oad of desperadoes alongside. Seeing
therefore that resistance was useless, the padrone and his crew were
transferred to the brig, and thirty Greek seamen took their place. The
exchange was made very rapidly, as their chief, for such he was whom we
have known as Argiri Caramitzo, appeared in a hurry.

An officer, who seemed to have charge of the brig, came off in a smaller
boat at the summons of the captain.

"Understand," he said, "you are, if possible, to keep the English brig,
you see to the westward, just in sight; at, indeed, about the same
distance we are now from her. Steer east-northeast, which is her
course, and look out for the speronara. I am about to visit the brig,
and may perhaps be able to render you a good account of her."

The officer bowed.

"I understand your orders clearly," he said. "We would rather, however,
see you returning in the brig, than in the speronara."

"I will not forget your wishes," the chief answered laughing, as the
boat shoved off.

"Now my men let draw the foresheet--now she has way on her--haul it well
aft, and see if she will lay up for the brig yonder. Ah, she does it
bravely--call me when we near her."

And wrapping himself in his cloak he lay down to sleep, or, it might
have been, to meditate on the daring plans and projects working in his
active brain. The speronara flew over the waves like a sea-bird on the
wing. She soon neared the brig which Paolo at once recognised as the
English merchantman they had passed in Valetta harbour. He had heard
from the chief who were the passengers on board, and the _ruse_ to be
practised had also been confided to him. He had been endeavouring to
beguile, to him, the weary hours of the voyage with reading, while the
chief slept, for sleep refused to visit his eyelids. A thought seemed
to strike him. He wrote hastily in the book, and tearing out the leaf,
placed it in his bosom. He then roused his companion from his slumber.
The Greek started up and eyed the approaching brig.

"It is she," he exclaimed. "That vessel, my men, is to be your prize;
but much caution will be required to take her. She is armed, that is to
say, she has four real guns and two wooden ones; but from what I saw of
her captain and crew, I think they are likely to fight. They are very
different sort of characters, are those English, to the Italians we are
accustomed to deal with, who call on their saints to help them, and from
the Turks, who make u