rade. The plot all hatched to take Bonnet's
fine ship, the _Revenge_, from him, Blackbeard had disclosed his hand at
the final conference when he said, with a sarcastic grimace:

"I see, my good sir, that you are not used to the cares and duties of
commanding a vessel, so I will relieve you of 'em."

As soon as Captain Bonnet had mended his fortunes and had the goodly
brig _Royal James_ to cruise in, his ruling purpose was to regain the
_Revenge_ from Blackbeard and at the same time wreak a proper
punishment.

"So now if we can trap this black-hearted Teach before he flits to sea,"
said Stede Bonnet, "you will see a pretty engagement, Master Cockrell.
But first we must find the score o' men that he marooned. It will be a
deed of mercy, besides affording me a stronger crew."

The brig was soon standing down the river while the landing party broke
out an ample store of provisions and powder and ball, with canvas for a
tent. The plan was for them to pitch a camp near the shore of the bay to
which they could fetch back Trimble Rogers and Bill Saxby and there wait
for their ship to return and take them off. They were ready to go ashore
when Captain Bonnet's navigator ordered the main-topsail laid aback and
the brig slowly swung into the wind. The delay was brief and no sooner
was the boat cast off than the _Royal James_ proceeded on the voyage to
Cherokee Inlet.

Clumsy as those sailing ships of two hundred years ago appear to modern
eyes, their lines were finely moulded under water and with a favoring
wind they could log a fair distance in a day's run. It goes without
saying that this tall brig was shoved along for all she was worth before
a humming breeze that made her creak, and during the night she was
reckoned to be a few miles to seaward of the sandy islands which
extended like a barrier outside of Cherokee Inlet. Jack Cockrell stood a
watch of his own, dead weary but with no thought of sleep until he could
hear the lookout shout "Land ho!"

This cry came from aloft soon after dawn. The brig moved toward the
nearest of these exposed shoals while her officers consulted a chart
spread upon the cabin roof. They were wary of running the ship aground
with Blackbeard no more than a few miles distant. So bare were these
yellow patches of sand that showed against the green water that a group
of men on any one of them would have been easily discernible. The _Royal
James_ coasted along outside of them under shortened sail