"I've got all the small parts right here in duplicate, and some of the
larger ones are in the big suitcase."
"You're a wonder!" Jimmie cried, dancing about his chum and wrinkling
his nose until it looked like that of a comedian in a motion picture.
"I wonder if you haven't got a hunk of Washington pie in that keyster!"
The lads fell to work on their machines, and in a very short time all
were ready for the road. Then Ned put away his handbag and began an
examination of the large suitcase, which contained the larger repairs
for the motorcycles. It had not been molested.
"There's one thing certain," he said, "and that is that the Chinese who
are watching us expect us to make a dash for Peking. They took the
pains to leave our machines in such shape that their tampering with them
would not be suspected. I'd like to know just when this mischief was
accomplished."
"Yes," Frank observed, "they wanted us to get out of Taku and break down
on the road to Tientsin. They would have us at their mercy out there--
or they figured it out that way."
"The work on the machines must have been done sometime during the day--
or last night," Ned replied. "Possibly while we were dozing."
"I don't believe it!" Jimmie insisted. "I've had me eyes open every
minute to-day."
"Well," Ned went on, laughing, "we had a high wind yesterday, didn't we?
A wind that tumbled the dust of the streets in upon us? Well," pointing
to a portion of his machine frame which he had been careful not to
touch, "here is some of the dust which fell upon the motorcycle then.
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