The next word was "settled"; and here again in the strange code was a combination to make a seafaring man think something serious had happened. In the code, however, it stood for "will." And the next word, "bring," was found to mean "you."
"Last one," said Fred, encouragingly, "'bounty.'"
At last Don found it and wrote it down—"arrive."
Here, then, was the message complete: "R-S-7: Give location—situation critical—when will you arrive?"
It was read off to Jack and Andy. The former turned it over in his mind for a moment. "Who signed it?" he asked—the inevitable query.
"P.S.Q.J." answered Fred, reserving his greatest surprise for the last.
There was a sudden lifting of brows, the men gazing about at each other and for the moment even forgetting the course of their flight. The message was a direct inquiry on behalf of the President of the United States, then attending the Peace Conference!
"What about it, Don?" Jack asked.
"Well," the navigator replied, making mental calculations and regarding his charts, "we ought to make Ireland in six hours."