"I'll tell you more about this matter some other time," said Haines, as he turned and walked away from me.
While the conversation was going on, and it was much longer than I have given it here, I had paid no attention to the other ship. As soon as Haines left me I looked over the rail and saw that our pursuer was coming nearer to us. She was a fast sailer, and besides she had the weather gauge of the Washington, and that was a considerable advantage.
She continued to gain, though we spread every sail and did our best to get away. When she was within about two miles of us she fired a gun as a signal to us to heave to.
We paid no attention to her signal, but continued on our way with every inch of canvas spread that could draw.
A stern chase is a long chase; all day long we ran and they ran after us. It was pretty well along in the afternoon when the stranger fired her gun, and both ships were doing their best, the one to escape, and the other to overhaul.
It was a little before sunset when the British vessel, for she had hung out her colors and revealed her nationality, had reached a point within shooting distance. She fired another gun with a blank cartridge, to which we paid no attention, as before.
Then she fired a gun which had a shot in it, and the shot whistled past us, a little high in the air, but barely missing our sails. Our captain, who had been pacing the deck furiously, gave the order to heave to; he realized that his pursuer would endeavor to sink the Washington unless we complied with her very emphatic request to stop.
The stranger came up and hove to within little more than a hundred yards of us. Then she hailed us, saying,--
Our captain answered that it was the Washington, of and from Boston, and bound to Gibraltar and a market. Haying given this answer he asked,--
To this the stranger made no reply other than to say, "I'll send a boat on board!"
A boat containing an officer and four men came alongside the Washington, and the officer quickly ascended to the deck by means of the rope which had been lowered for him.
"What do you mean by running away from us?" was his first question as his feet touched the deck.
"I ran away because I didn't want to meet you," our captain replied; "that's all there is about it."