Fisher, their hands and dresses blackened with the spoilt gunpowder,
worked on their knees, tying such things as knives, old bayonets, and
spear-heads, to the muzzles of the useless muskets. Then, there was a
second armed line, under Sergeant Drooce, also across the width of the
enclosure, but facing to the gate. Then came the breastwork we had made,
with a zigzag way through it for me and my little party to hold good in
retreating, as long as we could, when we were driven from the gate. We
all knew that it was impossible to hold the place long, and that our only
hope was in the timely discovery of the plot by the boats, and in their
coming back.

I and my men were now thrown forward to the gate. From a spy-hole, I
could see the whole crowd of Pirates. There were Malays among them,
Dutch, Maltese, Greeks, Sambos, Negroes, and Convict Englishmen from the
West India Islands; among the last, him with the one eye and the patch
across the nose. There were some Portuguese, too, and a few Spaniards.
The captain was a Portuguese; a little man with very large ear-rings
under a very broad hat, and a great bright shawl twisted about his
shoulders. They were all strongly armed, but like a boarding party, with
pikes, swords, cutlasses, and axes. I noticed a good many pistols, but
not a gun of any kind among them. This gave me to understand that they
had considered that a continued roll of musketry might perhaps have been
heard on the mainland; also, that for the reason that fire would be seen
from the mainland they would not set the Fort in flames and roast us
alive; which was one of their favourite ways of carrying on. I looked
about for Christian George King, and if I had seen him I am much mistaken
if he would not have received my one round of ball-cartridge in his head.
But, no Christian George King was visible.

A sort of a wild Portuguese demon, who seemed either fierce-mad or fierce-