Five bells, stand by all stations.
Attention, all districts, a five alarm fire.
Five bells, move in immediately.
That's it, let's roll!
Let's go!
Fire fighters!
Presenting Fire Fighters, the true to life story of our unsung heroes who stand ready
to ride by day or night against our most murderous enemy, the Demon of Fire!
In just a minute, we'll join Chief Cody and his young friend Jimmy Collins at the headquarters
station house where the junior firefighters are storing the antiques which they're collecting
for their sale to raise money for the school organization.
It was Chief Cody's idea that the older men help the youngsters, but even so, the boys
themselves had gotten together quite a collection the first day, including one item that Jimmy
now suspects to be a lot more valuable than anybody knew.
But that wasn't half the mystery, as you'll discover for yourself in just one minute.
Let's go, Fire Fighters!
Let's go right into station headquarters just beyond the great red pumper in the hook and
ladder truck where an odd assortment of old furniture and boxes holding smaller items
is piling up for the junior firefighter sale.
A moment ago, Jimmy Collins had been amazed when an eccentric old antique dealer had wandered
in with his dog and become briefly excited over a snuff box Jimmy had showed him.
As he tells Chief Cody excitedly, he said his name was Lucius B. Darby and I couldn't
help liking him, Chief.
But gosh, was he a character.
He acted like that thing was worth a million dollars.
Well, that's silly.
You must have been mistaken, Jimmy.
I want to show you that snuff box, sir.
I've got it in the box right here.
Mr. Darby didn't want me to know he was interested in it for some reason.
He changed the subject and pretended to be interested in the fire trucks, only he didn't
know a doggone thing about them.
No reason why he should, son.
Well, then why did he pretend?
Holy smoke!
What's the matter?
The snuff box!
It isn't here now.
It's gone.
Well, maybe it was valuable at that.
So the old man did walk off with it, huh?
Mr. Darby?
Well, that's impossible.
He couldn't have.
Did somebody else came in here after he did?
No, he was the last one.
I showed it to him and then...
Then he must have taken it, Jimmy.
I tell you, he couldn't, sir.
Gosh, he even patted his pockets to show me he had nothing in them.
Well, don't you think that was rather strange?
Of course it was strange, all right, but he wasn't carrying that snuff box on him.
I even shook hands with him and then with his dog.
With it?
Do you feel all right, son?
I'm not crazy.
He treated that dog just like a person.
Said they went everywhere together.
All I mean is neither one of them could have carried it out.
Well, maybe he hid it around here.
Well, that wouldn't have made sense.
Gee, he'd have known we'd hunt for it.
And we'll look, but I bet we won't find it.
Oh, come now.
Maybe it seems kind of mysterious, but...
Kind of?
My gosh, Chief Cody, you wait and see.
I tell you, he's made that snuff box vanish into thin air.
And even some hours later, nobody could prove that it hadn't happened that way.
In the living room of the Collins home after supper, the family, Mother Collins, Tim, Trudy,
and Jimmy are sitting around a table as Trudy flips to the pages of a book.
But Jimmy can't seem to stay quiet a minute.
He's saying to his mother now.
That was the dog-garnest thing he ever saw, Mom.
The Chief and half his men at the station house hunted high and low.
And still no trace of the snuff box Mrs. Wilcox gave you.
No.
Gosh, you should have seen his face.
Boy, was he angry.
You know how reddened a face Chief Cody gets when he's mad, Mom.
Look, Trudy, will you please keep looking through that book?
You've been at it half an hour already.
Hey, hey, hey, take it easy, Jimmy.
Trudy was good enough to go to the library and get it for you.
You were so excited you couldn't even talk straight.
Oh, gosh, why shouldn't I be?
That old book isn't going to tell us how that snuff box vanished anyway.
But it may tell you whether it was valuable or not, son.
The librarian said it had everything in it about antiques.
And there's a whole section here on old snuff boxes, Jimmy.
I already know it's valuable.
Mr. Darby's an antique dealer.
He should know about those things.
You should have seen his eyes pop when he saw it.
Yeah, but afterwards you said he only offered $10 for it.
Well, he'd have offered more, only I said the things weren't for sale till later.
And then when he asked me to save it for him, he saw I was getting suspicious.
I think Jimmy's right, Mother.
He was afraid of letting Jimmy see how much he wanted it.
That's it.
So he pretended he wasn't interested anymore.
Well, but from what you said, he didn't seem like the kind of person who would steal something.
No, I've got to admit he didn't.
Well, how can you tell?
Maybe he didn't want to.
Maybe he just loves old things so much he couldn't resist buying them.
Gee, Wizz, how many times do I have to tell you he didn't walk out of the firehouse with
it?
I think he went to a lot of trouble to be sure you knew that very thing.
Well, anyway, I do know.
And Trudy, will you keep walking through?
I don't have to, Jimmy.
I've already found it.
Oh, for Pete's sake, why didn't you say so?
Oh, look, Tim, Mother, can you see this picture?
Oh, say, it does look like it, all right.
I was with Jimmy the day Mrs. Wilcox's attic caught fire, and I was right there when she
gave this very same snuff box to it.
Yeah, it does look like it, all right.
That same funny design cards and jade on the top, and those flower things.
That's the Fleur de Lis, Jimmy.
You know, that's it.
The Florida what's it?
Just like Mr. Darby said.
Yeah, it says here it's the only one of its kind in existence.
It's made out of jade and...
Is that valuable, Mom?
That isn't why it's valuable.
It's a collector's item, a museum piece.
Says so right here, and it's been missing since...
It's been missing since late this afternoon.
Jimmy, I think we've discovered something very important.
No wonder Mr. Darby was excited.
This snuff box was made especially for a king of the woods.
