a way!"

Braddock Washington waited until they were again quiet. Then he said:

"I've told you the situation. I don't want you here, I wish to heaven
I'd never seen you. Your own curiosity got you here, and any time that
you can think of a way out which protects me and my interests I'll be
glad to consider it. But so long as you confine your efforts to
digging tunnels--yes, I know about the new one you've started--you
won't get very far. This isn't as hard on you as you make it out, with
all your howling for the loved ones at home. If you were the type who
worried much about the loved ones at home, you'd never have taken up
aviation."

A tall man moved apart from the others, and held up his hand to call
his captor's attention to what he was about to say.

"Let me ask you a few questions!" he cried. "You pretend to be a
fair-minded man."

"How absurd. How could a man of _my_ position be fair-minded
toward you? You might as well speak of a Spaniard being fair-minded
toward a piece of steak."

At this harsh observation the faces of the two dozen fell, but the
tall man continued:

"All right!" he cried. "We've argued this out before. You're not a
humanitarian and you're not fair-minded, but you're human--at least
you say you are--and you ought to be able to put yourself in our place
for long enough to think how--how--how--"

"How what?" demanded Washington, coldly.

"--how unnecessary--"

"Not to me."

"Well--how cruel--"

"We've covered that. Cruelty doesn't exist where self-preservation is
involved. You've been soldiers; you know that. Try another."

"Well, then, how stupid."

"There," admitted Washington, "I grant you that. But try to think of
an alternative. I've offered to have all or any of you painlessly
executed if you wish. I've offered to have your wives, sweethearts,
children, and mothers kidnapped and brought out here. I'll enlarge
your place down there and feed and clothe you the rest of your lives.
If there was some method of producing permanent amnesia I'd have all
of you operated on and released immediately, somewhere outside of my
preserves. But that's as far as my ideas go."

"How about trusting us not to peach on you?" cried some one.

"You don't proffer that suggestion seriously," said Washington, with
an expression of scorn. "I did take out one man to teach my daughter
Italian. Last week he got away."

A wild yell of jubilation went up suddenly from two dozen throats and
a pandem