Croucher gave his name and took the oath without once glancing at Goddard.
Syme looked severely at both Goddard and Croucher, as though they had never attended a court martial before, and said: "You must give me time to write down each question before it is answered. And then give me time to write down the answer."
Goddard gestured to Hobson, who was holding several sheets of paper in his hand.
"The first questions are written down."
Goddard and his cronies seemed to have prepared the case well. If the prosecutor had the questions written on slips of paper which were passed to the deputy judge advocate to read aloud the accused had to answer at once. If the prosecutor spoke the question so the deputy judge advocate could write it down and then address it to the accused, it gave the prisoner time to think about his answer. With the question already written down, the deputy judge advocate need only number it, make a note of the number in his minute of the trial, and ask the question at once.
Hobson went over to stand by Syme, handing him a page with the first question. Before the deputy judge advocate had time to read it, Captain Napier said: "Has the accused all his witnesses available?"
"No, I have only those immediately available."
Ramage had already thought through the probable sequence of question and answer, and now that the court was sitting there was little Goddard could do even if he suspected that there was some sort of a trap behind Ramage's carefully chosen words.
"What do you mean by 'immediately available'?" Napier asked.
"Only those that could attend the court when it opened, sir."
Syme jammed his spectacles back on his nose. "All those on the list you gave me are present," he said angrily.
"Quite," Ramage said.
"What do you mean by that?" Napier asked.
"In view of the gravity of the charges I face, sir - all of them are capital - and my present lack of witnesses, I hope that the court will be indulgent should any other witnesses become available."
Would Napier just leave it at that or demand more details? Ramage tried to look nonchalant.
"Very well. Carry on, Mr Syme."
"I haven't noted all that down yet," Syme said sourly, and Ramage guessed that the deputy judge advocate had been so absorbed in what was being said that he had forgotten to write.
Hobson handed him the first page.
"Were you," he asked Croucher, "commanding the Lion on the eighteenth day of July last when, during an attack upon a ship of the convoy, His Majesty's ship Triton did -"
"Stop!" Napier snapped. "Strike that from the record." He looked directly at the Admiral. "The prosecution is no doubt aware of the meaning of the phrase 'leading question'?"
When Goddard said nothing, Napier said quietly: "The court requires an answer. First," he said to Syme, "note my question in the minutes."
When he saw Syme had written it, he motioned to Goddard.
"The prosecution understands," the Admiral said grudgingly.
"Very well. The deputy judge advocate will read written questions carefully before speaking them aloud. Carry on."
For a moment or two Ramage wondered why Napier was on his side and then realized that he was not. He was just conducting the trial impartially. Ramage's only previous experience of a court martial was the one staged - and "staged" was the right word - by Croucher, in Bastia. There the President had used his position to twist everything in favour of the prosecution.
Goddard decided to abandon the written questions, frame new ones, and speak them aloud.
"What were you doing on the eighteenth day of July?"
"I was commanding His Majesty's ship Lion."
"What were your duties?"
"Flying the flag of the Rear-Admiral and escorting a convoy from Barbados to Jamaica."
"Was there any unusual occurrence that night?"
"Yes, a French privateer attacked one of the ships."
"What was that ship's position in the convoy?"
"Leading the starboard column."
"Where was the Lion at this time?"
"In her proper position ahead of the centre column of the convoy."
"Which of the King's ships was closest to the merchantman that was attacked?"
"The Triton brig."
"Who commanded the Triton!"
"The accused."
"How was the attack made on the merchant ship, and what was the merchantman's name?"
"The ship was the Topaz. The privateer came up from astern, following the line of ships, and went alongside the Topaz and attacked her."
"Was there any chance," Goddard asked, "of the privateer being seen from the Lion!"
"None," Croucher said. "It was a dark night and she was a mile or so away, and hidden against all the ships on the northern side of the convoy."
"Was a ship responsible for that section of the convoy?"
"Yes, the Triton."
"Did she prevent the attempt?"
"She eventually fired from a distance."
"At what distance, and from what bearing?"
"From perhaps a mile. From the starboard bow of the convoy."
Ramage wondered if he would remember all the discrepancies.
"For how long did the Triton engage the privateer - or, at least, fire on her?"
"For perhaps a quarter of an hour."
Napier said: "Can you be more precise?"
"For a quarter of an hour."
"Did the privateer capture the Topaz!" Goddard asked.
"No, the Topaz drove her off with her own guns, and the Greyhound frigate came up and captured her."
"What, to the best of your knowledge and belief, would you have expected the Triton to have done?"
"Hauled her wind and come up to the privateer before she reached the Topaz"
Captain Robinson raised his hand.
"Are you aware of any reason why she did not do so?" he asked.
"None. Nor did the prisoner subsequently give any."
"Answer only the question you are asked," Napier said. "Strike the last part of that answer from the minutes."
Goddard wriggled impatiently and, at a gesture from Napier, continued the questioning.
"From your long experience as an officer and from your knowledge of the circumstances, did the action of the prisoner lead you to any conclusions?"
Hmm, thought Ramage, very neat. It's probably phrased illegally but none of us knows enough of the law to challenge it. Napier is frowning but obviously not sure of his ground.
"Yes," Croucher said, almost whispering, "he fell under the tenth, twelfth and seventeenth Articles of War."
"Can you be more specific?"
Croucher shifted from one foot to the other as though Goddard was forcing him to give the required answers.
"He kept back from the fight; he did not engage the ship he should have engaged; he did not do his utmost. He did not defend the ships of the convoy."
Captain Innes, sitting nearest to Ramage, turned to Croucher.
"You have deposed that the Triton did open fire."
"Yes," Croucher said.
Goddard asked: "In the time available - from the time of sighting the privateer - could she have closed the range?"
"Stop!" Napier said crisply. "Strike out that question."
Ramage stood up. "With respect, sir, I don't object to it."
"Good heavens!" Napier exclaimed. "Very well, carry on."
Croucher said: "Yes, she could have closed the range."
"No more questions," Goddard said.
"The court has some questions before the prisoner examines the witness. You said the Lion was a mile ahead of the convoy?"