o steamers in Khrysoko Bay, with the position of the
ledge, the trend of the shore, and some of the soundings as he had taken
them from the chart. He had marked the course of the Maud in all the
movements she had made, and also of the Fatime, giving the position of
each vessel at the moment of the collision.

He began his recital with the pointing out of the places of each steamer
as soon as the pirate came into the bay. The visit of her boat to the
little steamer followed, and the marshalling of the five members of the
ship's company armed with the repeating-rifles. The interview with
Mazagan was as minutely stated as though a skilled reporter of a
newspaper had taken it down.

"That was the most amazing, presumptuous, groundless, and insane demand
that one person could make upon another," interposed the commander. "It
was sheer piracy!"

Scott had so viewed it, and he proceeded with his narrative. Captain
Ringgold had vacated his chair at the desk, on which the captain of the
Maud had placed his diagram, and pointed out everything as he spoke. The
attempted escape by the supposed channel near the shore was dwelt upon
at some length, in order to enable the young captain to prove that he
had done his best to avoid a collision with the enemy.

The first shots the Fatime had fired at the Maud, though they had fallen
far short of the mark, were mentioned so as to give them their full
effect; and Captain Ringgold declared that they were a sufficient
declaration of war.

"Only one avenue of escape was open to me," continued Captain Scott,
"and that was directly across the bow of the enemy. If I remained where
I was the Fatime could come in with the rising of the tide, and sink the
Maud at her leisure. Then the pirate fired the shot from her starboard
gun which passed through the galley, and began to swing to, so as to
bring her port gun to bear on the Maud.

"I won't deny that the shot which went through our upper works made me
mad; but I feared that the next one might go through our boiler or
engine, and then it would have been all over with us. I determined to
prevent such a disaster if I could. I had ordered the hands to use the
rifles; but most of the crew concealed themselves under the top-gallant
forecastle. I shifted the helm, and drove the little steamer's bow
square into the broadside of the Fatime, just abaft her fore chains.

"It seemed to me from the feeling that she was going to bore her way
through the