The next instant my companion came into the torchlight, pale, drenched to the skin, and with blood streaming from a cut on his forehead, while with him he brought the insensible body of a man, whose booted legs trailed heavily over the stone cobbles. "Do what you can for the rogue," he said breathlessly, for the man, cased in breastplate and leather coat, was no light weight. "Art hurt?" I asked anxiously. "'Tis but naught," he replied, "though I would fain get rid of these wet clothes." While changing his garments he told us of what occurred after he had been dragged over the wall. Fortunately, he had been thrown clear of the ground, and, still gripping his foe, he had fallen headlong into the moat, which at that place was barely five feet in depth. With the shock of the sudden plunge the pikeman had relaxed his grip, and, weighted down by his armour and accoutrements, he would have surely been drowned had not Ralph held on to him and dragged his senseless body to the edge of the moat. Keeping perfectly still in the darkness, with the water up to his neck, Granville allowed the rest of the discomfited rebels to recross the moat and make their way back to their camp. Then, directly everything was quiet, he emerged from his hiding-place, dragged the still insensible pikeman to the postern, and regained the shelter of the walls. The rest of the night passed without incident, but next morning a tangle of broken ladders showed that the scalers had all but succeeded in effecting an entry. Then the question arose what was to be done with our prisoner? He had now recovered, and seemed grateful to us for his good treatment. At first it was suggested that he should be sent back, as we could ill afford the trouble of keeping him in ward and also of feeding him; but Colonel Firestone pointed out that he might come in useful as a hostage or for purpose of exchange, so he was placed under guard in one of our underground chambers beneath the gatehouse. Later on in the day Firestone interrogated him, and obtained the disquieting information that several pieces of heavy ordnance were expected from the camp before Basing House, and that Cromwell, having heard of Captain Chaloner's cowardice (he having refused to lead his dragoons at the first assault), had ordered him to be the first in the breach, under the penalty of being shot as a disgrace to the Parliamentarian arms. "Depend upon it," remarked Firestone, as he concluded his statement, "before to-morrow we shall be in a tight corner." CHAPTER XIV SPIKING THE GUNS HARDLY had the colonel spoken these words than there came a loud shout from one of the men on the roof. "The cannon, sir--six of them!" With grave faces we ascended to the leads, and looking in the direction of the road to Chalton, we saw the heavy pieces of ordnance descending the hill, the horses making slow progress on the slippery chalk surface, which, by reason of the heavy rains, was little better than a quagmire.