onds, Melfort, and
James himself--now a heartbroken man. Also there stood by his side one
who knew that not only his heart but his life was broken
too--Tourville, who had now come ashore.

What they gazed on in the bay was enough to break the hearts of any.

There, gathered together, the flames leaping from the decks to enfold
and set on fire the furled sails, the magazines exploding, the great
guns turned toward the land that owned them and their projectiles
mowing down all on that land, were the best ships of that French fleet
which had put out to sea to crush the English. Among them were Le
Merveilleux, L'Ambitieux, Le Foudriant, Le Magnifique, Le St. Philip,
L'Etonnant, Le Terrible, Le Fier, Le Gaillard, Le Bourbon, Le
Glorieux, Le Fort, and Louis. And all were doomed to destruction, for
the English fleet had blockaded them into the shallow water of La
Hogue; there was no escape possible.

* * * * *

Three hours ere that sun set, Rooke had sent for St. Georges and bade
the latter follow him.

"I transfer my flag at once," he said, "to the Eagle, so as better to
direct a flotilla of fireships and boats. Come with me," and stepping
into his barge he was quickly rowed to that vessel with St. Georges
alongside him in the stern sheets.

Reaching the Eagle, Rooke, who had now the command of the attacking
party, rapidly made his dispositions for despatching the flotilla--the
officering of the various fireships being at his disposition.

"My Lord Danby," he said to that gallant captain, who had refused to
remain doing nothing in his own ship, "you will attack with the Half
Moon and thirty boats; you, Lieutenant Paul, with the Lightning and
thirty more. Mr. St. Georges, who has done well for us to-day, and has
a trifling grudge against our friends, will take the Owner's Love."

And so he apportioned out the various commands, until, in all, two
hundred fireships and attenders were ready to go into the doomed
fleet.

At first things were not favourable. The Half Moon ran ashore, blown
thereto by the breeze from off the sea, but in an instant Lord Danby's
plans were formed. He and his crew destroyed her, so that she could
not be used against their own fleet, then swiftly put off in their
boats and rejoined the others. Meanwhile those others were rapidly
creeping in toward the French.

Already two fireships had set Le Foudriant and L'Etonnant on fire, the
boats were getting under the b