THE FRENCH SURGEON.

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At first, the Frenchmen were amused, and so were a number of the French boys belonging to the ship, who quickly assembled at the spot, especially devoting their attention to jeering and quizzing Fid and Harry.

Their good humour, however, was rapidly vanishing, and they would have, probably, proceeded to disagreeable extremities, had not the surgeon of the ship appeared on the deck. He was a gentleman and a royalist; and had been most unwillingly compelled to come to sea, as the alternative of losing his head. His profession gave him some influence among the crew, which he exerted on the side of humanity. Seeing at a glance Paul's condition, he appealed to his countrymen; remarking, that the Englishman must evidently be a good-natured person, or the boys would not be so ready to fight for him.

"Brave little fellows. They deserve to be well treated," he remarked. "And now do some of you help me to carry the old man below. He is not in a state to be left on deck. Any one of us, remember, may speedily be in a worse condition."

up and carried

True Blue was

This appeal had the desired effect; and, the kind surgeon leading the way, Paul was lifted below to a side cabin on the orlop deck. allowed to remain with him, and so, probably, would Fid and Harry, had not the surgeon considered, that if he left so many all would be removed, and they, therefore, were sent off to join the rest of the English in the hold.

The mode of proceeding on board the frigate seemed to True Blue like that of the very slackest of privateers; indeed, when he described what he saw to his godfather, Paul told him that even pirates could not carry on in a worse way.

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Before long, several of the crew looked in, and attempted to speak English, but very seldom got beyond a few of the ordinary oaths, so general in the mouths of seamen. At length, a man appeared who had been in England as a prisoner during the last war, and could really speak enough English to explain himself.

He asked them a number of question, which either Paul or True Blue answered truly.

"And so," he said, "I hear from my compatriot, that you belonged to the 'Ruby' frigate. Ah, she was a fine ship, and her crew were brave fellows; they fought well. You have heard of her fate, perhaps?"

"No," answered Paul and True Blue in a breath. What has happened to her?"

"The fortune of war, my friends," answered the Frenchman. "She fell in with our consort, 'La Nymphe,' of forty guns, and engaged her bravely for three hours. For which side victory would have declared is doubtful, when we appeared in sight. Just then, awful to relate, whether by design or not I cannot say, she blew up with a loud explosion, wounding and killing many on board 'La Nymphe;' not one man escaped of all her crew."

"Oh, mate, do you speak the truth?" exclaimed Paul, starting up and seizing the Frenchman by the hand.

"Why should I deceive you, my friend?" answered the Republican, putting his other hand on his bosom. "I know how to pity a brave enemy, believe me."

Paul lay back on his bed and placed both his hands before his eyes; while a gasping sob shewed how much True Blue felt the sad news.

CHAPTER XV.

The Battle and the Capture of the Frenchman.

THE account of the destruction of the "Ruby" soon spread among the English prisoners. At first the two midshipmen, especially, would not credit it; but the date of the alleged occurrence answered exactly with that of the day when Johnny Nott parted with her, and saw her standing towards an enemy's ship, and heard the firing at the commencement of the action.

"They do not even boast that they took her, or that she had hauled down her flag before she blew up," he observed. "If they had done so we might have doubted them. I'm afraid their account is too true."

"I am afraid so, indeed," responded Elmore, mournfully; so many fine fellows lost. Our brave skipper Garland; he is a public loss. They do not say that a single officer was saved."

Thus the midshipmen talked on. They almost forgot their own misfortunes and abominable ill-treatment while thinking of their friends. Some coarse bread and cheese was handed to them in a dirty basket, and water was the only liquid given them to drink; while at night, no bedding or the slightest accommodation was afforded them. In vain the officers pleaded. The men to whom they spoke only laughed and jeered at them; and poor young Elmore only came in for a greater share of abuse,

when by some means it was discovered that he was what they called an English aristocrat.

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Ah, milord," exclaimed one fellow, with a horrid grin, “if we had you in la belle France, your head would not remain long on your shoulders. We guillotine all such. It's the best way to treat them. They have trampled too long on our rights to be forgiven."

Sir Henry made no answer. He might have thought that the aristocracy of France, by their long indifference to the best interests of the people, and the so-called philosophers, by their open scorn of religion, had, indeed, brought down a dreadful though a just retribution on their own heads. It was they who had made the crew of "La Ralieuse" the wretches they were.

The next morning, the British seamen and officers were ordered up on deck, and being placed near the gangway, were surrounded by a guard of marines, with fixed bayonets. If they attempted to move from the spot, they soon had notice to go back again. The second captain, as soon as they were assembled, passed by, and knowing that Sir Henry understood French, carelessly remarked

"Bêtes! there you will remain all day, to make sport for our people. They want something to amuse them in a long cruise."

The young midshipman maintained a dignified silence; but he soon found that the officer's threat was to be carried out. There he and his countrymen were kept hour after hour without hats, coats, waistcoats, or shoes, surrounded by a succession of men, who did their utmost to provoke and annoy them. Even the ship's boys came about them jeering and laughing.

Nott more than once, in spite of Elmore's advice to

keep quiet, said he could not stand it; and Harry, and Tim Fid especially, took at last to retorting and imitating the gestures of these promising specimens of Young France.

Fid's actions were expressive. Sometimes he would hop along the limited space of deck allowed the prisoners like a frog, and say, looking towards his tormentors"That's what you are-that you are." Then he ran away, looking behind him, and crying out, "That's what you do that you do." Or he would skip about in the most fantastic way and say the same. Or he would brag and chatter, and remark, "That's how you talk-you know you do."

Fortunately for Fid, his captors did not understand his language more than he did theirs, so that his remarks did not enrage them, and the employment served to occupy his time and that of his companions.

The prize had parted company, and they supposed had been sent into port; but the frigate herself stood away to the westward to continue her cruise. In spite of the general want of discipline, a very bright look-out was kept for any strange sail in sight. In the afternoon watch a vessel was seen to the southward, and the frigate bore up in chase. The stranger, on seeing this, made all sail to escape.

The French seamen pointed her out to the British. "Ah, ah, we shall soon have her," they exclaimed. "See, the cowards dare not wait our coming up."

"I should just like to see a craft of your own size come after you, Mounseers, and we should see how fast you'd try to run from her," cried Fid, not, however, being aware that his remark was an appropriate answer to that made by the Frenchman.