My interpretation of the last few pharagraphs of where the officer finally arrives on the island was as if he had stepped into a dream - it was strange that a whole school of boys on an island could be holding their own war. He even jokes about it to Ralph, when he hears narrations of their stay on the island. Even the mobidity of Piggy's death is brought up in a whimsical tone - it is as if the deaths on the island were considered light, insignificant and unconvincing.
His embarrassment probably arises from Ralph bursting into tears and the emergence of some of the boys, running around unclothed with runny noses. Perhaps in his mind, he regrets his lackadaisical attitude towards the boys in the first place. Personally, I think it represents a lack of female instinct displayed by the male gender throughout the book. From the beginning, some of the younger boys found comfort in suckling their thumbs, but the savagery and violence that men generally lean towards, as compared to women, overwhelms the children on the island.
Likewise, the officer displays a lack of concern, sensitivity and even affection towards the boys, who have been through their own little "war."
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