spare
sails, with which to rig up temporary tents; and soon the greensward was
dotted with busy men, who, in the intervals of their labour, drank
coconuts or eagerly devoured bananas, prickly pears, guavas, soursops,
grapes, mangoes, and the various other fruits with which the island
abounded. By and by, when a certain large tent had been erected beneath
the shade of a giant ceiba tree, a boat put off from the shore to the
ship, and presently returned bearing nine wounded men--the result of
their fight that morning--under the especial care of Philip Stukely.
These men, lying in their hammocks as they had been taken out of the
ship, were then carried up to the completed tent, when their hammocks
were re-slung to stout poles firmly driven into the ground, and where
Stukely once more, and at greater leisure, attended to their hurts. But
there was one form, lying stark in a laced-up hammock deeply stained
with blood, which was not brought up to the tent. It was all that
remained of George Lumley, Captain Marshall's chief lieutenant, who had
been shot to death in the very act of boarding the Spaniard, a few hours
before; and a grave having been prepared in a small open space on the
opposite side of the river, under the shadow of a splendid _bois
immortelle_ which strewed the ground with its glowing scarlet flowers, a
trumpet was blown, calling the crew together. Then, when they were all
assembled, they entered the boats, at a sign from Marshall, took in tow
the boat containing the body of the officer, with Saint George's Cross
at half-mast trailing in the water astern of her, and, having reached
the other side, reverently bore the shrouded corpse to its last
resting-place, lowered it into the grave, Marshall, meanwhile, reading
the burial service, and covered it up with the rich brown earth. This
service rendered they returned to the site of the camp, and rapidly
proceeded to put up the other tents needed to enable all hands to sleep
ashore that night.

The sun was within an hour of setting when at length everything was
completed to Marshall's satisfaction, and the men were told that they
might cease work and amuse themselves as they pleased, the permission
being accompanied by a caution that they were not to wander more than a
quarter of a mile from the camp, not to go even as far as that, singly,
and not to go unarmed; for although it was assumed that the island was
uninhabited, save by themselves, it was recognised