Even Frank, anxious as he was, could not but feel satisfied as he looked at the water glancing past her side.  She was heeling well over, and the rustle of water at her bow could be heard where they were standing near the tiller.  Andrews, the best helmsman on board the yacht, held the tiller rope, and Perry was standing beside him.

From time to time Frank went up to the crosstrees.

“We are drawing in upon her fast,” he said, “but she is travelling well, too; much better than I should have thought she would have done with that rig.  I think she has got a better wind than we have.  She has only made one short tack in for the last two hours.”

The captain’s prognostication as to the wind was verified, and to Frank’s intense annoyance it gradually died away, and headed them so much that they could no longer lie their course.

“What shall we do, sir?  Shall we hold across to the south shore and work along by it, as the schooner is doing, or shall we go about at once?”

“Go about at once, Hawkins.  You see we can see her topsails from the deck; and of course she can see ours.  I don’t suppose she has paid any attention to us yet, and if we stand away on the other tack we shall soon drop her altogether; while if we hold on she will, when we reach that shore, be three or four miles behind us.  Of course, she will have a full view of us.”

They sailed on the port tack for an hour and then came round again.  The brigantine could no longer be seen from the deck, and could only just be made out from the crosstrees.

“I think on this tack,” the skipper said, as he stood by the compass after she had gone round, “we shall make the point, and I think that we shall make it ahead of her.”

“I think so too, Hawkins.  What pace is she going now?”

“Not much more than four knots, sir.”

“My only fear is that we shan’t get near her before it is dark.”

“I think that we have plenty of time for that, sir.  You see we got up anchor at half-past six, and it is just twelve o’clock now.  Another five hours should take us up to her if the wind holds at this.”

By two o’clock the topsails of the brigantine could be again made out from the deck.  She was still working along shore, and was on their port bow.

“Another three hours and we shall be alongside of her,” the skipper said; “and if I am not mistaken we shall come out ahead of her.”

“There is one advantage in the course we are taking, Hawkins.  Viewing us, as she will, pretty nearly end on till we get nearly abreast of her, she won’t be able to make out our rig clearly.”

By four o’clock they were within five miles of the brigantine.  The wind then freshened, and laying her course as she did, while the brigantine was obliged to make frequent tacks, the Osprey ran down fast towards her.

“They must have their eyes on us by this time,” the captain said.  “Though they cannot be sure that it is the Osprey, they can see that she is a yawl of over a hundred tons, and as they cannot doubt that we are chasing them, they won’t be long in guessing who we are.  Shall we get the arms up, sir?”