NIGHTS IN THE GALLEY. 407 



says to the first- lieutenant, ' I am sure that's a Frenchman.' ' I 

 think so too/ says the first-luff.' ' Turn the hands up, make sail/ says 

 the skipper. ' Topmen, aloft ; shake out all reefs stand by to set 

 your topgallant-sails. Come, Diomede/ said the skipper, ' you 

 must do your best now ; let me once get alongside, and if I don't take 

 her, blame me for a lubber : work cheerly, lads, and you shall have 

 some prize-money to go home with.' So at it we went, and soon got 

 all sail on her; it was blowing very fresh, and they thought the 

 masts would go every minute. The first-leaftenant hinted so to the 

 captain once. ' The main-topgallant-mast is complaining, Sir/ says 

 he. ' 1 can't help it/ said the captain ; ' I'd rather lose a mast than 

 a good action.' We were going to windward fast now, and got a 

 good sight of her ; she was certainly a large French frigate ; she 

 didn't appear to shun us, but kept carrying on sail to keep to wind- 

 ward ; we soon found we were by far the quickest sailer, and went 

 very fast to windward. She appeared to think so too ; she ran on a 

 little while, and then tacked. We held our way for about ten 

 minutes longer, and then round we went ; she saw directly we should 

 soon run up to windward of her, so she threw herself in stays again 

 to meet us, and try to keep the weather-gauge, but when we saw this 

 we kept clean full ; we were then running right head on to each 

 other ; when we got very close, we luffed right up in the wind across 

 her bows to rake her ; to prevent this she put her helm up, and we put 

 ours down, so we run right alongside of her to windward, and began 

 to hammer away. The skipper was standing on the after-carronade, 

 and the French captain was standing on the fauksle. Directly the 

 Frenchman saw our skipper he took off his hat ; Captain Clifford re- 

 turned it, and then he turned round to a young reefer, who was 

 standing near him as his aid-de-camp, and said, ' Give me my pistols 

 off the capstan, quick.' The reefer handed them to him, and he held 

 them up with one hand, and pointed to them with the other. When 

 the Frenchman saw this, he waved his hand, and turned round to speak 

 to somebody on board ; a pair of pistols were handed to him imme- 

 diately, and he made another bow to our captain, who returned it. 

 They then fired off their pistols both at the same time but neither of 

 them were wounded. ' Vive Napoleon !' cried out the Frenchman, as 

 he raised his other pistol. ' God save the king !' sung out our skipper, 

 and they both fired : poor Captain Clifford fell down, the ball had 

 gone into his right breast. ' Send the first-leaftenant here/ said he, 

 as some men lifted him up to carry him below. Aft he ran. e Throw 

 me overboard fight her to the last God bless you all, my men ! 

 take command, Wilson -good bye !' He never spoke again. By this 

 time we had managed to lash our bo' sprit to their mizenmast. 

 Directly the men heard the captain was dead, we sung out, ' Board 

 her, lads board her.' It was echoed all thro' the ship j the first- 

 leaftenant saw what we wanted : ' Ay, away there, boarders, away ! 

 follow me, lads/ said he. We all jumped after him from our signal 

 locker to their fauksle ; we carried two flannel cartridges with us, in- 

 tending to cut one of her fauksle guns adrift, and point it aft and 

 rush aft in the smoke j but we could not get possession of her 

 fauksle ; they fought well, and disputed every step. The French 



