Also,
judiciously fostering his discontent against the government, I soon
had him in a desired frame of mind. Through his influence on the
native clerks, I was able to gain all the plans, data and photographs
of England's new naval base in the Straits Settlement.
By this time my close association with this notorious young Rajah was
marked and I found it advisable to pull up stakes, which I did in
short order, arranging passage on the N. D. L. liner _Sachsen_,
homeward bound. Having a week to spare and finding that by leaving
the _Sachsen_ at Colombo, I could catch the _Prinz Regent Leopold_ of
the same line, coming up from Australia en route for Europe, I had my
ticket transferred. This would give me a ten-day vacation in Ceylon,
where I had a number of acquaintances, having hunted there during my
early travels. Accordingly, at Colombo I put up at the Galle Face
Hotel, and the first man I met was Allan MacGregor, one of Lipton's
tea estate managers, in Kandy and Newara Elya. MacGregor and I were
old pals, having done much hunting and bridge playing in days gone by.
I planned to spend a week with him and go after some leopards. By the
by, I'd like to see the MacGregor's face when he learns that his
quondam friend and boon companion was an international spy!
"Dinna get sair, Mac. You're no the only chiel what'll tak a wee
surprise."
I was just arranging a hunting trip with MacGregor when Bill Peters,
manager of the hotel, another old acquaintance, handed me a cable
knocking all my plans to bits.
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