"No," said Captain Wilmore. "I suppose the experience of the last campaign disheartened them. But certainly it was a very hollow affair. Governor Jansens seemed to me to have given it up as a bad job from the first. There was hardly enough resistance to make it any fight at all. But something did happen to me, nevertheless, in Simon's Bay which was exciting enough." "What was that, sir?" asked Ernest. "You did not encounter the _Hooghly_, I suppose?" "Ah, but I did though," said Captain Wilmore, "the _Hooghly_ herself, as large as life. The scoundrels had knocked away her figure-head, and painted her, name and all, anew; but I knew her in a moment, as well as I know my own face. We hailed her, and the moment they saw me on the quarter-deck, they cut their cable, and tried to run for it. But we were just entering the harbour, prepared for action, and sent such a broadside into her as knocked all the mischief out of her in a jiffey. O'Hara was killed, and White mortally wounded, and as for Andy Duncan, he was run up to the yardarm and hanged the next morning. The others were put into irons, and received various sentences. Some had seven dozen. Others were simply dismissed and sent home." "Did you learn on board the _Hooghly_ what had befallen us?" asked Warley. "Yes, my lad, to my great satisfaction I did. One of the sailors came to me on the morning of Duncan's execution, and told me all that had happened, so far that is, as he knew it. But he could tell me nothing, of course, as to what had become of you after your escape from the ship. All he knew was that you had appeared suddenly on deck two days after we had left, and it was conjectured by the crew that you had been concealed somewhere by old Jennings. Mr Lavie, it also appeared, had gone off with you, and none of the party appeared to have been hurt. That comforted me a little, but still I was very anxious and uneasy--the more so because all inquiries at the Cape for a long time were wholly fruitless." "Ah, I was afraid you would be at fault there," said Warley. "I suppose you simply heard nothing at all?" "Very nearly that," said the captain. "Some of the messengers whom I sent out did come back with a story that some white men with guns had been seen in the neighbourhood of Elephant's kloof; but the Hottentots living near about there denied, one and all, the truth of the rumour." "The rascals!" exclaimed Ernest. "When you heard the truth of the matter, sir, you must have been amused at their denial." "Yes, afterwards," said Captain Wilmore; "but not at the time. I was, in fact, almost in despair when Lavie here arrived all of a moment one day, looking like a ghost returned from the grave." "Ay, I am afraid you must have had a trying time of it, Charles," said De Walden. "I have sometimes reproached myself for allowing you to go, considering what the danger and exhaustion must needs be."