“I will not say that. I knew Snokoff fairly well, and when he came to me for a loan I lent him several hundred rubles, which, later on, he paid back.”
“And you had nothing to do with the company?”
“Nothing whatever.”
“If that is true, I must beg your pardon for troubling you. Can you tell me where Ivan Snokoff is?”
“I cannot, although I think he has gone to Liao-Yang or Mukden.”
There was a pause, which was broken by the officer who had brought Gilbert in.
“Do you think he is a spy?” he questioned abruptly.
“Hardly,” answered Captain Barusky, after some hesitation.
“Shall we let him go?”
“Yes. I will see that he does not linger around this vicinity.” The captain turned to the young American. “Come with me, and be thankful that you have escaped a night in the guard-house.”