Page:The crater; or, Vulcan's peak.djvu/434

194 THE CRATER; After near two hours of cannonading, during which the colonists had clone the pirates a good deal of damage, and the pirates literally had not injured the colonists at all, the governor was ready with his hot shot, which he had brought to something more than a red heat. The gun was loaded with great care, and fired, after having been deliberately pointed by the governor himself. The ship was hulled, and a trifling explosion followed on board. That shot materially added to the confusion among the pirates, and it was immediately followed by another, which struck, also. It was now so apparent that confusion prevailed among the pirates, that the governor would riot take the time necessary to put in the other hot shot, but he loaded and fired as fast as he could, in the ordinary way. In less than a quarter of an hour after the first hot shot was fired, smoke poured out of the admiral s main-deck ports; and, two minutes later, it was succeeded by flames. From that moment the result of the conflict was no longer doubtful. The pirates, among whom great confu sion prevailed, even previously to this disaster, now lost ail subordination, and it was soon seen that each man worked for himself, striving to save as much as he could of his ill- gotten plunder. The governor understood the state of the enemy, and, though prudence could scarcely justify his course, he determined to press him to the utmost. The Anne and Martha were both brought back through the pass, and the twelve-pounder was taken on board the former, there being room to fight it between her masts. As soon as this was done, the two craft bore down on the brigs, which were, by this time, a league to leeward of the burning ship, their commanders having carried them there to avoid the effects of the expected explosion. The admiral and his crew saved themselves in the boats, abandoning nearly all their property, and losing a good many men. Indeed, when the last boat left the ship, there were several of her people below, so far overcome by liquor, as to be totally helpless. These men were abandoned too, as were all the wounded, including Waally, who had lost an arm by the fire of the battery. Neither did the governor like the idea of passing very near the ship, which had now been burning fully an hour.