"The Constitution!" exclaimed Brown. "Then we're free men. Cheer up, my hearties!"
Sutton's reply to this startled me so that I almost slid down the cable. Three roaring huzzas broke from him, in which the others joined. Soon I felt the swaying of my support, and I saw that the quarter gunner was climbing up to me. It was a crawl of some ten feet.
"It's a good thing, Debrin, that we are below water if we get to bandying shot, I tell you. See how she raked the Guerrière." Sutton chuckled.
But we could understand nothing from the confusion of sounds, until all at once I heard a voice I recognized speaking close to me. I knew the tones before I caught the words. It was Captain Hilton. In whatever he was saying I interrupted him.
"OH, CAPTAIN HILTON," I CRIED. "WE'VE A DYING MAN DOWN HERE."
"Oh, Captain Hilton," I cried, "for Heaven's sake, help us! We've a dying man down here."
"Who's that speaking?" questioned the Captain.
"The prisoners in the chain-hold, sir." I heard the answer given in a gruff tone, but most politely.
"That is no place for them," said Hilton, angrily, "and I thought I gave orders—"