enius. However, he was now cordially welcomed. He
possessed the authority we wanted. His men were well armed, and would
help us in fighting, of which I had a secret hope that we should enjoy a
fair amount. I did not know what fighting was in those days. I had
never seen blood drawn--human beings in the pride of manhood, shot down,
and mangled and torn by shot and shell and langrage fired by brethren's
hands, writhing and shrieking in their death agony. Fighting may be a
necessary evil, but an evil it is, and a dreadful one too. Mr Kelson
hearing what had occurred, agreed to come, and he jumping in with his
men, off we shoved amid the cheers of all who remained on shore, and
their good wishes for our success. The men let fall their oars. Bob
Grahame and I had one between us, and Uncle Boz steered; Kelson sitting
like an admiral in his barge, and doing nothing. The little wind there
had been fell completely, that was just what we wanted. If the calm
continued, we should be nearly certain to come up with the lugger.
Though the days were long, the sun was sinking down over the land, amid
a rich orange glow which suffused the whole western sky. We were
anxious before daylight had gone to catch sight of the lugger, lest we
might pass her during the night. Fast as she was, however, with the
light breeze which had been blowing for a short time, she might have
slipped along through the water for a considerable distance. Cockle
reported that she had edged off from the coast, and so having no other
course to choose, we steered in the same direction, at the same time
keeping a bright look-out in-shore, lest she might have afterwards kept
in again, in the hopes of a chance of running some contraband. Several
of the revenue cutters on the station had gone into port to refit, and
the smugglers were just now indulging themselves, as do mice when the
cat's away. Numerous vessels were seen in the offing, but none of them
like the lugger. We pulled steadily on. It was not likely that the
smuggler would have gone much to the eastward, as she was probably bound
for the coast of Holland or France. We should be certain, therefore, to
come up with her. Twilight lessened, and darkness was gathering round
us, when the moon, a vast globe of golden hue, rose out of the water,
and as she shot upwards, cast a brilliant sparkling pathway of light
athwart its surface. Never was I out in a more glorious night. Had we
not had serious