallas wanted by
Chief Hotting immediately all those compiling freight schedules are to
use Blue Park.
Speaker 9: All hold the filing prase schedules used blue Park.
Speaker 5: You can't amame a time, yes, but as a statistical
department turned of anything Bret important.
Speaker 11: Yes, they have just as you thought, gas rationing coupons
to show a forgery of nearly a million gallons.
Speaker 3: I was afraid of that.
Speaker 5: Roman Howard Majourney when seem the Baxter immediately send for
him in the meanwhile, I wish you commit and give
me a report. Yes, this is going to be a
tough enough to crack at to haunting half a million
four gasoline coupons. Bud counterfeiting or offering gasoline coupons just
as bad now as counterfeiting money.
Speaker 3: That's worse. I have a hunt of This is even
more serious than it appears on the surface.
Speaker 5: How do you mean I'm afraid that this gas is
being obtained by counterfeit coupons to be used to lead
you animy submarines.
Speaker 8: Do you think it goes that deep?
Speaker 5: Hard and turning those one hundred counterfeit gasoline coupons I
gave you to analyze well, all our coupons planted on
the same type of paper. Yes, with you're hiding they
were printed on Wilson's paper made with coopermonium hydroxide instead
of the zook kloride.
Speaker 3: I'm seeing how many concerns manufacture that certain type of paper.
The counterfeits of your sports or two in the South,
one of the North, and the actual paper company out.
Speaker 5: With check every one of these companies with the hard
I want the names and addresses of all shipments of
any size made during the past.
Speaker 3: Year of that type of paper. Yes, mister Maxter's waiting
outside ha him committ him. Yes, it was very serious. Yes,
but it does.
Speaker 7: Mister Haney.
Speaker 8: I took the liberty of bringing this sixty along with me.
Speaker 5: God you, mister, what do you mean, mister handing a
CONVID coupons they gave you to analyze?
Speaker 3: Were they all printed on the same counterfeiting plate.
Speaker 6: They were into harding.
Speaker 3: Can you tell me about the kind of plate the
conifeitor used. Well, the printing was probably done on a
vertical press paper hunting.
Speaker 12: I took the liberty of passing the competented gasoline coupons
on the mister pix people in Canaalosy.
Speaker 8: He has some very interesting reports.
Speaker 3: What is your ink analysis of these count offit gasoline coupons, will.
Speaker 12: Mister Hani and now it's this shows the increased compounds
of hydotolic solutions of gallery Cantannic iron salts with the
usual sugar and gun Maravic persons applying a reagent of
three percent of selic acid neither counterfeit. His ink disappears
well negos to any ink of the genuine couponds with
unated How many concerns manufacture a certain type of ink?
Three one of the very small ones themselves almost entirely
in northern New England.
Speaker 5: Topically cover all of the ink manufacturers who use this
compound the hydrochloric pollution of Gallican panic iron salt in
the ranks and take all their shipments over the past
nine months. Give me the address of every shipment that
they've made. Yes, party thinking, get me commander Army Base Airfields.
But fact to see Kate and meet me at eleven
to night at the base airfields. Yes, goals for a
warm climate or coals at.
Speaker 3: The party, hot.
Speaker 7: Wells Jahanti.
Speaker 3: Now that the rush is over, someone, where.
Speaker 5: Are we flying to the border Everglades, we the land
of Miami and proceeds south like a What did you
find out for those statistical reports? A lot of patistical
department is reported, but that a number of shipments of
gasoline have been made by six different companies to a
certain gasoline launch supply station along the main road in
the Everglade. We also found out at a certain ship
of the Willison's paper was also be into this gasoline station.
You probably recall the Fort's coupons were printed.
Speaker 3: On Willisdon paper.
Speaker 5: Yes, and also eight similar to that used on the
counter offitted coupons was also tipped.
Speaker 3: To this gasoline station.
Speaker 5: Hey, that's hot.
Speaker 3: Exactly what kind of a filling station is it? The
JAHRTI are you familiar with the Everglades?
