ague with the spies on whose
trail he and Dick had fallen. And he understood that, if he kept quiet, all
would soon be all right for him. But if he did that, the plans of the
Germans would succeed. He had seen already an example of what they could
do, in the destruction of the water works. And it seemed to him that it
would be a poor thing to fail in what he had undertaken simply to save
himself. As soon as he reached that conclusion he knew what he must do, or,
at all events, what he must try to do.

For the officer who had arrested him he felt a good deal of contempt. While
it was true that orders had to be obeyed, there was no reason, Harry felt,
why the lieutenant should not have shown some discretion. An officer of the
regular army would have done so, he felt. But this man looked unintelligent
and stupid. Harry felt that he might safely rely on his appearance. And he
was right. The officer found himself in a quandary at once. His men were
mounted on cycles; Harry was on foot. And Harry saw that he didn't quite
know what to do.

Finally he cut the Gordian knot, as it seemed to him, by impounding a
bicycle from a passing wheel-man, who protested vigorously but in vain. All
he got for his cycle was a scrap of paper, stating that it had been
requisitioned for army use. And Harry was instructed to mount this machine
and ride along between two of the territorial soldiers. He had been hoping
for something like that, but had hardly dared to expect it. He had fully
made up his mind now to take all the risks he would run by trying to
escape. He could not get clear away, that much he knew. But now he, too,
like Graves, needed a little time. He did not mind being recaptured in a
short time if, in the meanwhile, he could be free to do what he wanted.

As to just how he would try to get away, he did not try to plan. He felt
that somewhere along the route some chance would present itself, and that
it would be better to trust to that than to make some plan. He was ordered
to the front of the squad--so that a better eye could be kept upon him, as
the lieutenant put it. Harry had irritated him by his attempts to cause a
change in the disposition of Graves and himself, and the officer gave the
impression now that he regarded Harry as a desperate criminal, already
tried and convicted.

Harry counted upon the traffic, sure to increase as it grew later, to give
him his chance. Something accidental, he knew, there must be, or he would