Wade glared at him. "Skip? My trusties? I guess not! They came in last night after dark, after being gone in the interior for three weeks, carrying a gunnysack. I was sitting out here, so they came right up and without a word emptied the sack on the veranda floor. They had stayed out till they got him--his head rolled out of the sack and landed right under where you're sitting, Major. Then the three walked over to the prison gate and reported in." A moment later the Major moved his chair. The Governor had been quietly studying Terry. "How did the Philippines first impress you?" he asked. "About as you anticipated?" Terry hesitated, then responded to the authority of the kindly eyes: "No, sir. I had read enough typical stories of the tropics to absorb an atmosphere, but I did not find it. You know what I mean, sir: all that stuff about _dulce far niente_, manana, gin-soaked beach-combers,--that sort of thing. But I don't find it, sir. I find a spirit of hustle, of getting things done despite obstacles, a spirit which the natives seem to be absorbing,--though rather slowly." The Governor was frankly interested: "You doubtless have formed some opinion regarding the Filipinos--their fitness for independence?" Terry felt the three pairs of eyes drilling him as he answered: "It seems to me, sir, that--disregarding such baffling obstacles to independence as their absolute defenselessness as a nation, the profound ignorance of the masses, lack of a common tongue, and all that,--I think that in view of the fact that under our guidance they have advanced further than under four hundred years of Spanish rule, it would be kinder if we waited decision until we see what a second or third generation of English-speaking natives are like." He reflected a moment, serious, then added: "In short, sir, I think that it would be a great injustice to them to mistake our own driving force for their capacity." "Sus-marie-hosep!" exclaimed the delighted Major, who had fidgeted while his protege was undergoing the Governor's test, "Don't mistake our driving force for--I'd like to hear the native demagogues argue on that thesis!" The Governor surveyed Terry with added interest, but was non-committal. They fell silent, listening to the dark sea, in its gentlest mood, caressing the beach: the wind flowed past them steadily, like a soft current, stirring the long fronds into purring contact. A sharp challenge from an alert native sentry rang clear, followed by the crunching sound of a heavy iron gate opening and closing with grating finality. The hourly call was sounded by a guard, who, unseen by them, paced the main entrance to the inclosure: "All's Well." It sounded six times from invisible lips. Terry pondered its ironic message to those who heard it from within those steel and concrete dormitories: "All's Well," sounding to those who had crime on their souls, and had left, somewhere, mothers, wives, children ... sweethearts.... It oppressed him heavily.