to proceed on to the West Indies. It used to be thought, in
those days, a good thing to give ships' companies the advantage of a hot
and cold climate alternately. The cold was to drive away the yellow
fever, and the heat to cure us of frostbites, to which we might be
subjected at Halifax or up the Saint Lawrence. We preferred, on the
whole, the West Indies, for, being constantly at sea, we had not much
sickness on board. We took a good many of the enemy's merchant vessels,
which struck without offering much resistance; but, though they assisted
to fill our pockets, we gained little honour, or glory, or a chance of
promotion. We had been, indeed, a year and a half on the station
without exchanging a shot with the enemy. At length, when off the east
end of Jamaica, while we were on the starboard tack, a strange ship was
discovered steering under easy sail on the opposite tack. What she was
we could not make out. She was considerably larger than we were, but
still Captain Schank determined, should she be an enemy, to attack her.
About an hour before noon she passed to leeward of us, and almost within
gun-shot. We made a private signal. It was not answered.

"About ship!" cried the Captain, and away we stood in chase. In about a
couple of hours we were within gun-shot. Our bow gun was fired and
returned by the enemy's stern chaser. She then hoisted French colours
and set more sail, edging away to the southward. At length we got up
abreast of her, and brought her to close action. She, however, fought
well, and we soon had our braces, bowlines, and tiller-ropes shot away.
The enemy, now expecting to make us an easy prize, ran us aboard.

"Boarders away!" cried Captain Schank. The Captain's wooden leg
preventing him from getting on board the enemy as rapidly as he wished,
Mr Duff led our men. Scarcely, however, had he reached the ship's deck
when a pistol bullet through his head laid him low. I was close behind
him. Oldershaw was bringing on a fresh set of boarders.

"On, lads, on!" shouted Oldershaw. We swept the enemy before us, and,
though they made a stout resistance, in ten minutes we had killed, or
driven below or overboard, the greater part of the crew. The remainder,
who had escaped aft, threw down their arms and cried for quarter. Our
prize mounted twenty-four guns, and the crew amounted to upwards of two
hundred men. Two days afterwards we were entering Kingston Harbour with
her in triumph.