Speaker 6: Wet Oh, No, I'm not.
Speaker 3: There was one main road which has been built up
a artificial ground and piling one for nearly one.
Speaker 5: Hundred and twenty miles acrowse of peninsula goes over about
forty different little islands.
Speaker 3: On a few of these are gasoline stations. This gasoline
station in question is just about one hundred feet.
Speaker 5: Off the main road services automobiles and also fishing boats, Yes,
but how can.
Speaker 3: A service in the enemy submarine? People are driving over
that world constantly.
Speaker 6: Mu's see some neighbors down there.
Speaker 3: That's the catch. That's what you and I've got to
find out. But there anything wrong is going on down there.
A mighty clever device is being used.
Speaker 6: What's your plans?
Speaker 5: Well, in the morning, the land of Miami, we'll get
an oil fuck fill it full of gasoline and find
out when the delivery is supposed to be made in
this gasoline station. Then you and I will make the delivery.
Speaker 3: Now back to David Harding. I'm the counters guy.
Speaker 11: I've written in things more comfortable than this gasoline costs
good for In addition, but that light ahead eye think
that's where we go off.
Speaker 5: You know, it's strange if they insisted we delivered the
gasoline knife as in the whole sentence, amising or getting
just got to wait to see what they've wanted.
Speaker 3: Here where we kind of like lot of a primitive
looking claim that you can see others so.
Speaker 5: Good, I take it easy and comes a man out
of that shack.
Speaker 3: You're from the NATO oil. Finally in Miami, a trust
buddy drive out on the little dock. They get flocks
and yours that's been out there. Fight go ahead, Okay,
we go through. It will be off here and we'll
not George.
Speaker 8: You make quick time?
Speaker 3: Yeah, wept he always Miami. Sure it's the dog god. Yeah,
I use my fall right. What do we put this guy?
You got a tank under the dock?
Speaker 6: That that I find the elected.
Speaker 3: Okay, I need to ring now we're gonna show a
cat at your hands.
Speaker 8: Yeah, okay, man, that all one up, one of a hole.
Speaker 3: Okay, let the guys come fall if you are oh
into the thing to tell you I want to do list. Sure,
not supposed to touch it while I'm on duty, but.
Speaker 5: I guess the little one wouldn't hid man in the
bottle have become thanks like I only carried two bottles,
one per foe.
Speaker 3: One for myself. I'll make a little net out of mine.
Speaker 5: A day.
Speaker 3: Up is the you guys, no boy one month fool
I am. What you do will drop your bottom and more.
Speaker 5: It's like a hit on the top of the iron
standing and bucket. Yare and have to have a the
finer tell the bottle and yeah, I do understand the
living down here. Nobody for five mins on.
Speaker 3: Either side of you. Yeah, one pad alligated. Got one
of the navy.
Speaker 5: Harding calling JA farm Beach, Florida. You get contact hardly
calling j a Palm Beach. Not if on counters fires
on Florida East and West Coast to investigate all ocean
going tugs check the last five or six feet.
Speaker 3: Of their rope harbors.
Speaker 7: I broke a bottle of.
Speaker 5: Nitric acid on I am sanch in which boardmarks of
a rope harbor having been tied to it.
Speaker 3: This acid will burn hemp fibers of harbor. Not if
I immediately if any tug having harbor burned that.
Speaker 5: In heaporting a hooding. Miami counters by the headquarters. I
vote Jana.
Speaker 8: Louise out of gate City and there showing.
Speaker 5: ASID contact me immediately listens that tug leaves and returns
to a home birth. Want exact times of leaving in returns.
Speaker 4: Jay counters by reporting a hoodie bout ten.
Speaker 8: Louise left birth seven.
Speaker 6: Thirty five last night, returned five thirty five this morning.
Speaker 8: Average speight went up.
Speaker 4: Toy is fourteen miles at all.
Speaker 5: All right, Bob, this is the information we've been waiting for. Now,
let's look at this chart of the west coast of Florida.
