As soon as I could manage to do so, I slipped away to Truscott's cabin, and found him much more cheerful.
Old Mayhew had said that he couldn't tell what would happen till the end of the third day, and this was the third day since he was wounded, and he had no bad symptoms.
"To tell the truth, soldier," he whispered, "I'm as hungry as a hunter; tinned milk and soda water ain't very filling, and Mayhew won't let me have anything else, and precious little of that."
I felt pretty well "done up", now that everything was finished, so Grainger got me a steaming hot bath, and I turned in and slept till next morning.
Before I went to sleep, Grainger came back looking very cheerful. He held up my two damaged pairs of trousers. "We can do 'em all right, sir; one pair 'as a slit in the right leg, and the other a split over the left knee. We'll 'ave a try at taking 'em to pieces, and makin' one good pair out the two of 'em, sir."
"All right, Grainger; it will be better than having nothing to wear at all, won't it?" I told him, and went to sleep.
I copied this list of casualties from somewhere or other, and think that it is pretty accurate as far as our own ships and the Omaha are concerned, though I cannot guarantee the figures given for the Huan Min.
The "slightly wounded" were those requiring some treatment, and most of those who were on the sick list only a few days.
CASUALTIES DURING OPERATIONS ROUND HECTOR ISLAND.
Captured
and
subse-
Slightly Severely Died of quently
Name of Ship. Landed. Wounded. Wounded. Killed. Wounds. rescued.
Offi- Offi- Offi- Offi- Offi- Offi-
cers Men cers Men cers Men cers Men cers Men cers Men
Vigilant, 15 145 8 75 4 27 1 9 ... 2 1 2
Ringdove, 3 34 2 23 ... 5 ... 2 ... ... ... ...
Sparrow, 2 39 2 20 ... 9 ... 6 ... 1 ... ...
Goldfinch, 2 32 1 16 ... 3 ... 3* ... ... ... ...
Omaha, 4 41 2 27 ... 8 1 2 ... ... ... ...
Huan Min. 1 56 1 29? ... 16 ... 8 ... 1? ... ...
Totals, 27 347 16 190 4 68 2 30 ... 4 1 2
* This includes the two men killed by the six-inch projectile
which struck the Goldfinch.
CHAPTER XVI