king is more careful of his canvas.'

'You're right,' said Pickersgill, 'that is a yacht; and you're right
there again in your guess--that is the stupid old _Active_ which creeps
about creeping for tubs. Well, I see nothing to alarm us at present,
provided it don't fall a dead calm, and then we must take to our boat as
soon as he takes to his; we are four miles from him at least. Watch his
motions, Corbett, and see if he lowers a boat. What does she go now?
Four knots?--that will soon tire their men.'

The positions of the three cutters were as follows:--

The _Happy-go-lucky_ was about four miles off Portland Head, and well
into West Bay. The revenue cutter was close to the Head. The yacht was
outside of the smuggler, about two miles to the westward, and about five
or six miles from the revenue cutter.

'Two vessels in sight, sir,' said Mr. Smith, coming down into the cabin
to Mr. Appleboy.

'Very well,' replied the lieutenant, who was _lying_ down in his
_standing_ bed-place.

'The people say one is the _Happy-go-lucky_, sir,' drawled Smith.

'Heh? what! _Happy-go-lucky_? Yes, I recollect; I've boarded her twenty
times--always empty. How's she standing?'

'She stands to the westward now, sir; but she was hove-to, they say,
when they first saw her.'

'Then she has a cargo in her;' and Mr. Appleboy shaved himself, dressed,
and went on deck.

'Yes,' said the lieutenant, rubbing his eyes again and again, and then
looking through the glass, 'it is her, sure enough. Let draw the
foresheet--hands make sail. What vessel's the other?'

'Don't know, sir--she's a cutter.'

'A cutter? yes; maybe a yacht, or maybe the new cutter ordered on the
station. Make all sail, Mr. Tomkins; hoist our pendant, and fire a
gun--they will understand what we mean then; they don't know the
_Happy-go-lucky_ as well as we do.'

In a few minutes the _Active_ was under a press of sail; she hoisted her
pendant, and fired a gun. The smuggler perceived that the _Active_ had
recognised her, and she also threw out more canvas, and ran off more to
the westward.

'There's a gun, sir,' reported one of the men to Mr. Stewart, on board
of the yacht.

'Yes; give me the glass--a revenue cutter; then this vessel inshore
running towards us must be a smuggler.'

'She has just now made all sail, sir.'

'Yes, there's no doubt of it. I will go down to his lordship, keep her
as she goes.'

Mr. Stewart then went down to inform Lord B. of the circu