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from the first agreed that they had never sailed in a more
comfortable ship. After seeing Turnbull and acquainting him with the
news, Nat paid a visit to the Pickards. They had landed on the
evening of their arrival, and, after stopping a day in an hotel, had
established themselves in a pretty house outside the town, which
Monsieur Pickard had hired from a merchant who was on the point
of sailing for England, and would be absent several months.
Monsieur Pickard had, on arriving, gone to a merchant with whom
he had business connections, and to whom he had frequently
consigned produce for shipment to England or France when there
happened to be no vessel in Port-au-Prince sailing for Europe. He
had obtained from him a loan on the security of the season's
produce, which had, fortunately, been sent down to be warehoused
at Port-au-Prince two or three weeks before the insurrection broke
out.
Nat's friends, too, heartily congratulated him on obtaining the
command of a larger vessel.
"After the troubles and anxiety we have of late gone through,
Monsieur Glover, we feel the comfort of being under the protection
of the British flag, and shall enjoy it all the more now that we know
that you are not going to sea again in that pretty little vessel, for if
you fell in with another large corsair you might not be so fortunate
as you were last time. As you have said, if an unlucky shot had
struck one of your spars, you would have been at her mercy, and we
know what that mercy would mean. I intend to stay here for a short
time, till madame and the girls get quite accustomed to their new
home, before sailing for Port-au-Prince; but whether I am at home
or away you know how welcome you will be here whenever you
happen to be in port. How long do you think it is likely to be before
you are off?"
"I was speaking to the superintendent of the dockyard before I
came out, and he says that he will get the Agile ready for sea in
three weeks' time. He cannot possibly manage it before; the hull
could be ready in a week, but the suit of sails will require three
times as long, though he has promised to take on some extra hands
if he can get them. Orders have, however, been given by the
Thames to the chief native sail-maker of the place to patch some of
the sails and to make several new ones, and he has taken up some
of the best hands in the town. Then, no doubt, whoever gets the
command of the Arrow will be wanting her sails pushed forward,
though that is not certain, for it is not unlikely that, now the Agile
has been bought into the service, the Arrow will be sold. Indeed,
one of the principal merchants here would be glad to buy her as a
private yacht if he had the chance, as he often has business at the
other islands, and she is just the craft that would suit him. He said
that by putting up shorter topmasts twelve men would be enough to
sail her, and that he would exchange the guns for eight-pounders, as
from what he had heard she could outsail almost any craft she was
likely to meet with, and small guns would be quite sufficient to
prevent any of these little native piratical craft from meddling with
her. However, I think the superintendent will keep his word, and that
in three weeks' time I shall be off."
"I may possibly be at Port-au-Prince before you, then," Monsieur
Pickard said. "I am thinking of chartering a small brig and going in
her to Port-au-Prince, and bringing my goods back from there. Now
that the mulattoes are up in arms, the place cannot be considered as
absolutely safe; and as I calculate they are worth from eight to ten
thousand pounds, I think it will be well to get them over as soon as
possible."
"I quite agree with you, Monsieur Pickard, and should certainly
advise you to lose no time. Unless I get instructions to the contrary,
I shall, in the first place, cruise round the shore of the bay of Hayti."
Ten days later, indeed, Monsieur Pickard sailed in the brig that he
had chartered. Nat had called to say good-bye the evening before,
and, to his embarrassment, was presented by him with a very
handsome gold watch and chain, the former bearing the inscription
that it was a small token of the deepest gratitude of Eugene Pickard,
his wife and daughters, for having saved them from the most terrible
fate.
"It is only a little thing, Monsieur Glover," the planter said—"a
feeble token of our gratitude, but something which many years
hence will recall to your memory the inestimable service that you
have rendered us."
The superintendent of the dockyard kept his word, and in three
weeks the Agile was afloat again, and the next morning twenty men
drafted from the war-ships in the port were transferred to her. Those
of the Arrow, with the exception of five still in the hospital, had
shifted their quarters to her a fortnight previously. Turnbull had
rejoined the evening before. His arm was still in a sling, but
otherwise he was quite convalescent. Lippincott had that morning
given up the bandage round his head, which had kept him almost a
prisoner until now, for he had refused to go into the town until after
nightfall with his head bound up, although Nat had many times
assured him that an honourable wound would not be regarded as
any disadvantage by the young ladies at Kingston. The assistant
surgeon, James Doyle, a cheery young Irishman, also joined that
morning.
