Of all our party in the pungy, not one escaped more or less severe bruises or scratches, and the wonder is that the vessel was not sent to the bottom off hand. However, we were yet afloat, and the river was open for the passage of the Britishers, therefore it may be understood that we could not afford to spend many minutes in speculations upon what might or might not have been done. Within three minutes from the time of the explosion, Darius and Bill Jepson were in the small boat making fast to the bow of the pungy, and when Captain Hanaford shouted to ask what they counted on doing, the old sailor replied: "There's a creek half a mile further up stream, an' if you can get any headway on this apple-bowed lugger, we may be able to hide before the Britishers come in sight." It was absolutely certain that we could not hope to escape by sailing, because any four-oared boat in the British fleet would have overtaken us in a twinkling, therefore, unless it might be possible to hide, we were in a bad scrape, from which I saw no relief save at the expense of abandoning the pungy. How we worked to push the vessel through the water! Darius and Bill plied the paddles with every ounce of strength in their bodies, while we on deck trimmed the sails to a nicety, shifted everything movable to bring her into better trim for sailing, and even swung the two long sweeps outboard. We five lads manned the enormous oars with which the pungy was provided to help her around, or when she drifted too near inshore, and I dare venture to say that we did quite as much toward forcing the craft ahead as the two old shell-backs did by towing. Fortunately for us, the Britishers did not appear to think it necessary to move up the river swiftly, knowing full well that all the towns above were at their mercy whenever they arrived; but the fleet hove to off the ruins of the fortification while some of the officers landed to ascertain the amount of damage done. It was this last which gave us the opportunity of which we stood so sorely in need, otherwise we were taken prisoners beyond a peradventure. By dint of pulling and paddling we contrived to get the pungy into the creek of which Darius had spoken, before the enemy came in sight again, and then it was a case of hauling her so far inland that she would be hidden from view by the foliage. It can well be supposed that we did not waste any time at this last work; the perspiration was running down our faces in tiny streams when the craft was finally as far up the narrow water-way as she could be taken, and then all hands were so exhausted that we threw ourselves on the deck to regain breath and strength. All the while that we had been in strenuous flight my father stood at the helm, thus giving Captain Hanaford the chance to aid us, otherwise the task would not have been accomplished so quickly.