“Mine’s the Mulazim,” said Hill. “He needs a thick ear. Do him good.”
Alone, I believe I would have thrown up the sponge, and resigned myself to growing grey in what looked like indefinite captivity. Hill’s determination renewed my waning hopes. We began plotting again.
We might have spared ourselves the trouble. The force of example proved a powerful incentive to obedience. The Commandant must have remembered how the Spook’s threat of doom had brought Hill and myself to our knees when we wished to withdraw from the treasure-hunt, and how we had preferred to risk punishment from the Turk rather than the wrath of the Unknown. The prospect of a recurrence of his malady frightened him into action. At 2 p.m. the following note was brought to me by a sentry—(I again quote the original)—
“Lieutenant Jones,
The Commandant should like to talk a little with you about thought-reading and telepathy. Will you ask a few officers to come up with you to the office in order to have a little show?
(Signed) for the Commandant,
The Interpreter—Moïse.”
We invited to accompany us the four officers whom we had long since marked down as suitable for this purpose. They all accepted. Three of the four wrote down that same evening their recollections of what occurred. The following account is composed of an extract from each of the three independent reports. It shows how exactly “the little show” followed the instructions of the Spook. (The fourth witness, being mightier with the sword than with the pen, refrained from committing his impressions to paper.)
(I begin with an extract from Major Peel’s account):
“About 2.30 p.m. Lieut. Jones and Hill were sent for to the Commandant’s office ‘to talk about thought-reading,’ and asked to bring with them one or two other officers. Jones asked me, Gilchrist, W. Smith and O’Farrell, who are all interested in the subject, to accompany him. Arrived at the Commandant’s office, the Commandant shook hands with us and asked us to sit down. He then, through the Interpreter, asked Jones, ‘What is telepathy?’ Jones explained, giving the Greek derivation, etc.