Then there was a quick puff of smoke, another heavy boom, and I saw that she was going full speed, leaving a black stream of smoke behind her, in chase of the two junks, one of which was about a quarter of a mile away, the other about a mile farther.
They were evidently taken by surprise, for the men were hurriedly hoisting sail, and, as I learned afterwards, the _Teaser_ had been quite hidden till she rounded a little promontory at the mouth of the channel between the first and second islands--the channel for which we had so vainly steered on the night of the storm.
The firing went on steadily, the crash of the great shell following the report of the piece, but I had nearer and more exciting work to see close at hand; and once more my heart beat high, as the pirates gathered together, and, seeing the danger before them, paused for a moment or two at the foot of the ridge slope, looked to right to see only the perpendicular cliff, to left to see the sea, and then, uttering a savage yell, came tearing on.
"Fire!" roared Mr Reardon, when they were about fifty yards distant, and I saw several fall and others stagger and halt.
But the others continued their wild dash like men, and were met by our lads, who advanced with their cutlass-bayonets at the charge.
There was a loud cheer, a savage yelling, and I saw the blades flashing in the golden sunshine as they met.

Then a minute's fierce encounter, with men falling, and then half-a-dozen turned and fled back for the ridge, but only to stop and turn to their right, making for the sea.
For the ridge was lined with blue-jackets and marines, and shot after shot was fired at the flying men, who without hesitation plunged into the sea and swam out a few yards, while our lads pursued them, but only to halt on the hard wet sand, where the waves now gently rippled.
There was a strange fascination in the scene, and I watched the six shaven heads of the swimming pirates till the first threw up his hands, battled the air for a few moments, and went down.

The others turned and slowly swam shoreward till they could wade, when they approached our men and flung their weapons on the sand in token of surrender.
There was a triumphant shout at this, and then another--a loud and frantic cheer.

For the firing of the _Teaser_ had been going on rapidly, and all at once the first junk was seen to heel over, and gradually settle down, leaving the sea strewn with fragments of timber, to which the crew were left clinging; while the gunboat raced on, sending shell after shell rapidly at the other, till she was nearly alongside, when there was a tremendous roar, following the crashing into her of a shell, and the second junk flew up in fragments.
The shell had reached her little magazine of powder; and then the work of mercy began.
I was watching the boats being lowered when I heard a shout from behind, and, looking round, saw the second line of our blue-jackets advancing from the ridge.

To my great joy, I saw with them those whom we had mourned as drowned, while the next minute Mr Brooke had me by the hands, and I heard a strange gulping noise, ending in quite a howl.
I looked sharply round, and saw Ching seated on the sand, wiping his eyes with his sleeves.
"What's the matter, Ching--hurt ?" I asked.
"No, not hurt, Mis' Hellick; Ching so velly glad.".