stood full before him, saying, "I am an
enemy, a Yankee, look to yourself."

"Help here, lads, help," roared the captain, "a traitor, a traitor!"

The words were hardly out of his mouth when his voice was silenced for
ever. With one prodigious heave of his whole physical force, Israel
smote him over the taffrail into the sea, as if the man had fallen
backwards over a teetering chair. By this time the two officers were
hurrying aft. Ere meeting them midway, Israel, quick as lightning, cast
off the two principal halyards, thus letting the large sails all in a
tumble of canvass to the deck. Next moment one of the officers was at
the helm, to prevent the cutter from capsizing by being without a
steersman in such an emergency. The other officer and Israel
interlocked. The battle was in the midst of the chaos of blowing
canvass. Caught in a rent of the sail, the officer slipped and fell near
the sharp iron edge of the hatchway. As he fell he caught Israel by the
most terrible part in which mortality can be grappled. Insane with pain,
Israel dashed his adversary's skull against the sharp iron. The
officer's hold relaxed, but himself stiffened. Israel made for the
helmsman, who as yet knew not the issue of the late tussle. He caught
him round the loins, bedding his fingers like grisly claws into his
flesh, and hugging him to his heart. The man's ghost, caught like a
broken cork in a gurgling bottle's neck, gasped with the embrace.
Loosening him suddenly, Israel hurled him from him against the bulwarks.
That instant another report was heard, followed by the savage hail--"You
down sail at last, do ye? I'm a good mind to sink ye for your scurvy
trick. Pull down that dirty rag there, astern!"

With a loud huzza, Israel hauled down the flag with one hand, while with
the other he helped the now slowly gliding craft from falling off before
the wind.

In a few moments a boat was alongside. As its commander stepped to the
deck he stumbled against the body of the first officer, which, owing to
the sudden slant of the cutter in coming to the wind, had rolled against
the side near the gangway. As he came aft he heard the moan of the other
officer, where he lay under the mizzen shrouds.

"What is all this?" demanded the stranger of Israel.

"It means that I am a Yankee impressed into the king's service, and for
their pains I have taken the cutter."

Giving vent to his surprise, the officer looked narrowly at the body by
the shrouds,