we were overhauled by a British cruiser, we should be taken for pirates ourselves and be hung up in some of the Bahama Islands without judge or jury. Beside, we might be relieved!

The captain was a very good-natured, indolent man, and if put to his mettle could fight as well as anybody; but he did not like the labor nor the excitement, and though as anxious as any of us to get out of their hands, he thought discretion the better part of valor. I could not move him.

My next plan was to get at my pistols that were in my trunk; they were loaded and in excellent order, being a pair of first-rate arms, which, as I before said, were presented to me by my brother. My project was to ask the prize-master for the key to get a clean shirt ; this he readily granted, but he accompanied me to the cabin. him I was afraid that Irish whelp would return in the night, and as he had threatened to put me to death, I wanted my pistols to defend myself. He looked slyly at me, and said there was no danger; he would protect me. I said everything I could think of to persuade him, but he remained inexorable.

In the course of the day Jack Stevens got into a row with one of the pirates; the fellow struck him with the flat of his sabre. Jack knocked

and asked one of the men on deck to go down aft and get him some water, and at the same time he walked forward, and covering over the hatch of the forescutttle he closed the hasp and put a toggle or spigot into the staple; and before the party below were aware of their situation or had time to make a clamor, he had returned to the man on deck and asked him to see what the other sailor was about so long in getting the water. This man went to the hatchway aft, and stooped down to call his comrade, when Lord seized him by the breech and pitched him headlong into the after-steerage, and then shut over the hatch and fastened it as he had the other. This last act was seen by the man at the helm, who immediately stamped violently on the quarter-deck to rouse the prizemaster. This was the signal for the Irish passenger to begin operations; and having all things ready prepared, Lord soon silenced that personage. In the mean time the helmsman sprang forward to seize upon Lord, who had placed a harpoon in such manner that he could possess himself of it at once; but the Frenchman was so quick upon him that Lord was obliged to drop his weapon and resort to his fist, with which he knocked the fellow overboard the first blow he struck him. The noise now, both forward and aft, by beating against the hatches in trying to force them open, was so great that Lord was obliged, with his companion, to have recourse to the firearms, which they repeatedly discharged to let the sailors know they had the means of suppressing them entirely. When this impression was sufficiently made, they entered into a compact with their prisoners, agreeing that if the two fellows aft would supply them with provisions and water, they Lord & Co., would cook it and give them their share. This the Frenchmen both fore and aft were glad to accede to, agreeing to let a portion out to help work the ship daily, and to submit in all things to the recaptors. In this way the ship was brought to Bermuda, where she was libelled for salvage in the Vice-Admiralty Court. Lord collected all the articles belonging to me, and delivered them to my wife; but the lace was sadly cut up."

him down, and the whole horde rushed forward to avenge the insult; Jack jumped overboard, and swam to the galley, that was not far off. This caused great alarm, and it required all our eloquence to pacify the indignant prize-master and the enraged crew. Jack was put in confinement on board the galley under deck, where he was kept till the next morning almost suffocated and quite starved. The next morning he was let out; but the moment he put his foot on the deck, he sprang into the sea and swam for the brig. By coaxing and persuasion I got the prizemaster to take him on board; but he was put below at once, and kept a close prisoner.

It had been calm all day, and we saw nothing in the offing. The prize-master dined with us in the cabin, and was very good-humored; talked of St. Jago, and wished for a good breeze to carry us there; abused the Irishman for a hot-headed fool, and said he was afraid he was no better than he should be, but did not think he was a pirate, but that he was a thief and a drunkard. He had seen him before, but that party did not belong to their crew; they were suspicious of them, and kept a jealous eye upon them. All this I considered as mere sham, as in fact it proved to be; but he talked of morality and honor, as if he knew their worth. He, however, treated us with civility, and the afternoon went off without any new incident; the weather was still calm.

But night approached, and my apprehensions came with it. I had no confidence in the assumed character of the galley, and was convinced something would befall us before the next morning. No means of resistance was left us; the captain refused to aid in the rescue of the vessel, and indeed prohibited the undertaking. Besides, our right-hand man, Jack Stevens, was confined under deck in the galley.

