s and the tramp of heavy footsteps
outside his cell door. The young man sat up quickly, feeling much
refreshed after his long sleep; and a second later the cell door swung
open, a file of Peruvian marines entered the prison, and he was ordered
to rise to his feet. His manacles were then unlocked, and, between his
two guards, he walked out of his cell for the last time and proceeded on
deck. There was nobody there when he arrived, and he was ordered to sit
down under the port bulwarks, which he did, with the marines mounting
guard over him. But a few minutes later Lieutenant Rodriguez appeared
on deck, followed by a miserable-looking squad of half a dozen Chilian
officers, among whom Jim recognised one or two whom he knew. They were
guarded by a score of Peruvian seamen armed with drawn cutlasses. Jim
was then roughly hauled to his feet and pushed into the midst of the new
arrivals, who, recognising his uniform, tattered and torn though it was,
hailed him as a comrade, and received him with, figuratively, open arms.
The seven men were then formed up in line, and their names called out
by Rodriguez. When they had answered the roll the Peruvian lieutenant
called the sergeant in charge of the guard aside and gave him certain
instructions; after which the Chilians were once more formed up in the
middle of their escort, and the whole body, prisoners and guards,
marched down the sloping gangway which led from the _Union's_ deck to
the wharf, and Jim found himself once more, after many weary months, on
_terra firma_.

Still surrounded by their guards, the Chilians marched away along the
stone quay wall, and presently, having left the precincts of the
harbour, they arrived in the town proper of Callao. There, as soon as
they made their appearance, a crowd of roughs surrounded the prisoners
and began to deride them and pelt them with such filth and garbage as
came to hand. Their destination, Jim discovered, was the _Plaza_, or
great square, of the city, where they were to join the main body of
prisoners destined for the mines. For the whole of the way the
unfortunate men were in peril of their lives from the ferocity of the
mob; indeed, in one instance the crowd made such an ugly rush in its
attempt to get at the Chilians, to tear them to pieces, that their
guards were obliged to halt, form a hollow square, with their captives
in the middle, and repel the attack with their fixed bayonets.

At the moment when the danger