ght, for the boys had been only a few
feet ahead of their pursuers when they were fortunate enough to come
upon a party of American marines on shore leave. The marines had
gathered about the panting boys and finally, after fighting off the
Japs, conducted them to their hotel. The last Ned saw of the man whom he
believed to be an American military man in the disguise of a Jap he was
running in a most undignified manner down the street, as if not willing
to look upon the uniforms of the marines. The next morning he had caught
a glimpse of the fellow, but had not been able to get close to him. On
the day before he left for Manila the man had left the port. Ned was of
the opinion that he had traveled on to Manila, and so on to the group of
islands which the _Manhattan_ was now nosing among.

At Manila Ned had again conferred with Major John Ross, and that
dignified official had virtually dismissed the boy from the service. He
had scolded him for going over to Yokohama and for stirring up a mess
there, as he put it, between a party of hilarious marines and the local
police.

However, Ned did not accept dismissal. Instead of remaining at Manila,
as ordered to do, until word could be received from Washington, he
joined Pat in the motor boat, provisioned her for a long cruise, and set
out to locate the island which was to see the signing of the treaty
between the tribes of the Philippines--the treaty which was certain to
bring war and starvation to the islands.

He was sure the treaty had not yet been signed, and he could not
understand the delay. It did not seem possible that his appearance at
the island first chosen for the meeting could have caused so long a wait
in the important negotiations. He had suspicions at times that the
disappearance from the scene of the men he had followed to Yokohama had
had something to do with the delay.

In looking over the results of the trip to the Japanese city, Ned was
fairly well satisfied with them. He believed that he had caught a
glimpse of the man who was at the head of the plot against the United
States. When he considered that the sailor who had complained so
bitterly of the manner in which he had been treated had been murdered in
his room while the suspect sat below in disguise, he did not doubt that
the crime had been committed by paid assassins for the purpose of
enforcing secrecy.

On the whole he was well pleased with the progress of the case. He had
made his discoveries