"Is that you, cap'n?" answered Tom. "Well, I'm very glad to find you've turned up all right. It _has_ been a smash, and no mistake; a total wreck, and no insurance, I'll be bound. Well, it's unfort'nate; but it can't be helped; it might ha' been much worse. I got a whack on the skull that knocked the senses out of me for a while, but I don't feel very much the worse for it a'ter all. Where's poor Mr Walford, sir? What's become of him?" "He is close by," answered George; "but a big branch fell across his chest, and I am afraid he is very much hurt." "Let's have a look at him," said Tom. And the two men groped and stumbled their way without more ado to the place where Walford was still seated, with his back resting against the giant bole of the tree. A few trials were sufficient to establish the fact that the poor fellow was practically helpless, for the time at least; and it then became a question of what it would be best to do under the circumstances. The first idea was that George and Tom should each take an arm of the injured man over their shoulders, and so assist him along; but he moved with such great difficulty that it was soon apparent some other plan would have to be adopted. "I have it!" exclaimed George, as a bright idea struck him; and hurrying away to the waggon, he secured the canvas and rope which had been thrown into it, together with the cane-knives, canvas jackets, and other trifling belongings, and hurried back to the tree. "Now, Tom," he said, "look about you, my lad, and see if you can find a nice light handy branch, tolerably straight, and about ten feet long, and bring it here as quickly as you can." "Ay, ay, sir," answered Tom, starting off on his errand at once. Whilst he was gone, George spread out the canvas upon the ground, and, with the aid of a pocket-knife, which he had seen lying about in the stable that evening, and had taken the liberty of appropriating, proceeded to roughly shape a hammock out of the material, leaving enough canvas at each end to form, with the rope, an eye, through which to pass the branch from which he intended it to be slung. He had hardly finished his preparations when Tom reappeared with the waggon-pole, which he had found fortunately unbroken. "Will this do, sir?" asked Tom.