United States or Jersey ? Vote for the TOP Country of the Week !
The matches were lighted, and every one stood at his post; but the Chilian frigate, a bad sailer, having run too far to leeward, could not come up to the assistance of the corvette which endeavoured to dispute our passage; but clearly perceiving, when within gun-shot, that we were prepared to resist an attack, found it most prudent to sail peaceably on, contenting herself with calling something to us through a trumpet, which we could not understand.
Every weapon was thereupon trained astern, and the accuracy of the little gunboat's fire was soon apparent, for on board the corvette one of the forward 100-pounders was dismounted and silenced, several Nordenfeldts were damaged and put out of action, and a luckily placed solid shot struck the Union's foremast full upon the cap, wrecking it and bringing the upper spars down, with disastrous effect to the men on deck below.
Is not his own flag flying there, and at Malta, not only by his permission, but by his order? Is not his flag shot at every day by the French, and their shot returned from batteries which bear that flag? Are not two frigates and a corvette placed under my orders ready to fight the French, meet them where they may?
He handed me the glass at once, and the instant I saw the top of her courses above the water, I was sure, from the red cross in her foresail, that she was the Firebrand, the very corvette to which I was appointed. She was so well to windward, that I considered it next to impossible that we should weather her, but Obediah seemed determined to try it.
Captain Wilson frowned, and Jack, perceiving that he was displeased, then told him the whole story, whereupon Captain Wilson laughed, and Jack then also explained, in Spanish, to the officers of the corvette, who replied, "that it was not the first time, and would not be the last, that men had got into a scrape through a petticoat." Jack replied, "At the Zaffarine Islands."
From some of her crew our captain learnt that a Spanish corvette, of twenty guns, lay up a harbour in Cuba. He determined to cut her out. He had intended sending the boats away for that service, when our second lieutenant, as gallant an officer as ever stepped, proposed to take in our prize under Spanish colours, and running alongside the corvette, to capture her by boarding.
The action now became warm both corvette and brig were firing away as fast as they could load. "Hurrah! the pirate seems to be getting the worst of it," said I to Peter. "The rovers will meet with their deserts before long, I hope." "So do I," he answered. "But do you know, Jack, I'm more anxious about the corvette.
The corvette was to bear down upon the pirate, her cannon great guns for those days, and which could soon have disabled, if they had not sunk, the smaller vessel were muzzled and told to hold their peace. The man-of-war was to bear down upon the pirate and to capture her by boarding. There was to be no broadside, no timber-splitting cannon balls.
The government occasionally sells the smaller vessels of war to merchants, in order to increase the shipping, and to secure that those armed vessels which are afloat, may be in the finest possible condition. A corvette, completely equipped, was lately sold to his majesty the autocrat of the Russias; but was dismasted in a day or two after her departure from Charleston.
The first officer now commanding, panting, bleeding, and torn, groaned as he saw that his men could fight no longer, and he surrendered the Badger to the pirates. The great Blackbeard yelled with delight. When had any other captain sailing under the Jolly Roger captured a British man-of-war, a first-class corvette of the royal navy?
Word Of The Day