w her still standing
close to us through the gloom. The other was following, and we feared
she must have received greater harm than either of us. But by the
flashes of the guns, we saw her sails close astern of her consort. We
flew on over the tide, but it required all Captain Radford's skill to
steer his vessel through the intricate navigation of the river. The
shores were so low that they could with difficulty be discerned, and
there were numerous banks on either side of us. To run against one of
them, at the rate we were going, might have proved the destruction of
the ship. Still there was no help for it. The Spaniards had vessels,
we knew, up the river, which would be soon sent in pursuit, and, should
they find us aground, we could not hope by any possibility to escape.
They were, however, not likely to venture down in the dark; and therein
lay our chief prospect of safety. The wind, which had so favoured us
when passing the fort, again fell, and, with loosened sails, we
proceeded slowly and more securely down the stream. Daylight found us a
considerable distance on our way; but just as we were about to get clear
of the mouth of the river, the tide setting in, the wind fell, so that
we were compelled to anchor.

A'Dale and I took the opportunity of visiting the other vessels, to
ascertain the fate of the relatives of some of the unfortunate people
who had escaped on board our ship. Sad indeed were the scenes we
witnessed. Several of the poor people were severely wounded, and many
more were mourning for relatives whom they had lost. We had, however,
the happiness to restore a wife to her husband, and, in another case, a
daughter to her mother, though the men of the family had lost their
lives. I was glad to find that our sturdy friend the blacksmith--I
forget his name--had escaped. As our vessel was somewhat overcrowded,
and the others had prepared for many more refugees than had escaped, we
conveyed some of our passengers to them, while they bestowed some
provisions on us, of which we were in great need.

All arrangements being made, and the wind coming fair again, we
continued our course towards the Thames, thankful that we had escaped
thus far. But we knew very well that we were not yet safe. Several of
the Duke of Alva's ships or other Spanish craft were sailing about in
all directions in search of prey, and, we heard, were not at all
particular what vessels they captured; certainly they would no