A thundered oath brought him back to the subject in hand, and the cross-questioning went on. But all the queries elicited nothing more than a mass of misinformation, delivered with such palpable genuineness of purpose that even Colonel von Scheurer could not doubt the man’s good faith.
And at last the two officers began to have a very fair estimate of the mountaineer’s character and of the reasons that had brought him thither.
Still it was the colonel’s mission in life to suspect—to take nothing for granted. And after all, this yokel and his queer story were no more bizarre than was many a spy trick played by Germany upon her foes. Spies were bound to be good actors. And this lantern-jawed fellow might possibly be a character actor of high ability. Colonel von Scheurer sat for a moment in silence, peering up at Cash from beneath a thatch of stiff-haired brows. Then he ordered the captain and the others to leave the dugout.
Alone with Wyble the colonel still maintained his pose of majestic surveillance.
Then with no warning he spat forth the question: “Wer bist du?”
Not the best character actor unhung could have simulated the owlish ignorance in Cash’s face. Not the shrewdest spy could have had time to mask a knowledge of German. And, as Colonel von Scheurer well knew, no spy who did not understand German would have been sent to enlist in the German Army.
The colonel at once was satisfied that the newcomer was not a spy. Yet to make doubly certain of the recruit’s willingness to serve against his own country Von Scheurer sought another test. Pulling toward him a scratch pad he picked up a pencil from the table before him and proceeded to make a rapid sketch. When the sketch was complete he detached the top sheet and showed it to Cash. On it was drawn a rough likeness of the American flag.
“What is that?” he demanded.
“Old Glory,” answered Cash after a leisurely survey of the picture; adding in friendly patronage: “And not bad drawed, at that.”
“It is the United States flag,” pursued the colonel, “as you say. It is the national emblem of the country where you were born; the country you are renouncing, to become a subject of the All Highest.”