He longed to turn his own eyes away, but he resolutely held them steady.
He would not be looked down, not even by an old Prussian general to whom
the fate of a hundred thousand was nothing.
"Very well, Your Highness, you may stand aside," said the general in a
deep harsh voice.
Out of the corner of his eye John saw that the man who stood aside was
von Arnheim. "Your Highness!" Then this young lieutenant must be a
prince. If so, some princes were likable. Wharton and Carstairs and he
had outwitted a prince once, but it could not be von Arnheim. He turned
his full gaze back to the general, who continued in his deep gruff
voice, speaking perfect English:
"I understand that you are an American and your name is John Scott."
"And duly enrolled and uniformed in the French service," said John,
"You can't shoot me as a _franc tireur_."
"We could shoot you for anything, if we wished, but such is not our
purpose. I have heard from a captain of Uhlans, Rudolf von Boehlen, a
most able and valuable officer, that you are brave and alert."
"I thank Captain von Boehlen for his compliment. I did not expect it
from him."
"Ah, he bears you no malice. We Germans are large enough to admire skill
and courage in others. He has spoken of the affair of the wireless. It
cost us much, but it belongs to the past. We will achieve what we wish."
John was silent. He believed that these preliminaries on the part of the
old general were intended to create an atmosphere, a belief in his mind
that German power was invincible.
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