e officer in charge
that they had just opened up a light, apparently on shore.

"That's our goal, then," said the officer; "that's La Guayra! And now
to find out whether there is anything in there that it may be worth our
while to attack."

He then made the signal for the other two boats to close, to give the
officers in command an opportunity for a final consultation. It was
presently arranged that, on entering the bay, they were to separate, and
each was to scour a certain part of the harbour, and join the others
again at three o'clock in the morning at the spot where they parted
company, the bearings of which were to be carefully and accurately
taken.

La Guayra lies in the hollow of an extensive but open roadstead, and is
built at the foot of a range of huge mountains, which tower up into the
clouds behind it, and at the back of which lies Caracas, now the capital
of Venezuela.

It was to the extremity of this roadstead that the three boats had now
come, and the twinkling lights of the town were clearly discernible at
some distance.

Anxiously they scanned the bay for any sign of ships lying there, and
after a few moments they were able to make out certain detached sparks
of light, which they felt certain were the riding-lights of a number of
vessels. It now remained for them to pull quietly and unobtrusively
shoreward, and ascertain what the vessels were, and, as far as possible,
discover their strength, and how they lay for protection from the shore
batteries.

The oars were therefore muffled with pieces of cloth that had been
brought for the purpose, and, orders having been given that no light was
to be shown in any of the boats for any purpose whatever, they
separated, all making for the several points agreed upon before
starting.

The boat belonging to the flag-ship had the position of honour, and
therefore of most danger. She was to take a middle course, and pull
down to the foot of the bay, close inshore, and right under the guns of
the batteries; a task so dangerous that, should they by any misfortune
be seen, there would be no hope or possibility of escape for them. In
dead silence they pulled slowly along, peering carefully about them, and
getting ever nearer and nearer to the town. The lights began to show
more clearly, and large objects ashore to assume a somewhat definite
outline. The dark background of the mighty mountains behind the town
could be made out towering far above them, thei