ed till the chase was almost lost to sight. The
officers and even most of the watch below remained on deck.

"She has tacked, sir," cried Mr Foley from forward.

"We'll tack too," said the commander. "Hands, about ship; helms alee;
raise tacks and sheets; mainsail haul; of all, haul!" The crew eagerly
performed the manoeuvre, and the ship, now on her starboard tack, stood
in towards the land.

Many sharp eyes on board were directed towards the spot where the
stranger had last been seen. The master had gone to consult his chart;
it was his business to warn the commander not to stand on too long
towards the coast, although it was not as dangerous from hidden reefs
and keys as further to the westward.

"Can anybody see her?" asked the commander, whose eyesight was less
acute than that of most of his younger officers.

No one answered.

"I got a glimpse of her a minute ago, but I can't make her out anywhere
now, sir," said Mr Foley.

At length the ship stood on for a quarter of an hour, till the outline
of the land could be seen distinctly ahead against the clear sky. Again
she was put about, but nowhere was the chase visible. The _Champion_
was now standing along the land at a safe distance. If the buccaneer
could not be discovered from her deck, neither could she from that of
the buccaneer; she might come upon her unexpectedly. A sharp look-out
was kept all night, but when morning returned no sail was in sight. A
mist hung like a thick veil along the coast, allowing only the summits
of the higher ridges to be seen, as the sun, rising above the horizon,
tinged them of a red hue with his glowing rays. To look for her to the
eastward was useless, and the ship again being put about, stood to the
westward along the land; but, except a few small craft which immediately
made their escape among the rocks, or within the numerous bays and
creeks, no craft worth overhauling was seen.

The commander was a calm-tempered man, accustomed to disappointment, or
he might have joined with some of the younger officers in their
expressions of disgust at having lost the picaroon. Lieutenant Foley
tried to look unconcerned when the commander at length expressed his
intention of standing across to the Jamaica coast, touching at different
places to ascertain what was going forward on shore.

As the wind was favourable the _Champion_ was not long in making the
land. A small bay marked as Peyton's Cove on the chart lay directl