“For God’s sake, Captain Wallingford, knock off with this, if you please;” cried the lieutenant, with a most imploring sort of civility of manner.—­“You see how it is; we can barely keep the boat from swamping, with the number we have in her; and a dozen times during the night I thought the ship would drag her under.  Nothing can be easier than for you to secure us all, if you will let us come on board, one at a time.”

“I do not wish to see you in irons, Mr. Sennit; and this will remove any necessity for resorting to an expedient so unpleasant.  Hold on upon the tackle, therefore, as I shall feel obliged to cast you off entirely, unless you obey orders.”

This threat had the desired effect.  One by one, the men were let up out of the forecastle, and sent into the boat.  Cooked meat, bread, rum and water, were supplied to the English; and, to be ready to meet any accident, we lowered them a compass, and Sennit’s quadrant.  We did the last at his own earnest request, for he seemed to suspect we intended sending him adrift, as indeed was my plan, at the proper moment.

Although the boat had now twelve men in her, she was in no danger, being a stout, buoyant six-oared yawl, that might have held twenty, on an emergency.  The weather looked promising, too,—­the wind being just a good top-gallant breeze, for a ship steering full and by.  The only thing about which I had any qualms, was the circumstance that south-west winds were apt to bring mists, and that the boat might thus be lost.  The emergency, nevertheless, was one that justified some risks, and I pursued my plan steadily.

As soon as all the English were in the boat, and well provided with necessaries, we felt at more liberty to move about the ship, and exert ourselves in taking care of her.  The man at the wheel could keep an eye on the enemy,—­the Dawn steering like a pilot-boat.  Neb was sent aloft, to do certain necessary duty, and the top-gallant-sails being loose, the clew-lines were overhauled, and the sails set.  I did this more to prevent the English ship from suspecting something wrong, at seeing a vessel running off, before the wind, under such short canvass, than from any desire to get ahead, since we were already going so fast as to render it probable we should pass the other vessel, unless we altered our course to meet her.

Diogenes Billings, the cook, had now a little leisure to serve us a warm breakfast.  If Mr. Sennit were living, I think he would do us the justice to say he was not forgotten.  We sent the people in the boat some good hot coffee, well sweetened, and they had a fair share of the other comfortable eatables of which we partook ourselves.  We also got out, and sent them the masts and regular sails of the boat, which was fitted to carry two sprits.

By this time the stranger ship was within two leagues of us, and it became necessary to act.  I sent Marble aloft to examine the horizon, and he came down to report nothing else was in sight.  This boded well.  I proceeded at once to the taffrail, where I hailed the boat, desiring Sennit to haul her up within comfortable conversing distance.  This was done immediately.