his party could not be driven out
of Nombre without desperate fighting, accompanied by tremendous loss of
life and ruinous destruction of property, if indeed it could be achieved
at all, with a garrison of less than one hundred and fifty men, fifty of
whom constituted the garrison of the shore battery and were now
prisoners, if the young Englishman spoke the truth, which Don Sebastian
did not doubt. No, clearly, fighting was not to be thought of,
excepting possibly as a very last resource. But he, Don Sebastian, was
a man of the world, a man of mature experience in the ways of diplomacy,
and surely far more than a match, in this respect, for the simple-
looking lad who stood there staring at him so solemnly. Yes, diplomacy
was undoubtedly the way out of this unfortunate scrape; the Englishman
must be made to realise that the capture of Nombre was a stupid mistake,
out of which neither honour nor profit was to be gained; and once
convinced of this, he would perhaps withdraw himself and his forces
peaceably. These thoughts flashed through Don Sebastian's brain while
George was still speaking; and by the time that the latter had finished,
His Excellency had formulated his plans and was ready to reply. Hence
his benignant smile, which was intended to suggest also a tinge of
sarcasm and incredulity.

"Senor," he said, "I will not be so presumptuous as to suggest the
slightest doubt of your own conviction that the city of Nombre de Dios
is absolutely at your mercy. But you must pardon me if I decline to
share that conviction. I know the strength and courage of the troops
who constitute our present garrison, and, without for a moment casting
the slightest reflection upon the strength or courage of your own
people, you must permit me to believe that, should we unhappily be
driven to resort to force of arms, we could drive you and yours into the
sea. But I trust," he continued hastily, in response to a certain gleam
in George's eye that had not escaped his notice, "we may not be forced
to the adoption of any such extreme measure. For I may as well inform
you at once that if you have come hither with any thought of pillage,
you are too late; the plate fleet left here nearly two months ago with
the year's accumulations of treasure, and our treasure-house is at the
moment absolutely empty, as I am prepared to prove to you by taking you
to it, if you doubt my word. And, this being the case, I trust it will
not be difficul