is allegiance to the United States.

His sudden change of tone had its sufficient reason. It is probable that
Lafitte was well aware of a serious danger just then impending, far more
threatening than the militia raid which had been so easily defeated. A
naval expedition was ready to set out against him. It consisted of three
barges of troops under Commander Patterson of the American navy. These
were joined at the Balize by six gunboats and a schooner, and proceeded
against the piratical stronghold.

On the 16th of September the small fleet came within sight of Grande
Terre, drew up in line of battle, and started for the entrance to
Barataria Bay. Within this the pirate fleet, ten vessels in all, was in
line to receive them. Soon there was trouble for the assailants. Shoal
water stopped the schooner, and the two larger gunboats ran aground. But
their men swarmed into boats and rowed on in the wake of the other
vessels, which quickly made their way through the pass and began a
vigorous attack on its defenders.

Now the war was all afoot, and we should be glad to tell of a gallant
and nobly contested battle, in which the sea-rovers showed desperate
courage and reddened the sea with their blood. There might be inserted
here a battle-piece worthy of the Drakes and Morgans of old, if the
facts only bore us out. Instead of that, however, we are forced to say
that the pirates proved sheer caitiffs when matched against honest men,
and the battle was a barren farce.

Commander Patterson and his men dashed bravely on, and in a very short
time two of the pirate vessels were briskly burning, a third had run
aground, and the others were captured. Many of the pirates had fled; the
others were taken. The battle over, the buildings on Grande Terre and
Grande Isle were destroyed and the piratical lurking-place utterly
broken up. This done, the fleet sailed in triumph for New Orleans,
bringing with them the captured craft and the prisoners who had been
taken. But among the captives was neither of the Lafittes. They had not
stood to their guns, but had escaped with the other fugitives into the
secret places of the bay.

Thus ends the history of Barataria Bay as a haunt of pirates. Since
that day only honest craft have entered its sheltered waters. But the
Lafittes were not yet at the end of their career, or at least one of
them, for of Pierre Lafitte we hear very little after this time. Two
months after their flight the famous British