At this hour there were only a half dozen other people in the dining room—none of them interesting, Darrin decided, after hastily surveying the other diners.
The meal over, the two young candidates sauntered again out into the hotel office.
"Any midshipmen out around the town, sir?" Darrin asked.
"Hardly, sir," replied the clerk, with a smile. "At this hour the young gentlemen are in their rooms at Bancroft Hall."
"What does a midshipman look like?" ventured Dalzell.
"Like a human being, of course," Dave laughed.
"You mean the uniform?" inquired the clerk. "A midshipman, sir, wears a dark blue uniform, like an officer's, and a visored cap, Naval pattern. He also wears the anchor insignia on each side of his coat collar."
Dave and Dan soon walked over to the open doorway and stood looking out upon the street, in which, at this time, few people were passing. Hearing a step in the office, Dan quickly turned. He saw a young man coming through the office, holding himself very erect. This young man was in dark blue uniform, with visored cap, and on each side of his collar was the anchor insignia. Past the anchor were two bars, but Dalzell didn't notice that at the moment.
"There's a real midshipman," whispered Dan, plucking at Dave's sleeve. "I'm going to speak to him."
"Don't you do it," warned Dave, in an undertone. "You may make a mistake."