Page:The Wreck of a World - Grove - 1890.djvu/101

Rh clear to all that there could be but one end to the fight, since the enemy was invulnerable, and sooner or later one of the shot was sure to sink the Roanoke. At the same time if we joined in the attack we should only impede his movements, and in no respect help our comrade.

Dana seems to have felt as we did that unless he could devise some other means of offence than his guns and ram the battle must end in his destruction. So circling round and round her, near enough to let the shot and shell pass over him, yet far enough off to be beyond those terrible arms, he made his preparations. Presently we saw him draw off to the distance of perhaps seven hundred yards, at which range the shot and shell fell just beyond him. Was he going to ram again, hoping that at great speed he would be able to crash through the sides even of this steel wall? It seemed so, for he began to advance under full steam. We trembled for the result, for even if successful, his own already damaged bows must have been completely shattered.

But as he got close to the enemy, we saw his speed checked, the engines reversed, and instead of striking