He had plenty to think about.
Another twelve hours and he would be with friends! He had no reason to
complain of the treatment he had received on board the privateer, but
had he remained with her he might not have returned to France for a
couple of years, and would then have had difficulty in crossing to
England; beside, it was painful to him to be with men fighting against
his country, and each prize taken instead of causing delight to him as
to his comrades, would have been a source of pain.
But most of all he thought of his mother, of how she must have grieved
for him as dead, and of the joy there would be at their reunion. The
hours therefore passed quickly, and he could scarcely believe it to be
two o'clock when he suddenly saw the light of a fire far way toward
the end of the island. A glance at the stars showed him that the time
was correct. He rose to his feet, and taking the lantern held it
aloft, then he lowered it behind a bush and twice raised it again. He
knew exactly the direction in which the harbor lay, and no sooner had
he put down the lantern for the third time than three flashes of light
followed in close succession.
He knew that everything would be prepared in the afternoon for the
start. Orders had been issued before he left that the oars of the
boats were to be muffled, that the chains at the entrance of the
channel were to be removed, and the ships got in a position, with
shortened cables, for a start.
Pages:
117
118
119
120
121
122
123
124
125
126
127
128
129
130
131
132
133
134
135
136
137
138
139
140
141