"Tell him to get busy," whispered Jimmie. "Can he make a tree three
hundred years old in a minute?"
"Where is this mysticism of the East located?" asked the Captain, unable
to get the original notion that they were not what they seemed out of
his mind.
Again the leader pointed to the ruined temple.
"Come!" he said.
"Now is your chance!" whispered the Captain.
"You are convinced that these are the people who were sent out to defeat
the purpose of our mission?" asked Ned.
"Sure," was the reply. "These fellows are not priests. I don't believe
the chap who speaks is even a Chinaman."
Ned did not hesitate long. If he was correct in his interpretation of
the orders of the Secret Service department, it would be the right thing
for him to go with the strange visitors.
If, as he really believed, they had designs on his life or his liberty,
no better place or time for the test of cunning and strength could have
been selected. It was early morning, and the highway just beyond the
grove was never long vacant of travelers. Indeed, groups of five or six
were constantly in sight.
The travelers were Chinese, of course, and not likely to assist him out
of any difficulty into which he might tumble, still the fact that they
were there was something. Even conspirators do not seek audiences for
their crimes.
Besides, there were the marines. Ned understood that they would not be
permitted to enter the ruined temple in a body, but he knew that they
would be within call.
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