Spook. “Do not forget your manners, Moïse! I always say ‘good-evening’ to you.”
Moïse. “I beg your pardon, Sir. I am very sorry.”
Spook. “All right. Now ask.” (Moïse repeated the question). “Poor Moïse! Poor Moïse! This is terrible, is it not? You thought I wanted these two mediums to be in the twenty, did you not?” (Note.—This was “eyewash” talk—to gain me a little time to think out a reply.)
Moïse. “Yes, Sir.”
Spook. “Ha! Ha! Ha! So did OOO. Listen! I cannot tell you my plans beforehand, because it will lead to interference. I wanted OOO to read your thoughts last night to deceive him into helping us. Yesterday several of the twenty did not want to go. Today all wanted to go. OOO did that.”
The Spook went on to explain that in addition to wasting OOO’s force on irrelevant matters, the real object of the message had been to let the camp know that the Commandant would send away Hill and myself as soon as possible, and so it was natural enough for us to remain in the Colonels’ House (where we were free to spook) instead of rejoining our respective messes. We would be sent away, but not to Afion. Then the following reply was dictated by the Spook:
“To Colonel Maule—
“I have no desire to cause any inconvenience, so allow the matter to stand as it is at present. The reason for my message of yesterday was merely that I had been given to understand that several officers did not want to go. I simply sought an easy way of allowing two to stay. I do not wish to upset your arrangements, and if it is not necessary to keep Jones and Hill here, I can easily apply to Constantinople to punish them further by transferring them to Afion.”
Moïse was to add, verbally, that “immediately on receipt of Colonel Maule’s objections, the Commandant had written to Constantinople asking for Hill and myself to be transferred to another camp.” And he was to let it be known that, though we would not be included in the Afion party, we would be added to it, and travel with it at least as far as Angora. This Moïse did, and in due course reported that the reply “had comforted everybody.” Colonel Maule was very pleased, and thanked the Commandant.
The secret plan on which Hill and I were now working was perhaps sufficiently ingenious to merit a detailed description. The Turks, of course, did not know it beforehand, but were to be introduced to it bit by bit as it developed. It was as follows: