Captain Acton looked at the Admiral, who was staring sternly into Captain Weaver's face. "Mr Lawrence told you," said Captain Acton, "that he had received the news of this cruiser last night. At what hour, do you think?" "That, sir, I couldn't say," answered Captain Weaver. "But we might take it as his having heard it after eight o'clock." "In that case he must have intended during the day," said Captain Acton, addressing the Admiral, "to sail early this morning. For, as I have explained to you, he could have had no time to do his business at so early an hour at which he started this morning, nor would the officials be seen at that time. Therefore he must have made the necessary arrangements yesterday for what he contemplated as a daybreak departure this morning." "Does the ship call anywhere in England before her final departure for her port?" asked the Admiral in a voice that proclaimed his heart hot with bewilderment, doubt, and anger. "No, sir," answered Captain Acton. "A pity!" said the Admiral, striking the ground with his staff. "Otherwise I would have posted it, caught him, and asked him his reason, which to satisfy me would have to prove infinitely more intelligible than the one Captain Weaver has repeated." "I saw him two or three times yesterday," said Captain Acton. "He had nothing to say about French cruisers in the offing. Nor did he give me a hint that he was taking the necessary steps to quit this Harbour early this morning." "Is the ship in sight?" exclaimed the Admiral. "No, sir. A man came down from the cliffs," answered Captain Weaver, "and I asked him that question, and he said she'd rounded the coast to the west'ard." "The pilot," said Captain Acton, "was John Andrews. Was he on board, do you know?" "Yes, sir," answered Captain Weaver, "I took notice of him on the fok'sle." They could obtain no further information from Captain Weaver. They called at "The Swan" and saw the landlord, who told them that he had seen Mr Lawrence on the previous day, that, in fact, he had lunched at the Inn and sat next him, but had said never a word about the change in the sailing of his ship. They called upon Mrs Andrews, the pilot's wife, who informed them that Mr Lawrence had told her husband the day before that the hour of sailing had been changed, and that the _Minorca_ would leave Old Harbour shortly after eight o'clock instead of half-past twelve. "Did Mr Lawrence state the reason of this change?" enquired Captain Acton. "Not to my husband, sir, who naturally thought the matter all right, and said he would be on board at half-past seven."