established government, while I--" the secretary gave the General a
mysterious but encouraging smile. "You, of course, know, General Falcon,
that since the Tammany war, an act of Congress has been passed requiring
all manufactured arms and ammunition exported from this country to pass
through the War Department. Now, if I can do anything for you I will be
glad to do so to oblige my old friend, Mr. Kelley. But it must be in
absolute secrecy, as the President, as I have said, does not regard
favorably the efforts of your revolutionary party in Colombia. I will
have my orderly bring a list of the available arms now in the
warehouse."

The Secretary struck a bell, and an orderly with the letters A. D. T. on
his cap stepped promptly into the room.

"Bring me Schedule B of the small arms inventory," said the Secretary.

The orderly quickly returned with a printed paper. The Secretary studied
it closely.

"I find," he said, "that in Warehouse 9, of Government stores, there is
shipment of 2,000 stands of Winchester rifles that were ordered by the
Sultan of Morocco, who forgot to send the cash with his order. Our rule
is that legal-tender money must be paid down at the time of purchase.
My dear Kelley, your friend, General Falcon, shall have this lot of
arms, if he desires it, at the manufacturer's price. And you will
forgive me, I am sure, if I curtail our interview. I am expecting the
Japanese Minister and Charles Murphy every moment!"

As one result of this interview, the General was deeply grateful to his
esteemed friend, Mr. Kelley. As another, the nimble Secretary of War was