The Lieutenant: Part 2, Chapter 1 Summary & Analysis

Rooke makes sure to act the part of an astronomer on board the Sirius, the flagship of the fleet. Captain Barton is initially suspicious of Rooke's navigation skills, but when he finds that Rooke truly can navigate, turns out to be kind. The Captain’s right hand man, Lieutenant Gardiner, is also very kind to Rooke. The three spend their days squinting into their sextants at the sun. Unlike the men Rooke remembers on the Resolution, they're not competitive about their readings.

Silk is on board the Charlotte at the rear of the fleet, and he and Rooke only see each other when they stop in various ports. When they meet in Rio, Silk grumbles about not being on the same ship, but Rooke privately thinks that he enjoys the navy men on Sirius. Silk pulls out his notebook and reads a passage he wrote. Rooke praises the passage, but questions its truth. Silk says he's taking poetic license, which is a foreign concept to the scientifically-minded Rooke.

Commodore James Gilbert is above Captain Barton in the chain of command. Gilbert is an angular and joyless man, though Rooke wonders if it's because he's always in pain. At dinner one night, Surgeon Weymark shares that Gilbert experiences constant pain in his kidneys or gallbladder, and none of his treatments work.

Every day at noon, Rooke, Captain Barton, and Gilbert make their way to the belly of the ship to the timekeeper, which is always set to Greenwich time. Gilbert winds the clock and then all three men tell the sentinel that the timekeeper has been wound. Rooke finds the ritual both humorous and wonderful: even though he's just a lowly officer, when they speak to the sentinel, Rooke is the commodore's equal.

When the fleet reaches the shores of New South Wales, Commodore Gilbert decides that Botany Bay is an unsuitable place to settle. He directs the fleet north. Rooke and Gardiner stand at the rail and watch quiet bays go past, and see black men running with spears. Rooke doesn't understand what they're yelling, but he's fairly certain they're yelling at the ship to leave. When the first small boat is ready to leave for the shore, Rooke jumps at the opportunity to join the commodore, Captain Barton, and Surgeon Weymark.

On land, five native men step out from the forest. Rooke thinks they look very much like himself, but very strange nonetheless. They're naked and hold spears and shields. Gilbert reaches for a bag of trinkets and pulls out a string of beads. He calls excitedly to the natives, and Weymark pulls out a mirror. They call to the natives to approach, and tell Rooke to grab a trinket too. Rooke grabs a mirror and steps toward a man about his own age. The man steps forward quickly, grabs the mirror, and steps back again. He looks at the mirror with one of his companions and then drops it. The natives turn back to the sailors as though they're waiting for something.

After a minute, Weymark approaches one of the older men. He takes the man's shield and sticks it into the sand, steps back, and fires his pistol through the shield. The natives jump back and as the smoke clears they see that the bullet split the shield in half. The native man gestures to his own body, and Weymark assures the man jovially that a bullet would do the same to his body. Rooke laughs along with the others, but the natives frown. Weymark begins to whistle, and the natives collect their shield and disappear into the trees.