Part 4 (1/2)

”I'd rather have you,” said Chester.

McKenzie also voted for Hal, who already had done him some service.

This agreement, stood.

”All right,” said Hal. ”Now that I'm in command, I'll outline the course of procedure. We'll go from here to the Dutch border.”

”How about pa.s.sports?” Chester wanted to know.

”That's simple enough. You remember the time when we drew up a set of fake pa.s.sports representing ourselves to be correspondents of the New York Gazette? We'll follow the same plan, except that we each will be represented as correspondents of different papers. See, I've already drawn, them.”

”I see,” said Chester, ”but American pa.s.sports won't be honored in Germany now.”

”But they will be in Holland,” said Hal. ”We'll see what can be done about having them changed there. Now, let's see if we know who we are.”

He pa.s.sed the fake pa.s.sports to the others.

”I'm Barney McCann, eh?” said McKenzie, gazing at the paper he held in his hand. ”Oh, well, I guess I can talk Irish as well as German if I have to. And I represent the Chicago Mail.”

”I'm still Chester Crawford,” said Chester, ”and I represent the New York Gazette.”

”I'm Hal Paine, and I represent the Philadelphia Globe,” said Hal.

”We'll probably have to change our names when we go over the German border, but these should answer their purposes in Holland.

Fortunately, we have learned a few things from Stubbs, so we are not unfamiliar with the workings of a newspaper.”

”Guess we had better get out of these uniforms,” said Chester.

”Right. We'll don suits of plain khaki, such as Stubbs wears, and we'll equip ourselves with the necessary paraphernalia.”

This was a simple task, and several hours later, horseback, the lads made their way toward where British troops, supported by French, were close to, the border of The Netherlands.

They showed their pa.s.sports, prepared by Hal, to the British military authorities, and were permitted to pa.s.s.

Holland, although not a partic.i.p.ant in the great war, nevertheless, soon after the outbreak of hostilities, had felt herself called upon to mobilize her military forces that she might protect her borders should one of the belligerents attempt to overrun her, as the Germans had overrun Belgium at the outbreak of the war. Therefore, when the three travelers reached the border, they were held up by the military.

Hal presented his fake American pa.s.sport, and Chester and McKenzie did likewise. The officer who had accosted them turned them over to his superior.

”Your intentions,” said the officer, ”I hope are such as not to break Holland's neutrality?”

”We're perfectly peaceable, sir,” returned Hal with a smile.

”Very well. This is a neutral country, and you are, of course, free to travel about it at your leisure so long as you conduct yourselves properly. Of course, were you American soldiers it would be necessary for me to place you under arrest, and YOU would be interned until the end of the war.”

”I understand that, sir,” said Hal.

”By the way,” said the Dutch officer, ”there is a Dutch newspaperman here at this moment. Perhaps you would like to meet him. He is Herr Heindrick Block, of the Amsterdamer.”

”We shall be pleased,” said Hal quietly.

The Dutch officer excused himself, and returned a moment later with a young Dutchman, whom he introduced to the three friends. They shook hands all around.