CHAPTER III
PLOTTERS TRAVEL WITH THE FLAG
From the deck of the "Warren" only distant glimpses of land, on thehorizon line, were visible.
The sea to-day was without a ripple, yet, as it was not raining, the sunbeat down with a heat that would have wilted most of the passengers, hadit not been for the awnings stretched over every deck.
Up on the saloon deck was a mixture of the field uniforms of Armyofficers, the white duck or cotton of male civilian passengers, and thewhite dresses of the women. Most of the married officers of theThirty-fourth had brought their families along with them, and sochildren played along the saloon deck, or ran down among the friendlysoldiers on the spar deck. Here and there, among the women, was aYankee schoolma'am, going to some new charge in the islands.
A number of the male cabin passengers were not Army people. Somebelonged to the postals service, the islands civil service, or wereplanters or merchants of wealth and influence in the islands, who hadbeen permitted to take passage on the troop ship.
Between decks the enlisted men of "Ours" were quartered and berthed bycompanies. Each enlisted man, by way of a bed, had a bunk whose framewas of gas pipe, to which frame was swung the canvas berth. These berthswere in tiers, three high.
Away forward, in special quarters by themselves, as a sort of steeragepassengers, were some two score natives of the islands who were makingthe journey for one reason or another. These natives, however, kept tothemselves, and the soldiers saw little of them.
Altogether, the "Warren" carried something more than fourteen hundredpassengers, which meant that quarters were at least sufficientlycrowded. Yet the soldiers, with the cheerful good nature of their kind,took this crowded condition as one of the incidents of the life.
Noll was up on deck enjoying himself; Hal, as acting first sergeant, wasotherwise occupied during the greater part of the forenoon. At the headof B Company's quarters, two decks below, young Overton sat at a littletable, busily working over a set of papers that he had to make up. This"paper work" is one of the banes of first sergeants and of companycommanders.
It was after eleven o'clock when Sergeant Hal finished his last sheet.The papers he folded neatly and thrust them into a long, officialenvelope, which he endorsed and blotted. Rising, he thrust the envelopeinto the breast of his blouse and started for the nearest companionway.
"I'm glad, old fellow, that you are the acting first sergeant," grinnedcomfortable Noll Terry, as his chum came upon deck with forehead, faceand neck beaded with perspiration.
"Oh, it doesn't hurt a fellow to have a little work to do," repliedOverton, smiling. "You see, you've just been loafing this morning,almost ever since inspection, while I have a consciousness of work wellperformed."
"Keep your consciousness and enjoy it," retorted Noll, as the two boyishsergeants stepped along the deck.
"I wonder if Captain Cortland is on deck at this moment?" remarkedSergeant Hal.
"I saw him five minutes ago," Noll answered.
Almost at that moment B Company's commander came to the forward rail ofthe saloon deck and looked down. Then his glance rested on Hal.
"Are the papers ready, Sergeant?" the captain called down.
"Yes, sir; I have them with me," replied Hal. Pressing through thethrong of soldiers, he ascended the steps to the saloon deck, salutingand passing over the envelope.
"Thank you, Sergeant."
"I think you'll find them all right, sir. I'm somewhat new at the work,but I've taken a lot of pains."
"There's always a lot of pains taken with any work that you do,Sergeant."
"Thank you, sir."
Hal saluted and was about to turn away when he heard a voice saying:
"What we need, in dealing with the Moros in these southern islands, isto show them that----"
Just then the speaker happened to turn, and stopped talking for amoment.
The voice was new, but Sergeant Overton started at sight of thespeaker's face.
"Why, that's the same big, florid-faced fellow that I saw in the shedwith Tomba, that time it rained so hard," flashed through the youngsergeant's astonished mind. "What can he be doing here--a cabinpassenger on a United States troop ship?"
Unconsciously Hal was staring hard at the stranger. It appeared to annoythe florid-faced man.
"Well, my man," he cried impatiently, looking keenly at Hal, "are youwaiting to say something to me?"
