on us. We kept,
however, as close to the _Gadfly_ as we could, and hailed every time the
bell was struck, to say all was right. Towards morning the wind
moderated and the sea went down, and at daylight a prize crew came on
board to set the schooner to rights. This we were not long in doing, as
her damages were slight, and such as, had the slaver's people been more
determined, they might without difficulty have repaired. There was by
that time merely a light breeze, and as soon as we got the canvas on the
schooner we found that we could sail round and round the brig, so that
it was fortunate we had managed to wing her before the sea went down, or
we should have had no chance with her.

While the slave captain was still asleep, and the rest of his crew were
below, one of the fellows shoved his head up the fore hatchway, and
asked to speak with me. I told him to come aft, and I recognised him as
a Portuguese whom I had taken once before in the West Indies. With an
affrighted look he glanced towards the round-house on deck, where the
captain was sleeping, and motioned me to come as far from it as
possible.

"I have run every risk, senhor, to come and warn you of danger, in the
hope that you will be lenient to us," he began. "That man in there,
senhor, is the very devil. Don't you recollect him? You took him in
the _Andorinha_, off the Havannah. He was really her master, though he
pretended to be the mate."

It had struck me from the first that I had seen the fellow's face
before, but I could not recollect where.

"Yes, I remember him," I replied. "But what of that?"

"Why, senhor, you know what a desperate fellow he was then, and he has
not altered. Even last night, when we rounded to to prevent your
sinking us, he called us all aft, and asking us if we would stick by
him, proposed heaving some shot into your gig as you came alongside,
knocking you and your people on the head, and while your vessel was
looking about to pick up the sinking boat, in the dark to try and slip
away from you. He was in a furious rage when we would not consent.
Some were afraid of the plan miscarrying, and of being caught
notwithstanding, and hung for murder. Others were unwilling to kill
you, as you never ill-treat your prisoners, of which number pray rank
me, and while he was still urging his project you jumped on board. You
had a narrow escape though, senhor, for he was nearly pistolling you as
you appeared, to set us the