There still remained the danger at daybreak of the third cordon, and with anxious eyes the horizon was scoured as the darkness began to fail. A daylight chase with the _Banshee_ in her present condition could not be thought of, but fortunately not a sign of a cruiser was to be seen. All that day, and the next and the next, we steamed onward with our hearts in our mouths, turning our stern to every sail or patch of smoke that was seen, till, on the evening of the third day, we steamed into Nassau as proudly as a heavy list to starboard would allow. So ended my first attempt, a triumphant success! Besides the inward freight of £50 a ton on the war material, I had earned by the tobacco ballast alone £7000, the freight for which had been paid at the rate of £70 a ton. But this was a flea-bite compared to the profit on the 500 odd bales of cotton we had on board, which was at least £50 per bale. No wonder I took kindly to my new calling, and no wonder I at once set to work to get the _Banshee_ reloaded for another run before the moonless nights were over. CHAPTER VI THE REST OF THE _BANSHEE_ NO. 1.'s CAREER Breakdown of the _Banshee's_ machinery—Heavily peppered by gunboats—The help of signal lights—A change of tactics—An awkward alternative—Hailed by a cruiser—A slanging match—Grape and canister—The _Banshee_ on fire—Shipping a fresh cargo—A careless look-out man—Pursued by the _James Adger_—A ding-dong race—Cargo thrown overboard—A stowaway comes to light—A crucial moment—The _James Adger_ relinquishes her pursuit—Our last coal used—Secure in British territory—Negotiations for coal—A demoralised crew—Safe in Nassau—End of the _Banshee's_ career—Profit of blockade-running. To give in detail every trip of the _Banshee_ would be wearisome. I made in her seven more in all, each one of which had its peculiar excitement. Looking back it seems nothing short of a miracle that, ill-constructed and ill-engined as she was, she so long escaped the numerous dangers to which she was exposed. I well remember, on our second run in, an accident which no one could have foreseen, and which came within an ace of ending her career.