"No, sir," Sergeant Hal replied quickly.
"Perhaps you thought you knew me?"
"No, sir; I merely remembered having once seen you."
"You've seen me before? Then your memory is better than mine, Sergeant.Where have you ever seen me before?"
"The other afternoon, sir, on the south side of the Pasig River atManila. You were in a shed, out of the rain, with a native callinghimself Vicente Tomba."
The florid-faced man betrayed neither uneasiness nor resentment.Instead, he smiled pleasantly as he replied:
"I thought you were in error, Sergeant, and now I'm certain of it, for Idon't know any Vicente Tomba."
"Then I beg your pardon for the mistake, sir," Hal replied quickly.
"No need to apologize, Sergeant, for you have done no harm," replied theflorid-faced man.
Here Captain Cortland's voice broke in, cool and steady:
"Yet I know, Mr. Draney, that Sergeant Overton feels embarrassed by themere fact of his having made a mistake. Sergeant Overton is one of ourbest and most capable soldiers, and he rarely makes a mistake of anykind."
"I'm glad to hear that he's one of your best soldiers," replied Draneypleasantly. "It seems odd, doesn't it, Captain, to see so boyish a chapwearing sergeant's chevrons?"
"Sergeant Overton, Mr. Draney, is more than merely a sergeant. He isacting first sergeant of B Company, and is likely to continue as suchfor some months to come."
"He has risen so high?" cried Draney. "I certainly congratulate theyoung man."
There appeared to be no further call for Hal to remain on the saloondeck. After flashing an inquiring look at his company commander, andsaluting that officer, Hal next raised his uniform cap to Draney, thenturned and made his way down to the spar deck.
"Your sergeant looks like a very upright young man, Captain," observedMr. Draney.
"Overton?" rejoined Captain Cortland. "I am certain that he is the soulof honor."
"His loyalty has often been tested, I presume?" persisted theflorid-faced fellow.
"He's a very thoroughly trustworthy young man, if that's what you mean."
Captain Cortland was beginning to feel somewhat annoyed, for, truth totell, he did not like Draney very well.
"Is your sergeant," asked Draney, "a young man much interested in thejoys of life, or is he of the quiet, studious sort who seldom care forgood times?"
"You seem to be uncommonly interested in Sergeant Overton, Mr. Draney,"remarked the captain almost testily.
"Only as a type of American soldier," replied Draney blandly. "I waswondering if my estimate of the young man were borne out by yourexperience with him."
"Sergeant Overton is fond of the joys of life, if you mean the quiet anddecent pleasures. He is a good deal of a student, and that type is neverinterested in drinking or gambling, or any of the vices anddissipations, if that is what you mean."
Then, noting that Colonel North had just stepped out on deck from hisstateroom, Captain Cortland added hastily:
"Pardon me; I wish to speak with the commanding officer."
As colonel and captain met they exchanged salutes.
"I told Draney, sir, that I wished to speak with you," Captain Cortlandreported, in a low voice. "I did not tell him, however, that I wished tospeak with you mainly as a pretext for getting away from his society."
"You don't like Draney?" smiled Colonel North, eying his captainshrewdly.
"I certainly do not," Cortland confessed.
"And I'm almost as certain that I don't, either," replied the regimentalcommander. "However, Cor
tland, we shall have to treat him with a fairamount of courtesy, for Draney is an influential man down in the part ofthe world for which we are headed. He is influential with the Moros, Imean. Often he is in a position to give the military authorities usefulinformation of intended native mischief. Draney is a very big planter,you know, and white planters are somewhat scarce in the Moro country. Itis one of the great disappointments of our government that more Americancapital is not invested in establishing great plantations in theextremely rich Moro country. But, as you know, Cortland, some of theMoro dattos are given to heading sudden, unexpected and very desperateraids on white planters, and that fact has discouraged Americans,Englishmen and Germans from investing millions and millions of capitalin the Moro country."
"Yet the fellow Draney is a planter there, sir?"
