e with regard to you."

"But why--"

"It seems to me," Ned interrupted, "that the department is up against a
tough proposition. The matter is so delicate that no foreign government
can be accused of mixing this conspiracy for Uncle Sam. What remains to
do, then, is to spot the tools being used by the power that is most
active."

"That's good sense."

"Well, we can't spot them in Washington, nor in Tientsin, nor yet in the
American embassy at Peking. Where, then, but on the road--on the road
where they are striving with all their might to block the progress of
the agent who is trying to land them?"

Captain Martin mused a moment and then broke into a laugh.

"And so," he said, "you think we are spread out along this road for the
conspirators to grab off?"

"If they can, of course; but that is not stating the case right. We are
spread out along the road to Peking to catch the men who will try to
stop us. See? We are here to watch for those who will try to catch us,
and to catch them! What do you think of that?"

"Clever!" exclaimed the Captain.

"The system is an old one in detective work," Ned explained. "It is no
unusual thing for an officer to permit a prisoner to escape in order
that be may be traced to his confederates. Only this case is somewhat
different, of course. We don't know exactly who the criminals we, but
we expect them to reveal their identity by their own acts."

"Then we'd better be on double guard?"

"Of course. You know how the consul reiterated the warning he gave us.
He couldn't tell us that it was the notion of the Secret Service
department that we would be attacked on the way to Peking, but he could
tell us to look out, and he did."

"Perhaps he thought the truth would frighten you off?"

"Perhaps," laughed Ned.

"Well, I'm glad to have the puzzle solved," Captain Martin said. "Now
we know just what to look out for. When do you expect to meet with
these foxy chaps?"

"They will appear in due time, if I am right," Ned replied. "Look out
there on the road," he added, "they may be coming now."

The Captain looked and saw four men in the garb of priests, approaching
the grove. Their robes were long and of a dirty slate color, and there
was a great star on the breast of the man in the lead.

"A queer bunch," the officer said, "but not diplomats. They are Taoist
priests, and the chances are that they have a tumble-down temple in this
vicinity. They are not very popu