New Britain herald., 1923-01-12


 asked,
 None answered him. ali being as puzzled as he was himself.
 After little while. Esieban. who kept his eyes on the water, plueked at his unele's sieve. '.There they go," he cried. and pointed.
 And there, indeed, went the pira- guas on their way back to the ships. Hut now it was observed that they were empty. save for the men who rowed them. Their armed cargo had been left ashore.
 Rack to the ships they pulled. to return again presently with fresh lead Of armed men. winch similarly they conveyed to Paiomas And at last one of the Spanish officers ven- tured an explanation;
 They are going to attack us by land-to attempt to storm the fort"
 "of course" The Admiral smiled, T had guessed 1t. Whom the gods would destroy they first make mad"
 Hut by evening the Admiral,s equanimity was not quite so perfect. By then the piraguas had made a helf-dozen journeys with their loads Of men and they had landed also as Den Miguel had clearly observed through his telescope-at least a dozen guns.
 His countenance no longer smiled: 1t was little wrathful.
 "Who was the fool who told me that they member but three hundred men in all? They have put at least twice that number ashore already" g Amazed as he was. his nmazement would have been deeper had he been told the truth: that there was not a single buccaneer or a single gun ashore on Palomas. The deception had been complete. Don Miguel could not guess that the men he had beheld in those piraguas were always the came; that on the journeys to the shore they sat and stood upright in full view: and that on the journeys back to the ships. they lay invisible ct the bottom of the boats, which were thus made to appear empty.
 In the last hours of fading daylight, the Spaniard did precisely what Cap- tain Blood 50 confidently counted that they would do--precisely what they must do to meet the attack, prepara- lions for which had been so thorough ly simulated. They set themselves to labor like the damned at those ponderous guns emplaced to command the narrow passage out to sea. a Thus. when night fell they stood to their guns. < And whilst they waited thus. under cover of the darkness and as the tide began to ebb. Captain Blood's fleet weighed anchor quietly; and. as once before with no more canvas spread than that which their spirits could 1 carry, so as to give them steering way -and even these having been painted four vessels. without a fight showing, groped their way by soundings to tho channel which led to that narrow passage out to sea- The Elizabeth and the Infanta, leading side by side. were almost abreast of the fort before their shadoswy bulks and the, soft gurgle of water at their prows were detected by | the Spaniards, whose attention until that moment had been all on the other side. The Elizabeth emptied her larboard guns into the fort as she was spent past on the swift ebb. Some slight damage was sustained by Blood's fleet. But by the time the Spaniards had resolved their con- fusion into some order of dangerous offense, that fleet was through the narrows and standing out to sea.
 Thus was Don Miguel de Espinosa left to chew the bitter end of lost opportunity.
 of the coast of Oruba, at the month of the Gulf of Venezuela, Cap atin Blood's fleet came upon the pe- lated Santo Nino, speeding under tuli sail to re-enforce Don Miguel at Mara caybo.
 At first the Spaniard had conceived that she was meeting the victorious fleet of Don Miguel, returning from the destruction of the pirates. when at comparatively close. quarters the pennon of St. George scared to the masthead to disillusion her, the santo Nino chose the better part of valor,l and struck her flag.
 Captain Blood ordered her crew to take to the boats. and lana tnem selves at Oruba or wherever else they pleased.
 Dismissing the Captain. who went over the side of the Santo Nino. Cap lin Blood proceeded to investigate he value of this further prize. when ,er hatches were removed, a human ,areo was disclosed in her hold.
 slaves" said Wolverstone, and in that belief, cursing Span- sh deviltry until Cahusac crawled up