n the rear, and from a couple of
gun-boats; and considering that we hadn't the four hundred men the
lieutenant talked of, but only just the two boats' crews, we had enough
to do to spike the guns, and to keep up a brisk fire in return. You may
be sure, mates, we were as busy as ants doing all the mischief we could
in a short time. We had a young midshipman with us, Mr Franks, not
fifteen years old; and while the fire was at the hottest, in the middle
of it he hoisted the British ensign on the flagstaff on the top of the
fort.

"While we were busy spiking the gnus, and firing away right and left, we
made out, through the darkness, what we took to be a large body of Dutch
troops. There were plenty of light carriage guns in the fort; and when
information was brought him, Lieutenant Lyons ordered us to slue round
two of them, and bring them close up to the gate. When we had done so,
he and Mr Langton loaded them up to the muzzles with grape and musket
balls. On came the enemy. He let them get close up to the gate, and
then he and the midshipman fired slap in among them. It was much more
than they expected, and lest they should get another dose, they put
about in a great hurry, and off they went as fast as they could pelt, we
hallooing and hurrahing after them. You may be sure we didn't follow
them, or they would soon have found out the trick we had played them.
All the time no one had been killed, and only Mr Langton and three men
slightly wounded; but from the number of troops brought against him, Mr
Lyons saw that we could not hope to hold the fort; so while the Dutch
troops were scampering off in one direction, we bolted over the ramparts
in the other. When we got down to the beach, we were not a little taken
aback by finding that the surf had driven the barge right up on the
shore and bilged her; but, fortunately, the cutter was still afloat. So
we all got into her as silently as mice, and shoved off, leaving the
fort to take care of itself. We were much amused by seeing the Dutchmen
outside firing away into it as hard as ever. When they discovered their
mistake, I don't know; but whenever they did, they must have found all
the guns spiked, and the British ensign flying triumphantly over their
heads, to show them who had done all the mischief.

"We got safely back to the _Minden_ next day, none of us much the worse
for the exploit. Soon after that, the whole of Java and its
dependencies capitulated to Sir