d Saint
Michael's. In an instant the cannon of the fort roared out, the
bells clanged the alarm, blue fires were lighted, and the dead
silence was succeeded by a perfect chaos of sounds.

The party under the bridge waited quietly, until the noise as of a
large body of men coming upon the bridge from the town end was
heard. At the first outbreak Gerald Dillon had, with some
difficulty, lit first some tinder, and then a slow match, from a
flint and steel--all of these articles having been most carefully
kept dry during the trip, with the two pistols, which were intended
to fire the fuses, should the flint and steel fail to produce a
light.

As the sound of the reinforcements coming on to the bridge was
heard, Gerald Dillon on one side, Rupert Holliday on the other,
left the log, and swam with a slow match in hand to the boats. In
another instant the fuses were lighted, and the three companions
swam steadily downstream.

In twenty seconds a loud explosion was heard, followed almost
instantaneously by another, and the swimmers knew that their object
had been successful, that two of the boats forming the bridge would
sink immediately, and that, the connexion being thus broken, no
reinforcements from the town could reach the garrison of the Fort
Saint Michael. Loud shouts were heard upon the bridge as the
swimmers struck steadily down stream, while the roar of the
musketry from Fort Saint Michael was unremitting.

Half an hour later the three adventurers landed, at a point where a
lantern had, according to arrangement, been placed at the water's
edge by Pat Dillon, who was in waiting with their clothes, and who
received them with an enthusiastic welcome. Five minutes later they
were on their way back to their camp.

In the meantime the battle had raged fiercely round Fort Saint
Michael. The attack had been made upon two breaches. The British
column, headed by the grenadiers, and under the command of Lord
Cutts, attacked the principal breach. The French opposed a
desperate defence. With Lord Cutts as volunteers were Lord
Huntingdon, Lord Lorn, Sir Richard Temple, and Mr. Dalrymple, and
these set a gallant example to their men.

On arriving at a high breastwork, Lord Huntingdon, who was weakened
by recent attack of fever, was unable to climb over it.

"Five guineas," he shouted, "to the man who will help me over!"

Even among the storm of balls there was a shout of laughter as the
nobleman held out his purse, and a