th' foe starts to invade, my boys,
An' creep along th' shore,
Where th' curling breakers wash th' cliffs,
Where th' breeching combers roar.
Then, lift a glass to Walker,
Of _Glorioso_ fame,
_May we ne'er forget his deed lads,_
_May we ne'er forget his name_."

--_Chants from The Channel._--1769.

It was the year 1739, and the good people of Charleston, South
Carolina, were in a great state of agitation. Little knots of
merchants, sailors, clerks, and dock-hands clustered about each other
in the narrow streets. And, above the hub-bub of many voices, could be
heard the solemn sentence, oft repeated:

"The pirate is off the narrows! The pirate will soon be here!"

Then all would gaze seaward with startled faces, and would murmur:

"The pirate--the Spanish pirate will be here."

As they thus stood irresolutely, a strongly-knit fellow came walking
towards the dock-end. He was clad in gray; his face was deeply seamed
by long exposure to the elements; and high top-boots of leather
encased his lower limbs.

"What ho! Good citizens," said he. "Do I understand that a Spaniard
has frightened you all? Why, where's your courage?"

"Courage?" answered a rotund-bodied merchant. "Of that we have a
plenty. But we have no ship with which to combat this fellow--or
fellows--for some of my skippers tell me that there are two of them
off the coast, and that they've captured twenty trading vessels."

The newcomer smiled.

"I've got a staunch craft here," said he. "My name is Walker, and I
hail from Bristol, England. My ship--the _Duke William_--mounts but
twenty guns, and my crew is but of thirty-two, yet, I know that many
of you gentlemen will volunteer your services, particularly if there
is to be a nice little battle."

"Hear! Hear!" came from all sides. "You're the boy for us! You're the
chap we've been looking for! Hear! Hear!"

It did not take long to increase the crew of the _Duke William_.
Several of the wealthy colonists volunteered their services; many
sailors were there who had been fighting on the Spanish Main. They
were eager and anxious to join. So, before three days were out, the
_Duke William_ spread her canvas for the open sea, carrying one
hundred men and an additional twenty guns. Now--you see--she could put
up an excellent fight with the average pirate-ship which cruised about
the low-lying and sandy coast.

Out into the broad expanse of the Atlantic glid