"I am a soldier and a gentleman. My word is enough."
"Then I will accept your word. If I were free I could gain the ear of the king's advisers."
"But you are not free yet, and it may be some time before an exchange can be made."
"Exchange! Do you not know that there will be no exchange possible? If any of the rebels fall into the hands of the English they will be shot or hanged at once."
"In that case you would stand a poor showing."
"How so?"
"Because the first man taken by your side and hanged would lead us to hang an equal number of your men, and officers would have the first piece of rope."
Delaplace had not expected to hear such strong sentiments from Arnold, but he laughed and said that a soldier dealing with rebels knew that he took great risks, and that he must be prepared for them.
"But," he added, in a whisper, "if I could slip out of this fort and gain the English lines——"
"But you cannot slip out."