s
running directly in the troughs of the seas, with quite double her
former velocity. The other ships answered promptly, each keeping away as
her second ahead came down to the proper line of sailing, and all
complying to the letter with an order that was very easy of execution.
The effect, besides giving every prospect of a distant engagement, was
to straighten the line to nearly mathematical precision.

"Is it your wish, Sir Gervaise, that we should endeavour to open our lee
lower ports?" asked Greenly. "Unless we attempt something of the sort,
we shall have nothing heavier than the eighteens to depend on, should
Monsieur de Vervillin see fit to begin."

"And will _he_ be any better off?--It would be next to madness to think
of fighting the lower-deck guns, in such weather, and we will keep all
fast. Should the French commence the sport, we shall have the advantage
of being to windward; and the loss of a few weather shrouds might bring
down the best mast in their fleet."

Greenly made no answer, though he perfectly understood that the loss of
a mast would almost certainly ensure the loss of the ship, did one of
his own heavier spars go. But this was Sir Gervaise's greatest weakness
as a commander, and he knew it would be useless to attempt persuading
him to suffer a single ship under his order to pass the enemy nearer
than he went himself in the Plantagenet. This was what he called
covering his ships; though it amounted to no more than putting all of
them in the jeopardy that happened to be unavoidable, as regarded one or
two.

The Comte de Vervillin seemed at a loss to understand this sudden and
extraordinary movement in the van of his enemy. His signals followed,
and his crews went to their guns; but it was not an easy matter for
ships that persevered in hugging the wind to make any material
alterations in their relative positions, in such a gale. The rate of
sailing of the English, however, now menaced a speedy collision, if
collision were intended, and it was time to be stirring, in order to be
ready for it.

On the other hand, all was quiet, and, seemingly, death-like, in the
English ships. Their people were at their quarters, already, and this is
a moment of profound stillness in a vessel of war. The lower ports being
down, the portions of the crews stationed on those decks were buried, as
it might be, in obscurity, while even those above were still partly
concealed by the half-ports. There was virtually no