"Three guns were fired at a frigate I was on board of from a
battery, all at the same time. The three shots cut away the three
topsail ties, and down came all our topsail yards upon the cap at the
same time. That the Frenchmen might not suppose that they had taken such
good aim, we turned up our hands to reef topsails; and by the time that
the men were off the yards the ties were spliced and the topsails run up
again."
Mr Phillott could not stand this most enormous fib, and he replied,
"Very odd, indeed, Captain Kearney; but I have known a stranger
circumstance. We had put in the powder to the four guns on the main deck
when we were fighting the Danish gun-boats in a frigate I was in, and,
as the men withdrew the rammer, a shot from the enemy entered the
muzzle, and completed the loading of each gun. We fired their own shot
back upon them, and this occurred three times running."
"Upon my word," replied Captain Kearney, who had his glass upon the
battery, "I think you must have dreamt that circumstance, Mr Phillott."
"Not more than you did about the topsail ties, Captain Kearney."
Captain Kearney at that time had the long glass in his hand, holding it
up over his shoulder. A shot from the battery whizzed over his head, and
took the glass out of his hand, shivering it to pieces. "That's once,"
said Captain Kearney, very coolly; "but will you pretend that that could
ever happen three times running? They might take my head off, or my arm,
next time, but not another glass; whereas the topsail ties might be cut
by three different shot.
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