"It is glad I am to be out of all the ceremony and botheration on
board the frigate," he said as he shook hands with Nat, "and to be
afloat on my own account, as it were. Saunders, the surgeon, was
enough to wear one out with his preciseness and his regulations;
faith, he was a man who would rather take off a man's leg than
listen to a joke, and it put me on thorns to hear him speak to the
men as if they were every one of them shamming—as if anyone
would pretend to be ill when he had to take the bastely medicines
Saunders used to make up for them."
"I don't think you will find much shamming here, doctor, especially
if the new hands are as good as the others; and I hope that your
services will not often be required except in the matter of wounds."
 "No fighting means no wounds, and I am afraid that there is no
hope of fighting," the surgeon said, shaking his head mournfully;
"you and the Orpheus have pretty well cleared out the pirates, and it
was a case of pure luck that you came across this craft the other
day. But there is no doubt that the Orpheus' men have had all the
luck, and the big ships' turn won't come till we have war with
France. However, it may be that the luck will stick to you for a bit
yet, for, by my faith, I shall before long have forgotten how to take
off a limb or to tie up an artery for want of practice. We all envied
you when you came in the other day with the two prizes behind you,
both big enough to have eaten you up, and though we cheered,
there was many a man who grumbled, 'Bad cess to them, the
Orpheus' men have got all the luck.'"
"But the Orpheus had nothing to do with it," Nat laughed.
"No, I know that; but you had been one of their men, and had, as
I have heard, more than your share already of adventures."
Nat had received no further orders, and sailed that afternoon; two
days later he was off the entrance of the great bay. He coasted
along the shore as near as he could venture, always keeping a man
on watch for signals made by anyone anxious to be taken off. When
it became dark the anchor was dropped, so that no part of the shore
could be passed without the ship being observed. It was on the
seventh day after sailing that he arrived at Port-au-Prince. Half an
hour after he had anchored, Monsieur Pickard came off in a boat.
"It is lucky that I lost no time," he said after the first greetings
were over; "I got my last bale of goods on board the brig an hour
ago, and we are going to warp her out at once so as to be under
shelter of your guns."
"Why, what is the matter?"
"There is news that a large force of mulattoes and negroes are
coming down from the hills and will be here probably to-morrow
morning. Luckily a great part of the negroes were turned out of the
town a fortnight ago. There are only two hundred soldiers here, and
about as many white volunteers—little enough to defend the place if
they attack us. No doubt they chose the moment because there is
not a French war-ship of any kind in port. However, I think that all
the white women and children are on board the ships. They are all
crowded. I have about twenty on board the brig, and have rigged up
a sail as an awning, and on such a warm night as this they will sleep
better there than they would in a cabin. I can assure you that there
was the greatest satisfaction when you were seen coming in. Several
of the captains had talked of towing their vessels out three or four
miles into the bay, but as soon as it was certain that you were an
armed ship, the idea was given up, as many of them were only half-
laden; and it was felt that, of whatever nationality you were, you
would prevent the negroes from coming off in boats to murder the
women and children. Of course I did not know that it was you until I
made out your figure from the shore, but as soon as I did so, I told
all I knew that they need not trouble about the safety of those on
board ship, for I could answer for it that you would not hesitate to
turn your guns on any boats that went out to attack them."
"Well, Monsieur Pickard, I cannot believe that the town will be
taken, but at any rate I congratulate you on having got all your
produce an board."
"Yes, it is a very important matter to us; we cannot calculate upon
finding a purchaser for our house at Cape François at anything
approaching its value at ordinary times. I have a couple of thousand
pounds lying at my banker's, and although six months ago I would
not have taken forty thousand for the estate and the slaves upon it,
I suppose I may consider myself fortunate if I get half that sum, or
even less, now. Anyhow, if I get my crop here safe to Jamaica, I
need not worry myself as to the future."
"If the place is attacked in the morning, monsieur, I have the
admiral's authority to land half my men to aid in the defence; and
though twenty men is but a small number, they may render some
assistance. I intend to hold them in reserve, and to take them to any
spot at which the insurgents may be pressing back the defenders. I
shall be obliged if you will inform the officer in command of the
troops and the civil authorities that they can count on my assistance
to that extent. Will you give them my advice to get all the available
boats ranged along by the quay opposite to us, so that in case of the
worst all can retreat there. I will cover their embarkation with my
guns. Lastly, I should advise the captains of all the ships in port to
tow their vessels out and range them behind us, so that there may
be nothing to interfere with our line of fire."
