upon the electric stove. Lys, followed by Nobs, appeared as I

entered the centrale. She met me with a pleasant "Good morning!"

which I am afraid I replied to in a tone that was rather constrained

and surly.

"Will you breakfast with me?" I suddenly asked the girl,

determined to commence a probe of my own along the lines which

duty demanded.

She nodded a sweet acceptance of my invitation, and together we

sat down at the little table of the officers' mess.

"You slept well last night?" I asked.

"All night," she replied. "I am a splendid sleeper."

Her manner was so straightforward and honest that I could not

bring myself to believe in her duplicity; yet--Thinking to

surprise her into a betrayal of her guilt, I blurted out: "The

chronometer and sextant were both destroyed last night; there is

a traitor among us." But she never turned a hair by way of

evidencing guilty knowledge of the catastrophe.

"Who could it have been?" she cried. "The Germans would be crazy

to do it, for their lives are as much at stake as ours."

"Men are often glad to die for an ideal--an ideal of patriotism,

perhaps," I replied; "and a willingness to martyr themselves

includes a willingness to sacrifice others, even those who

love them. Women are much the same, except that they will go

even further than most men--they will sacrifice everything, even

honor, for love."

I watched her face carefully as I spoke, and I thought that I

detected a very faint flush mounting her cheek. Seeing an

opening and an advantage, I sought to follow it up.

"Take von Schoenvorts, for instance," I continued: "he would

doubtless be glad to die and take us all with him, could he

prevent in no other way the falling of his vessel into enemy hands.

He would sacrifice anyone, even you; and if you still love him,

you might be his ready tool. Do you understand me?"

She looked at me in wide-eyed consternation for a moment, and

then she went very white and rose from her seat. "I do," she