ed to make their way to the not distant
bank. A few had been cut down at the first onslaught; half-a-dozen
yielded themselves prisoners, and two had tumbled into the boats, making
eight in all captured. The others, in shoals, were swimming for their
lives. The seamen, irritated at the opposition they had met with, would
have shot them down, but Jack ordered them to desist.

"These fellows are not to be treated as enemies, now that they have
abandoned their vessel. It was their duty to defend her," he shouted
out, knocking up their muskets. "We must now get her out of this before
their friends collect on the shore, or we shall find it rather a hot
berth, I suspect."

The cable was cut, and the boats, taking the prize in tow, began to make
way down the harbour. They had not, however, got far from the spot,
before several shots struck the schooner, fired from some men who had
already collected on the shore. No one was hurt, and she was soon
beyond the range of the muskets. As the breeze increased it became very
hard work, towing the schooner against it; still Jack determined, if
possible, to carry her off. As they approached one of the points which
they had to round, they observed a number of armed men collecting on it.
To avoid them the schooner was kept over to the opposite side. Just
then a squall struck her and drove her on a bank. The Brazilians,
encouraged by this, opened a hot fire, and though at some distance,
several of their shot struck the schooner. In spite of it, Jack ordered
warps to be got out, and endeavoured to haul her off. Two of his men
had been hit and he in vain endeavoured to get the prize into deep
water. Ahead was a bank over which he found it impossible to haul her;
she had driven, indeed, into a bay, shoal water being found ahead,
astern, and on her port side.

"It must be done, though I am sorry to lose so fine a craft; we must
blow her up," he said to Higson.

Several casks of powder were found on board. They were placed in her
hold, surrounded by such combustible materials as could be quickly
gathered together. All hands were then ordered into the boats; Jack,
with Higson and Needham, set her on fire simultaneously amidships and
fore and aft. They then jumped into the boats, and Jack, anxious to
have his men safe from further risk of being shot, gave the order to
pull down the river as fast as they could lay their backs to the oars.

The Brazilians probably fancied that t