occurred to us
that she might possibly be a cruiser belonging to one or another of the
nations who had undertaken to share with Great Britain the noble task of
suppressing the inhuman slave-traffic; but a very little reflection
sufficed to disabuse our minds of this idea, for no cruiser would have
been carrying so heavy a press of canvas as she was showing, in the
teeth of what had by this time become almost a gale, unless she were in
chase of something, and, had she been, we must have seen it. Besides,
although everything looked trim and ship-shape enough so far as her
spars, sails, and rigging were concerned, there were evidences even
there of a certain lack of discipline and order that would hardly have
been tolerated on board a man-o'-war of _any_ nation, although most of
the foreigners were a great deal more free and easy in that respect than
ourselves. The conclusion at which we ultimately arrived, therefore,
was that she was a slaver with her cargo on board, and "carrying-on" to
make a quick passage.

But, fast as she was travelling, we were going through the water still
faster, despite our drag, for we were carrying the wind almost square
over our taffrail, and Ryan, in order the more thoroughly to hoodwink
the craft astern, had double-reefed and set our big mainsail, as though
we had been somewhat suspicious of her character, and anxious to keep
her at as great a distance as possible; we were therefore foaming along
at a speed of fully eight knots, and rising the stranger ahead so
rapidly, that when she crossed our hawse she was not more than eight
miles distant, and we had a clear view of her from our topsail-yard.
She now hoisted Spanish colours; and we, not to be outdone in
politeness, did the same, as also did the craft astern of us, each of
us, I suppose, accepting the exhibition of bunting on board the others
for just what it was worth.

Ryan and I had by this time pretty well made up our minds as to the
character of both our neighbours; and as the stranger astern--a large
brig--was now barely half-a-mile distant from us, and drawing rapidly up
on our starboard quarter, it was necessary to make up our minds without
delay as to the course to be pursued; the question being whether we
should meddle at all with the brig, and thus run the risk of exciting
the barque's suspicions, or whether we should devote our whole energies
to the pursuit of the latter. I was all for letting the brig go, for we
knew, by