Chapters 9 and 10 Summary

Diane sails swiftly toward Batavia and makes good progress. Fox and his entourage become so arrogant that Aubrey, Maturin, and the rest find them all nearly untenable. On one occasion Aubrey invites Fox to an extravagant dinner to celebrate his successes but Fox takes the unheard-of action of turning down a captain's invitation. Shocked, Aubrey is further angered because he had already had his animals killed in preparation for the feasting. Instead, he turns to the gunroom with a last-minute arrangement and a great binge takes place among the ship's officers. On Coronation Day—presumably September 22, 1813—every ship in the Royal Navy discharges a full broadside in salute to the monarch. When Diane observes the ritual Fox mistakenly believes it is to honor him and his public acceptance and subsequent realization of his faux pas causes much hilarity among...