aptain. I don't think, then, he
would interfere with us."

"Very well, Mr. Repton; we will arrange it so."

The polacre had now taken its place to leeward of the other two
vessels, and they held on in that order until the frigate was
within half a mile; when she fired a gun across their bows, as
signal for them to heave to. The brig was now flying the British
colours; her prizes the British colours, with the Spanish
underneath them. At the order to heave to, they were all thrown up
into the wind.

The frigate reduced her sail as she came up and, as she neared the
polacre, the order was shouted:

"Send a boat alongside!"

The boat was already prepared for lowering. Four seamen got into
her, and rowed Bob alongside the frigate. The first person he
encountered, as he stepped on to the deck, was Jim Sankey; who
stared at him in astonishment.

"Hullo, Bob! What in the world are you doing here?"

"I am in command of that polacre, Mr. Sankey," Bob replied.

"Eh--what?" Jim stammered, in astonishment; when the captain's
voice from the quarterdeck came sharply down:

"Now, Mr. Sankey, what are you waiting for? Bring that gentleman
here."

Jim led the way up to the poop.

Bob saluted.

"Good morning, Captain Langton."

"Why, it's Repton!" the captain exclaimed, in surprise. "Why, where
do you spring from, and what craft are these?"

"I am in command, at present, sir, of the polacre; which, with the
barque, is a prize of the brig the Antelope, privateer."

"But what are you doing on board, Repton? And how is it that you
are in command?"

"Well, sir, I was out on a cruise in the Antelope. The second mate
was sent, with a prize crew, back to Gibraltar, in a craft we
picked up off Malaga. We cut out the other two prizes from under
the guns of Cartagena. The first mate was in command of the party
that captured the barque and, as there was no one else to send, the
captain put me in command of the party that captured the polacre."

"But how on earth did you manage it?" the captain asked. "I see the
brig has been cut up a good deal, about the sails and rigging. You
don't mean to say that she sailed right into Cartagena? Why, they
would have blown her out of the water!"

"We didn't go in, sir. We anchored outside the port. We were not
suspected, because one of His Majesty's frigates fired at us, as we
were going in; and the consequence was the Dons never suspected
that we were anything but a Spanish trader."

"