I will presume that they were, but they had been very quick in catching them.

After my missionary friend who spoke their language had interrogated the prisoners, he requested that they might be kept apart, which was done, and they were given in charge of separate sentinels, to whose horses they were tied.
We then returned to our lunch, our pipes, and our coffee.

Suddenly we heard a pistol shot, a rush, and a scream from the neighbourhood of the prisoners.

It seems that one of them had drawn the pistol from his guardian's belt, shot him dead, jumped on to the horse, and galloped off.

Everybody, marines and all, tried to follow.