onger. See there!"

Another puff of white smoke burst from the English ship's side, followed
by a dull roar, and, immediately after, by a loud crashing and
splintering of the deck above our heads. Then came shrieks, groans, and
loud cries of pain. The shot had swept the deck. Fathom by fathom the
English ship overhauled us. Through our port-hole we could see her deck
swarming with men armed to the teeth. On her poop stood a little knot
of men evidently in command, and one of these was directing the
boatswain with outstretched arm.

"I see their plan," said Pharaoh; "they have seen the oars, and they are
minded not to fire upon us again for fear of killing or wounding the
captives. They are going to lay their ship alongside ours and board us."

So the ship came nearer and nearer, sailing nearly twice as fast as our
great lumbering galleon, and at last we could make out the faces of the
men on deck. And suddenly Pharaoh set up a great cry that made every
Englishman on our deck turn to him with astonishment.

"'Tis Francis Drake!" he cried. "God be thanked, 'tis Francis Drake
himself! See yonder, lads, there he stands on the poop. Are there any
men here that ever served under Francis Drake? If so, let them look out
at yonder captain and speak."

"'Tis Francis Drake and no other!" cried one. "I know him by the gold
band round his scarlet cap. He always wears that at sea. Now may God be
praised for this deliverance."

But there was much to be done ere our deliverance could be accomplished.
Nay, indeed, it seemed as if our cruel jailers were minded to murder us
before ever help would come, for they proceeded to beat us so
unmercifully with their whips that many of us sank down faint and
bleeding, and lay like dead men. But the rest of us kept up because of
the fierce excitement.

Presently the English ship was within a boat's length of us, and then
she slowly crashed against our side, the brass muzzles of her guns, in
some cases, coming through our ports. Meanwhile the Spaniards had not
been idle, for their gunners were plying their cannon with all possible
speed, and the noise and confusion was horrible. But yet never a shot
did the Englishman fire, but their ship closed steadily upon us. At
last we heard the grappling-irons thrown out and made fast, and knew
that the two ships were locked together, like lions that fasten teeth
and claws in each other and will not loose their grip till death comes.

Then began a noi