Page:Wonderful adventures of sixteen British seamen.pdf/9

9 expected prize. Their arms and ammunition were now carefully overhauled. Every pistol reccivedreceived [sic] a fresh flint, and its lock a touch of oil. A sufficient quantity of powder was spread out on an old top sail to dry in the sun; and, while engaged in scttlingsettling [sic] the details of the assault, they employed their hands in giving their rusty cutlasses the keen edge of a razor. All this day a little putrid water was their only refreshment, for they had not had leisure to attempt the capture of a single fish; but their mental anxiety was sufficiently intense to absord all consciousness of physical wants.

The poor Indian fisherman was kept as much as possible in the dark as to the important part that was to be assigned to him in the affair. He happened to be the only one on board who could speak Spanish with sufficient fluency to escapeescapo [sic] instant detection; and, in the event of being challenged by the Minerva’s sentinels, he was instructed to say that they were the bearers of dispatches for the captain from the commander of the Spanish fleet.

Towards evening the wind died away into a dead calm, and the moon rose with just as much light as sufficed to render objects close at hand sufficiently distinguishable, while there was not enough of it to expose to view thosothose [sic] at a distance. Thus favoured, the sixteen lion-hearted British seamen left their lurking place, and stole into thothe [sic] bay towards the Minerva. About midnight the dull light of a lantern on board bccamebecame [sic] visible, and in a few minutes afterwards the dim outline of thothe [sic] vessel’s hull was discovcreddiscovered [sic]. For a moment thothe [sic] drugger’s oars were suspended to allow her crew to draw one deep breath beforobefore [sic] striking the desperate blow. During this pause, each man