When the _Impérieuse_ reached the coast of Spain early in 1808, we were still at war with that country. Napoleon had not yet turned his submissive ally into an enemy by that act of brigandage which was the capital error of his life. The war was for us still a “rich war,” as Nelson put it--there were still Spanish prizes to be picked up. Cochrane was master of the work to be done. His previous cruise in the _Speedy_ had made him perfectly familiar with the Spanish coast. It had also given him an absolute confidence in his power to beat the Spaniards at any odds. On this occasion he had no opportunity to equal the most marvellous of all his feats--the capture of the frigate _Gamo_ with his tiny gun-brig the _Speedy_, but he was incessantly active and uniformly successful. The _Impérieuse_ hugged the Spanish coast, destroyed isolated forts, sailed into the very ports and marked her prey down coolly, before sending her boats in to cut out the more tempting prizes. In all this stirring fighting Marryat had such share as a midshipman might. The history of it is recorded in “Frank Mildmay,” in “Mr. Midshipman Easy,” in “Peter Simple.” One incident may be recorded as a type of the rest. Lord Cochrane learnt that a certain vessel which he was resolute to take was lying at anchor in Almeria. He himself, in his “Autobiography of a Seaman,” calls her “a large French vessel, laden with lead and other munitions of war.” Marryat, as quoted by his daughter, calls her a polacre privateer, and says nothing of her nationality, but in other respects the stories agree. The story may now go on in Marryat’s words: “At daybreak we were well in with American colours at the peak. [The place, as has been just said, was Almeria Bay, and this trick of hoisting neutral colours was a common stratagem of war.] The Spaniards had their suspicions, but, as we boldly ran into harbour, anchored among the other vessels, and furled our sails, they did not fire. They were puzzled, for they could not imagine that any vessel would act with such temerity, as we were surrounded by batteries. We had, however, anchored with springs upon our cables; close to us within half musket shot, lay a large polacre privateer of sixteen guns, the same vessel which had been attacked by, and had beaten off the boats of the _Spartan_ with a loss of nearly sixty men killed and wounded. On our other side were two large brigs heavily laden and a zebecque; the small craft were in-shore of us, the town and citadel about half a mile ahead of us at the bottom of the bay, the batteries all around us, and evidently well prepared. Our boats had long been hoisted out and lay alongside, which circumstance added to the suspicions of the Spaniards; still, as yet, not a gun was fired.