to translate our somewhat vague plans into action.

Having arrived at this understanding, I went aft and informed Captain
Renouf that my comrades had consented, like myself under protest, to
serve on board the _Jean Bart_; whereupon he ironically congratulated me
upon my success--at which, nevertheless, I could see he was very much
pleased--and gave orders that we were forthwith to be enrolled in the
port watch, under his brother. We went on duty within the hour, were
all placed in the same mess, and slept that night in that portion of the
'tween-decks devoted to the accommodation of the crew.

I was called upon to perform the duty of an able seaman; and ere long it
became apparent that, having gained his way with us Englishmen, Renouf
was now desirous to render our service as pleasant as possible to us.
We were called upon only to do such work as is usually allotted to the
highest grade of seamen before the mast, and in many ways trifling but
none the less acceptable indulgences were shown to us. One of our
duties was, of course, to take our regular trick at the wheel, and in
this way I soon discovered that we were heading for West Indian waters.

It was on the fifth day after our submission to Renouf that, just after
breakfast, a sail was made out from the mast-head, and the schooner's
course was at once altered with the object of intercepting the strange
ship, which was steering north. I was full of hope that the craft would
turn out to be British, in which case there would almost certainly be a
fight, and an opportunity would be afforded me of paying off part of the
debt that I owed to Monsieur Renouf. But as the two craft neared each
other, and the stranger's sails, and finally her hull, rose above the
horizon, I was disappointed to discover that she was evidently a
foreigner; and at length, in response to an exhibition of the French
colours at the schooner's peak, she hoisted the Spanish ensign. Renouf,
however, continued to bear down upon her; and presently the Spaniard,
evidently growing alarmed at the menacing behaviour of the schooner, put
up her helm and bore away before the wind, with the unmistakable
intention of avoiding us if possible.

But a cart-horse might as well hope to gallop away from a thorough-bred
racer as that ship to outsail the _Jean Bart_. The stranger was clearly
a big, lumbering merchantman, built for the purpose of stowing the
greatest possible amount of cargo in a hull of her di