"No, sir. I handed it back to Captain Lloyd."
"What did he do with it?"
"He replaced it in his wallet, and put that in the inside pocket of his coat."
"Can you recollect the words of the despatch?"
"No, sir; I cannot. It was in cipher, and the words made no sense that I could understand; secondly, I only saw it for a second."
"Would you recognize the handwriting if you saw it again?"
"I think I would, sir," but Symonds looked dubious.
The judge advocate picked up several sheets of paper, apparently torn from a notebook, and handed them to the Secret Service agent.
"Did the writing of the despatch resemble any of these specimens of the prisoner's handwriting?" he asked.
Symonds studied the papers intently; then shook his head. "No, sir."