The wind now freshened to a tolerably fresh gale. Not sufficient,
however, for the next two days to prevent the Alabama from chasing and
capturing, on the 15th October, the United States barque Lamplighter, of
Boston, from New York to Gibraltar, with a cargo of tobacco, which,
however, as it proved, was never destined to soothe the _ennui_ of the
British soldier at that not very lively station. The sea was running
high, and the boats had a rough time of it in boarding the barque, and
returning with prisoners, &c. However, it was managed at last; the
unlucky vessel was fired, and after burning fiercely for some time, went
headforemost to the bottom, leaving behind her a savoury cloud that
almost tempted her destroyers to regret their work.
And now it proved indeed fortunate for the prisoners who had so lately
been discharged, that they were not doomed to weather out on the
Alabama's deck the gale that came upon her. The 17th of October saw the
culminating of the bad weather that had prevailed during the last four
or five days, and for some hours the Alabama was exposed to a perfect
hurricane. The storm did not last long, but for about four hours it blew
furiously. It was not yet at its height, and the ship was still carrying
her close reefed maintopsail with reefed main trysail and fore topmast
staysail, when a sharper lurch than usual threw a sudden strain upon the
bumpkin to which the weather main brace was led, and in a moment it had
snapped in two.
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