bow, and the moment he was hidden
beyond her, bore broad away, passing close along the opposite side of
the warship, from which hundreds of eyes watched his movements with
languid curiosity.

The boat, in the meantime, had headed for the stern of the frigate,
with a view to gaining her starboard gangway, somewhere near which its
officer supposed White to be already anchoring. What was his
amazement, therefore, as he drew within the shadow of his ship, to see
the schooner shoot clear of its further side, and go flying down the
wind, lee rail under. For a moment he looked to see her round to and
come to anchor. Then, springing to his feet, he yelled for her to do
so; upon which White Baldwin took off his cap, and made a mocking bow.

At this the enraged officer whipped out a revolver, and began to fire
wildly in the direction of the vanishing schooner, which, for answer,
displayed a British Union Jack at her main peak. Three minutes later
the saucy craft had rounded a projecting headland and disappeared,
leaving the outwitted officer to get aboard his ship at his leisure,
and make such report as seemed to him best.

[Illustration: At this the enraged officer whipped out a revolver.]

After the exciting incident was ended, and the little "Sea Bee" had
gained the safety of open water, Cabot grasped the young skipper's hand
and shook it heartily.

"It was fine!" he cried, "though I don't see how you dared do it.
Weren't you afraid they would fire at us?"

"Not a bit," laughed White. "They didn't realise what we were up to
until we were well past them, and then they hadn't time to get ready
before we were out of range. I don't believe they would dare fire on
the British flag, anyway; especially as we hadn't done a thing to them.
I almost wish they had, though; for I would be willing to lose this
schooner and a good deal besides for the sake of bringing on a war that
should drive the French from Newfoundland."

"But what did they want of you, and what would have happened if you had
not given them the slip?"

"I expect they wanted to hold me here until they heard how our case had
gone, so that I couldn't get back to the factory before they had a
chance to run up there and seize it. Like as not they would have kept
us on one excuse or another--lack of papers or something of that
sort--for a week or two, and by the time they let us go some one else
would have owned the Pretty Harbour lobster factory."

"Would t