"Whew! Out of the frying pan into the fire!" was Ned's instant thought.

Facing him in the moonlight was a Jackie in uniform. He was armed with a carbine and looked very business-like. He regarded Ned with no friendly air.

There was good reason for this, from the man's standpoint, anyway. He had been placed on guard duty there, and to be surprised after midnight by a stalwart youth who had sculled himself ashore in a small dinghy was a suspicious circumstance.

"Who are you? Give an account of yourself," he said gruffly.

"It's all right. I'm on business connected with the aero camp up above," said Ned glibly, making[Pg 255] use of information he had gained through the crack in the bulkhead.

"Humph! In the service?"

"Certainly. Aero squad."

"How am I to know you are not one of those newspaper fellows. We've been pestered to death with them for the last week. Fine thing it would be if they got hold of the Blue fleet's secrets and printed them."

"Oh, you needn't have any fear of me. I'm not connected with any paper."

"No, now I come to look at you, you appear like one of Uncle Sam's boys. But where have you come from?"

"From that schooner out there."

"Oh, the one we unloaded this evening?"

"That's the idea. My business is urgent."

"I should judge so. Everybody's is right now. The Red fleet is reported moving up on New York. The aero squadron sails to-morrow. Maybe we won't give 'em a surprise, eh?"

[Pg 256]

Ned gave an inward chuckle. This was just the information he was after.

"Oh, that'll surprise 'em all right, shipmate," said he, and struck off up a trail that appeared to lead over the little point of land. He had to trust to luck for it being the right one, for he did not dare disclose his unfamiliarity with the camp by asking the sentry questions.

But the sentry suddenly halted him. Ned's heart sank. After all he had been discovered.

The next instant his worst fears were realized.

"You'll have to give me the password, shipmate," declared the sentry.

Ned's heart sank into his boots. But suddenly he gave a glad exclamation, although not so loud as to attract the sentry's notice. While listening to the unloading of the cargo, he had heard the password given out by the petty officer in charge of the men.

For the moment he had forgotten it, but now it came suddenly back to him.

[Pg 257]

"Aerolite!" he said confidently.

"Pass on, shipmate, you're all right," declared the sentry, and Ned, breathing freely once more, continued on his way.

It was a daring enterprise, this that he had undertaken of penetrating into the "enemy's" camp and discovering just the strength of their aero fleet, and the exact method of attack that they meant to pursue.

But Ned felt that it was up to him to "make good." His absence from his ship, he felt might be open to evil construction by his enemies. If he returne............