To a little figuring, the end of Louis's homeport is
twenty three miles from this gasoleene station in question. She
cruises at fourteen miles an hour. That'd take her one
hour and forty five minutes to get from her home
to the gasoleen station. Correct, one hour and forty five
minutes for a return from the Gatholeen station back to
her home bir the entire time being three hours and
a half.
Speaker 3: But she was going ten hours. That leaves six and
a half hours of her time to be accounted.
Speaker 5: For it right, six and one and a half hours. Now,
Suppose she hook onto a ten thousand gallum barge at
the gasoleene station in question and tote it up the
sea to meet a submarine to take two hours download
the ten thousand gallums. After she met this up, which
leads two and a half hours for it tow the
loaded barge out and.
Speaker 8: The emptyople arched back.
Speaker 6: Right now.
Speaker 3: I checked with the Navy.
Speaker 5: In a tug which makes fourteen miles an hour by itself,
it slowed to twelve miles an hour when she's towing
an empty bar. When she's throwing a loaded bar to
ten thousand gallons, she'd be slow to eight miles an hour.
Her average is therefore be ten miles an hour two
and one half hour phillicot of four. That means in
two and one half hours the sub could cover twenty
five miles, So she'd be meeting a sub twelve and
one half miles off of southern Florida coat. That's beautiful deduction,
mister Harding, good reasoning, But where does it get its
What makes you think she did pick up a ten thousand.
Speaker 6: Gallons BArch at the gasoline fish in questioned.
Speaker 3: Where was the BArch? But I haven't been entirely honest
with you. I kind of suspected it, did you know what?
Speaker 5: Button the night when I put the nozzle of the
gasoleene hose into that pipe, the pipe was just flushed
with the ducks.
Speaker 6: Oh, I didn't.
Speaker 5: Well, it took us forty five minutes to put the
gas in. When I took the nozzle out of the pipe,
the pipe was four inches lower than the.
Speaker 3: Level of the dock.
Speaker 6: Oh.
Speaker 5: Then the tank under the dock with a floating tank
that was up and down with the time The dock
was really a disguised oil barge with just the shell
of a dock over the camouflage exactly and before morning
that brings the empty barge back and it's shoved under
the dock again.
Speaker 3: What's our next move?
Speaker 5: Tap up a signal through the commers by headquarters Washington,
have the contact relay to our field testing lavatory and
get me tex Walker texas an extport chemist on gasoline
and all fuel oil. The next time a submarine refueled
with that gasoline, they're going to have a surprise coming
to them.
Speaker 3: Let us a shop off motor sports.
Speaker 7: Speed ahead, I said, first straight ahead?
Speaker 3: Why sorry?
Speaker 8: The motor so you're having formed of the motives or
Cometa has stopped entirely.
Speaker 7: You started taking it apart.
Speaker 5: The hole inside the spear unders if they were acid
in the gatine that cannot beat.
Speaker 7: How long will it take the repair wait sor it's
beyond repair? And the other more is giving his troubles
thousand tears, don't.
Speaker 6: What to do?
Speaker 7: Who turn not a light?
Speaker 12: Switch out the life You're food Sophia having the same tublet,
but a gatherine generators switch the car to the battery.
Speaker 8: You must repair them we'll get the mercy of the Americans.
Speaker 3: Are you sure it's troubled in the gasoline?
Speaker 6: Yes.
Speaker 12: The Carbaret and Phillis and the Gatherine lines have always
been eaten away by.
Speaker 13: Atis to Maluda, or if I hear him at once
telling me a rule we've been sabotaged. Or if I
have hitch one in New York it's his ball of
whom lows of doom cup, he will shut.
Speaker 5: Gouded my headquarters, Washington. The emergency message has totercepted from
disabled German submarine off Florida coast to hair Himler Berlin
submarine also trying to contact get stop Awagan in this country,
but Canada is yet locate contact points that means a
get stop Awagan will be sent to the Everglades to
investigate trouble. Notified port the police to proceed on Observation
Plan three B.
Speaker 8: Nate Police.
