ly seen how we
pitched it into this _Holy Trinity_; she was _holy_ enough before we had
done with her, riddled like a sieve, several of her ports knocked into
one, and every scupper of her running blood and water. Not but what she
stood to it as bold as brass, and gave us nearly gun for gun, and made a
very pretty general average in our ship's company. Many of the old
captains went to kingdom come in that business, and many more were
obliged to bear up for Greenwich Hospital.

"`Fire away, my lads--steady aim!' cries Nelson. `Jump down there, Mr
Thomas; pass the word to reduce the cartridges, the shot go clean
through her. Double shot the guns there, fore and aft.'

"So we were at it for about half-an-hour, when our guns became so hot
from quick firing, that they bounced up to the beams overhead, tearing
away their ringbolts, and snapping the breechings like rope yarns. By
this time we were almost as much unrigged as if we had been two days
paying off in Portsmouth harbour. The four-decker forged ahead, and
Troubridge, in the jolly old _Culloden_, came between us and two other
Spanish ships, who were playing into us. She was as fresh as a daisy,
and gave them a dose which quite astonished them. They shook their
ears, and fell astern, when the _Blenheim_ laid hold of them, and mauled
them so that they went astern again. But it was out of the frying-pan
into the fire: for the _Orion_, _Prince George_, and one or two others,
were coming up, and knocked the very guts out of them. I'll be damned
if they forgot the 14th of April, and sarve them right, too. Wasn't a
four-decker enough for any two-decker, without any more coming on us?
and couldn't the beggars have matched themselves like gentlemen? Well,
Mr Simple, this gave us a minute or two to fetch our breath, let the
guns cool, and repair damages, and swab the blood from the decks; but we
lost our four-decker, for we could not get near her again."

"What odd names the Spaniards give to their ships, Swinburne!"

"Why, yes, they do; it would almost appear wicked to belabour the _Holy
Trinity_ as we did. But why they should call a four-decked ship the
_Holy Trinity_ I can't tell. Bill Saunders said that the fourth deck
was for the Pope, who was as great a parsonage as the others: but I
can't understand how that can be. Well, Mr Simple, as I was
head-signalman, I was perched on the poop, and didn't serve at a gun. I
had to report all I could see, which was