down and full of men. I took possession of
the schooner, while the brig again tacked, and crowding all sail stood
after the captured vessels. The schooner, which was the largest of the
three, was called the _Jean d'Arc_, mounting sixteen guns, and had
fifty-three men on board, the remainder being away in the prizes. The
captain was wounded very badly, and one officer killed. Out of her
ship's company, she had but eight killed and five wounded. They
informed me that they had sailed three months ago from St. Pierre's,
Martinique, and had fallen in with the two other privateers, and cruised
in company, having taken nine West Indiamen since they had come out.

"Pray," said I, to the officer who gave the information, "were you ever
attacked by boats when you laid at St. Pierre's?"

He replied, "Yes; and that they had beaten them off."

"Did you purchase these masts of an American?"

He replied in the affirmative; so that we had captured the very vessel,
in attempting to cut out which we had lost so many men.

We were all very glad of this, and Swinburne said, "Well, hang me, if I
didn't think that I had seen that port-hole before; there it was that I
wrenched a pike out of one of the rascal's hands, who tried to stab me,
and into that port-hole I fired at least a dozen muskets. Well, I'm
damned glad we've got hold of the beggar at last."

We secured the prisoners below, and commenced putting the schooner in
order. In half-an-hour, we had completed our knotting and splicing, and
having two of the carpenters with us, in an hour we had got up a small
jury-mast forward, sufficient for the present. We lowered the mainsail,
put try-sails on her, and stood after the brig, which was now close to
the prizes: but they separated, and it was not till dark that she had
possession of two. The third was then hull down on the other tack, with
the brig in chase. We followed the brig, as did the two recaptured
vessels, and even with our jury up, we found that we could sail as fast
as they. The next morning we saw the brig hove-to and about three miles
a-head, with the three vessels in her possession. We closed, and I went
on board. Webster was put in charge of the privateer; and, after
lying-to for that day to send our prize-masters and men on board to
remove the prisoners, we got up a proper jury-mast, and all made sail
together for Barbadoes. On my return on board, I found that we had but
one man and one boy killed and si