Don’t lose an hour.  Strike now.

There was nothing more, except a large ink blot under the words.  The envelope was addressed in the same hand as the one he had previously received.  The men stared into each other’s face.

“It’s singular, that’s all,” pursued Gregson.  “Those words are important.  The writer expects that they will reach Lord Fitzhugh immediately, and as soon as he gets them you can look for war.  Isn’t that their significance?  I repeat that it is singular this girl should come here so mysteriously, and disappear still more so, just at this psychological moment; and it is still more puzzling when you take into consideration the fact that two hours before the runner came in from the south another person inquired for Lord Fitzhugh’s mail!”

Philip started.

“And they told you this?”

“Yes.  It was a man who asked—­a stranger.  He gave no name and left no word.  Now, if it should happen to be the man who was with the girl when I saw her—­and we can find him—­we’ve as good as got this Lord Fitzhugh.  If we don’t find him—­and mighty soon—­it’s up to us to start for your camps and put them into fighting shape.  See the point?”

“But we’ve got the letter,” said Philip.  “Fitzhugh won’t receive the final word, and that will delay whatever plot he has ready to spring.”

“My dear Phil,” said Gregson, softly.  “I always said that you were the fighter and I the diplomat, yours the brawn and mine the brain.  Don’t you see what this means?  I’ll gamble my right hand that these very words have been sent to Lord Fitzhugh at two or three different points, so that they would be sure of reaching him.  I’m just as positive that he has already received a copy of the letter which we have.  Mark my words, it’s catch Lord Fitzhugh within the next few days—­or fight!”

Philip sat down, breathing heavily.

“I’ll send word to MacDougall,” he said.  “But I—­I must wait for the ship!”

“Why not leave word for Brokaw and join MacDougall?”

“Because when the ship comes in I believe that a large part of this mystery will be cleared up,” replied Philip.  “It is necessary that I remain here.  That will give us a few days in which to make a further search for these people.”

Gregson did not urge the point, but replaced the second letter in his pocket with the first.  During the evening he remained at the cabin.  Philip returned to Churchill.  For an hour he sat among the ruins of the old fort, striving to bring some sort of order out of the chaos of events that had occurred during the past few days.  He was almost convinced that he ought to reveal all that he knew to Gregson, and yet several reasons kept him from doing so.  If Miss Brokaw was on the London ship when it arrived at Churchill, there would be no necessity of disclosing that part of his own history which he was keeping secret within himself.  If Eileen was not on the