t. Mr. Rhett had done very well; why
should not he?

Before the Governor's little fleet of vessels, one of which was the
_Royal James_, captured from Bonnet, was quite ready to sail, the
Governor received news that his preparations had not been made a moment
too soon, for already two vessels, one a large ship, and the other an
armed sloop, had come into the outer harbor, and were lying at anchor
off Sullivan's Island. It was very likely that Moody, having returned
from some outside operation, was waiting there for the arrival of other
pirate ships, and that it was an important thing to attack him at once.

As it was very desirable that the pirates should not be frightened away
before the Charles Town fleet could reach them, the vessels of the
latter were made to look as much like mere merchantmen as possible.
Their cannon were covered, and the greater part of the crews was kept
below, out of sight. Thus the four ships came sailing down the bay, and
early in the morning made their appearance in the sight of the pirates.
When the ship and the big sloop saw the four merchant vessels sailing
quietly out of the harbor, they made immediate preparations to capture
them. Anchors were weighed, sails were set, and with a black flag flying
from the topmast of each vessel, the pirates steered toward the Charles
Town fleet, and soon approached near enough to the _King William_, which
was the foremost of the fleet, to call upon her captain to surrender.
But at that moment Governor Johnson, who was on board the
_Mediterranean_, and could hear the insolent pirate shouting through his
speaking-trumpet, gave a preconcerted signal. Instantly everything was
changed. The covers were jerked off from the cannon of the pretended
merchantmen, armed men poured up out of the holds, the flag of England
was quickly raised on each one of them, and the sixty-eight guns of the
combined fleet opened fire upon the astonished pirates.

The ship which seemed to be the more formidable of the enemy's vessels
had run up so close to her intended prey that two of Governor Johnson's
vessels, the _Sea-Nymph_ and the _Royal James_, once so bitterly opposed
to each other, but now fighting together in honest comradeship, were
able to go between her and the open sea and so cut off her retreat.

But if the captain of the pirate ship could not get away, he showed that
he was very well able to fight, and although the two vessels which had
made him the object of thei