Thanking the officer very much for his thoughtful kindness, and much
relieved in mind--for they had already been wondering what they should
do--the boys ran below, and found that the tailor had guessed their
sizes pretty correctly, aided as he had been by the trousers they
had worn when they came on board. A few alterations were necessary,
and these he promised to get finished in a couple of hours. They had
scarcely gone on deck again when the anchor was let fall, and a boat
was lowered, in order that the captain might proceed to shore with the
despatches of which he was the bearer.

Just as he was upon the point of leaving the deck, his eye fell upon
the boys. "I shall be back again in an hour or two," he said; "do not
leave until I return. I will find out where your regiment is, and if
it has marched I will give you a certificate of how I picked you up,
otherwise you may be stopped on the way, and get into a scrape as two
boys who have strayed away from their regiment."

So saying, the captain got into his boat and rowed to shore. It was
one o'clock before he returned. The boys had dinner with the gunroom
officers, then changed their dress, and had now the appearance of
buglers in the marines.

The captain at once sent for them. "Your regiment went on yesterday
with the rest of the division. It halts to-day ten miles out of the
town. There is the certificate I spoke of. Mr. Armstrong is just going
off with two boats' crew to assist in unloading stores; I have asked
him to hand you over to the charge of some officer going up with a
convoy. And now good-bye, lads. I wish you every luck, and hope that
some day or other you may win your epaulets."