Why, you don't mean to say," the captain exclaimed, "that this was
the brig, flying Spanish colours, which we chased in under the guns
of Cartagena, yesterday?"

"It is, sir," Bob said, smiling. "You did us a very good turn,
although your intentions were not friendly. We were under Spanish
colours, when you made us out; and it struck us that running the
gauntlet of your fire, for a little while, would be an excellent
introduction for us to the Spaniards.

"So it proved. We brought up close to those other two vessels, and
I had a talk with the captain of one of them. The two captains both
went ashore, after dark; so we put twenty men into a boat, and
rowed in to the mouth of the port; waited there for a bit, and then
rowed straight out to the ships. They thought, of course, it was
their own officers returning; so we took them by surprise, and
captured them pretty easily.

"Unfortunately there was some noise made, and they took the alarm
on shore. However, we were under way before the batteries opened.
It was rather unpleasant, for a bit, but we got safely out. Two
gunboats came out after us; but the brig beat them off, and we
helped as well as we could. The brig had five men killed, we had
one, and there are several wounded."

"Well, it was a very dashing affair," the captain said; "very
creditable, indeed. I hope you will get a share of the prize
money."

"I only count as a hand," Bob said, laughing; "and I am sure that
is as much as I deserve.

"But here comes the captain, sir. He will tell you more about it."

Captain Lockett now came on board; and Bob, seeing that he was not
farther required, went off with Jim down to the cockpit. The
captain had a long talk with Captain Lockett. When the latter had
related, in full, the circumstances of his capture of his two
prizes, he said:

"There is a Spanish ship of war, sir, somewhere off Alicante, at
present. She is got up as a merchantman, and took us in thoroughly;
and we should probably have been caught, if it had not been for Mr.
Repton," and he then related how Bob had swum on board, and
discovered the supposed merchantman to be a ship of war.

"Thank you, Captain Lockett. I will go in and have a look after
her. It is fortunate that you told me for, if I had seen her lying
at anchor, under the land, I might have sent some boats in to cut
her out; and might, as you nearly did, have caught a tartar.

"He is an uncommonly sharp young fellow, that Repton. I off