“But if we cannot attack in the daytime, Messer Hammond, without giving the alarm; and cannot attack at all at night, what are we to do?”

“That is the next point to be seen to,” Francis replied.  “We must cut, either from this hold or from the other, a way up to the deck above.  It may take us some days to do this, but that matters little.  We have plenty of time for the work before reaching Genoa.  The difficulty is not in the work itself, but in doing it unobserved.”

“That is difficult, indeed,” Matteo said, “seeing that the Genoese sailors are quartered in the forecastle above the forehold, while the officers will be in the cabins in the poop over us.”

“That is so, Matteo, and for that reason, it is clear that it is we, not the sailors, who must cut through the planks above.  There are no divisions in the forecastle, and it will be, therefore, absolutely impossible to cut through into it, without being perceived long before a hole is made of a sufficient size to enable us to get out.  Here we may succeed better, for fortunately we know the exact plan of the cabins above us, and can choose a spot where we should not be likely to be noticed.”

“That is so,” Matteo agreed, “and as they will not have as many officers as we had—­that is, including the volunteers—­some of the cabins will not be occupied.  Perhaps, by listening to the footsteps above, we might find out which are vacant.”

“I thought of that, Matteo, but I doubt whether it would be well to rely upon that.  Many on board ship wear soft shoes, which make but little noise, and it would be fatal to us were we to make a mistake.  After thinking it over, I have decided that we had best try to cut a way up into the captain’s cabin.”

“But that is sure to be occupied, Messer Hammond,” Parucchi said.

“Yes, it will be certainly be occupied; but it affords a good opportunity of success.  As you know, Parucchi, Carlo Bottini had been a long time at Constantinople and the Eastern ports, and had a somewhat luxurious taste.  Do you not remember that, against the stern windows, he had caused to be erected a low wide seat running across the cabin?  This he called a divan, and spent no small proportion of his time lolling upon it.  If I am right, its height was from ten inches to a foot above the deck, and it was fully four feet wide.  It would therefore be quite possible to cut through the two planks at the back, without its being observed by anyone in the cabin.”

There was a chorus of assent.

“Of course we must work most cautiously,” Francis went on.  “The wood must be cut out with clean cuts with the daggers.  There must be no sawing or scraping.  The beams are two feet apart, and we must cut through two planks close to them.  In that way there will be no nails to remove.  Of course, we shall not cut quite through until the time arrives for us to make the attempt, but just leave enough to hold the planks together.  Half an hour’s work will get through that, for if we were to cut through it at once, not only would there be risk of the hole being discovered by anyone sweeping the cabin, but we should be obliged to remain absolutely silent, or we should be heard immediately.”