easily keep up
with our _Active_ protector, which kept sailing round the
majestic-looking but slow-moving Indiamen, as if to urge them on, as the
shepherd's dog does his flock. We hove-to off Falmouth, that other
vessels might join company. Altogether, we formed a numerous convoy--
some bound to the Cape of Good Hope, others to different parts of
India--two or three to our lately-established settlements in New South
Wales, and several more to China.

I will not dwell on my feelings as we took our departure from the land,
the Lizard lights bearing north half east. I had a good many friends to
care for me, and one for whom I had more than friendship. We had
magnificent weather and plenty of time to get the ship into order;
indeed I, with others who had never been to sea, began to entertain the
notion that we were to glide on as smoothly as we were then doing during
the whole voyage. We were to be disagreeably undeceived. A gale sprang
up with little warning about midnight, and hove us almost on our
beam-ends; and though we righted with the loss only of a spar or two, we
were tumbled about in a manner subversive of all comfort, to say the
least of it.

When morning broke, the hitherto trim and well-behaved fleet were
scattered in all directions, and several within sight received some
damage or other. The wind fell as quickly as it had risen, and during
the day the vessels kept returning to their proper stations in the
convoy. When night came on several were still absent, but were seen
approaching in the distance. Our third mate had been aloft for some
time, and when he came into the cabin he remarked that he had counted
more sail in the horizon than there were missing vessels. Some of the
party were inclined to laugh at him, and inquired what sort of craft he
supposed they were, phantom ships or enemy's cruisers.

"I'll tell you what, gentlemen,--I think that they are very probably the
latter," said the captain. "I have known strange things happen; vessels
cut out at night from the midst of a large convoy, others pillaged and
the crews and passengers murdered, thrown overboard, or carried off. We
shall be on our guard, and have our guns loaded, and if any gentry of
this sort attempt to play their tricks on us they will find that they
have caught a tartar."

CHAPTER TWO.

THE FIGHT.

I may as well here give an account of the _Barbara_, and how I came to
be on board her. Deprived of my father, who wa