came down in an ambulance. I made straight for John; gave him the
grip, and put it up to him to help me."

"I don't understand," I said. "I thought you were sailing on the
_Adriaticus?_"

The young man was again pacing the floor. He halted and faced the
harbor.

"You bet I'm sailing on the _Adriaticus_" he said. He looked out
at that vessel, at the Blue Peter flying from her foremast, and
grinned. "In just two hours!"

It was stupid of me, but I still was unenlightened. "But your
twelve hours' leave?" I asked.

The young man laughed. "They can take my twelve hours' leave," he
said deliberately, "and feed it to the chickens. I'm beating it."

"What d'you mean, you're beating it?"

"What do you suppose I mean?" he demanded. "What do you suppose
I'm doing out of uniform, what do you suppose I'm lying low in the
room for? So's I won't catch cold?"

"If you're leaving the army without a discharge, and without
permission," I said, "I suppose you know it's desertion."

Mr. Hamlin laughed easily. "It's not _my_ army," he said. "I'm an
American."