You should,
however, have obeyed the order of recall; the brig might have proved too
strong for you, and, bound on service as we are, we have no right to risk
valuable lives except in self-defence."
"Sure I knew nothing about the signal," O'Grady said, with an air of
innocence; "I thought it just meant 'More power to ye! give it 'em hot!'
or something of that kind. It was not until after I had taken the brig
that I was told that it was an order of recall. As soon as I learned that,
we came along as fast as we could to you."
"But Mr. Woods must surely have known."
"Mr. Woods did tell me, Major," Terence put in, "but somehow I forgot to
mention it to Captain O'Grady."
There was a laugh among the officers standing round.
"You ought to have informed him at once, Mr. O'Connor," the major said,
with an attempt at gravity. "However," he went on, with a change of voice,
"we all owe so much to you that I must overlook it, as there can be very
little doubt that had it not been for your happy idea of taking possession
of the lugger we should have been obliged to surrender, for I should not
have been justified in holding out until the ship sank under us. I shall
not fail, in reporting the matter, to do you full credit for your share in
it. Now, what is your loss, Captain O'Grady?"
"Three men killed and eleven wounded, sir.
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