Of course the children halted. There was nothing else to do, so astonished were they to meet any one when they had supposed themselves to be in quite a wild and uninhabited country. Besides, though these were small and tinny-looking, yet soldiers are soldiers wherever you meet them, and have an air about them which makes people feel respectful. These two handled their little guns in a most businesslike manner. The taller of the two, who seemed by his uniform to be a superior officer, now stepped forward and snapped out: "Give the countersign!" The children stood still and stared, Peter with his thumb in his mouth. "We haven't got any, sir, so we can't give it to you," said Ann at last. "Silly! He means _say_ it," whispered Rudolf in her ear. "We can't say it either," Ann went on, "because we don't know it. But we know lots of other things," she added, looking pleadingly at the officer. "Rudolf, he can say the whole of ''Twas the night before Christmas, and all through the house not a creature was stirring, not even a mouse'--and I can say 'The Gentle Cow all Red and White I Love with all my Heart',--and Peter he says 'I have a Little Shadow',--he knows it all, every word!" The little officer turned sharply to his companion. "Make a note of that, Sergeant," he snorted. "Head it, suspicious information: first prisoner, probably dangerous burglar burgling on Christmas eve; second prisoner, cattle thief; third prisoner--" "But we aren't anything like that," broke in Rudolf hastily. "You're entirely mistaken, we--" "Say what you are, then," snapped the officer, "and where you have come from and where you are going and what you are going to do when you get there; say it, quick!" And raising his little gun, the officer pointed it straight at Rudolf's nose. "We have come from Catnip Island where we were captured by the cat pirates," began Rudolf, stumbling over the words in his excitement, "and we--we don't know exactly where we are going, and we--we aren't doing exactly anything!" "Aha!" The officer turned to his sergeant with a triumphant expression. "Just what I thought. Anybody that can't give a better account of himself than that had better be locked up. Spies--aha! Another of you came ashore a while ago--a glib-tongued, story-telling gentleman who fooled us into letting him off, but we've got _you_ safe and sound and here you'll stay! Sergeant, arrest these spies!" "Certainly, sir," said the sergeant, making a note of it in his book, "but please, sir, how do they be spelled, Captain Jinks, sir?" "S-p-i-s-e, spies, of course, idiot!" snapped the captain. "Now then, off with 'em. Separate cell for each prisoner, bars to the windows. Heavy chains on this gentleman in particeler," pointing to Rudolf. "Bread and water, on a Sunday. Off to the jail with 'em--march 'em along!"