t ordered, "and then
tumble them off the carriages."

This was soon done.

"Now let each man take one of the muskets, and throw the rest of
them over the parapet down the rocks.

"That is right. Now, fall in!"

The sailors fell in, and marched back to the huts. The Spanish
officers were placed in the midst, and twenty men were told off to
fire the huts. This was soon done. The lieutenant waited until they
were well alight, and then gave the order to march. They took the
coast road, this time, for two miles; and then struck off to the
shore and saw, a few hundred yards away, the lantern that had been
hoisted on one of the boats, as a signal.

They were challenged by the boat keeper, who had moored the boats
twenty yards from the shore. A cheer broke out, as the answer was
given. The grapnels were pulled up, and the boats were soon
alongside. The party, embarking, rowed out in the direction where
they knew the frigate to be and, as soon as they were fairly out
from the shore, they saw the three lights she had hoisted as a
signal. In half an hour they were alongside.

"I need not ask if you have succeeded, Mr. Lyons," the captain
said, as the boats came up, "for we have seen that. You have not
had many casualties, I hope?"

"Only one, sir. One of the marines has a ball in his shoulder.
There were only five or six shots fired, in all, and no one else
has as much as a scratch."

"I am truly glad to hear it," the captain said. "It has been a most
successful surprise. I don't think the boats can have suffered,
either."

"I don't think there was a shot fired at them, sir," the lieutenant
said. "The Spaniard ran up his colours and dropped them again,
directly the boats showed their lights. I fancy they must have
suffered very heavily from our fire. You see, they were almost
under our guns, and we must have pretty well torn up their decks."

"We shall soon hear," the captain said. "The boats are towing the
Spaniard out. She will be alongside in a few minutes."

The wind had entirely dropped now and, in a short time, the
Spaniard was brought close alongside the frigate, and Mr. Rawdon
came on board to report.

"The ship is the San Joaquin, mounting twenty-four guns, with a
crew of two hundred and twenty men, sir. Her casualties are very
heavy. The men had just poured up on deck, it seems, when the
battery opened fire. The captain, first lieutenant, and fifty-six
men are killed, and there are forty-three wounded.