had been sent in pursuit of him. He tried to
get to Alexandria but could not, so we knocked about running from our
own shadow till you hove in sight. He then did what he had long
resolved to do, ran the ship on shore. He and most of the officers and
some of the men escaped in the boats, leaving me with the remainder to
be blown up as a reward for my services. No thanks to them I escaped,
and that's the end of my story."

Two days after this a brig of war hove in sight. She signalised
"Important news", "The war has begun." The frigate made sail towards
her. The two men-of-war, as they drew near each other, hove-to, and the
commander of the brig came on board the frigate. It was soon known that
the _Racer_ was to join the squadron of Sir Robert Stopford. All sail
was immediately made on both ships, and together they steered a course
for the coast of Syria.

CHAPTER SEVEN.

TO SAVE THE FLAG.

"I say, Jack, can you tell me what all this row is about between us and
these wide-breeched, red-capped niggers, the Egyptians?" asked Adair, as
he stood by the side of Jack Rogers on the quarter-deck of the _Racer_,
while the latter, with his spyglass under his arm, was doing duty as
signal midshipman. The outlines of many a picturesque hill and white
stone stronghold, famed in ancient and modern history, rose in the
distance on the Syrian coast out of the blue glittering ocean.

"Why," replied Jack, "I'm not much of a politician, Paddy, but as far as
I can make out, old Mehemet Ali wants to be Sultan of the Turks, and we
won't let him; and so Charlie Napier told him that if he didn't draw in
his horns within twenty days, we would blow his fortresses on this coast
about the ears of his pachas. He, in return, told Charlie to go to
Jericho, that he intended to keep what he'd got; and so now we're going
to do what we promised. We shall have some fun, depend on it."

"Now I understand all the ins and outs of the matter," replied Paddy.
"There's nothing like knowing what you are fighting about."

"There, up goes a signal from the flag-ship," cried Jack, putting his
glass to his eye, and pointing it towards the _Princess Charlotte_, Sir
Robert Stopford's flag-ship, which, with the _Powerful, Thunderer,
Benbow_, and several other line-of-battle ships and frigates, sloops and
steamers, joined by a Turkish squadron under Admiral Walker, and a few
Austrian ships, was cruising off Beyrout.

"The signal for the captains