illegible  attempts  to  write  —  "I  cannot  form  a  letter,
if  all  our  lives  depended  upon  it."

And  he  could  not,  with  his  utmost  efforts,  so  sup-
press the  convulsive  emotions  which  he  experienced,
but  that  they  agitated  his  whole  frame.  The  willow
which  bends  to  the  tempest,  often  escapes  better
than  the  oak  which  resists  it ;  and  so,  in  great  calam-
ities, it  sometimes  happens,  that  light  and  frivolous
spirits  recover  their  elasticity  and  presence  of  mind
sooner  than  those  of  a  loftier  character.  In  the
present  case,  Claud  Halcro  was  fortunately  able  to
perform  the  task  which  the  deeper  feelings  of  his
friend  and  patron  refused.  He  took  the  pen,  and,  in
as  few  words  as  possible,  explained  the  situation  in
which  they  were  placed,  and  the  cruel  risks  to  which
they  were  exposed,  insinuating  at  the  same  time,  as
delicately  as  he  could  express  it,  that,  to  the  magis-
trates of  the  country,  the  life  and  honour  of  its
citizens  should  be  a  dearer  object  than  even  the  ap-
prehension or  punishment  of  the  guilty  ;  taking  care,
however,  to  qualify  the  last  expression  as  much  as
possible,  for  fear  of  giving  umbrage  to  the  pirates.
