After a final glance around him to see that he was still alone and unobserved, he seized the key on which he sounded a certain call. An expert telegrapher would have recognised it, a dash, four dots in rapid succession, then two dots together, and then two more (--.... .. ..). He waited a few moments, and when no answer came he signalled the call a second time, and after another longer wait he sent it a third time.
After this effort he made a longer pause, and just as he had about reached the end of his patience--he was in a fever of anxiety, for upon what happened in the next moment the failure or the success of the whole plan absolutely turned--the silent key clicked out an answer, repeating the same signal which he himself had made. The next moment he made a leap upon the key, but before he could send a single letter steps were heard outside in the corridor.
Thorne released the key, leaned back in his chair, seized a match from the little holder on the table and struck it, and when another messenger entered he seemed to be lazily lighting his cigar. He cursed in his heart at the inopportune arrival. Another uninterrupted moment and he would have sent the order, but as usual he gave no outward evidence of his extreme annoyance. The messenger came rapidly down toward the table and handed Captain Thorne a message.
"From the Secretary of War, Captain Thorne," he said saluting, "and he wants it to go out right away."
"Here, here," said Thorne, as the messenger turned away, "what's all this?" He ran his fingers through the envelope, tore it open, and spread out the despatch. "Is that the Secretary's signature?" he asked.
"Yes, sir; I saw him sign it myself. I'm his personal messenger."
"Oh!" said Thorne, spreading the despatch out on the table and O.K.'ing it, "you saw him sign it yourself, did you?"
"Very well. We have to be pretty careful to-night," he explained, "there is something on. You are sure of this, are you?"
"I could swear to that signature anywhere, sir," said the messenger.
As soon as the door was closed behind the messenger Thorne laid his cigar down on the table. Then he picked up the despatch from the Secretary of War which the messenger had just brought in, and folded it very dexterously. Then with a pair of scissors which he found in a drawer he cut off the lower part of the Secretary's despatch containing his signature. He put this between his teeth and tore the rest into pieces. He started to throw the pieces into the waste basket but after a moment's reflection he stuffed them into his trouser pocket. Then he picked up his coat from the back of the chair and took from the inside breast pocket another document written on the same paper as that which had just come from the Secretary of War. Spreading this out on the table he cut off the signature and quickly pasted to it the piece of the real order bearing the real signature. He carefully wiped this pasted despatch with his handkerchief, making an exceedingly neat job of it.