een ascending at some little distance behind
the fort, apparently from the river.

"That must proceed from another steamer coming down to assist our
friend," observed Higson; "and see, there is another rising just beyond
it--we shall have no lack of enemies to fight."

"We must settle with the first, then, as soon as possible," cried Jack,
in a cheery tone; "we'll then take the others in detail."

The crew cheered as they heard his remark, and worked away at the guns
with redoubled zeal. Several shot had struck the vessel under the fort;
first one of her guns ceased firing, then another and another; still she
kept her colours flying, and in another minute the bows of a steamer
were seen emerging from the mouth of the river. A shot was instantly
fired at her; it struck her bulwarks, and evidently caused some damage.
Instead, however, of running under the guns of the fort, she stood away
up the bay, evidently not wishing to come to close quarters with the
audacious stranger. A few minutes afterwards another vessel appeared,
which, receiving one of the _Tornado's_ shot, followed the example of
the first. After getting nearly two miles away, they brought their
broadsides round, and opened a brisk fire. The _Tornado_, however,
moving rapidly about as before, escaped every one of their shot; while
she fired her guns as they came to bear on her antagonists, and seldom
failed to hull one or other of them. Still, their guns were of heavier
calibre than hers, and their shot frequently went far beyond her, and
she had to stand towards them to make hers tell with effect.

At length a shot came crashing on board just abaft the funnel, wounding
one man severely, and another, Tim Nolan, slightly.

"Arrah, now, it's but a fleabite," he exclaimed, getting a shipmate to
bind a handkerchief round his shoulder; "we've given them more than that
already, and it's better than having the funnel shot away."

Still Jack had no intention of abandoning the attack, and, wishing to
settle the first vessel before he attended to the other two, he directed
his guns at her and at the fort, although the shot from the former
continually hulled him. One, at length, went through the ship's side
between wind and water, and the sea came rushing in like a mill-sluice.
The midshipmen, who up to this time were enjoying the fighting, thought
that things were beginning to look serious.

Dicky Duff, especially, expressed his apprehensions to his chum B