“Sergeant,” Ralph said, “bring four of your men into the cave with me.  Now,” he continued when they entered, “there is a pile of blankets in that corner; take one of them and fasten it across two of the men’s muskets, so as to make a litter.  Then we must lift Captain O’Connor carefully and put him on it and get him outside.  It will be a difficult business getting him through the narrow entrance, but we must manage it as well as we can.  But first let us thoroughly examine the caves; there may be another entrance somewhere.”

Searching carefully they found a passage behind the stack of kegs.  It was some eight feet high and as much wide.  They followed it for a short distance, and then saw daylight.  Their way was, however, speedily blocked by a number of rocks piled over the entrance.

“This was evidently the original entrance to these caves,” Ralph said, “but it was covered up when the rocks came down from above.  That would account for the place not being known to the coast-guards.  I thought the passage we came in by looked as if it had been enlarged by the hand of man.  No doubt it was originally a small hole, and when the entrance was blocked the men who made up their minds to establish a still here thought that it would be the best way to enlarge that and to leave the original entrance blocked.

“Well, it’s evident we must take Captain O’Connor and the wounded out by the small entrance.  It would be a tremendous business to clear those great rocks away.”

Captain O’Connor and the two wounded men were with great difficulty taken through the narrow passage.  The soldier who was alive was the one who had received the charge of the blunderbuss in his legs; he was terribly injured below the knee, and Ralph had little doubt that amputation would be necessary.  The other man lived but a short time after being brought into the air.

Ralph now turned to the peasant who had saved his life by grappling with the Red Captain at the moment he was about to discharge his blunderbuss, and who had by his orders been left unbound.  He was sitting a short distance from the other prisoners.

“Your name is Denis Moore?” he said.

“It is, your honor,” the man replied in surprise; “though how you came to know it beats me entirely.”

“I heard it from your wife last night,” Ralph said.

“From Bridget?” the man exclaimed.  “Why, I thought she was a hundred miles away!”

“She came down here like a brave woman to try and save you,” Ralph said, “and gave us information that brought us to this hiding-place; but her name is not to appear, and no one will know how we heard of it.  We promised her that no harm should come to you if we could help it, and, thanks to the act by which you saved my life, you have escaped, for being down on the ground you were out of the line of the fire of our bullets.  Of course at present we shall treat you as a prisoner, as you were captured with the others; but I think we shall manage to let you slip away.  Your wife is to remain at Dunmanway till she hears the news of this affair and that you are safe, and she bade me tell you that you would find her at home, so no one will dream that either she or you had any hand in this affair.  Now, point me out which are the four men that belong to this gang that brought you down here.”