After remaining above as long as the pirate would permit, I went to my berth and lay down with my clothes on, but not to sleep, for had I drunk deeply from the fountain of Lethe I could not have closed my eyes or lost for a moment my recollection. I thought of all the means within my power to defend myself. I did not despair or lose my resolution; it was increased rather than diminished; but what could my will, unarmed as I was, do against a host of cut-throats, armed with every sort of deadly weapon, from the knife to the blunderbuss?

I felt sure that O'Brian would revisit us during the night, and his last threatening attitude and vengeful curse when we parted were constantly present to my mind; but I was young, strong, and full of confidence in my own powers, and I had been accustomed to dangers all my life. The habit of constant exposure to danger grows by degrees into indifference. We lose our excitability as danger and oppression become familiar to us, and a strong feeling of dogged submission or a determined resolution to resistance controls all our actions. The latter was

my feeling; for there was no hope in cowering before the ferocity of such a villain, and die I must if he came on board, unless chance or Heaven should interpose. These thoughts occupied my mind during the night; at the least noise I was up and ready for the worst that could come; but I did not feel as if I were to die that night, and I was determined not to if my own exertions could save me. There was no light in the cabin but such as the eye habituated to darkness can discern, but my senses were all awake, and hour after hour passed on while I watched and listened for the splashing of oars which were to bring the Irish giant back upon us. The morning, however, arrived, and no O'Brian appeared, and my heart and spirits sank within me. Strange as it may appear, I was less depressed, and ten times more fit for action and resistance during the whole of this gloomy night than I was when I went on deck and found all quiet and safe. I said nothing to any one on the subject of my apprehensions, and a little reflection and a warm breakfast brought me to life again.

I mentioned in the first part of this letter that a M. Thoüen had given me a couple of watches to keep and bring to the United States for him, and that I had placed one of them in the ankle part of my pantaloons on one leg, and a rouleau of Joes in the other, which belonged to myself. I had carried them thus the whole of the day, but with great inconvenience and pain, as they chafed my ankles so that I could scarcely move at night. When I turned in I removed them to the pockets of my pantaloons, which were covered with the flaps of my frock-coat. After breakfast I took the spy-glass as usual and looked round the horizon and the distant shore, to see if there was anything in sight. As I looked to the northward, I thought I saw a speck, but could not make out what it was. I said nothing. The brig's head was to the northward, and there was a breath of air stirring from the east, off shore. I lounged forward and got into the bow, and then, without any apparent object, went out to the end of the bowsprit.

I watched the motions of the prize-master; and whenever he turned his face towards me I looked with my glass round the shores of Gonarve and St. Domingo, sweeping the horizon as if I was amusing myself, but watching the speck in the north as I came to it in turn. It grew larger by degrees, but not fast. I saw, however, it was a sail just peering above the horizon; but as there was little or no wind, we approached each other very slowly. My elevated position gave me an opportunity of seeing it when no one on deck could observe it, and the galley was still lower than us. Here I sat for an hour and a half without interruption; and as the wind freshened to the northward where the strange vessel was, the masts and sails rose out of the sea, and although I was afraid to look too steadily at it, I was not long in discovering that it was a large ship of some sort or other. This is easily seen

long before you can discern the hull of the ship, by the distance between the masts; and as the ship was running down a southwest course, my mind was satisfied that it was a British ship of war probably bound to Jamaica.

