"We buried them at the spot that we agreed on."

"That is good. I will make a trip and bring them off the next time we come along here. Now I must run up again. You need not go down till the first gun is fired."

"We would much rather—" Julie began.

"Excuse me, but I would much rather that you went down below. It would make me very uncomfortable did I know that you were exposed to danger, and we are now[49] in the most dangerous part of the ship, for it is just at those stern-windows that the enemy will be aiming."

At the end of the half-hour, during which a furious cannonade continued, both vessels had suffered a good deal, the gunboat's cannon being of heavier metal than those of the schooner; but at close quarters this advantage was not very great, and was more than counterbalanced by the much greater speed with which the English sailors handled their guns. The sides of both vessels were torn and splin. . . Read More