He found Elizabeth in the parlor and asked her to make sure everything was in order in the residential hall, and then to take charge of the office while the party was here. When everything had been done, Rector went back to his desk to occupy himself with his monthly report until three o'clock.

At two thirty he sent Fujimoto to the top of the wall at the northeast corner of the mission to keep an eye on the ridge road and give a signal when he first glimpsed the approach of Kayabashi's party. Then Rector, attired in his best blue serge suit, sat in a chair out on the lawn, in the shade of a tree, smoking a cigarette and waiting. The air was cooler here, and the lacy pattern of the trees threw a dappled shadow on the grass, an effect which he found pleasant.