He's a great man.
He's a great man.
He's a great man.
He's a great man.
He's a great man.
He's a great man.
He's a great man.
He's a great man.
He's a great man.
He was a guru or a TED artist.
He was a guru or a TED artist.
He's a guru or a TED artist.
He's a guru or a TED artist.
Ching, they say it's good to Finnish fashion.
When I was in jail, I told them by the time I got the box, a very expensive box that
was picked up, and they picked it up, and in London, I had to sign a specially for its
amounts.
And I'm giving aesie to get the box sent.
You'd expect the box, yes?
He THEKING doesn't come without agent kit.
A
Thekte core of just the box.
The case of?
A
Estado morifere de mamarique.
It was a fan of mine.
Well...
She is involved with a big boy indeed.
And it follows that es-
forgetting one thing aren't you? He certainly is Tim. Belongs to Mrs. Wilcox, not him.
She gave it to me, didn't she? She certainly couldn't have known what it was, Jimmy. Perhaps
it's too priceless to belong to any one person. But that's not our concern. It must be found
and returned. Oh, look Mom, Chief Cody's the best one to help us on this. Let me go down
to headquarters and tell him what we know. Well, it's getting rather late. But maybe
you'll want to ask Mr. Darby some questions. He'll lead me along. But look, Jimmy, you're
the one who says he can prove Mr. Darby didn't take it. Oh, say, I forgot about that. This
whole thing is very strange. I guess we do need Chief Cody's advice. Run down to headquarters
if you like, Jimmy. But for goodness sake, try not to get into any more trouble today.
A few minutes later, Jimmy stands in the great open doorway of the station house, disappointment
written on his face. The Chief's car, the truck's gone. Only one man sits at the desk
filling out routine reports. Then as Jimmy slowly turns away, he hears... and suddenly
the bright red car be lawyering to the Chief swings around the corner and a moment later
breaks to a stop in the station house, where the violence that told Jimmy the Chief wasn't
in good humor. What the dick are you doing here, Jimmy? Time you were in bed. But you
don't know what's happened, Chief. Don't I, though? We just answered a false alarm a
few blocks down the avenue. If there's anything, it makes me mad. You're going to be even more
mad when I tell you. Let's not get underfoot now, son. Keep out of the way while that truck
back's in. Boys aren't going to be feeling any happier than I am. Well, that snuff box
we couldn't find, remember? I don't want to hear any more about that. It's gone and that's
that. Well, there are plenty more about it, Chief. Mom says it belongs in a museum. Well,
that's where I feel I belong. Tired. All the work is securing now and for no reason. When
this gets in the newspapers, Chief, maybe they'll blame me that snuff box disappeared. Newspapers?
You mean... Mom says it's so valuable you can't put a price on it. You've got to help
me. I'll be in Dutch. Well, if it's as important as that and it disappeared from my station
house, we're both in Dutch. Let's go to my office, Jimmy. The minute Jimmy finishes his
story, Chief Cody says... Well, if this were a fire, I know exactly what to do, Jimmy.
But a minute ago, you said something about going to the police. I know, but now... Well,
I think they'd laugh at us. We can't even prove this snuff box was the one Trudy saw
pictured in that book. How do we know it's a priceless art object that's been missing
for years? Well, I think the way Mr. Darby acted proves that. So do I, but he offered
you a top price of ten dollars for it. What would the police say to that? Yeah, that would
sound funny. It'd be worth my reputation to say it vanished into thin air. But I'm sure
that antique dealer's behind this, sir. I wonder. He certainly didn't hide it here, and you
swear he didn't take it with him. If I'd known this, I'd have asked him a few questions just
the same. But you didn't talk with Mr. Darby, Chief. Yes, I did. He was out walking his
dog in the neighborhood where that false alarm was. Well, that's funny. His shop is over
on Cedar Street, he said. Well, the trucks attracted him, and he asked so many questions
I had to shoo him off. That old fellow was a bug on fire equipment. No, he's not, Chief.
He's not. What do you mean? The boys had trouble keeping him off the truck while we checked
that false alarm. Did you find out who turned it in? No, we didn't. Say, are you hinting...
All I know is Mr. Darby pretended he was interested in fire trucks this afternoon, but he didn't
know a pumper from a hook and ladder. Well, a lot of people don't. I can't say... But
I can, Chief. I can see everything now. You mean you... You know how that doggone snuffbox
just up and vanished? Sure, it's easy. You come downstairs and I'll show you. You're not
telling me it's still down there. Oh, gosh, no. I can't even prove anything. And you'll
have to help me after I explain. Explain what? About the snuffbox. I know where it is now,
and not only that, I know how it got there. The Chief stares at the youngster in amazement.
Does Jimmy really know the answer to the mystery of the jade snuffbox? And how did he find
out like that all of a sudden? And if he knows where it is, will they be able to get it back?
Be sure to listen to our next exciting episode of The Firefighters!
In a moment, Chief Bob Cody will be back to tell you boys and girls how you can help the
firefighters in your own town. First, an important message.
Hello, Fire Chief Bob Cody, and a special message for all firefighters. Chief Cody.
Attention, firefighters. This is Chief Cody, boys and girls, with an assignment that follows
right along after the one I gave you last time. This time, let's think about camping
and building campfires. The woods of this country are more important to us than you
could know, and forest fires are a terrible thing. So always, always extinguish all fires
completely with sand or water, and never leave until the last ember is cold. That is all.
Till next time, this is Chief Cody saying, so long.
Fire Chief Cody and the young rookie fireman Tim Collins will be back on the same station
the next time you hear...
That's it. Let's fire!
Let's go! Firefighters!
This is a copyrighted feature of William F. Holland Productions.