And then, making a sudden turn, the party came to what was evidently an outpost of importance. There were several large underground chambers, fitted up with some degree of comfort and a number of officers and soldiers about. Some were eating, some smoking, and others drinking, and still others sleeping. In one room could be seen a rough table, laden with maps and papers, and there were many electric lights, showing to what degree of perfection the German military system was carried out at this point. A portable dynamo and gasolene engine probably furnished the current.
The captives were halted, and a brief talk in German took place between the captain and the officer to whom he reported. What was said Blake and his chums could not, of course, hear, nor could they have understood had they heard.
A little later, however, they were ordered to march on, and then were shown into an underground room, none too clean and quite dark, and the door was banged shut on them. Just before this they had seen Secor and Labenstein go off in another direction, still carrying the boxes of films.
The echoes of the retreating footsteps of the men who had thrust them into their prison soon died away, and the boys were left to themselves in a veritable cell that was unpleasantly dirty and dark.
"Whew!" whistled Joe, after a moment of silence. "This time we certainly are up against it!"
Suddenly a light flashed in the darkness.
"What's that?" asked Joe sharply.
"I want to see what sort of hotel accommodations they've given us," was Blake's grim answer, as he flashed his pocket light about. The Germans had not taken those from the boys, and they were soon inspecting their prison.
It was merely a hole dug underground, earth, supported by timbers, forming the floor, ceiling and sides, while the entrance was made of a plank door, with cracks large enough to show that a passage ran outside—a passage along which men passed with a frequency which seemed to indicate that escape would be exceedingly difficult.
"Well, we've just got to make the best of it," said Blake. "I'm going to get what rest I can."