freedom, to return to his bereaved parent, he asked me whether I was " a volunteer horse, or volunteer jackass?" told me to mind my own business, and then uncivilly dismissed me from his presence-that is, he picked up a handspike, and threw it at my head, as I was hastily, to avoid his wrath, descending to my quarters.

CHAPTER XXXII.

Robin's plans of escape are interrupted, and he marches with the British to the attack on Craney Island.

HAVING thus lost all hope of effecting the liberation of my poor playmate through the humanity of the lieutenant's successor, I now cast about for other means of insuring my ends: and none better offering, I laid a plan for escaping with him in a boat to the shore, which I thought might be done, under cover of the night, as the watch was not always kept with great strictness; and, once upon terra-firma, I thought it would be no great difficulty to find the means of sending Tommy to his friends, notwithstanding that my unlucky circumstances rendered it inexpedient for me to attempt turning my face towards the same quarter.

I digested and perfected the scheme at my leisure, taking care to admit none to my counsels, not even Tommy himself; who, I doubted not, would be willing to fly with me from the tyranny of the Jumping Jenny at a moment's warning, and upon whose prudence and co-operation I saw it was necessary to rely as little as possible. At the same time, having procured a sheet of paper from a literary marine, who kept a journal of his exploits, I drew up a long letter to my patron, which I designed to send by Tommy; in which I described, first, the happy VOL. 1.-20

discovery I had made, with all matters thereto relating; and, in the second place, my own unlucky adventures, from the time of leaving his house up to the present moment. I was particular in explaining the incident of the robber, that he might see I was innocent of the charge laid at my doors by the audacious highwayman, as well as of the loss of the horse, which that impudent fellow had ridden off with; and I gave him the true account of my adventures with the false and the true Mr. Bloodmoney, begging that he would clear up my character, which had, no doubt, suffered in the estimation of that worthy gentleman. I informed him of my fortunate escape (for so I considered it) from Mr. John Dabs the constable; as well as of my unhappy encounter with the British, begging him to observe that I had volunteered to take arms with them, only for the purpose of avoiding the horrors of a prison-ship, and of effecting my escape to my own countrymen, at the earliest opportunity. I concluded the missive by detailing my plan of escape, and assuring him that, as I intended to make Tommy the bearer of my epistle, he might infer, upon the receipt of it, that I had effected my purpose, and was at liberty. I ended by a postscript, in which I sent my love to Nanna, with a hint that, as soon as I should escape the British, and light upon my friend Dicky Dare, she would, perhaps, hear farther of me in the papers, fighting the battles of my country. My letter, when finished, I concealed about my person, to have in readiness for the moment of escape, which I now resolved should soon take place;-and that before being called upon again to bear arms in the service of his Britannic Majesty.

My resolution, as far as it had reference to fighting again in the ranks of the enemy, it would have

been as well had I omitted, since it required to make it good, the consent of other persons whose consent might not have been so easily obtained. At all events, after having quite settled the matter in my own mind to my own satisfaction, I was given to understand one fine morning, after being first informed I was discharged from the sick list, that I was, that day, for the third time, to have the honour of fighting his majesty's enemies, and ordered to prepare myself for action accordingly. This information was conveyed by my friend Tom Gunner, who, noting my surprise, or perhaps a stronger feeling, for I was, in his phrase, rather taken aback by it, told me "there was no use in being scared, as the d-d bullets never got out of one's way for being afraid of them," and added, "after all, d- his heart, he believed we were going, for once, to knock our heads against a stone wall, and that some of us would see Davy Jones before the day was over.' And in reply to my question, upon what expedition we were bound, he told me we were to attack the city of Norfolk, somewhere near to which the whole fleet lay at anchor;-that if we succeeded, we should have "hellish fine times among the women, and grand picking among the crockery ware and niggers; though, to his mind, we were more like to come off with a salt eel than any thing better." And upon my asking what made the enterprise more dangerous than usual, he replied, there was "a cursed island, with a cursed fort upon it, to take, before we could approach the city-that the cursed island, besides its cursed fort, was also defended by a cursed Yankee frigate, and twenty cursed Yankee gunboats," all which cursed things, island and fortress, frigate and gunboats, were "manned with fellows that knew the difference

between grog and gunpowder-with sailors, d his blood, that had seen service, and none of your blasted milishy, that one could lick by merely looking hard at them."

However grieved I may have felt at this unexpected order, I had gained too much experience to think of disputing it; and, accordingly, I made my preparations, and, in a very brief time, found myself in a barge, strongly manned and officered by the new commander, which, with a great number of others, now set off for the southern shore of James River, near the mouth of which-that is to say, in Hampton Roads-the British fleet lay anchored.

The reader, who is better conversant with geographical science, than I happened to be in those days, knows that the position of Norfolk is upon a smaller river that empties into James River, from which the town is seven or eight miles removed. Upon this smaller river, three miles above the James River, lies Craney Island-the cursed island" of Tom Gunner-separated from the western bank by a narrow channel, which is, I believe, fordable; at least it was so reported among my friends the British, who thereupon founded their plan of attack. It was designed that a part of the invading force should advance upon the island in the boats, while the remainder, landing at the mouth of the river, should march up behind the island, while its defenders were engaged with the boats, wade the narrow channel, and carry the works on the island by storm.

The crew of the Jumping Jenny, it appeared, were to take part with the latter division, composed of land troops, (brought over by Admiral Warren,) marines, and sailors-a destination which, I believe, gave great pleasure to every soul in the division; for, as it