Page:Daring deeds of famous pirates; true stories of the stirring adventures, bravery and resource of pirates, filibusters & buccaneers (1917).djvu/228

 with which the ships had each come to her berth in such close proximity to the defensive works. For a time Lord Exmouth was in hopes that the Dey would yield to his lordship's demands, but this delay was not caused by any such intention on the part of the enemy but owing to the fact that the Algerines were completely unprepared for such a sudden approach, and their guns were not even shotted. It was only as the fleet came to anchor that the gunners ashore could be seen getting busy. To the last minute the British Admiral was minded to spare human life and even was seen on the quarter-deck repeatedly waving his hat as a warning to the crowd to retire from the mole.

So at 2.45 p.m. the enemy opened fire at the Queen Charlotte. Before the sound of the firing reached his ears, and while the first smoke was visible, Lord Exmouth gave the order to fire, and then three broadsides were fired in about six minutes, the rest of the fleet following the example. This caused terrible devastation ashore, as many as 500 people being killed or wounded. Then the attack began in deadly earnest. It was a repetition of the history of the sixteenth century. On the one hand, the Christian forces of Europe: on the other, the infidel corsairs and enemies of the human race. Both sides fought with the same fierceness which had marked their contests in many a previous generation. In the hot, overpowering sun, with the last vestige of breeze vanished away, the gunners blazed away in fine style. Algerine vessels in close proximity to the English fleet burst forth into flames and for a time endangered the wooden walls of England. On both sides frightful slaughter was taking place. The Dey had 500 guns mounted and doing their work to our great loss, but our own men and guns were hurling death into the nest of