men whose purpose was merely honest.
Will took up the reins at once.

"We've talked over buying the boat," he said, "but that's hopeless.
The more we paid for it the louder the owner would brag. The Germans
would be 'on' in a minute. We've simply got to steal it. It's up to
you to find out the man's proper name and address, and we'll send him
the money from the first British post-office we reach."

"Don Quixote de la Mancha!" she said critically. "Well--we steal the
boat and you pay for it afterward. The owner will think you are crazy,
and if the Germans ever discover it they will take the money away from
him by some legal process. But go on!"

"We've plenty of money," said Will, "so there's no need to worry about
too many supplies to begin with. But we'll need scant rations for
ourselves and all our men until we reach some place where more are to
be bought. And we've got to get them on board the dhow secretly. The
first question is, how to do that."

She told us at once of a path going round by the back of the hill
behind us, that would make the trip to the dhow in the dark a matter of
over two miles, but that avoided all sentries and habitations. We
agreed that all three of us should climb to the top of the hill, which
was not out of bounds--and study the track next morning. On the
fateful night we must take our chance, just as she had done, of
avoiding the sleepy-eyed sentry who kept watch over the Greeks.

"We'll talk to Brown of Lumbwa on the morning and afternoon march
around the township," Will went on. "Brown must whisper to Kazimoto
through the corrugated iron partition in the jail at night, and have
them all ready to break loose at the signal and bring him along with
them. We must be careful to show Brown just where the dhow is. He has
been sober quite a while. Maybe he'll remember if we direct him
carefully."

"What is to be the signal?" she asked.

"Just what I'm coming to," said Will. "A fire-alarm on the first windy
night! The next question is, who is to start the fire? We'll need a
good one! Yet if we do it, we're likely to be caught by the crowd
coming running to deal with it."

"Coutlass!" she answered suddenly. "Coutlass and his two friends!"

"You'll perhaps pardon me," Fred answered, "but none of us would trust
those Greeks as far as a hen could swim in alcohol!"

"Yet you must! Leave them to me! They don't know that the sand in my
glass has run down. Let me go to t