great
annoyance.

"Hold your tongue, and come down, boy," he cried. "You can't stop
there."

"Be off and lock the door again, bully," cried Hilary. "You great ugly,
cowardly hound, if I had you on board the _Kestrel_, you should be
triced up and have five dozen on your bare back."

"Haw! haw! haw!" came in a regular chorus this time, for the danger was
over.

"I'd like to look on while the crew of you were being talked to by the
boatswain," cried Hilary, angrily--"a set of cowardly loons."

"That'll do!" cried Allstone, who was hoarse with passion. "Go in and
fetch him out."

No one stirred, and Allstone went in himself, but only to be seized with
a furious fit of coughing which lasted a couple of minutes or so, and to
his companions' intense delight.

The fit over, the fellow went in again and stood beneath the window.

"Come down!" he cried; but as Hilary did not condescend to notice him
Allstone seized the young man by one of his legs, with the result that
he clung with both hands to the iron bars, and raising up his knees for
a moment, kicked out with as much cleverness as his friend the jackass,
catching Allstone full in the chest and sending him staggering back for
a few steps, where, unable to recover his balance, he went down heavily
in a sitting position.

There was a roar of laughter from his companions, who stamped about,
slapped their legs, and literally danced with delight; while, in spite
of his anger and indignation at this scoundrel of a smuggler daring to
touch a king's officer, Hilary could not help feeling amused.

But matters looked tragic directly after instead of comic, for, uttering
a fierce oath, the man sprang up, pulled out his cutlass and made at the
prisoner.

Active as a leopard, Hilary sprang down to avoid him, when the pieces of
the broken plate--the remains of that which had thrown the young officer
down into the burning spirit--this time befriended him, for Allstone
stepped upon a large fragment, slipped, fell sprawling, and the cutlass
flew from his hand with a loud jangling noise in the far corner upon the
stone floor.

Quick as lightning, and while the other men were roaring with laughter,
Hilary dashed at the cutlass, picked it up, and, assuming now the part
of aggressor, he turned upon Allstone, presenting the point of his
weapon, and drove the ruffian before him out of the place, turning the
next moment upon his companions, who offered not the slightest
resista