eally one of
considerable strength. The prison officials dared not attempt to
dislodge the warlike tars. The militia company of the town was ordered
to the scene, but even this body of soldiery dared not force the
prison door. Accordingly they determined to let time do the work, and
starve the rogues out of their retreat. At this juncture Capt. Biddle
came ashore. He had no intention of letting his trim ship lie idly in
the offing while two mutinous blue-jackets were slowly starved into
subjection. The "Andrea Doria" needed the men, and there must be no
more delay. A captain in the American navy was not to be defied by two
of his own people.

Therefore, seizing a loaded pistol in each hand, Capt. Biddle walked
to the prison, accompanied only by a young midshipman. As the two
pounded upon the heavy barred door, the crowd outside fell back,
expecting the bullets to fly.

"Open this door, Green," shouted Biddle to one of the prisoners, whom
he knew by name.

"Try to open it yourself," came the reply from within, with an
accompanying oath. "The first man that shows his head inside this door
gets a bullet."

Green was known as a bold, desperate man; but Biddle did not hesitate
a moment. Ordering the bystanders to break down the door, he waited
quietly, until a crash, and the sudden scattering of the crowd, gave
notice that the way into the prison was clear. Then gripping his
pistols tightly, but with his arms hanging loosely at his sides, he
advanced upon the deserters. Behind the barricade stood Green, his
eyes blazing with rage, his pistol levelled. Biddle faced him quietly.

"Now, Green, if you don't take a good aim, you are a dead man," said
he.

With a muttered curse, the mutineer dropped his weapon. The cool
determination of the captain awed him. In a few minutes he, with his
companion, was on his way to the ship in irons.

It was in February, 1777, that the stanch new frigate "Randolph," with
Biddle in command, set sail from Philadelphia. Hardly had she reached
the high seas when a terrific gale set in, from which the "Randolph"
emerged, shorn of her tapering masts. As she lay a helpless wreck
tossing on the waves, the hard work necessary to put her in decent
shape again induced Biddle to accede to the request of a number of
British prisoners on board, who wished to be enrolled among the crew
of the "Randolph." This proved to be an unfortunate move; for the
Englishmen were no sooner enrolled on the ship's li