said.

"From Bridget?" the man exclaimed. "Why, I thought she was a hundred
miles away!"

"She came down here like a brave woman to try and save you," Ralph
said, "and gave us information that brought us to this hiding-place;
but her name is not to appear, and no one will know how we heard of
it. We promised her that no harm should come to you if we could help
it, and, thanks to the act by which you saved my life, you have
escaped, for being down on the ground you were out of the line of the
fire of our bullets. Of course at present we shall treat you as a
prisoner, as you were captured with the others; but I think we shall
manage to let you slip away. Your wife is to remain at Dunmanway till
she hears the news of this affair and that you are safe, and she bade
me tell you that you would find her at home, so no one will dream that
either she or you had any hand in this affair. Now, point me out which
are the four men that belong to this gang that brought you down here."

"The man who has just died was one of them," Denis replied. "None of
the other three are here, so I expect they fell in the cabin. They
were in the front of the fight. I saw one go down just as I grappled
with our captain."

"So much the better," Ralph said. "As to their leader, there will be
no difficulty in getting evidence about him. The regiment he belonged
to is in Dublin, and they can prove the shooting of his officer;
beside, they can get any amount of evidence from Galway."

"Ay; they will be ready enough to speak out now the whole gang are
down," Denis Moore said. "They would not have dared to open their lips
otherwise. The other prisoners all belong about here. One of their
party is the captain's brother. That's how it is they came to take us
in. But I think they would have been glad to get rid of us, for the
Red Captain's lot were too bad for anything; and it isn't because men
are ready to cheat the king's revenue that they are fond of such
villains and murderers as these."

In a short time the doctor arrived. He had brought a case of
instruments with him.

"There's nothing for it but amputation here," he said when he examined
the wounded soldier. "His legs are just splintered. The sooner I do it
the better."

Sergeant Morris and three of the men held the poor fellow while the
operation was performed. As soon as it was over the doctor applied
splints and bandages to Captain O'Connor's leg and Lieutenant
Desmond's arm, and dressed t