A hail now came from the approaching fleet, and the man who evidently was in command stood up in his place. He was still too far away for his words to be heard, and again the barges, which had halted for a moment, resumed their approach and with an increased speed.
"Men," suddenly called the leader of those on board the Washington, in a low voice, "we must get out of this! We're outnumbered seven or eight to one, and it would be just murder for us to stay here. Man the whaleboat, and we'll put out for the shore."
The hopelessness of any defense was so apparent that the men instantly responded and made a rush for the whaleboat, which had been made ready for just such an emergency. In a moment the men were on board and had grasped their oars preparatory to starting for the shore, when Little Peter suddenly noticed that Benzeor was not with them.
"Hold on! Hold on a minute!" he called. "Benzeor isn't here!"
The leader, who had remained on deck to be the last to leave, turned quickly at the words and discovered Benzeor striving to conceal himself among the defenses which had been piled together against the rail.
"Here, you!" he shouted. "Come out of that and get aboard! Be quick about it! I'll wing you if you don't," he added, raising his gun as he spoke, noticing that his call was not likely to be heeded.
Benzeor quickly responded, and sullenly took his place on board the whaleboat; but the men were all too intent upon their escape to bestow much attention upon him.
In a moment the leader leaped on board and gave the order to give way. The long whaleboat darted swiftly forward as the men began to pull desperately at their oars. They needed no encouragement now, for, with their departure from the Washington, their only hope of safety lay in a quick passage to the shore, which lay about a hundred yards away.
A shout from the men in the barges greeted the appearance of the whaleboat as it shot out into sight, but the hail was not heeded. One of the small cannon was discharged, and from one of the barges came a volley; but only one man was hit, and the whaleboat rapidly increased its speed.
The shore was near now, and the desperate men were putting forth all their strength. The barges did not pursue, for the sailors were intent upon gaining the ship first of all. In a few moments the whaleboat grounded, and the men leaped out and started quickly for the woods which grew close to the shore.