'He has a hole through the apex of his right lung. Nothing desperate, but he will require careful nursing.' 'And you? What's that on your wrist?' 'A mere graze. But the same shot punched a piece out of the tiller, which I must fish without loss of time, or we shall be having a snap in a crisis.' Philipson continued at work all the time he was talking, swiftly and skilfully. Where he picked up his knowledge of surgery I don't know, but I fancy it would have been equal to the emergencies of a battlefield. He was just completing a sling for my arm when Poyning's face, the natural freckles supplemented by a liberal sprinkling of powder-flecks, appeared through the cabin door. 'Come and watch the casualties, Poyning,' said our leader. 'I will relieve you as soon as I have patched the steering-gear.' Poyning took his place beside me, and squatted in silence, mopping his face with a handkerchief. On the opposite locker Lo Eng was asleep, breathing peacefully. 'Philipson tackled him while you were aswoon,' said Poyning at length, nodding to the boy, 'and gave him a cooling mixture which put him off at once. The managing director's bedside manner is distinctly attractive to watch, Mirlees, I assure you.' 'You're not hurt?' 'I'm tattooed blue with powder-spirts like any Polynesian, but Philipson hopes it will wash out in after years. Beyond that I am suffering from slight muscular strain and grave loss of self-respect. I fought to-night as no gentleman fights. I--er, bit my antagonist. His gun fell overboard in the course of our struggles, and shortly afterward he fell overboard after it.' 'Tell me what happened,' I said. 'It seems I went green right in the middle of it.' 'My own recollection is none too clear,' replied Poyning. 'One of the boarding party got past me, and I heard him fire. That, apparently, is when you were hit. It was just at this point that I rolled my opponent into the water. I heard another splash after that. Then Philipson yelled to me to come and take the tiller. He had reversed the engine, and we were drawing away. Philipson ran forward and began, as it seemed to me, to pull the launch to pieces. Something came up with a clank, and before you could say knife or any other abrupt monosyllable he had entered upon a new campaign with--ye gods!--a maxim gun. It was one of the pleasantest surprises of my life to learn that we had such an armament on board.' I heard Philipson chuckle in the doorway.