“All’s well,” returned the frigate. “This is His Majesty’s man-of-war, Roebuck. We shall send aboard important news.” The frigate came up into the wind and lowered a boat to come aboard. No sooner had the first trumpet-sound reached the Albatross than Barclugh was up and on deck; if he were to be captured on board an English armed sloop, his plans would miscarry. When he saw His Majesty’s cruiser he was reassured. As he paced up and down the deck, he saw the lieutenant of the frigate come aboard and go into the cabin of the Albatross. After customary formalities, Lieutenant Nelson of the Roebuck stated his business: “Captain Sutherland, we are blockading a Yankee privateer inside the inlet; she had captured the General Monk; we have chased her into this harbor. “If you will attack her, we will send you a full complement of men. We will send the boats and you can take her by boarding. “She can not man[oe]uvre inside the harbor, and she is crippled. Her forward battery is gone, and she is short of crew.” “It’s well, Lieutenant Nelson, I shall obey Captain Atherton’s orders,” replied Captain Sutherland, and then he remarked quizzically: “Shall we appease the sea-nymphs, Lieutenant?” “Certainly, certainly,” returned Nelson, when he observed Captain Sutherland go to the locker and take out a decanter of Madeira and two long glasses. “Got your eye?” proposed Sutherland, as the two raised their glasses, and took a long pull at the “Milk of Venus” for the sake of good comradeship. During the day not a word could Barclugh ask about the business of the two ships, for his security depended upon his own counsel being kept; but at daylight the next morning, there was no more question in his mind. Lying at anchor behind the island was a crippled brig with main-topmast gone. The frigate was lying a mile on the weather bow, and all was activity on her decks. Three boats’ crews were boarding the small boats; he saw them strike out for the Albatross. The wind had now settled to a steady breeze from the south. Lieutenant Nelson was in command of the boats’ crews from the frigate, and as they came alongside, sixty brawny men, armed to the teeth, mounted the deck of the sloop. With the boats in tow, the Albatross now made over the bar toward the Holker. When the Holker escaped the Roebuck and weathered the bar, Captain Risk commenced at once to replace the injured topmast, and get his sails repaired so that he could slip out in the dark of night, and show his heels to the frigate. But when Risk saw the armed sloop make the inlet with the three boats in tow, he knew what was ahead for his crew; therefore, he called them all on deck and pointing to the sloop, said: “Men, there come those lime-juicers to take this brig. They outnumber us two to one. Shall we make them pay for their pains?” “Ay, ay,” came from every throat, and the boatswain stepped forward and said: “Captain, wherever you lead us we will go.”