intention, he fully believed, of
attacking him.

"But we would have treated them just as Mr Adair did the slave-dealers
at Bahia," he exclaimed. "We had all our arms loaded, and if they had
come near us, we should have given them a pretty warm reception, you may
depend upon that."

Jack felt very sure that Tom would have done so, though he was glad he
had not been exposed to the danger he would have had to run.

Sounding as he went, Jack got the ship safely under the guns of the
corvette at a late hour of the night. The skulking crews of the
slavers, eager as they might have been to regain the vessels taken from
them, dared not attack them, and the night passed off quietly. Next
morning by daybreak the boats again put off; the most important vessel
to capture was the brigantine, and they at once pulled for her. As they
approached, they made out several boats pulling backwards and forwards
between her and the shore. Jack regretted that he had not left a prize
crew on board, though he had acted, as he thought at the time, for the
best.

"Give way, my lads, those fellows are after some mischief, we must put a
stop to it," he shouted.

The brigantine lay floating on the calm water, her taunt, raking masts,
and the tracery of her spars and rigging reflected in its surface. She
was just the style of craft to please a seaman's eye. The men gave way,
in a few minutes they hoped to be aboard her. Suddenly her masts moved
to starboard, then over they heeled to port, when, gradually, her bows
sank, and down she glided, head foremost, beneath the surface of the
water.

"What a pity!" broke from the lips of those in the stern sheets of the
boats, who had observed what had taken place; the look of astonishment
in the countenances of the men at the oars, when, turning their heads,
they found the brigantine had disappeared, was almost ludicrous. Had
they got hold of any of the Brazilians they would have made them pay
dearly for their trick. It was very evident that the vessel had been
scuttled during the night, to prevent her from falling into the hands of
the English, while the crew had landed every article of value from her.
Jack was thus compelled to be contented with his three prizes, none of
the other vessels could be touched. It now coming on to blow hard, it
was impossible to get under weigh. The time, however, was employed in
fitting the ship for sea; Higson and a prize crew had charge of her.
Murray intend