and[Pg 56] then along a lane lined on either side by storehouses.

[Pg 56]

“Stop! stop!” he heard a Russian soldier yell, and then several shots were fired after him, none of which, however, took effect. He continued to run, and coming to a wide open storehouse, ran inside, mounted a ladder, and then laid down to hide behind a number of sacks of salt.

The ex-lieutenant thought the Russian soldiers would follow him, and such would undoubtedly have been the case had it not been for the alarm just mentioned. The alarm was close to the center of the city, and the vicinity of the storehouse in which he had hidden was all but deserted.

It must be admitted that the young American was now in a most unsettled state of mind. What to do next he did not know. He felt that he had gotten himself into “hot water” in more ways than one. Captain Barusky was against him, so were the owner of the house in which Jiru Siko had resided, and the officer from whom he had just made his escape.

“They’ll prove me a spy, or worse, if they possibly can,” he thought, and drew a deep sigh. “To my way of thinking Port Arthur is getting too warm to hold me. I reckon I had best clear out and come back when this excitement is over. With this fighting[Pg 57] going on, I’ll never be able to bring Ivan Snokoff and Captain Barusky to justice.”

[Pg 57]

It was an easy matter to decide upon leaving Port Arthur, but how the thing was to be done was another matter. He knew that the railroad to the north was closely guarded, and so was the entire harbor front.

“If I had a good horse I might leave in the dark and ride to Dalny, or Yang-tau-wo, or some other place, and ship from there,” he reasoned. “Wonder if I can buy a horse without attracting attention?”

Gilbert remained in the storehouse the best part of two hours before he thought it safe to leave it. Some soldiers had gone past and they did not return. With caution he looked out of the doorway and out of several windows to make certain that the coast was clear.

The storehouse was in a portion of the city which was new to him, and as he stepped out into the lane once more he scarcely knew how to turn. But he remembered the way he had come, and started in a direction directly opposite.

A few minutes of rapid walking brought him 

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