, as if she were a peaceful
merchantman, and on another occasion sending off rifles and ammunition
by small boats in the dead of night, a man-of-war lying sleepily
oblivious of what was going on just outside her. It was felt that her
continued impunity was a reproach, and three small vessels of the
Spanish navy were commissioned to cruise between Bilbao and Bayonne on
the look-out for her. This little squadron of vigilance consisted of _El
Aspirante_ and _El Capricho_, gun-boats, and the _Buenaventura_, a
three-gun steam-brig. On Tuesday, August 12th, the _Buenaventura_,
flying a George's Jack at her peak, was off Fontarabia for a portion of
the day, close in shore. At nightfall she disappeared--it is now
supposed into the sheltered and almost invisible inlet of Los Pasages,
between Fontarabia and San Sebastian. Before daybreak on Wednesday, the
Carlists under Dorregaray swarmed down from the hills covering Cape
Higuer. The _San Margarita_ came in sight, and began landing arms in the
same spot where the undisturbed landing of the 28th July had been
effected. Not more than three hundred stand had been put on shore, and
about one hundred thousand cartridges in boxes, labelled in English
"metallic rolled cartridges, centre-primed," when she had to get away,
as the daylight began to play the informer. She dropped down towards
Bayonne, and appears to have reached a point some four miles from the
French shore (the exact distance is a moot question), where she laid to
and allowed her furnaces to cool The men were "dead tired out" after
their night's work, and the captain considered that he was within the
protection of French waters. But there is a very ancient proverb about a
pitcher and a veil, and the period of its realization had been reached
at last Whilst the _San Margarita_ was effecting the landing, a
coastguard's boat had slipped from under the heights of Fontarabia, and
given notice of what was going on to the _Buenaventura_ in Los Pasages,
and the brig steamed out, still with the British colours at her peak
Whilst the Carlist privateer was motionless in fancied security--there
was some want of prudence or vigilance there, surely--the gun-brig crept
down and overhauled her before alarm could be given, and the rakish
schooner-yacht, the skimmer of the seas, had the humiliation of falling
a prey to a wretched slow boat that she could laugh at with steam up in
the open sea. The arrest was made in the usual manner, and the