Then the necessity for instant action asserted itself, and picking up the rifle, he turned inland, and struck boldly for the town, leaving the Merrimac sunk deep at one side of the channel leading to the harbor of Santiago.
Up and up the steep rocks he toiled, till he came to a deep gully, down which a tiny watercourse tumbled towards the sea. He could feel shrubs on either side, and thick grass beneath his feet. Then, as if fortune had determined to follow him, the sky in the east commenced rapidly to lighten, and so enabled him to see his whereabouts.
"There is a thick mist, which will lie on the land till the sun is up," he said with satisfaction. "That will give me time to hit upon a likely spot. Ah! what is this? This should suit me."
He suddenly espied a hollow in the midst of a mass of volcanic rock. It was carpeted with grass, and was overhung by a few big-leaved rock palms and ferns, all dripping with moisture. It was an ideal hiding-place, and he promptly crept into it and sat down, hugging himself in his borrowed tunic, for the morning air was bitterly cold.
A little later the sun came up in all his glory, and, topping the bowlders on either side, poured a flood of grateful heat upon him, warming him, and drying the leaves and grass.
Hal removed his wide-brimmed hat from his head, and cautiously looked out towards the mouth of the harbor.
"Ah! there is the Merrimac," he exclaimed, seeing the top of a mast projecting. "Bad luck! it's in deep water on one side, so that the entrance is not closed. Cervera will be able to come out, after all. But it was a plucky attempt, and I only hope that Hobson and his men have got safely away. Hillo! there's the raft, and I can see men clinging to it."
This was the case, for the explosion had swept the crew overboard, to find that their dinghy had been smashed by a shell. But a long, raft-like float had been prepared, and to this all swam. Even as Hal caught sight of them, a steam-launch flying Spanish colors ran out from behind the headland of cliffs, and steered towards them.
"Prisoners at any rate," remarked Hal. "That is better than being drowned, and I've no doubt that the Dons will treat them well, and admire them for their bravery; for it was a plucky thing to do."
Hobson and his men were, in fact, received in a most friendly manner. Admiral Cervera was himself on board the launch, and greeted the prisoners in the most courteous way. Then they were taken back to the harbor and placed upon the Mercedes, where the best of treatment was accorded them, Hobson being taken to the first lieutenant's cabin, while the men were sent to the quarters for'ard, where they were regaled with biscuit and coffee, with Spanish cigarettes to follow.