bserved. Indeed, one man, who was playing at cards, looked
up for a moment as we came in, and cried out, "Hurrah, my lads! the more
the merrier," as if he really was pleased to find that there were others
who were as unfortunate as himself. We stood looking at the groups for
about ten minutes, when O'Brien observed, "that we might as well come to
an anchor, foul ground being better than no bottom;" so we sat down in a
corner, upon our bundles, where we remained for more than an hour,
surveying the scene, without speaking a word to each other. I could not
speak--I felt so very miserable. I thought of my father and mother in
England, of my captain and my messmates, who were sailing about so
happily in the frigate, of the kind Colonel O'Brien, and dear little
Celeste, and the tears trickled down my cheeks as these scenes of former
happiness passed through my mind in quick succession. O'Brien did not
speak but once, and then he only said, "This is dull work, Peter."

We had been in the prison about two hours, when a lad in a very greasy,
ragged jacket, with a pale emaciated face, came up to us, and said, "I
perceive by your uniforms that you are both officers, as well as
myself."

O'Brien stared at him for a little while, and then answered, "Upon my
soul and honour, then, you've the advantage of us, for it's more than I
could perceive in you; but I'll take your word for it. Pray what ship
may have had the misfortune of losing such a credit to the service?"

"Why, I belonged to the _Snapper_ cutter," replied the young lad; "I was
taken in a prize, which the commanding officer had given in my charge to
take to Gibraltar: but they won't believe that I'm an officer. I have
applied for officer's allowance and rations, and they won't give them to
me."

"Well, but they know that we are officers," replied O'Brien; "why do
they shove us in here, with the common seamen?"

"I suppose you are only put in here for the present," replied the
cutter's midshipman; "but why I cannot tell."

Nor could we, until afterwards, when we found out, as our narrative will
show, that the officer who received us from the cuirassiers had once
quarrelled with Colonel O'Brien, who first pulled his nose, and
afterwards ran him through the body. Being told by the cuirassiers that
we were much esteemed by Colonel O'Brien, he resolved to annoy us as
much as he could; and when he sent up the document announcing our
arrival, he left out the word "Officers,