Chapter 13 Summary

Bush and his party take one cannon from Renown and transport it around the peninsula on the cutter. They rig tackle and lines to sturdy trees atop a cliff and successfully hoist the one-ton cannon atop the prominence, followed by the carriage, planking, shot, powder, wads, and tools. The men in Bush's party then lug the heavy materiel to the selected firing point and assemble a deck and mount the cannon. When the operation is finished, Bush orders the cannon sighted in on the largest remaining ship and opens fire. His orders are to deliver ten aimed shots but after the eighth the cannon's vent hole plug blows out. Exasperated, Bush fumes while Berry, the gunner's mate, files a new vent hole plug and installs it—an operation that consumes perhaps an hour. Bush sends a runner to the fortress and demands...