“I shall do my best to help you, Captain Smithers,” said Tom Long stiffly.
“I know you will, my lad,” was the reply; “but it will be no child’s play, for we must be extra strict and watchful.”
“Do you think there is anything to fear, Captain Smithers,” said the ensign eagerly.
“To fear? No, Mr Long,” said the captain. “We are English officers, and, as such, never mention such a thing; but there is a good deal to be anxious about—I mean the safety of all here.”
“But you have no suspicion, sir—of danger?”
“Not the slightest. Still we will be as careful as if I felt sure that an enemy was close at hand.”
There was something about that we that was very pleasant to the young ensign; and his heart warmed like a flower in sunshine.
“Of course, sir,” he said eagerly. “I’ll do the best I can.”
“Thank you, Long, I am sure you will,” said Captain Smithers. “By the way, you know, of course, that the ladies are coming to stay with Mrs Major, so that there will not be much cause for anxiety about the residency. Suppose we now take a quiet look round together; there is really no necessity, but we will go as a matter of duty.”
Tom Long’s self-esteem was flattered, the more especially as he could see that Captain Smithers was perfectly sincere, and looked to him, in all confidence, for aid in a time when a great responsibility was thrown upon his shoulders.