seconds without hearing anything, and was
about to say so, when I thought I caught a faint sound, as of the
creaking of a boom; and at the same instant the two look-out men on the
forecastle, forgetting, in the imminence of the danger, their
instructions to be silent, simultaneously shouted, in sharp incisive
tones:

"Hard a-port! Hard over! there's a big ship right under our bow!"

There was nothing whatever to be seen from where the skipper and I
stood, but the cry was too imperative to be neglected; I therefore
sprang with one bound to the wheel and assisted the helmsman to put it
hard over, while the skipper rushed forward to see for himself what it
was that was reported to be in our way.

I had but grasped the spokes of the wheel when I heard a cry, close
ahead of us of:

"There's a small craft close aboard of us on our larboard beam, sir!"
followed by a confused rush of feet along a ship's deck, and an order to
"put the helm hard a-starboard, and call the captain!"

These sounds appeared to be so close aboard of us that I involuntarily
braced myself against the expected impact of the two vessels; but the
next moment, through the dense fog, I saw the faint glimmer of a light
opening out clear of our foremast, saw a huge, dark, shapeless blot go
drifting away on to our port bow, and heard a sharp hail from the
stranger.

"Schooner ahoy! What schooner is that?"

"The _Dolphin_, privateer, of Weymouth. What ship is that?" answered
the skipper.

"The _Hoogly_, East Indiaman; Calcutta to London. Can you tell me
whereabouts we are?"

"Thirty-six miles south-by-west of Portland Bill," answered the skipper.

"Much obliged to you, sir," came the faint acknowledgment from the
Indiaman, already out of sight again in the fog. This was followed by
some further communication--apparently a question, from the tone of
voice,--but the two vessels had by this time drawn so far apart from
each other that the words were unintelligible, and the captain made no
endeavour to reply; coming aft again and resuming his former position
near the binnacle.

He and I were still discussing in low tones our narrow escape from a
disastrous collision, some ten minutes having elapsed since we had lost
sight of the _Hoogly_, when suddenly a faint crash was heard, somewhere
away on our port quarter, immediately followed by shouts and cries, and
a confused popping of pistols, which lasted about a minute; when all
became as suddenly si