n our ship, in the action off Cape St. Vincent."

"What! were you in that action?" replied I.

"Yes, I was, and belonged to the _Captain_, Lord Nelson's ship."

"Well, then suppose you tell me all about it."

"Why, Mr Simple, d'ye see, I've no objection to spin you a yarn now and
then," replied Swinburne; "but as Mr Chucks used to say, allow me to
observe, in the most delicate manner in the world, that I perceive that
the man who has charge of your hammock, and slings you a clean one now
and then, has very often a good glass of grog for his _yarns_, and I do
not see but that mine are as well worth a glass of grog as his."

"So they are, Swinburne, and better too, and I promise you a good stiff
one to-morrow evening."

"That will do, sir: now then I'll tell you all about it, and more about
it too than most can, for I know how the action was brought about."

I hove the log, marked the board, and then sat down abaft on the signal
chest with Swinburne, who commenced his narrative as follows:--

"You must know, Mr Simple, that when the English fleet came down the
Mediterranean, after the 'vackyation of Corsica, they did not muster
more than seventeen sail of the line, while the Spanish fleet from
Ferrol and Carthagena had joined company at Cadiz, and mounted to near
thirty. Sir John Jervis had the command of our fleet at the time, but
as the Dons did not seem at all inclined to come out and have a brush
with us, almost two to one, Sir John left Sir W. Parker, with six sail
of the line, to watch the Spanish beggars, while he went into Lisbon
with the remainder of the fleet, to water and refit. Now, you see, Mr
Simple, Portugal was at that time what they calls neutral, that is to
say, she didn't meddle at all in the affair, being friends with both
parties, and just as willing to supply fresh beef and water to the
Spaniards as to the English, if so be the Spaniards had come out to ax
for it, which they dar'n't. The Portuguese and the English have always
been the best of friends, because we can't get no port wine anywhere
else, and they can't get nobody else to buy it of them; so the
Portuguese gave up their arsenal at Lisbon, for the use of the English,
and there we kept all our stores, under the charge of that old
dare-devil, Sir Isaac Coffin. Now it so happened, that one of the
clerks in old Sir Isaac's office, a Portuguese chap, had been some time
before that in the office of the Spanish ambassador; he was a very