trikes me!"

CHAPTER XIV

IN CUSTODY

Blake and Charlie nodded their heads as Joe gave voice to his suspicion.
Then, as they looked across once again at the man in the slouch hat, he
seemed aware of their glances and slunk down an alley.

"But I think he has his eye on us, all the same," observed Blake, as the
boys went into their hotel.

"What are we going to do about it?" inquired Charlie. "Shall we put up a
kick or a fight?"

"Neither one," decided Blake, after a moment's thought.

"Why not?" inquired Macaroni, with rather a belligerent air, as befitted
one in the midst of war's alarms. "Why not go and ask this fellow what
he means by spying on us?"

"In the first place, if we could confront him, which I very much doubt,"
answered Blake, "he would probably deny that he was even so much as
looking at us, except casually. Those fellows from Scotland Yard, or
whatever the English now call their Secret Service, are as keen as they
make 'em. We wouldn't get any satisfaction by kicking."

"Then let's fight!" suggested Charlie. "We can protest to the officer
who told us to wait here for our permits to go to the front. We can say
we're United States citizens and we object to being spied on. Let's do
it!"

"Yes, we could do that," said Blake slowly. "But perhaps we are being
kept under surveillance by the orders of that same officer."

"What in the world for?"

"Well, because the authorities may want to find out more about us."

"But didn't we have our passports all right? And weren't our papers in
proper shape?" asked Charlie indignantly.

"As far as we ourselves are concerned, yes," said Blake. "But you must
remember that passports have been forged before, by Germans, and----"

"I hope they don't take _us_ for Germans!" burst out Charlie.

"Well, we don't look like 'em, that's a fact," said Blake, with a smile.
"But you must remember that the English have been stung a number of
times, and they aren't taking any more chances."

"Just what do you think this fellow's game is?" asked Charlie.

"Well," answered Blake slowly, and as if considering all sides of the
matter. "I think he has been detailed by the English Foreign Office, or
Secret Service, or whoever has the matter in charge, to keep an eye on
us and see if we are really what we claim to be. That's all. I don't see
any particular harm in it; and if we objected, kicked, or made a row, it
would look as if we might be guilty. So I say let it