ffer him very little comfort; for, as he
pointed out to Jack, the affair was one concerning the Spanish
Government alone, and with which he could not possibly interfere--at
least officially; but he undertook to refer to the matter unofficially,
at his next interview with the Capitan-General, and promised to furnish
Jack with any information which he might then or upon any other occasion
obtain. And with that somewhat meagre promise Master Jack was obliged
to rest content. But the young man could not remain so for long; and on
that and several succeeding days he wandered about the Havana streets
and haunted the various cafes and restaurants in the hope of somewhere
hearing a chance word which would throw a glimmer of light upon the
mystery. And he also reconnoitred the jails, passing and repassing them
a dozen times a day upon the off-chance that he might sooner or later
catch a glimpse of one or another of his friends' faces peering out
through one of the little grated openings in the walls. But all to no
purpose; at the end of three weeks from the date of the disappearance
the mystery remained as insoluble as ever. Nor had Don Ramon met with
any better success. "I cannot understand it," exclaimed that gentleman
irritably; "I have sought information in every conceivable direction,
and have set all sorts of unseen forces in motion, with absolutely no
result. Even the Capitan-General has drawn blank: he is ignorant--or
pretends to be--of what has happened to our friends; and the most that I
have been able to get out of him is the statement--which we may take for
what it is worth--that he has issued no order for the arrest of any
member of the Montijo family. I wish I could get hold of Alvaros, but I
have not been able to run up against him; and nobody seems to know where
he is, or anything about him."

It was three or four days later that Jack, by this time utterly weary
and heartsick at his lack of success, entered a restaurant which was
much frequented by the officers of the garrison, and, seating himself at
a table, ordered second breakfast. There were not very many people in
the place at the moment, but it soon began to fill up; and presently the
young man's heart gave a great bound, and he felt the pulses of his
temples throbbing furiously, as three officers, laughing and talking
loudly, entered the place and began to look about them for a table. One
of these men was Alvaros; hence Jack's emotion.

As the