Page 108 - the-thirty-nine-steps

‘Can the dispositions not be changed?’ I asked.
‘They could,’ he said. ‘But we want to avoid that if pos-
sible. They are the result of immense thought, and no
alteration would be as good. Besides, on one or two points
change is simply impossible. Still, something could be done,
I suppose, if it were absolutely necessary. But you see the
difficulty, Hannay. Our enemies are not going to be such
fools as to pick Royer’s pocket or any childish game like
that. They know that would mean a row and put us on our
guard. Their aim is to get the details without any one of us
knowing, so that Royer will go back to Paris in the belief
that the whole business is still deadly secret. If they can’t do
that they fail, for, once we suspect, they know that the whole
thing must be altered.’
‘Then we must stick by the Frenchman’s side till he is
home again,’ I said. ‘If they thought they could get the in-
formation in Paris they would try there. It means that they
have some deep scheme on foot in London which they reck-
on is going to win out.’
‘Royer dines with my Chief, and then comes to my house
where four people will see him Whittaker from the Admi-
ralty, myself, Sir Arthur Drew, and General Winstanley.
The First Lord is ill, and has gone to Sheringham. At my
house he will get a certain document from Whittaker, and
after that he will be motored to Portsmouth where a de-
stroyer will take him to Havre. His journey is too important
for the ordinary boat-train. He will never be left unattended
for a moment till he is safe on French soil. The same with
Whittaker till he meets Royer. That is the best we can do,

108 The Thirty-Nine Steps