"Throw up your oars there," he cried, and the men obeyed, so used were they to his orders. "Row, you idiots, row!" roared Jarette, and the oars splashed again. "Stop there, you in the boats," cried Mr Brymer, "or I give the order to fire." "Bah! don't be a fool, Brymer," he shouted. "Pull away, my lads; they won't fire. Hi! there, the rest of you, don't take any notice of the mate. We saw you were on fire and in danger. We saw the fire and smoke in the night, and came to save you." "In the same way as you deserted the ship when you thought she would sink," said Mr Brymer, tauntingly. "Pull, my lads, and get aboard," cried Jarette, so that the men in the other boat could hear; "he doesn't know what he's talking about. We'll put the fire out, and then talk to him." Bang! went Mr Brymer's revolver, fired over the heads of the men in Jarette's boat, and the Frenchman fell backward into the stern-sheets. I thought he was killed, and the men ceased rowing. But Jarette was up again directly. "Pull, you beasts!" he cried. "You jerked me off my feet. You, there," he roared to the men in the second boat, "round to the starboard side and board there. No--" He leaned over the side and said something behind his hand to the men in the other boat, which we could not hear, but we did hear him say--"We must have her. It's too far to row." Those last words enlightened us, telling as they did that the boats had made very little progress, but had drifted with the current just as the ship had, and they could never have been very far away. They must too have supposed the vessel had sunk till they saw the fire renewed, when feeling that they had been premature in forsaking her, they came back, and were no doubt a good deal taken aback by finding us there ready to defy them. "Now!" shouted Jarette. "Ready? Off!" The boats came on in spite of two or three shots fired from the deck, and then, with Jarette rapidly returning our fire, they were soon close up and sheltered to a great extent. Jarette's boat came right alongside at once in the most plucky manner, urged on as the men were by their leader, who seemed utterly devoid of fear. But the other boat rowed right round by the stern, and its occupants were damped on finding that unless they could mount by the fore or mizzen-chains, there was apparently no means of reaching the deck. They ceased rowing in each of these places, but there were a couple of defenders ready at each halt, and they made no further attempt, but lay on their oars in a half-hearted way, as if waiting for an opportunity to occur. But meanwhile the fight had begun by the main-chains on the port side, where, with Jarette to cover them with his revolver, the men made a desperate effort to gain the deck, but only to be beaten back each time they showed their heads above the bulwarks, and after five minutes they sat down sullenly and refused to stir.