"He'll soon have the starnmost vessel, Mr Keene," said Bob Cross to me. "Mr Dott has charge of her; he is always in some scrape or other." "Yes," replied I; "but he gets out of them, and I dare say he will out of this." "Helm up there, quarter-master--flatten in forward." "The wind's heading us, sir," said the master; "she's full again now. Thus, boy, and nothing off." "She has broken off two points, sir." "All the better," replied the captain; "it's a squeak for Mr Dott." In a few minutes we perceived that the other vessel had met the change in the wind and had broken off as well as ourselves. The Frenchman did not now lay up for the merchant vessel as she did before, and the latter had some chance of escape. It was very exciting: for as the time drew nearer to noon, the wind became more light and more variable, and at one time all the vessels broke off another point; shortly afterwards, the wind flew back again to the point which it at first blew from, and the enemy lay once more right up for the merchant vessels. The French line-of-battle ship was still about four miles astern of the merchant vessel nearest to her. "I think we shall have a calm soon," observed Captain Delmar. "Square the mainyard; we may as well be nearer to her, as not, now; for if it falls calm she will recapture them with her boats, and we shall be too far to give any assistance. Get the yard tackles up: all ready, Mr ---?" "Aye, aye, sir," replied the first lieutenant. "Pipe the boat's crew away, and let them get their guns and ammunition on the gangway." It was about a quarter to eleven when we hove to, the breeze still continuing variable and light, and the French line-of-battle ship did not come up so fast as before. We sounded after we hove to, and found that we were in five and a half fathoms water. At twelve o'clock, in consequence of our having hove to, the relative positions of the vessels were as follows:--The two merchant vessels which had been about four miles astern of us were now alongside of us; the third was about three miles astern of us; and the Frenchman was about the same distance astern of her; so that our frigate was about six miles from the French line-of-battle ship.