"I will inform the committee of defence directly I go ashore, and
they will doubtless send off at once to order the various ships to
anchor at the spot you indicate. It will be a relief, indeed, to them all
to know that you have undertaken their protection."
"I will go ashore with you," Nat said; "though I have landed here
more than once I do not know the place well enough to be able to
act quickly. I should like to see exactly where your batteries are
placed, and where it is most likely that the negroes will make their
chief attack."
They went ashore and landed together, and walked to the house
where the principal men of the town were assembled.
"Will you come in with me?" Monsieur Pickard asked.
"No, I will leave you to explain what I propose to do and what I
recommend that they should do. There is sure to be a lot of talk and
discussion, and I do not wish to lose time. The sun will be setting in
another hour, so I will make my round at once."
Passing through the town, Nat visited the various batteries that
had been erected, and decided that if the blacks were well led they
would work round and attack the remains of the native town. The
batteries had principally been erected round the European quarter,
as if any enemy coming from the hills would be certain to make a
direct attack, while the native quarter was almost entirely
undefended, although with this once in the possession of the enemy
the whole town would lie open to them.
"It is clear that this is the real point of danger," he muttered.
"Fortunately, from where we are lying our guns can sweep the
widest street that runs down through this quarter. I shall mention
my ideas to Pickard. No doubt he is still talking away at the
meeting."
He went back to the house. M. Pickard and half a dozen other
gentlemen were standing at the door. M. Pickard at once introduced
them to him.
"My object in coming round here, gentlemen, is to tell you that in
my opinion your defences, which are quite strong enough to protect
the town against any body of negroes coming down on the easterly
side, are wholly insufficient to repel an attack if made on the native
town. I trust, therefore, that when the troops man the defences a
considerable number of them at least will be so placed as to be
ready to meet an attack from that side. There is practically nothing
to prevent the negroes from entering there, and, as many of the
mulattoes with them must be perfectly aware of the position of the
batteries, they are scarcely likely to propose to make an attack upon
them, knowing that the negroes would not be able to face an
artillery fire, but would lead them round to attack the almost
defenceless native portion of the town."
"We have always reckoned upon their coming upon us by one of
the main roads from the hills," one of the gentlemen said.
"So I see, monsieur; but some of the mulattoes with them are
men of considerable intelligence, and would be hardly foolish
enough to try to break down the door that you have closed against
them when they know that there is an open entrance at the back. If
there is a man with the smallest spark of military genius about him
he will commence the attack by a feint in considerable force against
the batteries, and then, under cover of the smoke of your guns and
his own—for I hear from Monsieur Pickard that they are said to have
fifteen or twenty guns which they have taken at small places on the
coast—will send round the main body of his force to fall on the
native town. That is my opinion, gentlemen. I know very little of
military matters, but it seems to me that is the course that any man
of moderate intelligence would pursue, and I therefore should
strongly advise that at least half your volunteer force should take
post to defend the native town, and so give time to the remainder to
come up and assist in the defence. I shall post my sailors in a
position where they can best aid in the defence in this direction, and
shall have the guns of my ship in readiness to open fire on the
native town if you are driven back."
"Thank you, sir. We shall have another meeting late this evening,
and I shall do my best to urge the committee to act as you suggest."
Nat returned on board the Agile. Already most of the ships in the
port had anchored a short distance outside the brigantine, and a few
that had kept on until the last moment taking their cargo on board
were being towed by their boats in the same direction. Turnbull and
Lippincott were anxiously awaiting Nat's return. Retiring into the
cabin, he told them the result of his investigation of the defences
and the position on shore.
"I think we shall have hot work to-morrow," he went on. "If the
negroes are not absolute fools they will not knock their heads
against the batteries. There are twenty cannon in position, for the
most part ships' guns, and as I hear that they have plenty of
ammunition, and especially grape, they would simply mow the
niggers down if they attacked them. There is only one battery with
three guns covering the native town, and the blacks ought to have
no difficulty in carrying this with a rush. We have learnt by
experience that, whatever their faults, they can fight furiously, and
are ready enough to risk their lives. Thus, this battery may be taken
in a few minutes. If a hundred of the volunteers held the huts
behind it they might check them for a time, but as the negroes are
several thousands strong the resistance cannot be long. The best
point of defence will be that street facing us here. Our guns will
come into play, and it is there that I shall join the French as they fall
back.