"Draney owns half a dozen very successful plantations."
"And is he never molested by the Moros, sir?" inquired Captain Cortland.
"Never enough to discourage him in his investments. Rather odd, isn'tit, Cortland?"
"Very odd, indeed, sir," replied Captain Cortland dryly.
That same afternoon Captain Cortland, after finishing a promenade on thesaloon deck, went forward, descending to the spar deck. There, under theawning, he came upon Sergeants Hal and Noll, who saluted as he addressedthem.
"Sergeant Overton," began the captain in a low tone, "you seemed, thisforenoon, to feel a good deal of surprise at seeing Mr. Draney onboard."
"I was surprised, sir."
"Tell me what you know about the man."
Sergeant Hal briefly related the adventure that he and Noll had had withVicente Tomba on the Escolta, and their subsequent meeting with Tombaand Draney on the south side of the Pasig. Hal also repeated what theyhad overheard Tomba saying to Draney. Hal then described the flight ofthe pair in the _quilez_.
"Yet Draney declares that he never heard of Tomba," said the captainmusingly. "Sergeant Overton, do you think it possible that you havemistaken Mr. Draney for someone else?"
"It may be, of course, sir," Hal admitted. "But I hardly believe itpossible. Besides, I have pointed out Mr. Draney to Sergeant Terry andhe also is positive that it is the same man."
At that moment all three turned to look forward. There was some sort ofcommotion going on there. It proved, however, to be nothing but theherding of the Filipino passengers on deck near the bow, while one ofthe regiment's officers was inspecting their quarters below.
The three officers returned to their conversation, but presently Halmurmured:
"Don't look immediately, Noll, but presently take a passing glance atthe Filipino standing away up in the bow. Tell Captain Cortland who thefellow is."
"It's Vicente Tomba, although I'd hardly know him in that costume of the_peon_ (laborer)," Noll answered.
"You are both certain that the man is Tomba?" inquired Captain Cortlandkeenly.
"Yes, sir," both young sergeants declared, and Hal added:
"There's Corporal Hyman up forward, sir. If you'll go up and speak tothe corporal, and allow us to accompany you, sir, you can see whetherHyman knows the fellow. He, too, was approached by Tomba, at the nipabarracks."
Accordingly the test was made.
"Why, certainly, the fellow is Tomba," replied Hyman, "though he looks alot different, sir, from the dandy who was talking to me last Tuesdaynight."
Captain Cortland asked all three of the non-commissioned officers somefurther questions as they stood there. None of the quartette discoveredthe fact that, close to them, crouching under the canvas cover of a lifeboat as it swung at davits, lay one of the keen-eyed Filipinopassengers. This swarthy little fellow was only about half versed inEnglish, but he understood enough of the talk to realize what was in thewind.
In some mysterious manner what this swarthy little spy overheardtraveled, less than an hour later, to Mr. Draney, planter, and thatgentleman, as he sat in his stateroom and thought it all over, wasgreatly disturbed.
Still later that afternoon--not long before sundown--while the "Warren"was still ploughing her way through the sea, the little brown spy drewVicente Tomba to one side in the native steerage.
To make assurance doubly sure, both Filipinos spoke in their own Malaydialect, the Tagalos.
"Tomba!"
"Luis?"
"Tomba, the Senor Draney is greatly disturbed. Sergeant Overton andSergeant Terry have recognized him as one whom they saw with you inManila."
"Bah! That amounts to little. Senor Draney can deny."
"But they have recognized you also, my Tomba, and so has Corporal Hyman.More, they have told Captain Cortland all they know, and all they canguess."
"The dogs!" growled Vicente Tomba, his snarl showing his fine, whiteteeth.
"You do well to call them dogs," grinned Luis. "Senor Draney bids me toremind you what becomes of dogs that are troublesome. You have othershere with you who can help. At the first chance, then, Overton, Terryand Hyman are to bite the bone that kills--and Captain Cortland, too, ifyou can manage it!"