Speaker 5: According to David Harding, according to issue with Countess pri orders,
black limousine speeding down Everglades Trail at seventy miles an hour,
drivers alone in car, out of state car license number.
Speaker 4: New York one four three one nine.
Speaker 8: So we stop this car at next flee to the section.
Speaker 5: So let us Proceeddington, you contact mix the state. Guess
I'm in the New York License Bureau as you requested.
Your call is being relayed directly to me.
Speaker 3: Is hearting. I'm still in Miami. Take for me immediately
New York License one four C three one nine.
Speaker 8: Yes, I have the flouds just a minute, uh with
our teach one two East Riverside Drive.
Speaker 3: That name is very familiar.
Speaker 8: I'm having our suspects filing clerk listening to our conversation.
Speaker 5: He's probably even our checking on teachment and.
Speaker 8: You should hear from him within the next two minutes.
Speaker 3: Excellent, back, I's using your head wait right here for
his report.
Speaker 6: That's like filing clerk.
Speaker 5: If you're listening on that wavelength. Come in as soon
as possible. Times an important element harding Miami commass by headquarters.
Speaker 7: Come in.
Speaker 5: Herbert Hart Teachman, wealthy broker German Born has moved last
sixty years in Berlin. Returned to state August.
Speaker 8: Twenty fourth, nineteen forty.
Speaker 5: Matchelor swarn him gets topo at Hombourg nineteen thirty seven.
Extra banks going off. Okay, but now we know what
we're up again. It's a big boss himself. He's going
his way to take his operators of that gasoline station.
We've got to fly down there quick. Bugget miserable pigs
sitting there playing cards.
Speaker 6: Shut the point.
Speaker 7: We were just playing a little generally shut house. But
I don't the most speakable of it. What's the matter
with done of the poor.
Speaker 6: Paris We who have you been letting put acids?
Speaker 5: The gatholines who have been taking out of the samboline.
Speaker 6: Uber eight nothing board.
Speaker 5: I told you that one of you must always stay
awake to God, that doc that you must guard it
with your life. But somebody has been putting accident that Cathleen,
the last three submarines you refuel, that motors has spoiled
the helpless, You ruined them. I have an already here
from Heima himself. My own life isn't worth two cents.
I have failed because of you stupid picks. Now you
are going to pay for your chilly products.
Speaker 7: Book.
Speaker 6: Don't shoot You'll know how they just stopped.
Speaker 7: Oh Sam, I don't call me.
Speaker 6: He was Tony.
Speaker 3: He was supposed to look at the things.
Speaker 7: Here was my boss. I just don't want hit for red.
Stop that fighting.
Speaker 5: She's a good look at Tony.
Speaker 7: He's dead.
Speaker 14: Take a good look at a cops, because that is
what you are going to feed you right now. I pa,
I don't know that I have ever done anything.
Speaker 6: It is given me more pleasure.
Speaker 3: Don't you get both?
Speaker 5: Please pell saw its food for alligators to shocks.
Speaker 6: Won't they are going to get you.
Speaker 3: I wouldn't.
Speaker 5: And I wouldn't reach for that gun on the table.
Tachment for you hiding see the United States counter Prize.
If you make one move, you won't have to worry
about the get STOPO getting you.
Speaker 3: You'll be just as dead as all two countrymen of yours.
You get killed.
Speaker 6: Don't shoot, I won't move.
Speaker 3: But the hands up in the air treatment a little higher.
That's as high as you can get them. So you
are the one who was putting access to catheline. I
was just one teachment, one of five thousand counter prize
taking every move you're get stoppo, mate.
Speaker 6: Don't shoot.
Speaker 3: I do exactly what you say.
Speaker 7: You just want me to move so you can kill
me right now.
Speaker 14: But I am not going to get through the chance.
Speaker 3: I do exactly what you.
Speaker 5: All right. Tachment starts for the door, but be careful
that you're two countrymen. Don't trip you again.
Speaker 3: Next week David Harding and concert fires back again at
the same time. I'm hond us her brands. Heis a date.
