“Stand aside, sir. I'm not the man to let you sacrifice yourself for me——” And unloosing his wife's arms from his neck, he advanced to the door.
“Very well; it is your own fault.”
The next instant the lieutenant threw open the door.
“Sergeant, bring your men here.”
Half an hour later Lieutenant Carteret reported to Commander Arness.
“I have brought the prisoner on board, sir. He is a man named Charles Parker, and was sergeant of marines on the Flycatcher? ”
“Very good, Mr. Carteret What have you done with his wife?”
“She refused to leave, sir, and when we brought the man away, went off to the other side of the island.”
When the Spitfire reached Sydney, Charles Parker was duly tried by court-martial, and in consequence of the friendly exertions of the principal witness against him, Lieutenant Neil Carteret, was let off lightly. He was dismissed from the service, and sentenced to imprisonment in a Sydney jail for eighteen months.
When his time had expired, he managed, after a few months of waiting about in Sydney, to work his way back to Anuda Island. And scarce had the boat touched the beach when he was seized by the welcoming arms of his native friends and carried ashore.