, were able to tell Jack that they had not been
altogether idle, as the fleet had at last, on the 22d of May, been set
in motion, and they had but two days before returned from their
expedition. All the light vessels of the English and French fleets had
taken part in it. The fort of Yenikale which commanded the entrance of
the Bay of Kertch had been captured, the batteries silenced, and the
town occupied, and in four days after the squadron had entered the
straits of Kertch they had destroyed 245 Russian vessels employed in
carrying provisions to the Russian army in the Crimea. Besides this,
enormous magazines of corn and flour were destroyed at Berdiansk,
Genitchi and Kertch, and at the latter place immense quantities of
military and naval stores also fell into our hands. Had this
expedition taken place in October instead of May, it is probable that
the Russians would have been unable to maintain their hold of
Sebastopol.

A portion of the fleet had remained in possession of the Sea of Azof,
and thenceforth the Russians had to depend upon land carriage. This,
however, mattered comparatively little, as the country was now firm
and dry, and all the roads from Russia to the Crimea were available.

All their comrades had taken share in the work in the batteries and
Jack learned to his surprise that Captain Stuart had been transferred
to a larger ship, and that Mr. Hethcote had got his promotion, and now
commanded the "Falcon," Jack, in the first excitement of meeting him,
not having noticed the changes in uniform which marked his advance.

After two hours' conversation with his friends, Jack received a
message that Captain Hethcote invited him to dine in his cabin, and
here a quarter of an hour later he found not only the captain, but the
first and second lieutenants.

After dinner was over, Jack was requested to give a full narrative of
his adventures, which greatly astonished his auditors, and was not
concluded until late in the evening. The lieutenants then retired, and
Jack was left alone with the captain, who signified that he wished to
speak further with him.

"Well, Jack," he said, when they were alone, "I did not think when I
offered my uncle to get you a midshipman's berth, that I was going to
put you in the way of passing through such a wonderful series of
adventures. They have been sadly cut up at home at the news of your
death. I hope that you wrote to them as soon as you had a chance."

"I wrote on the