"Cowardly!" cried Gardner, rising.
"That's what I said. But then what could you expect from a man who had been an officer on the Chesapeake?"
The allusion, of course, was to the capture of the American frigate Chesapeake by the British frigate Shannon, which was almost the solitary instance of English naval success in the war, but for which Gardner was in no way responsible.
"By gad, sir!" shouted Gardner, "if I play like a coward, you play like a booby! Your tactics are what one would naturally expect from a soldier whose chief exploit was in leading the flying troops from Bladensburg!" another American defeat and a disgraceful one at that, although Mason had there fought bravely until wounded.
"You shall wipe out this insult, sir!" responded Mason, rising in his turn.
"Yes," said the other, "in the only possible way."
"Gentlemen! Gentlemen!" interrupted some of the others.
"What's this?" exclaimed the colonel, leaving his table and approaching them. "Brawling in my house among my guests? I will have none of it!"
"Sir," cried Gardner, "you are a soldier. You are all soldiers here; I alone am a sailor. This person called me a coward, taunted me with the loss of the Chesapeake. By heavens, he shall apologize!"
"What?" said the colonel. "Did you make use of such intemperate language, Captain Mason?"