CHASED BY THE EATTLESNAKE. 13 



levy. His two brothers were already serving in the armies of 

 Napoleon as officers, and it was decided that their junior should 

 voluntarily join the navy. After passing vehat he called " a 

 superficial examination " for an appointment as midshipman, he 

 was ordered to report at Eochefort. Entering upon his duties in 

 the French marine, he was destined to make at least one short 

 cruise in the service of France. Before entering the service he 

 had made the acquaintance of a young man named Ferdinand 

 Eosier, with whom he had made some proposal of going to 

 America. On the return of the vessel in which he acted, 

 it was proposed that he and Eosier should leave for America as 

 partners, under a nine years' engagement. The elder Audubon 

 obtained leave of absence for his son ; and after passports were 

 provided, the two emigrants left France at a period when 

 thousands would have been glad of liberty to follow their foot- 

 steps. 



About two weeks after leaving France, a vessel gave chase 

 to the French vessel, passed her by to windward, fired a shot 

 across her bows, and continued the chase until the captain 

 of the outward bound was forced to heave his ship to, and 

 submit to be boarded by a boat. The enemy proved to be the 

 English privateer Eattlesnake, the captain of which was sadly 

 vexed to find that his prey was an American vessel, carrying 

 proper papers, and flying the stars and stripes. Unable to 

 detain the vessel, the privateer's crew determined at least to 

 rob the passengers. " They took pigs and sheep," writes 

 Audubon, " and carried away two of our best sailors, in spite of 

 the remonstrances of the captain, and of a member of the 

 United States Congress, who was a passenger on board, and 

 was accompanied by an amiable daughter. The Eattlesnake 

 kept us under her lee, and almost within pistol-shot for a day 

 and a night, ransacking the ship for money, of which we had a 

 great deal in the run under the ballast, which though partially 

 removed, they did not go deep enough to reach the treasure. 

 The gold belonging to Eosier and myself I put away in a 

 woollen stocking under the ship's cable in the bows of the 

 ship, where it remained safe until the privateers had departed. 

 Beaching within thirty miles of Sandy Hook, a fishing-smack 

 was spoken, which reported that two British frigates lay off 



