y, at that moment the breeze
increased, and we ran on more rapidly. The tide, too, was in our
favour. Still the fort had numerous guns, and the deep water was very
close to their muzzles.

The horseman was yet at some distance. We watched him anxiously, hoping
that horse and rider might come to the ground, or that some other
accident might happen before he could deliver his message. Providence
favoured us more than we could have dared to hope, for one of the
seamen, noted for his sharp sight, and whose eye had been kept on the
horseman, exclaimed:

"He has rolled over the bank!"

The crew could scarcely refrain from giving a shout of satisfaction. A
dark object, supposed to be the horseman, was seen directly afterwards
climbing up the bank and making his way towards the fort, though the
thickening gloom prevented our distinguishing who he really was. On we
went. We could see lights, which made us fear that the gunners were
preparing their slow-matches, but it was now too dark to distinguish any
objects beyond the outline of the fort. The navigation of the river was
so well-known to Captain Radford, that without hesitation he stood
boldly on.

We calculated that the horseman would not be long in reaching his
destination, and every instant we were expecting to have a shot sent
between our masts or into our hull. Already we were under the guns, a
discharge from which, well directed, would quickly have sunk us. I held
my breath in my anxiety, looking intently towards the embrasures, out of
which I knew the guns were protruding. How anxiously we marked the line
of bristling cannon as we passed along in front of it! At length, we
had but a few more guns to pass. Suddenly there was a loud shouting in
the fort. Lights were seen moving rapidly along. In an instant
afterwards we could distinguish the small sparks of the slow-matches in
the hands of the gunners.

"Fire! fire quickly!"

The words were heard distinctly as they were uttered by the commandant
of the fort.

CHAPTER TWENTY SEVEN.

CAPTURED BY SPANIARDS.

We expected the next instant to be sent to the bottom of the Scheld,
when a sudden blast filled our sails, almost tearing them from the
bolt-ropes, and sending us gliding rapidly through the water. The guns
aimed at our vessel sent their shot astern of us, two or three only
passing through our mizzen, but doing no further damage. The next
vessel could not have escaped so well, but we sa