lying time after time as we drove
them back, and stubbornly contesting with us the possession of every
inch of plank. Meanwhile the storm which had so long been brewing had
at length burst almost immediately overhead, the lightning flashing and
playing about the mast-heads of the ships with a dazzling vividness
which was almost blinding, whilst the thunder crashed and roared and
rolled along the heavens absolutely without intermission. The general
effect was impressive and appalling in the extreme--or would have been
had we been in a mood to properly appreciate it; but just then our only
thought--or mine, at least--with regard to it was that it afforded us
light enough to fight by and to distinguish friends from foes. And it
was by the friendly aid of the lightning that I was, in the midst of the
_melee_, enabled to identify an object, which I had once or twice kicked
from under my feet, as a flannel cartridge. I had already noticed
several charges of grape ranged along the shot-racks; and it now
occurred to me that one of these discharged into the thick of our
enemies might help very materially to mitigate their ardour. So,
turning to some of the lads behind, I directed them to run in one of the
guns, load it, and slue it fore and aft, with its muzzle pointing toward
the taffrail, in which direction we were slowly pressing the crew of the
brigantine. This was soon done; when, taking advantage of a momentary
lull in the confusion of sound which raged about us, I shouted:

"Back, _Dolphins_, into the waist, for your lives; we are about to treat
them to a dose of grape!"

Our lads luckily heard and understood me; we pressed forward with
increased energy for a moment, huddling the Frenchmen all up in a heap
together just about the companion-way, and then suddenly retired
forward, leaving the gun, a nine-pounder, grinning open-mouthed fair at
them. The moment that the last of our men was fairly out of danger the
topman who had taken charge of the gun discharged it; we immediately
rushed aft again, charging through the smoke, found the foe, as we had
expected, quite confused and demoralised from the effect of the fire,
and, pressing upon them more fiercely than ever, compelled them to throw
down their arms and cry for quarter, though not until I had been
compelled in self-defence to run their leader through with my sword.

The brigantine was now our own, so leaving Pottle and the boatswain to
secure the prisoners, w