little to the east of
where Lieutenant Knight was murdered, as we saw in the last chapter.
About 1.40 A.M. Lieutenant George Davies, R.N., the _Tartar's_
commander, was below sleeping with his clothes and boots on, when he
heard the officer of the watch call for him. Instantly he went on deck
and saw a smuggling vessel. She was then about thirty yards away and
within a mile of the shore. Her name was afterwards found to be the
French sloop _Diane_.

It was rather a warm, thick night, such as one sometimes gets in April
when the weather has begun to get finer. By the time that the
cruiser's commander had come up on deck, both the cutter and the
_Diane_ were hove-to, and the vessels were close alongside. When first
sighted by the boatswain the smuggler was standing out from the land.
The _Tartar's_ boat was now launched into the water, and the bo'sun
and two men pulled off in her and boarded the _Diane_, and then came
back to fetch Lieutenant Davies. The instant the latter boarded the
_Diane_, he saw one of the latter's crew throwing something overboard.
He stooped down to pick something up, when Davies rushed forward and
caught him round the body as something fell into the water, and a
tub-hoop, new, wet, and green, was taken from him. Davies called to
his bo'sun to bring a lantern, so that he might identify the seized
man and then proceed to search the vessel.

A tub-rail and stop-rope were found on board, and, on going below, the
hold was found to be strewn with chips of tub-hoops and pieces of
stones for sinking. The upper deck was similarly strewn, while by the
hatchway were found sinker-slings. These sinkers in actual employment
were accustomed to be suspended and hitched round the warp at about
every sixth tub. The _Diane's_ master was asked where his boat was
since none was found aboard, but there was no satisfactory answer.
Tub-boards for fixing on deck so as to prevent the tubs from rolling
overboard were also found, so altogether there was sufficient reason
for seizing the vessel, which was now done. She was taken into
Weymouth and her crew brought before a magistrate. And in that port
the tub-boat was also found, for the smugglers had doubtless sent most
of their cargo ashore in her whilst the _Diane_ was cruising about
between there and St. Alban's Head. It was significant that only three
men were found on board, whereas smuggling vessels of this size (about
twenty to thirty tons) usually carried eight or