The exception among the captains was the one sitting at the end next to the Deputy Judge Advocate: he wore only one epaulet, on his right shoulder, indicating he had less than three years' seniority.
The one captain who did not look up when Ramage marched in was Croucher, the president of the court: he was staring down at some papers on the table, and Ramage noticed he also had the Sibella's two logs and muster book in front of him. The other captains were sitting on Croucher's right and left according to seniority. The man on his right — Ramage remembered him from an earlier commission - was Captain Blackman and must be next senior to Croucher, while Captain Herbert, whom he knew by sight, came next and sat on his left. There were two captains Ramage did not recognize, but the most junior, wearing the single epaulet, was Ferris, who commanded a frigate. Was he one of Goddard's clique? Surely not: Ramage remembered him as one of Sir John Jervis's proteges.
Since Ramage was facing aft, the captains were silhouetted against the bright glare of the sunlight reflecting up from the sea through the stern lights. On his right, so close he could almost reach out and pat the breech, was an 18-pounder cannon - the last one in the larboard row that began at the forward end of the quarter-deck and continued through the captain's accommodation which, since the Trumpeter was a two-decker and almost twice the size of a frigate, was one deck higher than in the Lively. On the other side of the cabin was another cannon, also polished black and resting solidly on its buff-colour carriage, secured by the rope breeching and side tackles, the last of those on the starboard side. They were solid reminders that the Trumpeter was first and foremost a fighting ship: when she was in action the furniture would be stowed below and the wooden bulkheads forming the captain's quarters would be hinged up out of the way, so that no enemy shot should shatter them into splinters.
Ramage watched the Deputy Judge Advocate shuffle through his papers and then polish his spectacles. Presumably he had already read to the court Probus's letter asking to be excused on the grounds of illness, and the Lively's surgeon would have been called in to attest on oath his Captain's incapacity. Either Probus had given a realistic impression of a sick man or the surgeon was willing to perjure himself.
After Ramage had been marched in the court was declared open and everyone else concerned or interested entered, among them Pisano. The names of the captains had been read out by Barrow, who then administered the oath. After each of the six men, with his hand on the Bible, had sworn he would 'duly administer justice according to my conscience, the best of my understanding, and the custom of the Navy in like cases ...' Croucher, as president of the court, then administered the oath to Barrow.
The preliminaries are over, Ramage thought to himself; now for the opening gambit...
Barrow stood up and read out the charge, like a priest mechanically reciting a mass, his spectacles sliding down his nose from time to time and interrupting the proceedings while he readjusted them.
The witnesses were ordered out of the court and Ramage turned to watch them go: they scarcely make a crowd, he noted sourly - just the Bosun, the Carpenter's Mate and Jackson. Suddenly he saw someone at the doorway beckoning to Pisano, indicating that he too should leave the court. So Pisano is to be a witness! But he's not on Barrow's list of witnesses...
Well, that'll be a difficult move to counter. Ramage was surprised to find himself using chess similes, since he was an appalling player. He'd always found the game too slow, and had a bad memory. In fact his complete inability to remember the cards already played at those interminable games of whist in the Superb used to drive that fellow Hornblower mad. Yet, Ramage remembered with amusement, he sometimes won simply because he was such a bad player: even if Hornblower guessed the cards he held it was no help since his play was completely unpredictable. Nor, when Ramage won, did Hornblower like being reminded that surprise was the vital element in tactics...
After Pisano disappeared through the door Croucher rapped the table. 'The prisoner's report on the surrender of His Majesty's frigate Sibella will now be read to the court'
Ramage was shocked to find himself being referred to as 'the prisoner’; but of course it was correct.
Barrow wrote down the president's words - it was his job to keep the minutes - and then shuffled among his pile of papers to extract Ramage's report to Probus. It was hardly an impressive-sounding document when read by Barrow, who had an irritating habit of letting his voice drop as he reached the end of a line, and put the page down on the table each time his spectacles slipped, so that he could use both hands to readjust them.
To Ramage's surprise, Barrow continued reading after completing the passage describing the surrender. He was leaning forward, undecided whether or not to protest that the rest of the report had nothing to do with the ship's loss when Captain Ferris, the junior captain, interrupted.
'Surely this has no relevance for the court?'
‘Pray allow me to be judge of that,' said Captain Croucher.
'But we are only inquiring into the loss of the ship,' insisted Ferris.
'We are trying the accused for his conduct upon the occasion,' said Croucher, sounding like a parson chiding a wayward parishioner. 'In fairness to the accused, we must satisfy ourselves as to the whole of his conduct during this lamentable episode,' he added, barely able to keep the hypocrisy from his voice.
'But—'
'Captain Ferris,' Croucher said sharply, 'If you wish to argue the point we must clear the court.'
Ferris looked round at the other captains, who stared woodenly in front of them, and then glanced at Ramage as if to indicate it was hopeless for either of them to protest any further.
'Very well,' Croucher told Barrow, 'you may proceed.'
Finally Barrow finished reading, and sat down.
'Since this is an inquiry into the loss of the ship and an examination of the prisoner's conduct,' said Croucher, 'has the prisoner any further facts not contained in his report which he wishes to lay before the court?'
You clever swine, thought Ramage: now you've really trapped me. You want me to introduce the Pisano business so it's set down in the minutes and you can take it further; but if I don't say anything it'll look as though I'm hiding it.
He replied, 'Any facts I may have overlooked in my report will no doubt emerge during the examination of the witnesses, sir,' and was startled by his own smoothness.
'Have you overlooked any facts?' demanded Croucher.
‘No relevant facts that I can remember, sir.'
To hell with you, Ramage thought: it's vital to remember that intonation and emphasis are not important; what matters is how the words will be read by Sir John Jervis and the Admiralty in the minutes of the trial.
Poor Barrow - his pen was trying to keep pace with the rapid dialogue; any minute now, just as soon as he dared, the perspiring little purser would ask for a pause to give him time to catch up.
'Very well,' said Croucher. 'The Deputy Judge Advocate will now read out a second report to Captain Lord Probus.'
A second report? Ramage glanced at Barrow. Was this another gambit?
'This report is dated September 12th, addressed to Lord Probus, and signed by Count Pisano,' said Barrow. 'It begins—'
Just as Ramage was going to protest, Captain Ferris interrupted.
'Is this relevant to the case? The court has no official knowledge of Count Pisano's existence, nor his connexion with the loss of the Sibella.'