"I shall get you, Mr. Lippincott, to row round this evening to all
these craft near us, and to request the captains, in my name, to
send all the men provided with muskets they may have, on board
us, as soon as firing is heard. You will remain on board in charge,
Turnbull; with your arm in a sling, you are not fit for fighting on
shore. With your twenty men you ought to be able to work the guns
pretty fast. Between their shots the men with muskets would aid. Of
course you would use grape. If their attack lulls in the least send a
few round-shot among the houses on their side. Pomp and Sam had
better go ashore with us and act as boat-keepers. I will take the
boat higher up than those of the townspeople, for if a panic seizes
them there would be a mad rush to get on board. We will go a
couple of hundred yards farther, and the boat will lie a short distance
out, and not come in close till they see us running towards it. In that
way we can make sure of being able to get on board."
"I should certainly have liked to land," Turnbull said, "but I know
that I am not fit yet for hard fighting."
"I suppose you will be taking me along with you?" Doyle said.
"By all means come if you like, but I was not thinking of doing so."
"It is not often that we get a chance of taking a share in the fun.
As a rule, as soon as the guns are loaded and ready for action we
have to go below, and to stop there bandaging and dressing
wounds, with not a chance of seeing what is going on. This is just
one chance in a hundred. I should be no good here, for there is no
one to look after. I will take with me two or three tourniquets and
some bandages, and perchance I may be the means of saving some
poor boy's life; and while not so engaged I may have a slap at these
murdering blacks. I am a pretty good shot, and when a man can
bring down ten snipe out of every dozen, as I have done time after
time in the ould country, he ought to be able to put a bullet into a
black man's carcass."
"If you are bent upon going, by all means do so. As you say, a
tourniquet clapped on directly a man is wounded may save his life,
and every additional musket will be a valuable addition to our
strength."
 CHAPTER XV
THE ATTACK ON PORT-AU-PRINCE

It was just getting light on the following morning when the sound
of a cannon was heard, and it was followed by several other shots,
mingled with the rattle of distant musketry. The town woke up with
a start. Drums beat in the streets, and in a minute or two men
armed with rifles and muskets poured out from their houses, and
hurried to the rendezvous settled upon the night before. The firing
came from the eastern side of the town, and the three batteries in
that direction were all engaged. Mingled with the report of the guns
came the sound of a more distant cannonade, showing that the
insurgents' artillery was also at work. Among the shipping there was
as great an excitement as in the town. On board every ship men
were running up the ratlines to see if a view of the scene of action
could be obtained from aloft. On the decks numbers of women, who
had hastily thrown on their upper clothing, or wrapped themselves in
shawls, listened anxiously to the sound of firing. Scarce one but had
a husband, brother, or son among the defenders of the place.
There were ten vessels lying outside the Agile, and from each of
these boats presently put off to the brigantine, some with three or
four men, others with as many as ten, all armed with muskets.
"You will soon see how matters go, Turnbull, and whether this is a
real or only a feigned attack."
The landing-party were in a few minutes ready to embark. Each
man carried fifty rounds of ammunition for his musket, and a dozen
additional cartridges for his pistols. Their water-bottles were slung
over their shoulders, and each had a hunch of bread and of cold
meat that had been boiled in the galley the night before in
readiness. They took their places in the cutter and gig, and were
soon rowed ashore to the point which Nat had fixed on the previous
evening. The various boats and lighters used in loading the ships
had all been gathered at the quay facing the Agile, and Nat was
pleased to see that his advice in this respect had been followed.
The orders to Sam and Pomp, who were to remain one in each
boat, were that they should push the boats out as far as the head-
ropes—which had been lengthened for the occasion—would allow
them, drop a small grapnel over the stern, and should then keep a
sharp look-out. The moment the party were seen returning they
were to pull up the grapnels, and haul on the head-ropes till the
boats were alongside. Both were armed, and the orders were that
they were to shoot anyone who should try to force himself into
either boat before the sailors came up.
