"Besides," continued Jack, "even if you did mail the letter, that's no
assurance it would ever reach the party he wrote to. Many a vessel has
gone down before arriving at its destination, a victim to the terrible
policy of the Germans with their U-boats. And of course the mail sinks
when the boat goes down in the war zone. If your father were wise he
would duplicate that letter several times, and in that way make sure
one of them had a chance to reach the party abroad."

"Do you know I thought of that myself, Jack!" exclaimed Bob, quickly;
"but you see it would never do for me to mention it to him. Why, he'd
suspect something lay back of it at once, and ask me the question that
I shall be dreading to hear--'Did you positively mail that letter I
gave you?' Jack, sometimes I can see just those words in fiery letters
a foot high facing me, even when I close my eyes. It makes me think of
the handwriting on the wall that appeared before the eyes of that old
worthy, a victorious general, I believe it was, or an ancient king,
but which spelled his doom."

"If I knew of anything else I could do to help you, Bob, I'd be happy
to try. Now, I do remember reading an account of a gentleman who
carried out the very policy of follow-up letters that I was speaking
about. He explained how to make sure he reached his correspondent
across the water he would send a duplicate letter every week for a
whole month; and so far he had never failed to connect, although more
than one boat carrying his letters went down. Now, perhaps I can find
that same newspaper, and give it to you. If you placed it where your
father would be apt to pick it up, with the article marked a little,
he'd read it, and might act upon it."