“She’s the Giaour,” observed Commander Allport, looking at the signal-book; “Murray will assist us in knocking her to pieces.”
“I very much doubt whether he will do anything of the sort,” answered Adair, unable to restrain himself; “I only wish he had come an hour ago, to save her from destruction.”
“You are forgetting our relative positions, Commander Adair,” observed Commander Allport, beginning now to fume.
“I only expressed my opinion that Murray would not have tried to knock the Flash to pieces, till he had assisted me in making further efforts to get her off,” answered Adair; “and I only ask you to desist from firing till you have his opinion.”
Now Commander Allport did not recollect that Murray was his senior. The latter had been promoted a few weeks before him, and would have power to decide the question. Instead of desisting, however, he directed his guns so as to concentrate their fire upon one portion of the Flash, thus more completely to ruin her. Adair knew that it would be useless to plead any longer; his only regret was that he had obeyed his superior officer’s command, and quitted the vessel, instead of remaining on board and taking the consequences. Had he remained he felt that he would certainly have run the risk of censure for disobeying orders, but he would have saved his ship, and that alone would have proved a sufficient excuse had Commander Allport brought him to a court-martial; which it was very likely he would not have dared to do. Terence consoled himself with the reflection that he had fought his ship gallantly, and would have continued to fight her till she had been knocked to pieces, and that he had acted in obedience to the orders of a superior in quitting her.
“Well,” he said to himself, “as Murray always used to advise, ‘Do right and take the consequences.’ I have done right in obeying, but the consequences are not less unpleasant. I shall be reprimanded for losing my ship, and shall be sent on shore with a black mark against my name, and all my prospects in the service ruined; and Sir John will be less likely than ever to allow me to marry Lucy. I am the most unfortunate fellow alive.” This was about the twentieth time poor Terence had uttered the expression since he had been compelled to leave the Flash. As long as he continued on her deck, fighting her bravely, he had not cared half so much about her having run on shore; besides which, he had never abandoned the hope of getting her off. So completely did his feelings run away with him that he even began to contemplate, though his calmer moments would have forbidden him doing so, the idea of calling out Commander Allport, as the only way of avenging the injury he had received; but he, happily, had strength to banish the thought almost as soon as it was conceived, and, walking to the other side of the ship, he anxiously watched the approach of the Giaour.
As soon as she drew near, he ordered his gig, and, without holding any further communication with Commander Allport, pulled on board her.
“Why, Adair, what have you been doing with the Flash?” asked Murray, as he sprang up the side. Terence briefly explained what had happened, and declared his conviction that the ship might have been saved by the adoption of proper measures.
“Instead of that, old Allport is expending powder and shot in making a target of her, for no earthly reason beyond that of showing that he is my superior officer, though of equal rank. I wish to goodness he had been laid on the shelf, the only position he is fit for.”
“We must try what can be done,” said Murray. “Happily, I am his superior officer, which he will find out by looking at the Navy List, if he does not know it already;” and Murray directed a signal to be made to the Anaconda to “Cease firing.” Commander Allport, who still had not discovered that Murray was his superior, was at first inclined to pay no attention to the signal; till his first lieutenant, happening to know the true state of the case, brought him a Navy List, and pointed out to him Murray’s date of promotion.