Nat led his party to an empty house close to the street
commanded by the Agile's guns. Six of the sailors were placed as
sentinels at the ends of streets running into this, the rest piled arms.
"Now, Mr. Lippincott, I shall be obliged if you will go and ascertain
how the affair is proceeding, and whether the batteries are keeping
the insurgents well in check. I am about to start for the battery on
this side, where I shall get a fair view of the country round, and see
how matters stand.
"You will remain here, Mr. Thompson," he went on to the
boatswain, "in charge of the party. I shall take Newman with me in
case I have any orders to send to you. Will you come with me also,
Doyle?"
The two officers, followed by an active young seaman, started. On
arriving near the end of the native town, Nat was glad to see a
group of the volunteers in front of him. They saluted as he came up.
"What force have you here, gentlemen?" he asked.
"Fifty men, captain."
 "It would have been better if it had been a hundred and fifty. If
they come here in force you will not be able to keep them at bay
long. Where is your main body?"
"They are gathered in front of the municipal offices in readiness to
move wherever their services may be most required."
"That is quite satisfactory. I was afraid that most of them might be
at the batteries at the other side of the town, where the troops
ought to be quite able to hold their own against the blacks."
At this moment another gentleman, with a red sash over his
shoulder, came up. He was the commander of the company
stationed there.
"I am afraid that we are rather out of it, monsieur," he said, after
exchanging salutes with Nat.
"I am still more afraid, sir, that you are by no means out of it. I
think that you will find that before many minutes are over you will
be hotly engaged. I have come forward to tell you that my men are
placed just on the other side of Royal Street, and to beg that if you
are not able to maintain yourselves here—and if you are attacked, I
am convinced that it will be in such force that you will be unable to
do so—you will not endanger your force by holding on here too long,
but will retreat to Royal Street, and there make a stand, occupying
the houses on the other side of the street. The guns of my vessel
are loaded and in readiness to sweep the street with grape as the
negroes try to cross it; and we shall have in addition some forty or
fifty men from the merchantmen outside her, who will aid in keeping
them in check. If I might advise you, I should say that it would be
well for you to write a note, now that you have time to do so, saying
that you are attacked in overwhelming force, and are about to fall
back to Royal Street, which you will, aided by my sailors and guns,
hold to the last, and begging your commander to send his whole
force up to support you. This you will, of course, keep until the
attack comes, and will send off as soon as you perceive that your
position here is untenable."
"I think that is a very good suggestion," the officer said, "and shall
carry it out at once."
"I will go on to the battery," Nat said; "from there I shall get a
better idea of the situation."
They had scarcely gone beyond the line of houses when a French
soldier came running in.
"What is your news?" Nat asked him.
"A great crowd of the enemy are coming, sir. The captain has sent
me to beg the commander of the volunteers here to bring up his
force to support him."
"You will find him a hundred yards farther on. Now, doctor, you
will go forward and have a look."
Arriving at the battery, which was manned by twenty French
soldiers under a young lieutenant, Nat and the doctor mounted the
parapet. The enemy were still half a mile away. They were in no sort
of order, but were coming on in a confused mass.
"There must be three or four thousand of them, lieutenant," Nat
said quietly. "You may check them a little, but you will never keep
them out of the town if they come on with a rush. I suppose you are
loaded with grape?"
"Yes, monsieur," the young Frenchman said.
He felt relieved at the arrival of the commander of the British ship
of war, for he was feeling the responsibility of his position greatly.
"I should let them get within four or five hundred yards," Nat said
quietly, "then fire your guns singly, loading as rapidly as possible.
Here come the volunteers; place five-and-twenty of them on each
side of your battery. Let them lie down, and open fire when the
enemy are within two hundred and fifty yards. If they come on in
spite of the fire, I should say that you had best all retire at the
double. It will be of no use trying to hold the houses; they would
only outflank you and cut you off. I have already arranged with the
volunteers that they shall make a stand at Royal Street. I have a
party of my sailors there in readiness to help them, and as the guns
of my ship will sweep the street we should certainly be able to hold
it until help arrives."
"Thank you, monsieur, I will do as you suggest."
At this moment the volunteers came up at a run.
"Where do you wish me to place my men?" the captain said to the
French lieutenant.
"I shall be obliged if you will put half of them on each side of the
battery. Let them lie down there, and open fire when the enemy are
within two hundred and fifty yards. If when they get within a
hundred yards, your fire and ours does not stop them, we will then
retreat together at the double. If we were once surrounded we
should have no chance whatever. Give your guns an elevation of five
hundred yards," he said to his men.
