BIGGLES GOES TO WAR

by Captain W. E. Johns

XIII. IN ENEMY COUNTRY (Pages 149 – 164)

As they fly on their mission, high clouds drift in from the direction they are heading. “I don’t like the look of that stuff,” declares Biggles to Algy, sitting beside him. Biggles cuts the engines to glide over the frontier. In the dark Biggles manages to find and land in the field they had landed in earlier. Biggles and Ginger get the motorbike out and agree plans and a signalling system with Algy. They get the motorbike to the road, which is in a bad state of repair and set off. “Biggles knew that they had started on one of the most difficult and dangerous tasks they had ever undertaken; but he kept his thoughts to himself”. They cover the forty miles to Shavros in an hour and a half. Their greatest handicap is ignorance of the local language. It is 10.00 pm by the time they reach Gustav’s shop and Biggles uses German to give the coded password. In the original Modern Boy version, Biggles says “einige cigaretten Greta gefallen” (some cigarettes like Greta) but in the book version this becomes “einige Zigaretten Greta, bitte” (some Greta cigarettes please). The reply is changed as well, originally it was “einschreiben” (which means ‘enrol’?) whereas in the book this is corrected to “Herein” (which means ‘in’?). Gustav speaks broken English and tells Biggles that the Count is in room “twenty-von” on the second floor of the hotel. Biggles asks for a hand-truck and a porter’s blouse and cap, together with a big suitcase. He also wants all the glass and crockery Gustav has got in his shop in order to create a division. The plan is for Ginger to crash a hand-truck full of crockery outside the hotel creating a diversion, that will allow Biggles to slip into the hotel to rescue the Count. Ginger can then be ready to steal a car for their getaway. The plan is put into action and Biggles lingers by the hotel entrance. Ginger wheels the hand-truck and charges the pavement in front of the hotel. “The crash far surpassed anything Biggles had imagined. He was, for a moment, stunned”. Uproar follows. Biggles picks up his suitcase and walks calmly up the steps and into the hotel. People are coming out to see what has happened. Biggles walks up to the second floor and without hesitation, straight into room 21. Three men are seated there, one is Count Stanhauser. Biggles covers them with his automatic gun. “Come on, sir” says Biggles crisply. (‘Come on, sir’, said Biggles crisply - is the illustration on page 161). When the Count responses slowly Biggles says “Hurry!” peremptorily in the Modern Boy original version. In the book this line becomes the more respectable “Come along, sir, hurry up” called Biggles peremptorily. Biggles locks the two men in the room and leaves. As they go downstairs they pass Zarovitch, the Lovitznian minister who had visited Biggles in his rooms in London. Zarovitch starts yelling at the top of his voice, raising the alarm. Biggles and the Count hurry down corridors but find themselves in a cul-de-sac. “We are lost” declared the Count. “Never say die until you’re dead” returned Biggles (in the original Modern Boy version) – but in the book version it is “Never say that,” returned Biggles coldly. Escaping down a service lift they get out into a courtyard with access to a side street. Everything is covered in white as it is snowing steadily.