idly placed before their eyes. Monsieur Le Gros screamed,
and gave twenty orders in a minute, while the other sixteen men made more
noise than would be heard among a thousand Americans. Heavens! what a
clamour these chaps kept up, and all about nothing, too, the ship having
every stitch of canvass on her that would draw. I felt like the Arab who
owned the rarest mare in the desert, but who was coming up with the thief
who had stolen her, himself riding an inferior beast, and all because the
rogue did not understand the secret of making the mare do her best. "Pinch
her right ear, or I shall overtake you," called out the Arab; and more
than twenty times was I disposed to trim the Dawn's sails, and send Neb to
the wheel, in order to escape the disgrace of being overhauled by the
frigate. There _was_ a chance for me, however, in this second recapture,
and I thought it preferable to let things take their course. My new
conquerors might be mystified, whereas, there was little hope for us,
should Monsieur Le Gros get in, after such an uproar.

In little more than an hour's time, the Dawn began to shorten sail,
hauling up her courses and top-gallant-sails, rocks showing themselves
within half a mile of her. A large boat met as here, coming alongside, as
soon as certain who we were. The people in this boat were fishermen, and
were so much accustomed to all the movements of the coast, that they
understood the nature of the affair as soon as they were apprised of our
character. Of course they were eagerly questioned touching the possibility
of the Dawn's being carried in through any of the rocky-looking passages
that lay before us. Monsieur Le Gros looked very blank when he was told
that all his hopes lay in there being sufficient water in one channel, and
of that the fishermen confessed their own ignorance. If the noise and
confusion were annoying before these men came alongside, it was astounding
afterwards. All this time the frigate was drawing near, fast, and half an
hour would certainly bring her within gun-shot. There is something
intoxicating in a race. I felt a strong desire to get away from the
Englishman at the very moment I believed my chances for justice would be
worst in the hands of the French. Feeling the necessity of losing no time,
I now made a lively appeal to Monsieur Le Gros, myself, proposing that we
should both go in with the fishing-boat and examine the passage ourselves.
By using proper activity, the whole mi