"To the sixteen men who accomplished the rescue of Mecklen"--here followed their names, read twice over--"a bonus of one hundred pounds per man. It will be paid in a few days by Brome. I add my congratulations on the efficiency with which the man[oe]uvre was carried out." A second interval, while the loud-speaker hissed quietly. "Arden must be taken to-morrow. Brome has all instructions. The following will report to him at Church Street, Kensington, at eight a.m. to-morrow, to receive their orders: Lanzani, Sacco, Coles, Horring, Manuelo, Liebessohn. I'll repeat that. Church Street, Kensington, eight to-morrow morning: Lanzani, Sacco, Coles, Horring, Manuelo, Liebessohn. Arden will be taken to Number Two. As soon as that has been done, the same men will be instructed how to proceed with the removal of Hawthorne. Is that perfectly clear, Lanzani--Sacco--Coles?----" One by one the six answered in the affirmative, and then there was another silence. "Sands!" Birdie looked up with a start. "Yessir?" "Go to the cupboard between the windows. Are you there? Right. Open it. Inside you will find a small copper vessel. Take it out--and handle it carefully, because if you dropped it Cornwall House would be seriously damaged. Got it?" Birdie, after a moment's hesitation, had gingerly removed a little calorimeter, and was holding it as far away from his body as possible. He passed his tongue across his lips nervously. "Yessir," he croaked. "You have nothing to be afraid of as long as you're careful," the Voice went on. "I have chosen you specially on account of your delicate fingers---I shouldn't trust any of the others to move that stuff with safety. Don't be scared. If you tremble it may slip out of your hand. Now look at it. There's a tiny bottle inside, isn't there, and the space between the bottle and the calorimeter is filled with chipped ice? Good. I'll tell you why that is. That phial contains the highest explosive known to science, but by a special process it has been made less dangerous than it is in the ordinary way. The only things that will detonate it now are heat--that is the reason for the ice--or a severe shock, such as you might give it if you let it fall. Is that clear?" "Yessir." "Very well. You know the _Daily Record_ offices?" "Yessir." "You have made yourself familiar with the appearance of John Cardan, the editor, as you were told to--you are sure you can recognise him?" "Yessir." "Excellent. Then you will go at once to Ludgate Circus, taking a ninety-six 'bus, and wait outside the office. Take the calorimeter with you. He leaves the office between half-past eleven and midnight. When he comes out, take the little bottle out of the ice, and slip it into his pocket. Then walk quietly away--the explosive will take a little time to warm, and that'll give you as long as you need to get out of range without attracting attention. Have you got hold of all that?" "Yessir."