“Five minutes after Captain Ravenel had gone, a native came to the camp and asked for him. He carried a letter.”
Gerard’s face lit up.
“A letter? What became of it?”
“It was taken by Captain Ravenel’s orderly and placed on the table in his tent.”
“Yes?”
“The next morning I saw it there and took charge of it. It was addressed in Arabic.”
“You have got it still?”
“Yes!”
“Let me see it!”
Gerard reminded the little Praslin of some lean sharp-nosed pointer which somewhere in the stubble has picked up a scent. Praslin led him to his tent, unlocked a leather satchel and tipped out a number of letters on to his bed.