And now that these were done away with, the
colonel said there was no need of his remaining any longer in this
place, and that he would like to get back to Manila as quickly as
possible. Hearing this, the admiral said he thought room could be made
for all the men aboard the cruiser, and that they could all return at
once if they so desired. This generous offer was at once accepted by
the colonel, and the next day the work of embarkation began. By night
every man was aboard, and a place of some kind had been found where he
could sleep, but of course, every portion of the vessel was much
overcrowded. This only made things all the more lively, however, and
Archie, as well as all the others, thought he had never enjoyed any
trip so much as these three days spent in getting back again to
Manila. There was always fun of some sort going on. If some one wasn't
dancing, there was sure to be singing. And then there were several
ingenious games which were invented for the occasion, so that time
never passed slowly. Indeed, there were many who were sorry when the
capital was finally reached, but Archie was not among these, for he
expected some mail to be awaiting him from the editor of the
Enterprise. And he hoped that in this mail he would find permission to
return to New York.
All officials were very much surprised when the cruiser anchored off
Cavit?, but the admiral explained that he thought it no use to spend
more time in touring the island, even though the month which it was
supposed to take him had not yet expired.
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