At seven o'clock, or a few minutes afterwards, he came again. It was quite dark, but we heard the bowman make the boat fast by hooking: the bow rope into a ring on the landing-stage. The bowman then lighted a lantern and showed the way up the cliffs to the European, the two sentries who had been crouching in front of their now fiercely blazing fire following him round the corner.
In about ten minutes they returned.
Another hour dragged past—my goodness, how it did drag!—the lights went out in the little town, and just as the Hong Lu's bell struck the hour the steam-boat came puffing across again.
The same routine was carried out, and for ten minutes the little steam-boat lay alongside the landing-stage with no one aboard her except the coxswain and the stoker. Evidently this European had to visit the fort every hour, and we noticed as he passed across the glare of the fire that he appeared to be walking unsteadily.
"We must stretch our legs," the Commander whispered. "I can hardly move mine;" and he rose to his feet and began hopping up and down. Jones and I did it after him, one at a time, and though at first our legs were horribly cramped and painful, the blood at last began to flow through them, and we were able to move freely.
"My old rheumatism, sir—the same what I had up the Straits—won't be no better for this, sir, I'm afraid," said Jones.
Then the Commander told us to be prepared to climb down to the path directly the guard-boat came alongside again and the European and the sentries had gone away.
There was no doubt at all that he was visiting the fort every hour, for as two bells (nine o'clock) rang out away over the harbour, we heard the crew of the steam-boat chattering as they took her alongside the opposite landing-stage.
Then a lantern came down the cliff path swinging jerkily, we heard several rough oaths, a command in Chinese, and the steam-boat shot across into the light of the camp-fire to our jetty.
"Stand by," whispered the Commander as coolly as possible, though my heart was beating tremendously fast; "I will go first, and, when I'm at the bottom, you, Glover, will follow, and Jones will bring up the rear."