sed as anything but a
German, only I varied the type I represented almost from day to day.
Thus I left no traces behind or they would have had me long since."

The sadness in my brother's voice increased and the shadows deepened in
his face.

"Then I tried to get out," he continued. "But it was hopeless from the
first. They knew they had one of us left in the net and they closed
every outlet. I made two separate attempts to cross the line back into
Holland, but both failed. The second time I literally had to flee for my
life. I went straight to Berlin, feeling that a big city, as remote from
the frontier as possible, was the only safe hiding-place for me as long
as the hue and cry lasted.

"I was in a desperate bad way, too, for I had had to abandon the last
set of identity papers left to me when I bolted. I landed in Berlin with
the knowledge that no roof could safely shelter me until I got a fresh
lot of papers.

"I knew of Kore--I had heard of him and his shirkers' and deserters'
agency in my travels--and I went straight to him. He sent me to
Haase's ... this was towards the end of June. It was when I was at
Haase's that I sent out that message to van Urutius that fell into your
hands. That happened like this.

"I was rather friendly with a chap that frequented Haase's, a man
employed in the packing department at the Metal Works at Steglitz. He
was telling us one night how short-handed they were and what good money
packers were earning. I was sick of being cooped up in that stinking
cellar, so, more by way of a joke than anything else, I offered to come
and lend a hand in the packing department. I thought I might get a
chance of escape, as I saw none at Haase's. To my surprise, Haase, who
was sitting at the table, rather fancied the idea and said I could go if
I paid him half my wages: I was getting nothing at the beer-cellar.

"So I was taken on at Steglitz, sleeping at Haase's and helping in the
beer-cellar in the evenings. One day a package for old van Urutius came
to me to be made up and suddenly it occurred to me that here was a
chance of sending out a message to the outside world. I hoped that old
van U., if he tumbled to the 'Eichenholz,' would send it to you and that
you would pass it on to my Chief in London."

"Then you expected me to come after you?" I said.

"No," replied Francis promptly, "I did not. But the arrangement was
that, if none of us four men had turned up at Head-quarters by May 15th,