while, but he—he—Well, I might as well make a clean breast of it, sir. He had me in his power, on account of something I did in Denver years ago. He said he would expose me if I didn't help him."
"This is the strict truth?"
"Yes, captain, and I will swear to it if you want me to," answered the prisoner.
"You were going to signal the gang when all was in readiness for an attack," went on Captain Moore.
"Bicker was going to do that."
"What was the signal to be?"
"Three white handkerchiefs stuck on the ends of a cross made of sticks six feet long. He was going to show these at ten in the morning or four in the afternoon, from the southwest corner of the stockade, behind the mess hall."
"And what was the signal to be if you wanted the enemy to hold off for a while?"
"A red shirt if he wanted them to hold off for one day and a red and a blue shirt if they were to hold off for two days."
"You are certain about these signals? Remember, if you are telling a lie it will all come back on your own head."
"I am telling the strict truth," answered Drossdell.