When this was done he looked inquiringly at Nat. The other
nodded.
"Yes, I think it is about five hundred yards." Then he turned to the
seaman: "Go back as quickly as you can, Newman, and tell Mr.
Thompson that the blacks are coming, and that we shall probably be
with him five minutes after you arrive. Tell him also to send a man
down as we had arranged to the wharf, to signal to the ship to be in
readiness."
As he spoke the first of the guns boomed out. A few seconds later
the second was fired, and this was followed by the third at a similar
interval. The cannon were old ship guns, and had been heavily
charged with grape, and the destruction wrought upon the crowded
mass of negroes was so great that they stopped suddenly. Several of
their leaders were seen to rush to the front waving and
gesticulating, and with a wild yell the negroes again advanced. They
had gone but fifty yards when the gun that was first fired spoke out
again, followed quickly by the others. This time there was no pause
in the advance. Yelling furiously the negroes, who were armed with
guns, discharged them at random. Two more rounds were fired, and
then the crakle of the rifles and muskets of the volunteers broke out.
The centre of the negro line paused indecisively, but the flanks
continued on their way without a check.
"It is just as I thought," Nat said to the doctor, who was loading
and firing his piece rapidly. "Do you see how their flanks are
extending? One more round, lieutenant, and then we had best be
going, or we shall be cut off from the town."
Again the three guns were discharged. The execution was terrible
in the centre of the black line, but the flanks still kept on.
"Now, captain, get your men together," Nat said to the civilian
officer who was standing beside him; "if you go to the right I will go
to the left. They won't hear our voices in this din."
Another half-minute and the soldiers and volunteers were running
at the top of their speed, but keeping well together, towards the
town. They had a hundred and fifty yards' start, and also the
advantage that the blacks had been coming forward at a run for
over half a mile. Therefore, although the latter came on with yells of
triumph and exultation, they did not gain on the little party. Indeed,
when they once entered the native town the French considerably
increased their distance, for the negroes, fearing that they might fall
into an ambush, came along more carefully.
"Post your men at the windows of the houses opposite to you,"
Nat said to the French lieutenant.
"Did you send your messenger on?" he asked, as he ran up to the
volunteer officer.
 The latter gave an exclamation of horror.
"No, I forgot all about it."
"So did I, or I should have reminded you of it. Give it to one of the
men now, and tell him to take it as hard as he can run. Tell your
men off in threes and fours to the houses opposite. I have no doubt
we can keep them in check till help comes."
Thompson was waiting in the street as the party ran up.
"Where have you posted your men?" Nat asked him.
"I thought most likely that they would come down this street, so I
put four men in each of the two houses facing it, seven are in the
two houses facing the next street coming down, the rest are here."
Nat hurried up to the French officer.
"My men are in the two houses facing this and the next street, will
you occupy the houses next them, and tell the officer of the
volunteers to scatter his men in twos and threes in the other houses.
Doctor, you had better join the party in the house facing the next
street; and do you, Mr. Thompson, place yourself with five men in
the house facing the street beyond. We shall have the brunt of it, for
they are more likely to come by these streets than by those near the
harbour, knowing, as they do, that our ship is lying anchored off
there."
It was three or four minutes before Nat, from the window at which
he had posted himself, saw a great body of negroes and mulattoes
coming along the street facing him.
"Open fire at once, lads," he said. "Take good aim; every shot
ought to tell in that crowd, and our fire will let them know on board
that the blacks are close at hand."
Yelling, shouting, and brandishing their weapons, the insurgents
poured down. The fire from the next two parties had showed that
the negroes were also advancing by the streets above.
A minute later three black columns poured into Royal Street, and
as they did so a fire broke out from every window facing them. Then
came a deep roar, and a storm of grape swept along the street;
another and another followed, and with yells of surprise and fear the
rioters rushed back into shelter, leaving the streets strewn with dead
and dying. It was some minutes before they could rally, and in the
meantime three of the guns of the Agile sent ball after ball among
the houses to the west of the street. Three times did the negroes
attempt to cross the fatal road, but each time they fell back with
heavy loss, which was specially severe in their last attempt, as the
main body of the volunteers had now come up, entered by the backs
of the houses and joined the defenders, and the fire of two hundred
and fifty muskets played terrible havoc among the assailants. There
was a pause in the fight now, and the ship's broadside continued to
sweep the native town with balls while an occasional spurt of
musketry fire broke out when the blacks showed themselves in any
of the streets. Suddenly from a score of houses in the native town
smoke, followed speedily by flames, mounted up.
