id. "He seems to be doing all right.
He'll pull around--that is, unless any unforeseen complications set in.
It's that journey down here yesterday that's upset him. Absolutely
necessary under the circumstances, of course, but--terribly hard on a man
in his condition. I think it'll be best for nobody to visit him--for
awhile anyway . . . must be kept as quiet as possible. Well! let's have
a look at the others!"

The remaining wounded men occupied a large, semi-private ward lower down
the corridor. Of these last Hardy's case was by far the most serious.
He had been shot through the body; the high-pressure Luger bullet luckily
missing any vital organ. McCullough had been drilled through the calf of
his left leg, Davis through the arm, and Belt had had the knuckles
stripped from his right hand. All of them were resting quietly, though
weak from loss of blood and the train journey,

The O.C. and Kilbride remained for a short time in the ward, manifesting
much kindly sympathy for the injured men, then, deeming that perhaps the
party was retarding the nurses' ministrations, the O.C. withdrew,
beckoning his subordinates to follow him.

Slavin and Yorke walked slowly down the hospital steps and climbed into
the Police drag again. Sloan gathered up his lines and swung around on
his high seat.

"Hullo!" he remarked sleepily. "Here you are again, eh? Begun to think
you were both in there for keeps! Well, did you see him?"

"Yes!" answered Yorke tonelessly, avoiding the teamster's eyes, "We've
seen him. Home, James!"

Firm, measured footsteps sounded in the hospital corridor and halted with
a jingle of spurs outside the door of room Number Fifty-six.

"Come aboard!" came the clear, boyish voice of its occupant, in response
to a knuckle-tattoo on the panel, and the visitors, Slavin and Yorke,
entered.

Redmond, sitting up in bed, comfortably propped with pillows, threw aside
the magazine he had been reading and greeted the new-comers jovially and
with a light in his eyes which did the hearts of those worthies good to
see.

A month's careful nursing and absolute quiet had transformed their
wounded comrade into a somewhat different being from the delirious
patient they had beheld when last they stood in that room. Allowing for
a slight emaciation and the inevitable hospital pallor, he appeared to be
well on the road to convalescence.

"Sit at ease!" he said, with a fair semblance of his old grin. "Smoke up