"'Tis impossible! You would never arrive."
"Your Grace, I think I should. Permit me to explain. We are here in Spain----"
"Ay," said Rooke, interposing, "and so we are. But, Mr. Crespin, you would never get ashore, or, getting there, would never escape out of Vigo. Remember, the town itself is not in our hands, and the moment we were gone you would be set upon, or, even though you should be unmolested while we remain here, you would be followed from Vigo and----"
"Sir," I interrupted in my excitement, "this is my plan: There is a seaport hard by here, called Viana, and 'tis in Portuguese territory--therefore neutral--yet inclining more to us than to France."
"Aye," said Rooke, "and will come over to us ere long. The king leans to our side the most, because we are strongest on the seas--this taking of the galleons will decide him."
"Meanwhile," I went on, "'tis neutral. Now, from there I can make my way to Spain----"
"There's the rub! When you are in Spain. And afterward, in France. What then?"
"In both countries I can be a Frenchman," and now I saw these two great officers look at me attentively. "I have the French tongue very well--well enough to pass through Spain as a Frenchman, while--when in France--I can pass as a Spaniard who knows the French."
"'S heart!" exclaimed Ormond, slapping of the table with his be-ringed hand, "but I would you were in one of my regiments. You have a brain as well as a stalwart form. You must go far; and shall, if my word is any good with Jack Churchill."
"My Lord Duke, you are most gracious. Yet may I not ask if the plan is a fair one? At least, remembering that, by sea, the way is closed."