he sailor
we had rescued, set off with muffled oars up the cove to
reconnoiter, leaving Fincham in charge of the brig. The moon was
rising, but there was a deep shadow beneath the cliffs, and by
keeping well within this I trusted to escape observation. The cove
was about two miles long, and after rowing half the distance I
caught sight of a dark shape before me, as nearly as I could judge,
almost at the same spot as my brig when I cut her cable. We drew a
little closer, till we could see every spar clear in the moonlight,
and the man of the Susan Maria told me that the vessel was beyond
doubt the pirate of which we were in search. We lay on our oars for
a while watching her, and listening for sounds from her deck, but
hearing nothing, and judging that her captain would feel perfectly
secure, I thought that all things favored an attempt to cut her out
that night.

We pulled back to the brig and immediately prepared two boats for
the expedition. I selected twenty-four men for the job, leaving ten
to guard the brig. 'Twas a question whether Fincham or Punchard
should be placed in charge of the second boat, but Joe pleaded so
hard to have a hand in the venture (animated as much by his love of
action as by his promise to Mistress Lucy, of which I as yet knew
nothing) that I decided to leave Fincham in command of the vessel.
If the buccaneers numbered sixty, as I had been told, we had heavy
odds against us; but with the advantage of surprise I hoped that
our twenty-four picked men would prove equal to more than twice
their number of a mixed lot who had nothing but their common crimes
to hind them together.

'Twas about four in the morning, under a waning moon, when we again
came within sight of the enemy's vessel. We rowed dead slow in
order to avoid noise, and had come within half a cable's length of
her, and I was on the point of ordering my men to give way for a
dash, when I was surprised to hear voices from the deck, and the
creaking of davit blocks. 'Twas clear the buccaneers were letting
down a boat. I whispered my men to ship oars, and waited with no
little anxiety.

Had our approach been discovered? I could not think so, for the
most confident enemy would scarcely throw away their advantage of
position by seeking us out under the shadow of the cliffs when they
might securely await our attack and surprise us in turn. Then what
could they be about? I could just see the boat as it was lowered
over the side, and the