Rose Orchid | Page 6

and was preparing to put into effect his
decision of the afternoon before.
He frowned and sighed at intervals, and finally rose, walked over to a
porthole and stood for some time gazing out on El Morro and the rocky
coast.
Finally, with a gesture of decision, he returned to the desk, arranged the
pad of paper, and wrote as follows:
Ensign G. J. Rowley, U. S. N., U. S. S. Helena. Sir: You will take four
men and proceed at once to the village of Rio, twenty miles from San
Juan on the Caguas road. Two miles beyond Rio, in a cottage three
hundred yards to the left of the trail, you will find James Moser, Chief
Yeoman, a deserter from the U. S. S. Helena. He has assumed the name
of Hurley. You will arrest him and deliver him on shipboard. You are
advised to proceed with caution. Respectfully, Brinsley Reed,
Lt.-Comd'r., U. S. N., Commanding.
He read the order through slowly, and pushed a button on the desk for
his orderly. Then removing the order from the pad, he reread it more
slowly still, while a deep frown gathered on his forehead.
The decision had been made.
Suddenly he opened a drawer at the side of his desk and took from it--a
rose orchid!
I have no idea where he got it; possibly he had taken advantage of
Rita's absence while she had gone with Tota to fetch the pony.
But then that is scarcely possible, since the lieutenant-commander was
the last man in the world to be swayed by any weak sentiment.
"Did you ring, sir?"
The orderly's voice sounded from the doorway, and his commanding

officer actually blushed as he hastily slipped the orchid back into the
drawer.
Then he turned to the orderly:
"Learn to stand at attention till you're spoken to!" he roared. "No, I
didn't ring! Get out of here!"
It is little wonder that Ensign Rowley failed to carry out the order, since
it was no part of his duty to go searching about in his skipper's waste
basket for torn bits of paper.

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