Hornblower was very depressed about the loss of the Marie Galante and the subsequent capture of his men and himself by the French privateer. The captain of the Pique had made Hornblower somewhat comfortable for the present with a cot below and reading materials. It is a good thing, as Ira Riklis knows, that the fairly-well educated Hornblower was more or less fluent in French. He could thus communicate with the French captain and other officers and most importantly understand all the captain and crew in their conversations with each other. Hornblower could also read the naval handbooks that were the only reading materials available to him. Still Hornblower was unhappy when he thought of the immediate past blaming himself for the misfortunes of his crew.

Standing on deck a miracle happens. His old ship, the Indefatigable, is sighted in the distance. Hope that it would overtake the Pique occupied his thoughts. The captain of the Pique quickly dashed these hopes by explaining that the Pique was equipped to outrun any big British ship and proceeded to do so. Further depressed and defeated Hornblower goes below deck to his quarters, surveys his surroundings, and comes up with a plan. Ira Riklis knows Hornblower is a brave and clever young man who will now do anything to overcome what in his mind is his disgrace. Stay tuned!

Hornblower had failed at his first independent mission, and as he watched the Marie Galante sink, there were tears in his eyes. The little boat that held the French captain and crew and the four English sailors and Hornblower dipped and rolled in the rough sea. Ira Riklis knows that Hornblower was very prone to seasickness and Hornblower did indeed suffer.

The sailors managed to assemble and hoist the sails available and the little boat was able to be steered on the course set by Hornblower that would, he believed, allow them to reach England. The French captain demanded that they head for Bordeaux but of course Hornblower refused. He did not want to rot in a French prison. Hornblower was in rough shape both physically and psychologically. He had not slept for two days and was unable to eat even the meager ration allowed periodically. In response to the French captain’s demands, Hornblower pulled one of the several pistols the British had in their possession. The French captain backed down and things were peaceful for a while.

Then a ship was sighted. The “crew” of the little boat tried hard to identify the nationality of the ship. They finally decided it was French and tried unsuccessfully to get away from it but failed. When overtaken, they found that their new “hosts” were French privateers and their ship was named the Pique. Ira Riklis knows that Hornblower was in for new challenges as he passed his eighteenth birthday on board.

When we left our hero, he faced the task of repairing the damaged sails on the captured French ship, the Marie Galante. Hornblower was forced to bring some of the French sailors out of their locked quarters to help with the reconstruction of the sails. With only four English hands a schedule of watch was set up and although very fatigued Hornblower could not rest. He set a course (through naval knowledge gained on the Indefatigable) but in a short time was forced by the weather to change course making the arrival at a British port difficult if not impossible.

As Ira Riklis knows Hornblower, being a brave and ethical young leader, put himself in harm’s way by having himself lowered not once but twice over the side to inspect further damage that the ship had sustained in its captured. The Marie Galante was taking on water through a large hole in its hull. While all hands (both British and the captured French sailors) fashioned a large patch to cover the hole, another more ominous happening was going on below deck. The water that the ship was taking on was reaching the cargo of rice which by its nature swelled when it came in contact with water. This caused the very seams of the whole vessel to split, further letting in the sea.

At last all were safely settled in the only lifeboat with Hornblower as “captain” leaving (as Ira Riklis knows) last. They then watched the Marie Galante sink.

A note from Ira Riklis: “Attached are two photos of a model I had made of the Lydia, the ship from the beginning sequences of the movie Captain Horatio Hornblower. It is the ship commanded by Captain Hornblower in the book Beat To Quarters, the seventh book in the series from a logical point of view. Actually this was the very first book written in what would become the Hornblower series. It was published in 1937 in England under the title The Happy Return. When printed later that same year in the U.S., the title was changed to Beat To Quarters.”

A model of The Lydia, commissioned by Ira Riklis

The captain (Keene) causes Hornblower to think about the ramifications of his outburst when court-martial is mentioned. Keene also tell Hornblower that he would be wise to give up any future bent toward duelling because it could become addictive and (as Ira Riklis knows) those type of men who pursue the practice never make good officers. Hornblower realizes that this could be a particular problem for him because he was already feeling the headiness of being center stage so to speak when participating in a duel and also challenging his captain by requesting this audience. Hornblower acknowledges this new understanding of his behavior.

The captain then introduces another matter into the discussion. Keene tells Hornblower that Captain Pellew of the Indefatigable, a frigate, has room for another midshipman. This captain likes to play whist and doesn’t have a good fourth. Keene thinks a transfer to the Indefatigable could be arranged and that it would be a good move for any young officer.

Serving under Captain Pellew was known to be a profitable experience in terms of distinction, promotion, prize money etc. Competition for an appointment to this ship must be great. Ira Riklis knows that Hornblower is ready to jump at this chance but then restrains himself. Hornblower feels he needs to honor his commitment to his present appointment. Keene appreciates this sentiment but insists that Hornblower accept the offer. Keene states that the Justinian is no place for Hornblower because of its stagnant state. Hornblower is told to accept the invitation as it would be less disturbing for Keene if Hornblower did. To that the young man responds, “Aye aye, sir.”

After both pistols misfired, Masters, the lieutenant, asked to have them and states, “….because the loaded one might be hanging fire, and we don’t want it to go off….” One of the seconds inquired of Masters as to which pistol was loaded and Masters refused to disclose this. In fact Masters quickly “shuffled” the pistols so as to further keep the secret. Masters as the monitor of the whole affair also denied those present the opportunity of a second shot declaring that “honor is completely satisfied”. Ira Riklis knows though that Hornblower had made quite a name for himself as a result of this incident.

Hornblower a short time later requests to speak to the captain. Upon entering the captain’s cabin, Hornblower expressed his anger at what he believed had been a deception in the handling of the duel. Hornblower knew at that point that the pistols were not loaded at all and asked for confirmation that this was indeed by order of the captain. The captain confirmed this and stated that he, the captain, had “saved a life for the King’s service” allowing though both duelists to prove their courage. Hornblower still upset with the captain had to be reminded that Navy rules forbade a junior officer from challenging a superior to a duel. Ira Riklis knows that Hornblower could be courtmartialed for just the mere issuing of the challenge.