aw that their opportunity was lost. The negroes, for
the sake of being more out of the way, as they fancied, of Thompson's
musket, had climbed as high as they could up the rigging, so that he was
able to hold another Frenchman in check. The Frenchman nearest to me,
seeing my resolute bearing, and having no fancy for throwing his life
away even for the sake of his companions, very wisely backed against
them, and they seeing Mr Randolph and his party advancing from forward,
to avoid getting their heads broken, leaped precipitately down the
hatchway, whence they had but just before emerged.

Leaving Thompson to keep the blacks aloft with his musket, I sprang to
the hatchway and sang out, "We do not want to do you any harm, but if
you attempt any trick, for our own sakes we must shoot every one of
you!" I said this because I saw one of them striking away over a
tinder-box, with the intention, I had little doubt, of trying to set the
ship on fire.

Mr Randolph highly applauded me for what I had done. On looking below
and seeing what the Frenchmen were about, he and Andrews, with Jones and
another man, leaped down among them, and seizing the first they could
lay hands on, lifted him up crop and heels to me. The move so much
astonished his companions, that they did not come to his assistance; and
another being treated in the same way, we had their forces divided, and
very speedily brought them to terms. We first lashed the hands of the
two we had on deck behind them, and made them sit down with their backs
against the bulwarks on the starboard side, and then we got up the other
three one by one, and placed them, bound in the same way, on the
opposite side. Next we called down the blacks, and arranged them round
the mainmast.

"Now, my friends, by all the laws of war you ought to be shot!" said Mr
Randolph. "We treated you very kindly; we gave you of the best of
everything on board, and in return you have attempted to knock us on the
head, and to take the ship from us. However, it was natural that you
should wish to recover what was once your own, so that if you will
promise, on the honour of Frenchmen, not to make another attempt of the
sort, we will allow you your freedom during the day-time, on certain
conditions. Three of you must remain forward, and never come abaft the
foremast unless I call you; and two must never go before the
mizzen-mast; at night we must shut you all up. I warn you, also, that
as surely