`` captain granby begs your majesty 's pardon , '' hammond said , `` that his lack of skill in the language bars him expressing his gratitude for the honor which you have done him , by this invitation ; and wishes me to convey to your majesty- '' he went on in this perfectly untruthful vein , with which anahuarque seemed quite well-satisfied ; temeraire looked away to watch instead the traffic of dragons coming and going among the great stepped terraces and high roofs of the city , laid out before their present vantage point , which if less remarkable was at least less dreadful than the debacle in progress before him ; and for interest there were three dragons coming in from the south , two rigged out with elaborate streaming banners of great size .