e four
transports laden with food for the army at Philadelphia.

This was a fine opportunity for the bold Irish captain. It took courage
to attack a strong English vessel with a few rowboats, but of courage
Barry had a full supply.

The sun was up, and it was broad day when the American tars set out on
their daring enterprise. The _Alert_ had a wide-awake name, but it must
have had a sleepy crew; for before the British knew there was anything
wrong, Barry and his men had rowed across the stream and were clambering
over the rail, cutlass and pistol in hand.

The British sailors, when they saw this "wild Irishman" and his daring
tars, cutting and slashing and yelling like madmen, dropped everything
and ran below in fright. All that keep them there.

In this easy fashion, twenty-eight Americans captured a British ten-gun
vessel with a hundred and sixteen men on board. There had been nothing
like that in all the war.

The transports had to surrender, for they were under the guns of the
_Alert_, and Barry carried his five prizes triumphantly to Port Penn,
where he handed his captives over to the garrison.

And now the daring captain made things lively for the foe. He sailed up
and down the river and bay, and cut off supplies until the British army
at Philadelphia began to suffer for food.

What was to be done? Should this Yankee wasp go on stinging the British
lion? General Howe decided that this would never do, and sent a frigate
and a sloop-of-war down the river to put an end to the trouble.

Captain Barry, finding these water-hounds sharp on his track, ran for
Christiana Creek, hoping to get into shallow water where the heavy
British ships could not follow. But the frigate was too fast, and chased
him so closely that the best he could do was to run the schooner ashore
and escape in his boats.

But he was determined that they should not have the _Alert_ if he could
help it. Turning two of the guns downward, he fired through the ship's
bottom, and in a minute the water was pouring into her hold.

The frigate swung round and fired a broadside at the fleeing boats; but
all it brought back was a cheer of defiance from the sailors, as they
struck the land and sprang ashore. Here they had the satisfaction of
seeing the schooner sink before a British foot could be set on her deck.

The war vessels now went for the transports at Port Penn. Here a battery
had been built on shore, made of bales of hay. This was attacked