ing them, darting between the rocks,
scrambling over others; and had he had to deal with a couple of pursuers
he would have escaped at once, but he had too many on his track, and
fortune was rather against him, so that several times over he ran right
upon one or other of the party and was nearly taken.

The activity of the young man, for such he seemed to be, was something
marvellous; and again and again he made a tremendous leap, scrambled
over the rocks, and escaped. The last time, however, he dropped down in
a narrow place that formed quite a _cul-de-sac_, and right in front of
Tom Tully.

"What! have I got you?" cried the great stolid fellow; and he made a
dash forward, straddling out his legs as if on board ship, when, to his
intense astonishment, his quarry bent down, dashed at him, ducked
between his knees, struggling through, and throwing the great sailor
headlong flat upon his face.

The shout Tom Tully gave brought up Billy Waters; and as the stranger
recovered his feet to escape in a fresh direction, he ran right into the
gunner's arms, to be held with a grip like iron.

The man had his arms free, however, and putting his fingers into his
mouth he gave vent to a piercing whistle, close to the gunner's ear.

"Oh, that's it, is it?" said Billy Waters. "Well, my lad, I sha'n't let
you go any the more for that. Here, lend a hand my lads, and lash his
wristies and elbows together. We've got him, and we'll keep him till we
get back Muster Leigh. Now then, Tom Tully, you hold him while I lash
his wristies. That's your style. I say, he won't get away once I--Look
at that!"

Tom Tully had, as he thought, taken a good hold of the prisoner, when
the man gave himself a sudden wrench, dived under the gunner's arm, and
was gone.

"Well, of all--" began Tom Tully.

"Why didn't you hold him?" cried the gunner.

"I thought he was a man and not a slippery eel," cried Tom Tully. "He's
for all the world like one o' them big congers Muster Leigh caught off
Hastings."

"Yes," cried the gunner, "but he did hold 'em when he caught 'em. Look
out, my lads! he come your way."

The men were well on the alert this time, and one of them, in spite of
the darkness, saw which way the prisoner had taken, that being none
other than the narrow passage between the rocks which Hilary had found.

He saw him go down here, and then caught sight of him as he climbed over
the rock.

"This way," shouted the sailor as he scramb