The farmer and mechanic. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 18??-19??, 1898-11-29

! In five minutes. for all the officers
| stamping and morb'cwing, they had
the Ban Pheasant about, and were
running for the English coast.
Now I've got to go back and tell YOU
what was happening to the Unity in all
this while. About 1 in the afternoon
! Cap'n Dick. not liking the look of the
| weather at all, and knowing that. so
/ long as it lasted. he might whistle for
! prizes, changed his mind. and deter
mined to run back to Polperro, SO as
to re-ship Captain Jacka and the prize
crew almost as soon as they arrived.
BY > o'clock he was we'll on his way.
J the Unity skipping along quite as if
She enjoyed it. and ran before the gale
all that night.
Toward ) in the morning the wind
moderated. and by 4:3O the gale had
blown itself out. just about then the
lookout came to Captain Dick. who had
turned III for Il spell, and reported t"o
ships lights. one on each SIDE Of them.
| The chances against their being French
men. out here on this part of the chan
mel, were about ) to ,: so Captain Dick
cracked on; and at daybreak-about
515-found himself right slap between
the very two ~frigates that had called
Jacka to halt the evening before.
One was fetching alon. on the port
tack. and the other on the weather side
of him. Just making ready - put about.
They both ran up the white ensign 1T
sight of him; but this meant nothing.
And in Il few minutes the fri"atc to
| starboard fired a shot across his bows
and hoisted her French tlag.
Captain Dick fcigned to take the hint.
He shortened sail and rounded at Il
nice distance under the lee of the enc
my-both ~frigates now living to quit,
contentedly with their sails aback. and
lowering their boats. But the first boat
had hardly dropped a foot from the
davits when he sung out. "Wurlo,
lads and up again went the Unitys
great lug-sail in Il jitfy. The French
men. like their sails. were all aD"ck:
and before they could fire a gun the
Unity was pinchins up to winlward of
them. with Captain Dick 1T the helm
and all the rest of the crew on their
stomachs. Off she went under i rat
Ting shower from the cnemy's bow
chascrs and muskctry. and was ont OF
range without a man hurt, and with no
more damage than a hole or two in the
mizZen-lug. The Frenchmen We're Il
good 10 minutes trimming sails and
bracing their yards for a chase: and by
that time Captain Dick had slanted up
we'll on their weather bow. Before
breakfast-time he was shaking his sides
at the sight of seven hundred odd John
nics vainly spreading and trimming
more canvass to catch up their lee-way
for the first the lazy dogs had barely
unreefed courses after the gale. and
still had their ~topgallant masts housed)
Likely enough they had work on hand
more important than chasing Il small
luggcr all day; for at I o'clock they gave
up and stood away to the southeast. and
left the Unity free to head back home
ward on her old course.
Twas a surprising feat. to slip out
of grasp in this way, and past two
broadSideS. any gun of which could
have sent him to the bottom: and Capt.
Dick wasn't one to miss boastinG over
if. Even during the chase he couldn't
help carrying on in his ustal loud and
cheeky way, waving good by to the
Mossoos. offering them a low p and
the like: but now the deck wasn't big
enough to hold his swagger, and in
their JOY of escaping a French prison,
the men encouraged him. 50 that to
hear them talk you'd have thought he
was Admiral Nelson and Sir Sidney
Smith rolled into one.
BY Q O'Clock they made ont the Eddy
stone on their starboard bow; and Il
little after the morning being bright
and clear. with a nice steady breeze
they saw Il sail right ahead of them.
making in for Plymouth sound And
who should it be but the old Bean
Pheasant. deep rs a log. Capt. Dick
cracked along after her, and a picture
she was as he drew up close. Six OF
her guns had gone, her men were baling