About half-past ten or eleven o'clock the galley hailed the brig. I heard the captain say something to the prize-master about batimenta, which I knew must relate to this ship, although I did not understand Spanish. I therefore kept my face turned from the deck of the vessel towards the north, looking steadily at the vessel which I was now fully convinced was a British frigate. There was but one glass on board our vessel; and that I had, and intended to keep as long as I could. The prize-master came forward and asked for the glass, but I could not hear him. He asked me what sort of a ship that was in the offing, but a sudden deafness had come over me and I did not notice his question. At length he ordered me to come on board, to which I answered that I would presently when I had made out the vessel ahead. He then again demanded the glass; and as the captain of the galley hailed again to know what the ship was, the fellow sprung out on to the bowsprit and threatened to throw me overboard if I did not surrender the glass. I told him not to be violent, there was time enough for him and me too to look at the ship, that I could not make her out yet; but the fellow seized the glass, and I remained quiet, and hoped that the ship would erelong be within gunshot of us. The prize-master looked for a moment only, and sprang on deck, calling to the galley that it was a frigata Inglesa. I still kept my position, looking anxiously at the frigate, which I could now see plainly with my naked eye. Suddenly I heard a noise on deck, and on turning round saw the pirates beating the brig's sailors down below with their sabres. The prize-master came forward and ordered me on board, and then directed the captain, the French passenger, and myself to go into the cabin. This we did without hesitation, followed by the prize-master and four men, three of whom were armed with blunderbusses.

At the entrance of the cabin hung a cot-bed, in which the mate usually slept. Here I was ordered to stop,- the captain and Frenchman being placed opposite to me. Each had a blunderbuss presented at his breast; and the fourth man, with a dagger in his hand, stood over the poor wight who was to be operated upon, with his dagger raised ready to strike in case of need. The prize-master began with the Frenchman, whom he ordered to strip. This "Crapaud" did without delay, and on examination of his pantaloons five Joes in gold were

1 It appeared afterward that the French passenger had manifested his thanks to the prize-master for sending off O'Brian by showing him five Joes he had in his trousers, saved from that thief! This was indication enough.

found in the pockets. Every part of his body was searched for more; but this was all the poor fellow possessed in the world, and with it he was flying from insurrection and bloodshed to the United States.

I watched the operation, not daring to move for fear my friend with the blunderbuss might take it in dudgeon; but I saw what my fate was to be, and I thought of poor Thoüen's diamond watch, to say nothing of my seventy Joes so nicely rolled up in my breeches pocket.

As soon as the new-made citizen was thrown aside under the care of his especial musketeer, they began with the captain, who stood, like myself, with the open mouth of the double-charged blunderbuss at his breast. The enormous frame of this individual made it necessary for him to strip his huge limbs and muscular body to nudity. Looking at the fellow with the dagger with one eye, and at the musketoon with the other, while he reluctantly undressed, was too ludicrous to be resisted; and although I did not know what was to follow this deshabillement, either to his own person or mine, I burst into a broad laugh, which caused the gentlemen who were searching him to turn their attention to me. The captain had nothing about his person, that I recollect, but his silver watch to surrender; and when they were satisfied with this, they left him to his man-at-arms, and came over to poor me.

The prize-master ordered me to undress; and as I stooped under this pretence, I endeavored to smuggle poor Thoüen's beautiful watch, which was done up in paper, into the mate's cot; but my object was at once detected, both by the fellow with the dagger and the prize-master. The fellow struck at me with his stiletto; but the blow was arrested by the officer, who warned me to remain immovable, as he should not again arrest the arm of his companion if I attempted to throw anything from my person. The watch was seized in its passage, and then I was thoroughly searched, and the two gold watches and my rouleau of Joes taken from me. The prize-master, or head pirate, then proceeded to the trunks of the captain and that which belonged to me, and took out the two bags of silver, my pistols, and some other articles; and leaving the guard to watch over us, he proceeded with his satellite, after giving some orders in Spanish to the guard, to the deck. These fellows stood with the muzzle of their guns pointed at our breasts for some minutes, when a rude stamping on the deck caused them to move backwards, till they reached the deck also; leaving us half naked, looking at each other like a set of craven hounds, whipped out of the course. All was silent on deck for some time; and the captain having resumed his small clothes thought he would take a peep and see what was going on. He mounted the ladder very cautiously; but no sooner had his eyes cleared the top of the companion-way, than down came his unwieldy bulk on to the steerage-floor. I roared with laughter to see his mighty frame lay