It was to her liking. She flitted here, there and everywhere throughout the offices, greeting a person here, and bidding adieu to one there, but all the time with her eyes open for any information which might be of value. Only one thing did she find. This was a bill submitted by a telegraph company which Von Igel was working upon, checking on the receipt of the message from the office files. To aid himself he had carefully written on the blank the name of the sender of the message, or the name of the person to whom it had been sent. The frequent repetition of "Von Bopp" on the blank caused Dixie to pocket it for future investigation. Another thing which she noticed was that Boy-Ed was sending most of his personal and private papers into Von Papen's rooms, which led to the surmise that Von Papen had undertaken the task of caring for all the important papers of the office.
It was of this she first spoke when she met Harrison Grant after both Von Papen and Boy-Ed had been escorted to their separate boats.
"It is a shame that we had to observe the rules of civilized nations by letting them take those papers," she said, "when they themselves have violated every one."
"I noticed how careful Von Papen was of two bags, a portfolio and one trunk," said Grant, "so I have cabled the British authorities that it might not be amiss to search them for information which might be of comfort to the enemy when the ship touches at Falmouth."
"Oh, good," exclaimed Dixie. "And now I am starting for San Francisco this afternoon. I think I have a lead worth working on."
Then she told him of her reasons for wanting to watch the movements of Franz von Bopp, the Imperial German Consul General at San Francisco. Grant heartily agreed with her. Then on finding that she had already engaged her train he accompanied her to the station and saw her start on her week's journey.
He chafed at the idleness which confronted him. Shadows had been sent on the Baroness, Madam Stephan and Von Lertz, as well as others who had been active in previous German activities. Von Lertz was reported as having interviewed and retained the services of a larger number of publicists whom he had dispatched to various parts of the country. Grant decided that perhaps acts of violence as a part of the German propaganda were to end with the departure of the two arch-conspirators, and that Von Lertz was directing a campaign of publicity work in an effort to regain American sympathy.
Finally through sheer inactivity he began thinking of the letter to Madam Stephan of which he had spoken to Dixie. He finally decided that sending it could do no harm, and he dispatched a short note, telling her that it might be wise for her own safety to give up any information she might possess.
The note was destined to have a far reaching effect, but not in the way in which Grant thought. Madam Stephan received it and after reading it tore it to small pieces, enraged at the idea that Grant had such a poor opinion of her that he could believe she would turn informer. Baroness Verbecht called a short time later while Madam Stephan was busy with her morning toilet. The Baroness was a natural spy and when she saw the torn bits of letter on the table she gathered them up carefully, and carried them with her when she left. At her own apartment she spent the day piecing them together until the whole note stood revealed. Then she had a hearty laugh at the stupidity of the American who would expect an agent of the Wilhelmstrasse to turn informer and brave the mighty wrath of Imperial Germany.
The dispatch published the following day, however, telling of the seizure of Von Papen's papers at Falmouth caused her to think of the letter. A plan whereby she could put Madam Stephan in a position where she could no longer claim the leadership of the women spies of the Kaiser in America occurred to her and she put it into instant execution.