de of the ship turned toward the
enemy.

Meanwhile the magazine had been opened, and the powder-boys flocked to
the scuttles, receiving cartridges in the leather boxes slung to their
shoulders. Shell were hoisted from below. The surgeon and his
assistants, including the chaplain, laid out instruments, and converted
the cock-pit into an operating-room. The fires in the galley were put
out, and those under the boilers urged to their fiercest heat. The decks
were sanded, in grim anticipation of their becoming slippery with
blood. Tackles and slings were prepared to lower the wounded below. The
Gatling guns aloft were made ready to fire upon the enemy's decks, in
case the two vessels came near enough together.

"Prime!" shouted the officer on the quarter-deck. Primers were placed in
the vents of the already loaded guns, and the gun-captains stepped back,
tautening the lock-strings, and bending down to glance along the sights.

"Point! Tell the division officers to train on the craft that's coming,
and wait orders." This last command to a midshipman aid.

The silence throughout the great ship was profound. The gun-captains
eyed the approaching vessels over the sights of their guns. Only the
quick throb of the engines and the sough of the waves were audible.

The two vessels were now within some four miles of each other. There was
no question but that the stranger was a man-of-war--and an ironclad, at
that--provided with a formidable ram.

"I thought so," suddenly ejaculated the admiral: "Now show him who _we_
are."

The English flag had been replaced by the red-yellow-and-red bars of
Spain. Down came the red cross from the peak of the "Franklin;" and
then, not only there, but from every mast-head, floated the stars and
stripes.

A puff of smoke from the Spaniard--a whirr, a shriek, and a solid shot
struck the water, having passed entirely over the American frigate.

"He fires at long range!" remarked the admiral, calmly.

"It would be useless for us to reply," answered the captain.

"Clearly so."

"Shall we stop and wait for him, sir?"

"Wait for him? No! Go for him! Four bells, sir! Ring four bells and go
ahead fast!"

The clang of the engine-bell resounded through the ship; the thump of
the machinery grew more rapid; the whole vessel thrilled and shook, as
if eager for the attack.

The distance between the two ships was reduced to about two miles.

Again the Spaniard fired. The shot struck the "Franklin