"The scoundrels have fired the town," exclaimed Doyle, who had
now joined Nat. "They see they have no chance of crossing here,
and as they cannot plunder the place they have made up their mind
to destroy it."
"Yes, and they are likely to succeed, doctor, the wind is blowing
this way. Half the native houses are roofed with palm leaves, and
will burn like tinder. Our only chance now is to drive the blacks out
altogether and then fight the fire."
He at once sent a sailor down with a flag to signal to the ship to
stop firing, then he went out into the street. As soon as he was seen
he was joined by the French lieutenant and the commander, with
several officers of the volunteers, together with Monsieur Pickard.
 "I think, gentlemen," Nat said, "that unless we take the offensive
and drive the blacks out of the town there will be little hope of
extinguishing the fire. The wind is blowing strongly in this direction,
and there is not a moment to be lost if we are to save the town. The
negroes must be thoroughly demoralized, they must have lost over a
thousand men here and three or four hundred before they entered
the town. It is quite likely that they have retreated already, but in
any case I do not anticipate any serious resistance."
The others at once agreed. The drums were beaten, and the
volunteers, soldiers, and sailors poured out from the houses, and
then, dividing into three columns, advanced down the streets
through which the blacks had retired. They met with no resistance. A
few negroes who had entered houses to gather plunder were shot
down as they issued out, but with these exceptions none of the
enemy were seen until the columns issued from the town, when the
negroes could be seen retreating at a run across the plain. The
French officer at once ran forward with his men to the little battery,
and sent shot after shot among them, for they were still less than
half a mile away. The sailors and volunteers slung their muskets
behind them, and, running back, endeavoured to check the course
of the flames. This, however, was impossible. The fire spread from
house to house with extraordinary rapidity. The wind hurled the
burning flakes on ahead, dropping many upon the inflammable
roofs, and in twenty minutes the whole quarter west of Royal Street
was in flames. Nat was now joined by Turnbull and all the crew, the
two negroes, who had been sent off to the ship with the boats,
alone remaining in charge of the vessel.
"We have beaten the negroes, Turnbull, but the fire will beat us. If
this wind continues it will sweep the whole town away. It is useless
to try and save any of these native houses. Look at the burning
flakes flying over our heads!"
After a short consultation with the French officers they agreed that
the only chance was to arrest the fire at the edge of the European
quarter, and that the whole force should at once set to work to pull
down the native houses adjoining them. The sound of cannon on the
other side of the town had continued until now, but it gradually
ceased, as the news reached the negroes there that the main attack,
of whose success they had felt sure, had hopelessly failed, and it
was not long before the troops from the batteries came up to assist
the workers. Their labours, however, were in vain. A shout of dismay
called the attention of the men who, half-blinded with the dust and
smoke, were working their utmost. Looking round, they saw that the
flames were mounting up from several of the houses behind them.
The wood-work was everywhere as dry as tinder, and the burning
flakes, which were falling thickly upon them, had set the houses on
fire in a dozen places.
"We can do nothing more, sir," the officer in command of the
troops said. "The business part of the town is doomed. All that we
could even hope to save are the detached houses standing in
gardens and shrubberies."
So it turned out. The flames swept onward until the business
quarter, as well as the native town, was completely burnt out, and it
needed all the efforts of the soldiers and inhabitants to prevent the
private residences of the merchants and planters from being ignited
by the burning fragments scattered far and wide by the wind. It was
noon when the officers and crew of the Agile, accompanied by M.
Pickard—who was, like all the rest blackened by the dust and smoke
—returned on board.
"Well, that has been as hot a morning's work as I ever went
through," Turnbull said. "It is hard to believe that a battle has been
fought and a town destroyed in the course of about five hours."
"Yes; I think on the whole we may be very well satisfied, Turnbull,
though I suppose the people who have lost their houses and stores
will hardly see it in the same light. Still, they saved their lives, and at
any rate, Monsieur Pickard, you can be congratulated on having got
all your goods on board just in time."