Ralph hastened to the spot whence the voice came and found Captain O'Connor lying on the ground, and Lieutenant Desmond insensible beside him. "What has happened?" Ralph exclaimed. "Have they shot you?" "No. Hold the torch up and you will see the way we came." The soldier did so, and Ralph looking up saw a hole in the top of the cave twenty feet above. "You don't mean to say you came through there, O'Connor?" "I did, worse luck to it!" O'Connor said. "The passage got steeper and steeper, and at last my foot slipped, and I shot down and came plump into the middle of a peat fire; and a moment later Desmond shot down on to the top of me. We scattered the fire all over the place, as you can imagine; but I burned my hands and face, and I believe the leg of my breeches is on fire--something is hurting me confoundedly." "Yes, it is all smoldering!" Ralph exclaimed, putting it out with his hands. "Have you got them all?" Captain O'Connor asked. "Everyone; not one has made his escape. It would have fared badly with us, though, if Lieutenant Adcock had not sent down the men to our assistance. Where is your leg broken, O'Connor?" "Above the knee," the captain said. "Here is some whisky and water," Ralph said, handing him his bottle. "Now, I will see what has happened to Desmond," and he stooped over the insensible officer. "He has got a nasty gash on his forehead, and I think his right arm is broken," he said. "I will pour a little spirits between his lips, and then he had better be carried out into the air." This was done; and then Ralph went outside, and shouted to Sergeant Morris to bring down another twenty men. "If you please, sir," one of the coast-guard men said, touching his hat, "I don't see any signs of our officer. Have you seen him?" "No," Ralph said. "Perhaps he is still in that passage. You had better run up to the top and see." Two minutes later the man returned: "He's down there, sir; but he says he can't get up or down." "You had better run down to the boat at once," Ralph said. "I see she is close inshore. Bring a couple more of your men up with you and a rope. If you tie that round your body you can go down and bring him up." Ralph then returned to the cavern, where the men were still guarding the prisoners. "You can march them outside now," he said. "Then make them sit down, and stand over them with fixed bayonets till Sergeant Morris arrives. Now let us look to the wounded." An examination showed that two of the soldiers were dead, and three others badly wounded. Seven of the party in the cave lay on the ground. One only was alive; the rest had fallen either from bullet or bayonet wounds. Seeing that nothing could be done here Ralph looked round the cavern. He soon saw that just where Captain O'Connor had fallen there was an entrance into another cave. He reloaded his pistols before he entered this, but found it deserted.