Petz's flagship, he thought she was already doomed to destruction, and
looked upon it as useless cruelty to sink her with her crew.

The fleets were now separating, and the fire was slackening. In this last
stage of the melee the "Maria Pia" and the "San Martino" collided amid the
smoke, and the latter received serious injuries. As the fleets worked away
from each other there was still a desultory fire kept up, but after having
lasted for about an hour and a half the battle was nearly over.

Tegethoff, having got between the Italians and Lissa, reformed his fleet in
three lines of divisions, each in line ahead, the ironclads to seaward
nearest the enemy; the wooden frigates next; and the gunboats nearest the
land. Every ship except the "Kaiser" (which lay in the entrance of the
port) was still ready for action. Some of them were leaking badly,
including his flagship, which had started several plates in the bow when
she rammed and sank the "Re d'Italia." The fleet steamed slowly out from
the land on a north-easterly course, the ironclads firing a few
long-ranging shots at the Italians.

Persano was also reforming his fleet in line, and was flying a signal to
continue the action, but he showed no determined wish to close with
Tegethoff again. On the contrary, while reforming the line he kept it on a
northwesterly course, and thus the distance between the fleets was
increasing every minute, as they were moving on divergent lines. Gradually
the firing died away and the battle was over. Albini, with the wooden
squadron, and the ironclad "Terribile," which had remained with him, and
taken no part in the fight, ran out and joined the main fleet.

Persano afterwards explained that he was waiting for Tegethoff to come out
and attack him. But the Austrian admiral had attained his object, by
forcing his way through the Italian line, and placing himself in a position
to co-operate with the batteries of Lissa, in repelling any further attempt
upon the island. There was no reason why, with his numerically inferior
fleet, he should come out again to fight a second battle.

But though the action was ended, there was yet another disaster for the
Italians. The "Palestro" had been for two hours fighting the fire lighted
on board of her by the Austrian shells. Smoke was rising from hatchways and
port-holes, but as she rejoined the fleet she signalled that the fire was
being got under and the magazines had been drowned. Two of the smaller