“I informed him that my yacht was fitted out with turbine engines, and could reel off, at a pinch, twenty-five knots an hour. Now, how far away is this bally gold property of yours!” “About three thousand five hundred miles.” “Very good. Toward this interesting spot the _Rajah_ is plodding along at seven knots an hour, perhaps doing a little less, as her owners guarantee that speed. How long will it take her to reach the what-do-you-call-it river? There is no use of my attempting figures when I have an uncivil engineer in my employ.” “About twenty-one days,” replied Mackeller. “Very well. If my yacht goes only twice that speed, which she can accomplish in her sleep, we’d get there in half the time, wouldn’t we? I think that mathematical calculation is correct?” “Yes, it is.” “Then we’d be Johnnie-on-the-spot in about eleven days, wouldn’t we?” “Yes, my lord.” “The _Rajah_ has now four days the start of us. Then don’t you see we can spend six more days over our porridge in the morning, and still reach our river before she does? Now don’t you begin to be ashamed of yourself, Mackeller? Why rush me over my frugal meal when we have such ample time to spare? I’d much rather spend the six days here in London than up some malarious alligator-filled river on the west coast of Africa.” Mackeller’s stern face brightened. “Then you do intend to chase them, after all, my lord?” “Chase them? Lord bless you, no. Why should I chase them? They are the good Schwartzbrod’s hired men. He’s paying their wages. Chase them? Of course not; but I’m going to pass them, and get up the river before they do.” Mackeller sprang to his feet, his face ablaze with enthusiasm, his right fist nervously clenching and unclenching. “Now, do sit down, Peter,” wailed his lordship. “Do not let us display unnecessary energy. I’ve told you two or three times I don’t like it.” Peter sat down. “What I was trying to do when you went off prematurely was to show you the folly of underestimating a fellow creature. You come storming in here, practically accusing me of doing nothing, whereas I am doing nothing because everything is done, and you, on the rampage, have arrived from a total and grotesque failure.” “I apologized for that already, my lord.” “So you did, Peter. I had forgotten. A man shouldn’t be asked to pay twice for the same horse and cart, should he? Ponderby,” he continued, turning to his impassive butler, “would you be so good as to go into my business office, and bring me my telegraph duplicate book.” Then, turning to his visitor, he added: “I am so methodical that I keep a copy of every telegram I send. I shall ask you to look through this book with the critical eye of an engineer, and you will learn that while you were raging up from Plymouth I was ordering by telegraph to be sent to my yacht the more important materials for the contest in which we may be involved. A man must make some move to protect his own property, you know.”