ar as I can see. One is the arrival of a priest; I suppose
they have priests hereabouts with a knowledge of French or Italian. The
other is the appearance on the scene of our boat's crew."

"Both are very unlikely, I am afraid. The crew, you know, all went the
other way."

"Yes, sir; but it is just possible that they may have seen the smoke of
this hut also, and be making their way here. Though I looked carefully on
all sides I could see no other signs of life."

"It is possible," Nelson said; "but for my part I think the priest the
more likely solution, if there is to be a solution. Well, it is a comfort
to know that we have eaten a hearty meal and shall not die hungry or
thirsty. It was foolish of us to come up here alone, knowing what wild
savages these people in the mountains are. It would have been better to
have gone on suffering ten or twelve hours longer, and to have made our
way to the fleet by following close in by the foot of the rocks."

"I don't think we could have done it in that time, sir. We should have had
to keep within an oar's-length of the rocks, and so must have progressed
very slowly. Besides, we might have staved in the boat at any moment."

"That is so. Still, we were only drifting for about twenty-four hours, and
we shouldn't have taken so long to go back. Even twenty-four hours of
hunger and thirst would have been better than this. It is useless,
however, to think of that now."

In the meantime the men were engaged in a noisy talk, each one apparently
urging his own view. At last they seemed to come to an agreement, and four
of them, going to the corner, dragged the two officers to their feet, and
hauled them out of the cottage. Then they bound them to trees seven or
eight feet apart, and piled faggots round them. When this was done they
amused themselves by dancing wildly round their prisoners, taunting them
and heaping execrations upon them.

"The sooner this comes to an end the better," Nelson said quietly. "Well,
Mr. Gilmore, we have both the satisfaction of knowing that we have done
our duty to our country. After all, it makes no great difference to a man
whether he dies in battle or is burnt, except that the burning method
lasts a little longer. But it won't last long in our case, I fancy. Do you
notice that these faggots are all lately cut? We'll probably be suffocated
before the flames touch us."

"I see that, sir, and am very grateful for it."

The dance was finished, and two