There was no response; the American prisoners were too much engaged in inhaling all the fresh air they could to care about talking.
"That is Land's End, in England. You will soon be there, and then you will all be hanged. A short life and a wretched one will be yours from now on. That is all. Take the prisoners back to their palatial quarters."
The captain may have thought he was inflicting torture on the prisoners, but he was mistaken. They were not afraid of the fate which awaited them.
If they were to die, they would prefer to die on land to being tortured to death in the hold of a small ship.
As one of the prisoners quoted the words of an older rebel in England:
"The noblest place for man to die
Is where he dies for man."
So all felt that if they were to be hanged in England they would be tried, and on their trial they would be able to make their defense and let the world know under what grievances the American colonies were suffering.
In two days the vessel landed in Falmouth Harbor.
The news that the vessel had on board a number of American prisoners caused thousands of people to flock to the wharf.
The greatest curiosity was manifested.