pe to the shore. The _Peterborough_ was
re-christened the _Victory_ and was manned by half of England's crew,
while the other vessel was burned at night; the pirates dancing on the
beach to the light of the flames and singing the weird songs of the
sea.

Now there was a scene of wild revel upon the Brazilian coast; but the
natives grew angry at the conduct of these rough men of the ocean.

"Ugh!" spoke a chief, "we must drive them away, else they will burn
our own villages as they did their houses upon the water."

One peaceful evening the followers of Captain England were hard beset
by fully a thousand black-skinned warriors from the Brazilian jungle.

There was a fierce battle. The negroes were pressed back upon their
principal town and were driven through it on the run, for their arrows
and spears were not as effective as the guns and pistols of the
English, Dutch, Spaniards and Portuguese, who had adopted a piratical
career. Their thatched huts were set on fire, and, satisfied with the
day's work, the pirates retired to their ships, where a vote was cast
where was to be their next venture. It fell to the East Indies and the
Island of Madagascar. So they set sail, singing an old ballad which
ran,

"Heave the lead and splice th' topsail,
Tie her down, and let her fill,
We're agoin' to Madagascar,
Where th' little tom-tits trill,

"Bill an' coo, an' sing so sweetly,
In th' dronin' hours of noon,
That you want to die there, neatly,
Just drop off into 'er swoon."

The voyage across was a good one and the pirates captured two East
Indiamen and a Dutchman, bound to Bombay. These they exchanged for one
of their own vessels, and then set out for Madagascar Island, where
several of their hands were set ashore with tents and ammunition, to
kill such beasts and venison as the place afforded.

Then they sailed for the Isle of Juanna,--not a great distance from
Madagascar,--and here had as keen a little engagement as ever
employed a piratical crew. Hear the story of this fight in the words
of Captain Mackra, an English sea-captain who happened at that time to
be in the harbor.

"BOMBAY, November 16th, 1720.

"We arrived on the 25th of July last, in company with
the _Greenwich_, at Juanna, an island not far from
Madagascar. Putting in there to refresh our men, we
found fourteen pirates who came in their canoes from the
Mayotta (islan