w-dust were carried out and stood down
by the blazing fire--twenty of them; and just as this was done there was
the thud of a cannon away off the mouth of the Gap.

"Signal for recall," said my father.

It was quickly obeyed, for the French formed up round twenty of their
party who shouldered the boxes. Four men with drawn swords went first,
as if they were making a showy procession in the blaze of the burning
fire; then came the twenty men carrying silver, then six more with drawn
swords; then a group of about ten who seemed to be wounded, and four
more who were being carried; and lastly some twenty or thirty, with
swords flashing in the firelight, to form a rearguard.

"_En avant_!" rang out clearly in the night air, and away they went
chattering and making plenty of noise, just as a second gun was fired
and seemed to make the air throb as the report echoed up the valley.

"Why, there must be nigh a hundred on 'em. We may have a shot at 'em
now, captain, mayn't us?" cried the foreman.

"What for, my man?" said my father kindly. "If we could save the silver
I would say yes, but it would be only spilling blood unnecessarily. We
made a brave defence and were beaten. We could not master them now,
even if we could fire volleys every five minutes. It would only mean a
fierce fight, and we should be hunted down one by one for nothing. No:
they have won. Let them go now, but I should like to see them embark.
A good-sized French man-of-war must be off the Gap."

"Come on, then, captain, and let's get over the mouth."

"No," said my father. "You go with my son and one of the men, but I
forbid firing. See all you can. I must stay and look after our poor
fellows here, unless they've taken them away as prisoners."

"Ah! I forgot them," said our man. "Come along, Master Sep. Let's go
down here and cross, and get on the cliff path."

"Will you go, Big?" I said.

"No, I couldn't walk," he replied. "I can hardly get down here."

"I'll look after him," said my father. "Go on, but take care not to be
caught."

"We'll mind that, captain," was the reply; and we descended as rapidly
as pain would let us, reached the stream, crossed the path the Frenchmen
had taken, and went on diagonally up the slope, getting higher above the
enemy at every step, and talking together in a low tone about the fight,
and how the poor fellows were whom we had missed.

"I hope and pray," said our foreman, "as no one ar'n't killed;