drew near, carrying the wind along with
her, we made her out to be a large black brig, probably, from her
appearance, it was supposed, a man-of-war. She was still at some
distance when the passengers came on deck to take their usual walk
before breakfast. Of course she excited no small amount of interest,
and many opinions were passed as to her character, and to what nation
she belonged. Whatever she was, it was pretty evident that she intended
to come and speak us. I asked Spratt if he thought she was an English
man-of-war.

"Not she," was his answer. "That spread of white canvas cloth is of
Brazilian cotton stuff. To my mind she has a wicked, unsatisfactory
look I don't like. There's no good about her, depend on that, Mr
Marsden."

I found, on going aft, that the captain and mates entertained the same
opinion of the stranger which Spratt had expressed.

"What can he want with us?" was the question asked by several.

"Perhaps only to know his longitude," observed the captain. "By the cut
of his sails he looks like a slaver, and, from his size, he is not
likely to be one to knock under to any man-of-war's boats he might fall
in with."

"But suppose he should be a pirate," observed some one.

"A pirate! Oh, there are no pirates now-a-days who would dare to attack
a big ship like this," answered the captain, laughing. "In the Indian
seas or the China coast there are fellows who would come on board and
cut our throats if they could catch us all asleep; but such a thing
never happens about here now."

"I am not quite so sure of that, sir," remarked Mr Henley. "I was not
long ago on this coast, and I heard of several piratical vessels which
did not always let even English merchantmen go free, though the British
blockading squadron has made their game rather a hazardous one."

On came the stranger. We now could make out that she had at least four
ports on each side, with some heavy guns looking out at them; but she
showed no colours from which we might ascertain her nation. We expected
that, as she brought up the breeze, we should feel it also; but as she
approached us it seemed to die away, till she lay becalmed about half a
mile from us. That she had hostile intentions regarding us was soon
evident. Three boats were lowered from her sides, and we saw numbers of
men crowding into them.

"They intend to attack us!" exclaimed the captain, now almost too late
beginning to wonder what steps he should ta