Gathering them in a knot about me, so that all
could hear my lowest whisper, I put to them the situation as I
conceived it.
"By God's mercy we have succeeded thus far," I said, "but the
greatest of our dangers lie still before us. I know nothing of this
country, nor does any of us, and in a few hours day will dawn, our
escape will be discovered, and there will be a hue and cry after us
for miles around. What we want to do is to make the coast and
borrow a boat in which we may set sail for England."
"Ay, ay," was the general grunt.
"Ay, indeed," I went on, "but we know not in what direction the
coast lies, nor would it be safe for us to attempt to reach it yet.
When our absence is known, the Frenchmen will assuredly suspect
that the coast will be our aim, and they will have it watched for
miles, so that even if we found a boat and got to sea (in which we
might fail), we should certainly be espied and chased and caught.
What we must do, as it seems to me, is to strike into the country
and find a hiding place where we may lie until the first alarm has
passed, and then endeavor by some means to learn of a secluded
fishing hamlet whither we may steal our way by night. Can you
suggest a better plan?"
For a brief space there was silence; then the bosun said:
"If we can not tell the way to the coast, neither can we know if we
be going inland, and so we may stumble into the very danger we
ought to avoid."
"There is the north star above us," I replied, "and by going south
it would appear that we shall go away from the sea.
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