Let's meet the case of the murdered commers, brother versus
brother death in the laboratory that the King delights. Look
through the strain makeup the speaker of the parted hair.
Next week, looking counterfire.
Speaker 15: Welcome back a solid case. Once again.
Speaker 1: David Harding makes sound deductions out a situation such as
this not being a domestic counterfeiting operation, and then leverages
his own intellect plus the pure size of his operation,
in order to bridge victorious. I think everything is very
well reasoned out here. Now there are a few points
you could nitpick, or you might wonder about. What I
was curious about was the whole bit at the beginning
about giving out weather conditions being prohibited. It kind of
is a bit of an overstatement, but it was restricted.
The Office of Censorship wrote, a few drops of brain
at Alpasso, high winds in Kansas City and a snowfall
in Detroit will indicate to enemy ships which part of
the coast will have rough weather or fog A day
or two later, and this information comes from April White's
really solid article in Popular Science. On September nineteenth of
last year, even Eleanor Roosevelt, the First Lady, got a
letter from the Office of Censorship rebuking her for complaining
about the weather in her column. Now, this created some
real problems. There were some crops that were destroyed because
of a lack of access to information, and there were
some areas that were found unprepared for major storm, including
a tornado in Tennessee and a hurricane in the Gulf
region of the South. The censorship rules were rightly relaxed
in a non teen forty three in the fall of
nineteen forty three, because even though the war wasn't over,
the essential conclusion was that the benefits of these restrictions
were far outweighed by all of the people who and
industries that were put in a disadvantage by the lack
of weather reporting. And I think by nineteen forty three
it was pretty clear that the Axis weren't ready anytime
in the near future to open another front on the
continental United States. So some of these restrictions which were
in place in countries in Europe, did not make a
whole lot of sense in the United States. Now, in
the context of the episode, it establishes the DA tone,
But if you think about it a little, there's a
bit of silicon seat to it, because the idea is
that the announcer cannot say where exactly this is happening
because it might be overheard by an Axis spy.
Speaker 15: But as I was listening to it, I said, this
sounds a lot like Florida.
Speaker 1: If you're going to avoid saying where this is to
in theory, protect the information from the Axis, it seems
like you shouldn't make it so obvious it's Florida. And
then David Harding goes ahead and says specifically that is Florida.
So can the Nazis spies only hear the announcer nothing else.
I'm a little bit unclear on the logic of this.
It's an interesting aspect of World War two history, and
it always seems like I'm learning something I didn't know
about that era before. It's just kind of an odd
way to takes it as in the context of a
fictional radio show. Also, the sub would not likely be
sending requests for assistance to Himmler. Himler had a very
large portfolio in the Nazi government, but kind of handling
these submarine operations wasn't.
Speaker 15: Really part of it.
Speaker 1: But what Himmler was already in nineteen forty two was
a malevolent figure who had perpetrated monstrous evil on the
human race. Already he was central to the establishment of
the Secret Police and the construction of the first concentration camps.
He was also one of the principal architects responsible for
the Holocaust. Although in nineteen forty two the full scale
of his evil was not known by the American public,
they already knew enough to know that you could signal
ruthless evil by having the bad guys of your peace
report to Himmler. All right, well, now it's time to
thank our Patreon supporter of the day, and I want
to thank George, Patreon supporter since October twenty fifteen, currently
supporting the podcast at the first mate level of seven
dollars and fourteen cents or more per month. Thanks so
much for.
Speaker 15: Your support, George, and that will do it for today.
Speaker 1: If you're enjoying the podcast, please follow us using your
favorite punk case software and be sure to rate and
review the podcast wherever you download it. From We'll be
back next Saturday with another episode of Counterspy. On the
Great Adventurers Podcast, join us back here on Tuesday for Tarzan,
and on the Great Detectives podcast, join us tomorrow for
our first listener support special. In the meantime, do send
your comments to Box thirteen at Great Detectives dot net.
From Boise, Idaho, this is your host, Adam Grahamson and
Off