"Who goes there?"
For answer the moon shoots a bright beam of light full upon the dark figures swimming toward the smack.
With a shout of alarm, the sentinel brings his musket to his shoulder.
"Dive!" hisses the white lips of the captain.
Crack! ping! and a bullet cleaves the air.
Another moment, and the rampart is alive.
Lights flash to and fro, showing up for a moment the excited faces of the soldiers.
Shouts of warning and anger break through the silence and affright the seagulls.
Then an officer's voice rises above the din.
"There they are, close by the smack! Ready—present!—fire!"