than usual at mess that day. The piper
played "Nancy Dawson, "the well–known
call for the cook of each mess to go up with
his "monkey" (wooden measure) for the
grog. The toast that day was the usual
one before battle, "May we all meet again
to–morrow!" I was on deck, carrying a
kettle of pea–soup. We were a quarter of
a mile from the harbour fort, and with
such a gentle breeze that we were scarcely
moving a knot an hour. All at once a
man jumped from one of the forecastle
trims, and roared out, "There it goes!
There's two pieces of bunting at the Asia's
mast–head. That's the signal to engage.
Take a good look at it, shippies, so as
you'll know it again."

The drum beat to quarters. I ran to the
head, splashed the soup overboard, and
went straight to my post. Every gun was
soon manned and double–shotted. We
were nearly under the heavy batteries where
the Turks had been preparing bitter pills
for us, for ten or twelve days past. We
could see them leaning over their guns,
and coolly pointing to the different ships,
as if they were friendly to them. The
flagstaff on the batteries had no colour
mounted.

Presently a boat, with a Turkish officer
and four men aboard, pushed from the
shore, and made for the Asia: by this time
clear of the fort guns, and about one
hundred yards from us. The Turk did not
stay two minutes on board the Asia. On
regaining the shore, he threw his turban
from him, and ran swiftly up a pathway
into the fortress, where a crowd of soldiers
awaited his arrival. Next moment up went
a red flag over the battlements, and boom
went a signal gun. The word flew along
the decks, "Stand to your guns there fore
and aft!" "All ready, sir!" The captain
of each gun held the lanyard of the
lock in his hand, waiting for the word
"fire!" There was a dead silence. All
this while we stood drifting beyond the
batteries and alongside the Turkish fleet,
where the men stood also at their guns.
The pipe now went to bring the ship to an
anchor and to furl sails. From the topsail
yard–arm I got a fine bird's–eye view of
Navarino. rising from the shore triangularly
at the base of a very high mount.
The batteries were not only numerous, but
strong; and further up the shore stretched
the tents of the Turkish camp. In the bay
and round about us were ranged in a triple
crescent the Turco–Egyptian fleet of more
than a hundred vessels, including four
line–of–battle ships, fifteen double–bank frigates,
and twenty–five single–bank frigates. At
the entrance of the harbour were stationed
four fire–ships. Our ship, the Genoa, was
in a perilous position, for right abreast of
us with nearly every gun able to bear on us,
lay two of the Turkish line–of–battle ships;
a little further ahead, on our starboard
bow, lay another two–deck ship; three
double–bank frigates were also so placed
on our larboard bow, and ahead, that they
could gall us severely; while a large frigate
lay athwart our stern, able to rake us with
ease.

The boat with the Turkish officer had
been sent to tell our admiral that the
governor of Navarino had no orders from
Ibrahim Pasha to allow the allied squadrons
to enter the harbour. The admiral's reply
was, "Tell your master we come not to
receive orders, but to give them." The
Dartmouth and some gun–brigs had been
told off to watch the fire–ships. As the
Dartmouth passed one of them, smoke
began to fume up out of the hatchway.
Lieutenant Fitzroy and eight men instantly
leaped into a cutter, to board the fire–ship.
As the bowman caught hold of her with
the boathook, one of our sailors, cutlass in
hand, leaped into the main–chains, but
was instantly killed by a pistol shot. At
the same moment, a volley of musketry
poured into the boat, killing Lieutenant
Fitzroy, and wounding four sailors. The
remainder, firing their muskets at the
Turks, who hid safe behind their bulwarks,
pulled back to their own vessel; and by
this time the fire–ship was deserted by its
crew, and in a blaze.

Sir Edward Codrington, still unwilling
to break the truce, now sent a boat to the
ship of the Egyptian admiral, with a message
that if he did not fire upon any of
the allied flags, not a shot would be fired
at him. Mr. Mitchell, the pilot of the Asia,
delivered the message, and having a flag of
truce considered himself safe. Just as our
boat was leaving the Turkish ship, poor
Mitchell was shot while sitting in the stern
sheets of the boat, and dropped into the
arms of the stroke oar. One of the men
then held up the flag of truce very high,
and pointed to it. The reply was a
volley of bullets, which however did no
mischief; and just as they reached the
Asia's side, the Asia poured a tremendous
Broadside into the Turkish admiral's
flagship, which made her reel again. Seeing
the Asia begin, the French and Russians
now engaged the triple line of Turkish