ader, which stood on towards Lyme, too far off then to be perceived,
while the frigate, having hoisted her boat in, continued her course up
channel. The Bill of Portland was soon passed, and the high cliffs of
the Isle of Wight sighted. Before the sun rose the next day, the
_Benbow_ frigate had run through the Straits of Dover, and was about to
haul round the North Foreland, when a heavy north-westerly gale sprang
up, which compelled her quickly to shorten all sail. In vain an attempt
was made to steer for the Downs; the gale increased with such fury that
it became evident that she would run a fearful risk of being driven on
the Goodwin Sands. The ship was stout and well found, and Captain
Benbow still hoped to beat up against the wind; but he was driven
farther and farther from the English coast, while under his lee he had
the dangerous Flemish bank. Few men, however, knew the shoals of that
coast better than he did. Now the ship was put on one tack, now on
another, but on each tack she lost ground.

He might, to be sure, have run for Dunkerque, Ostend, or other places
along the coast, but night was coming on, and to steer in among the
sandbanks was a dangerous undertaking, with the weather so thick and
squally as it then was, and without a pilot; still, unless the _Benbow_
frigate could beat off the coast,--it was one of two alternatives which
remained--she might ride to her anchors, though risk of her dragging
them was very great. Still, as long as her masts and sails remained
uninjured, Captain Benbow resolved to try and keep to sea; a shift of
wind might enable him to gain either the Downs or the Thames. The cool
intrepid way in which Captain Benbow managed his ship excited Roger's
admiration, while the crew, accustomed to confide in his skill, executed
his orders with prompt obedience. When morning at length broke, dark
clouds covered the sky, while leaden seas, capped with foam, rolled up
around them, but no land was in sight to leeward, which showed that they
had not struggled in vain; still the wind was blowing as strong as ever,
and, stiff as was the _Benbow_ frigate, it would have been dangerous to
set more sail; indeed, she was already carrying as much as she could
bear.

"If the gale does not increase we shall do well," observed Captain
Benbow to Roger. "As soon as it moderates we may stand in for the
Thames."

As the Captain had been on deck all night, he now went below to snatch a
short sleep