oderate breeze blowing, and so little swell running that it was not
worth speaking about; yet the long-boat was no sooner fairly in tow than
it became apparent that those in charge of her were in difficulties;
and, but for the prompt measures taken by Danton, she would have missed
the schooner altogether and gone wallowing away to leeward. With our
assistance, however, she was got alongside, after a fashion, and brought
to the schooner's lee gangway, when it became apparent that those in
charge of her were so helplessly drunk that they could hardly stand.
Yet, somehow, they managed, with assistance, to clamber up our low side
and reach the deck; when, as well as their drunken state would allow,
they forthwith proceeded, in ribald language, to entertain their more
sober shipmates with a tale of gross, wanton, cruel outrage, perpetrated
on board the Spaniard, that made my blood boil with indignation, and
caused me, thick-skinned sailor as I was, to blush at the thought that
the perpetrators were, like myself, human. I noticed that Danton
listened with greedy ears to the foul recital; and by and by, when the
long-boat's cargo had been roused out of her and struck down our main
hatchway, he turned the schooner over to the carpenter, and, taking four
fresh and sober hands with him, proceeded on board the _Santa Theresa_,
leaving the four drunken ruffians behind.

Shortly after the departure of the long-boat, one of the cutters came
drifting down to us, loaded to her gunwale, and the four intoxicated
scoundrels in charge of her amply verified the revolting story told by
their predecessors, adding such details as abundantly confirmed my
suspicions that the _Jean Bart_ was no privateer, but an out-and-out
pirate of the deepest dye. Their tale so inflamed the sober portion of
our crew, who had remained on board the schooner, that at one moment it
looked very much as though they were about to throw off all the trammels
of discipline and obedience, and proceed forthwith on board the
Spaniard, to participate in the saturnalia still in progress there; and
it was only by the production of a lavish allowance of rum, and a
promise from the carpenter that they should all have their turn on board
the doomed ship, that they could be restrained from heaving the cutter's
cargo overboard--instead of hoisting it out and passing it down the
hatchway,--seizing the boat, and proceeding on board the Spaniard _en
masse_. As for me, it may be im