Page:The crater; or, Vulcan's peak.djvu/430

 190 THE CRATER; always an advantage to the assailed to have time to recover from their first alarm, and to complete their arrangements. The governor listened to his friend s arguments with fa vour, but he sent the Neshamony on direc-t to the Reef, with a letter to Pennock, acquainting that functionary with the state of things, the intended plan, and a request that a twelve-pounder, that was mounted on a travelling carriage, might be put on board the boat, and sent to a landing, whence it might easily be dragged by hand to the narrow passage so often mentioned. This done, he took the way into the false channel himself. The governor, as a matter of course, kept at a safe dis tance ahead of the pirates in the Anne and the Martha. This he was enabled to do quite easily, since fore-and-aft vessels make much quicker tacks than those that are square-rigged. As respects water, there was enough of that almost everywhere ; it being rather a peculiarity of the group, that nearly every one of its passages had good chan nels and bold shores. There was one shoal, however, arid that of some extent, in the long reach of the false channel named ; and when the governor resolved to venture in there, it was not without the hope of leading the pirate ship on it. The water on this shoal was about sixteen feet deep, and there was scarce a hope of either of the brigs fetching up on it; but, could the ship be enticed there, and did she only strike with good way on her, and on a falling tide, her berth might be made very uncom fortable. Although this hope appeared faintly in the back ground of the governor s project, his principal expectation was that of being able to decoy the strangers into a cul-de- sac, and to embarrass them with delays and losses. As soon as the Neshamony was out of sight, the Anne and Martha, therefore, accompanied by the other boats, stood into the false channel, and went off to the northward mer rily, with a leading wind. When the enemy reached the point, they did not hesitate to follow, actually setting stud ding sails in their eagerness not to be left too far behind. It is probable, that Waally was of but little service to his allies just then, for, after all, the knowledge of that chief was limited to a very imperfect acquaintance with such channels as would admit of the passage of even canoes.