In their boats they had some cans of turpentine, and several large shells.

When they reached the blockade-runner they found all her crew gone ashore, save one watchman, whom they overpowered before he could give the alarm.

They cautiously felt their way around, with the aid of a dark lantern, secured the ship's chronometer, her papers and some other desired objects.

They then saturated with the turpentine piles of combustible material, placed about the vessel to the best advantage, and finished by depositing the shells where their explosion would ruin the machinery.

All this was done so near to the fort that the sentinels on the parapets could be heard with the greatest distinctness as they repeated their half-hourly cry of "All's well." Their preparations completed, the daring fellows touched matches to the doomed vessel in a dozen places at once, and sprang into their boats.