from the jolly-boat, I recognised two besides
"Four-Eyes" as men whom I had seen in Paris, but the Irishman appeared
to be the captain of them; and, in lack of other leader, he spoke when
all were aboard, but it was in a monosyllable. "Aft!" he said, looking
round to see if anyone else were near; and one of them silently touched
me upon the shoulder, and I followed him along a narrow strip of iron
deck, past a great turret which reared itself above me, and again by
the covered forms of quick-firing guns. We descended a short ladder to
a lower deck; and so to the companion way, and to a narrow passage in
which were many doors. One of these he opened, and motioned me to
enter, when the door was closed noiselessly behind me, and I found
myself alone.

My first feeling was one of intense surprise. I had looked to enter a
prison; but, if that were a prison, then were lack of liberty shorn of
half its terrors. The cabin was not large, but one more artistic in
effect was never built. Hung all round with poppy-coloured silk, the
same material made curtains for the bunk--which seemed of unusual size,
and furnished with sleep-bespeaking mattresses. It was employed also
for the cushions and covering of the armchair and the couch, and to
drape the dressing-glass and basin which were in the left-hand corner.
It seemed, indeed, that the whole room was a harmony in scarlet, with a
scarlet ceiling and scarlet hangings; but the luxury of it was
unmistakable, and the feet sank above the ankles in the soft Indian
rug, which was ornate with the quaint mosaic-like workings and
penetrating colours of all Eastern tapestry. For light, there was an
arc-lamp, veiled with gauze of the faintest yellow; and upon the table
in the centre stood a decanter of wine and a box of cigars. The room
would have been perfect but for a horrid blot upon it--a blot which
stared at me from the outer wall with bloodshot eyes and hideous
visage. It was the picture of a man's head that had been severed from
the body; and was repulsive enough to have been painted by Wiertz
himself. The picture almost terrified me, but I thought, if no worse
harm befall me what odds? and I sat down all wondering and dazed, and
drew a cigar from the box upon the table. The wine, of which I drank
nearly a tumblerful, put new courage of a sort into me; and so,
troubled and amazed, I began to ask myself what the proceeding meant,
or what the portent of it all could possibly be.

My conc