ng officer had
no time then to wonder who and what she was, for he realized that there
was little hope of stopping the desultory firing from behind the cotton
pile; and perhaps by this time the soldiers realized what had become of
their four field pieces, for they knew that the Havana had not been
armed when they loaded her with cotton.

Christy went forward to set the officers at work in picking up the two
prizes, and as he stopped to look down into the engine room, he felt
his cap knocked off his head, and heard the whizzing of a bullet
unpleasantly near his ears. He picked up his cap, and found a bullet
hole through the top of it. If it had gone an inch or two lower, Mr.
Flint would have succeeded to the command of the expedition without any
ceremonies. Though there was no reason for it, this incident seemed to
provoke him, for it assured him that he could not pick up his prizes
without exposing his men to this nasty firing for some time longer.

It was now light enough for him to make out the situation of the
breastwork of cotton, and he saw that it was a long and narrow pile,
probably near a siding of the railroad where the bales had been unloaded
from the cars. Another glance at the surroundings in regard to the point
enabled him to make up his mind what to do, and he did not lose a moment
in putting his plan into execution. The firing of shot and shrapnel at
the cotton pile seemed to produce no adequate effect, and he ordered
Flint to cease his operations.

"Back her, Mr. Amblen," he added to the pilot. "Back her at full speed."

The schooners were doing very well; instead of wandering off into the
bay, they had fallen into the channel, and were drifting with the tide.
Several persons appeared on the deck of each of them, and it was plain
that a portion of the crews had been asleep on board of them. While he
was observing them, he discovered two boats coming out from behind the
point, and making for the two vessels. This movement indicated an
attempt to recapture the prizes.

"Port the helm, Mr. Amblen, and circle around till the bow points in
the direction of those boats coming out from beyond the point," said
Christy. "Mr. Flint, man your guns again at once, and drop some solid
shot into those boats."

The Havana continued to back till the guns would bear on the boats, and
then Flint delivered his fire. The headmost of the boats was smashed,
and was a wreck on the bay. The other hastened to pick up the cr