" he said, and led the way toward his private office.

Chester motioned for Jean to follow, and the little man did so, though
plainly not without some trepidation.

"Who is that?" asked General Gallieni, pointing to Jean.

"He is the man who is to shoot me in case I fail to shoot the President,"
said Chester cheerfully.

"Hadn't we better have him thrown into a cell?"

"No, sir. We have agreed that it is not right to shoot the President, and
I am sure that we can count on his help should we need it. It is likely
to be valuable."

"Well," said the general, sinking into a chair and motioning the others
to seats, "tell me all about it; and where, by the way, is your friend?"

"He is trailing Duval, sir."

"Good! Now, let's have the story."

Chester put the facts before the military governor as clearly and
concisely as possible, and when he had concluded General Gallieni jumped
to his feet.

"We must act at once!" he exclaimed, and pulled the telephone toward him.

"But not with too great haste, General," protested Chester, also rising.
"We must first decide upon a plan."

"What do you mean?" asked the general.

"Why," said Chester, "if we hope to capture Duval--who will be on hand
to-morrow, and who is likely to shoot the President himself--we must
figure out the best means of doing so."

"I shall have the President cancel his engagement."

"That," said Chester, "might only delay the assassination."

"What would you suggest?"

Chester was silent for some minutes before he replied:

"If the President doesn't make his address to-morrow, his life probably
will be attempted the next day or the next. If he does speak, Duval is
sure to be on hand. Jean and I must be in the crowd, so that Duval may
see us; for, if we are not there, Duval may suspect treachery and shoot
the President himself.

"Seeing us there, however, Duval will take no action himself. As the
President's speech progresses, Duval will be waiting for me to fire. He
will be continually thinking that I will do so in another moment.

"Now, I should say that this is the best way: Let the President cut his
speech short, say to three minutes. The moment he ceases speaking, rush a
heavy guard between him and the crowd and have him stoop immediately
behind them. Realizing that the plot has failed, Duval may not fire; but,
in the event that he does, we shall probably be able to spot him and get
him before he can escape."

General Gallieni spent so