Thence he flung his flaming torch down
the nearest gaping scuttle into the hold, and thereupon dived
overboard in his turn, to be picked up presently by the longboat
from the Arabella. But before that happened the sloop was a thing
of fire, from which explosions were hurling blazing combustibles
aboard the Encarnacion, and long tongues of flame were licking
out to consume the galleon, beating back those daring Spaniards
who, too late, strove desperately to cut her adrift.
And whilst the most formidable vessel of the Spanish fleet was
thus being put out of action at the outset, Blood had sailed in
to open fire upon the Salvador. First athwart her hawse he had
loosed a broadside that had swept her decks with terrific effect,
then going on and about, he had put a second broadside into her
hull at short range. Leaving her thus half-crippled, temporarily,
at least, and keeping to his course, he had bewildered the crew
of the Infanta by a couple of shots from the chasers on his
beak-head, then crashed alongside to grapple and board her, whilst
Hagthorpe was doing the like by the San Felipe.
Pages:
294
295
296
297
298
299
300
301
302
303
304
305
306
307
308
309
310
311
312
313
314
315
316
317
318