Paul had brought twelve naval guns this time, including two 12-Pound Cannons, six 6-Pound Cannons, and four Swivel Guns. Adding the two 6-Pound Cannons and four Swivel Guns used for training earlier, the navy now possessed eighteen guns.
A Swivel Gun was a small-caliber cannon mounted on a stand that could rotate 360 degrees. It fired grapeshot and small cannonballs and was extremely light and flexible, making it useful for supporting boarding actions and covering the blind spots in a broadside's firepower.
When the Hope was being built, gun ports had already been reserved along both sides of the upper deck. Since it was their first ship, they had not known how many guns it could carry and had opened only eight gun ports—four on each side.
After returning to port from the sea trial, Austin directed the sailors to receive the new guns Paul had brought. Four of the 6-Pound Cannons were immediately installed on the ship, along with a crate of cannonballs and several barrels of gunpowder.
Installing naval guns was no simple task. The ship's interior was cramped, so they had to use ropes and pulleys to devise a suitable recoil mechanism. The navy had experimented on land for a long time before finally working out a relatively viable solution.
"Come on, take me out to sea for a spin! We can fire a couple of shots while we're at it." Once the sailors had installed the guns, Paul impatiently ordered them to set sail.
The sailors raised the sails, while several men worked together to turn the windlass and haul up the anchor. Propelled by the wind, the Hope once again slowly sailed out of the harbor.
Many of the people who had come with Paul were riding on a ship for the first time. Everyone