The Argosy, Vol. 75, No. 4 — page 190: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

892 is there, men! Now comes our turn in the game. We will lay to till they get close to us, and then we'll lead the fleet down the straits for the passage! ” They gave roaring approval, and we cruised to and fro for an hour, till the ships, with the Flying Stag leading, were close aboard us. The crews were gsrouped in their fore-riggings and on the forecastle heads, and they scanned us eagerly, and as Morgan came up abreast of us he hailed: ‘Osprey ahoy! What news?” “None, sir,” I answered, springing on the rail. ‘‘ The three ships lie in the fairway and both of the forts are garrisoned.” This was true. I had got the news from Cabrera. “ They have patrols out along the shore both day and night. If you are ready now, sir, we will give you a lead.” “Aye, aye! Choose your quarry.” | heard his orders pass rapidly down from the quarterdeck sending the crew to quarters, and we kept away upon our course, heading down the bay for the mouth of the entrance where it opened beyond the headland. Ship by ship we doubled the cape and opened the straits dead ahead of us, and it is no exaggeration to say that our hearts sank at the sight. There, anchored squarely in the pas- sage, with their broadsides brought to bear upon the narrow channel, lay three immense Spanish ships of war. The largest of the three loomed big in the early light and seemed to my inex- perienced eye to show the scantling of a ship of the line. When, later, | counted her piercings I found that she had but twenty main- deck ports in her starboard broadside, while the other ships had ten and fif- teen, respectively, and that this was bad enough we knew full well, though, to make matters worse, from the fort on the hill, commanding all the ship- ping, the great golden flag of Spain flung out to the breeze and the gleam of atms from the ramparts and em- brasures came to us across the water, Own THE ARGOSY. A signal went up on the Flying Stag and, obedient to it, every ship backed her maintopsail and waited. <A _ boat, with a white flag fluttering from its staff, put off from the ship of the Span- ish admiral and rowed swiftly down to us. Running between us and the Flying Stag, she backed water and stopped, and an officer, rising in the stern sheets, hailed. Morgan himself answered the hail, asking what was wanted, and we could scarcely believe our ears when the offer was made, in all seriousness, from the Spanish admiral to clear the channel and allow us free egress if we would but land our prisoners and restore our loot and treasure. ._A roar of laughter went up from the ships when the gist of the message was made known, and the Spanish boat pulled rapidly back to the galleon. »“Go in, Upholme!”’ shouted Mor- gan. “‘ We are all with you to-day! Go ahead and lay him aboard!” And down we went for the Spanish gal- leon. The three lay as quiet as the grave, their great ports yawning cavernously, with their black, iron mouths grinning menacingly at us. I expected every moment to be our last, for I well knew that the Osprey had been but a merchant vessel and her timbers were never intended to withstand the shot of a broadside of heavy ordnance when the Spaniard should fire. There was not a sound aboard him and on the Osprey you could have heard a pin drop. In that last moment { changed all my plans. “What water have you?” I called to the leadsman. He gave me eight fathoms. ‘Stop your cable at twenty fathoms. Stand by to anchor! I will bring up so that you will board him on his weather quarter.” This was necessary in order that the wind blowing across us to him should give him the full sweep of the flames, COPMICLOOOKS (C@)