“Something wrong here,” said Mr. Splinter.  “Back your maintopsail, sir, and hoist a light at the peak; I shall send a boat on board of you.  Boatswain’s mate, pipe away the crew of the jolly-boat.”  We also hove to, and were in the act of lowering down the boat, when the officer rattled out—­“Keep all fast with the boat; I can’t comprehend that chap’s manoeuvres for the soul of me.  He has not hove to.”  Once more we were within pistol-shot of him.  “Why don’t you heave to, sir?” All silent.

Presently we could perceive a confusion and noise of struggling on board, and angry voices, as if people were trying to force their way up the hatches from below; and a heavy thumping on the deck, and a creaking of the blocks, and rattling of the cordage, while the mainyard was first braced one way, and then another, as if two parties were striving for the mastery.  At length a voice hailed distinctly—­“we are captured by a——.”  A sudden sharp cry, and a splash overboard, told of some fearful deed.

“We are taken by a privateer or pirate,” sung out another voice.  This was followed by a heavy crunching blow, as when the spike of a butcher’s axe is driven through a bullock’s forehead deep into the brain.

By this time all hands had been called, and the word had been passed to clear away two of the foremost carronades on the starboard side, and to load them with grape.

“On board there—­get below, all you of the English crew, as I shall fire with grape,” sung out the captain.

The hint was now taken.  The ship at length came to the wind—­we rounded to, under her lee—­and an armed boat, with Mr. Treenail, and myself, and sixteen men, with cutlasses, were sent on board.

We jumped on deck, and at the gangway Mr. Treenail stumbled and fell over the dead body of a man, no doubt the one who had hailed last, with his skull cloven to the eyes, and a broken cutlass-blade sticking in the gash.  We were immediately accosted by the mate, who was lashed down to a ring-bolt close by the bits, with his hands tied at the wrists by sharp cords, so tightly that the blood was spouting from beneath his nails.

“We have been surprised by a privateer schooner, sir; the lieutenant of her, and several men, are now in the cabin.”

“Where are the rest of the crew?”

“All secured in the forecastle, except the second-mate and boatswain, the men who hailed you just now; the last was knocked on the head, and the former was stabbed and thrown overboard.”

We immediately released the men, eighteen in number, and armed them with boarding-pikes.  “What vessel is that astern of us?” said Treenail to the mate.  Before he could answer, a shot from the brig fired at the privateer showed she was broad awake.  Next moment Captain Deadeye hailed.  “Have you mastered the prize crew, Mr. Treenail?” “Ay, ay, sir.”  “Then bear up on your course, and keep two lights hoisted at your mizzen-peak during the night, and blue Peter at the maintopsail yardarm when the day breaks:  I shall haul my wind after the suspicious sail in your wake.”