ed up.
We immediately seized him by the arms, hauled him out, and shut to the
hatch, greatly to the disappointment of those who were following. The
Frenchman, who was a sailor, looked dreadfully frightened, and began to
struggle violently, expecting probably that we were going to throw him
overboard. We had, however, his arms very soon lashed behind him, and
we then gave him water, and pointed to his shipmates sitting quietly
round the side. He was once more satisfied, and we then signed to him,
as well as we could, that he was to tell his companions below that no
harm would happen to them. We concluded that he did so, for after he
had shouted down the hatchway, another cautiously lifted his head above
the coaming. He gave a cry as we seized hold of him, but we quickly had
him up, and treated like the other. In the same way we got up a dozen,
the last showing clear signs of having suffered most. At length a
nearly bald head appeared, with a silver plate covering part of it, on
which I read the word "Arcole," and then the high narrow forehead, gaunt
cheeks, and thin body of the old colonel slowly emerged from the cabin.
He looked round with a confused expression on his countenance, as if not
very certain what had happened; but, before he had had much time for
consideration, Ned Bambrick politely took him by the hand, and helped
him to step out on deck. When he found himself seized to be pinioned,
he looked very indignant, and struggled to get loose, but we had the
ropes round his arms in a moment. As a compliment, however, we secured
him to the mainmast, with a heap of sail-cloth to sit on. He made so
many extraordinary grimaces that even poor Toby, who was sitting
opposite to him, in spite of his suffering, burst into a fit of
laughter. Grey and I had, however, just then too much to do to laugh.
There were still nearly twenty men below, enough to overpower us and to
release their countrymen, so it was necessary to be as cautious as at
first. From the horrible effluvium which came rushing up the hatchway
each time the hatch was slid off, we might have known that the men who
had to exist in it long were not likely to be very difficult to manage.
In those days midshipmen, at all events, knew nothing of hydrogen and
oxygen, and that human beings could not exist without a certain supply
of the latter. A few more climbed slowly up. We thought that they were
shamming, and treated them like the rest. At last no mor