Page:On to Pekin.djvu/117

Rh "I'm going to put the envelope back—after I have refilled it with several sheets of blank paper."

"By Jove! Nuggy, you are getting slicker every day."

"Ralph Branders won't know where the blank paper came from, and of course he won't do anything. In the mean time I will send the letter to my father, with the full particulars of all I have learned; and, when Pennington makes his next move, we'll be more than ready for him."

With great care Nuggy Polk opened the letter addressed to the Richmond lawyer, being cautious not to tear the envelope. Once open, the closely written pages inside were abstracted; and then the envelope was refilled with pages from a blank writing pad, after which it was sealed up once more as before.

When Nuggy revisited the berth deck, he found Gilbert sleeping as sound as ever. Hurrying up, he began to place the letter in the young lieutenant's coat.

As mentioned before, the wind was rising. Consequently, the transport was not riding as easily as earlier on the trip. Just as Nuggy placed his hand