M^^m

YALE UNIVERSITY
LIBRARY

Gift of
J. Breslav

THE

HISTORY OF THE NAVY

or THE

UNITED STATES

OP

AMERICA:

ABRIDGED IN ONE VOLUME,

J. FENIMORE COOPER.

Philadelphia:
THOMAS, COWPERTHWAIT & CO.
1841.

Entered, according to the Act of Congress, in the year 1841, by
J. FENIMORE COOPER,
in the office of the clerk of the district court of the United States in and
for the northern district of New York.

STEREOTYPED BY J. PAGAN.
PRINTED BY KAY AND BROTHER.

I I

i*2
Jo

PREFACE.
This work has been reduced in size, and conse
quently in cost, by omitting that portion of the
original matter which it is thought will have the
least interest with the general reader. The ori
ginal descriptions of the battles, attacks, chases,
&c., have been retained, nearly verbatim, and the
narrative is unbroken. Wherever there has been
any alteration, in this respect, it has been made with
a view to improvement. The opportunity has been
taken, also, to introduce a little new matter, and
to correct a few errors. Some faults of style, and
many errors of the press, have been corrected.
In a word, in the author's opinion, this reduced
work has all the value or interest which may belong
to the original, the docmments and more elaborate
reasoning excepted. As a mere narrative, he
thinks the abridgment will be found to have the
most attraction.
A powerful and combined attempt has been
made to injure both the book and the writer, in
connexion with his account of the Battle of Lake
Erie. As to the final decision of the world on
this subject, the author feels no concern ; but he
will take this occasion to say, that the man who
(3)

IV PREFACE.
makes up his mind on such a subject, without look
ing for evidence, is guilty equally of weakness and
injustice ; and as for those who do inquire into the
testimony, who collate and consider it, as he has
himself done, the author has no apprehensions con
cerning their decision. His assailants are fast
refuting themselves ; for, not satisfied with con
tradicting each other, as has already been done in
fifty instances, they are contradicting their own
witnesses, and their own statements. The mo
ment is near when a full review of the whole mat
ter will be laid before the public, in which these
facts will be made apparent to any reader who
will take the trouble to peruse it. It is not diffi
cult to deceive the world for a time; and this is
done so much the more easily, when passion, pre
judice, and clamour conspire to aid the effort ; but
public opinion never fails to take ample vengeance
for the mistakes into which it has fallen even by its
own negligence and compliance. The victims are
those who have been so ignorant of the power of
truth as to act under the delusion of hoping to
smother it, in an age like this, and on a question
that can excite party feeling only for a day.

CONTENTS.

CHAPTER I.
Settlement of country — expedition of Captain Argal — first
vessels of New England — first engagement on the water —
first decked vessel — guarda-costas — first sea-fight — Sir William
Phipps's expedition — first two-decked ship, built in Amer
ica  Page 13
CHAPTER II.
Buccaneers — Captain Kidd — taking of Port Royal — expedition
against the Canadas — slave-trade — whale-fisheries — capture of
Louisbourg  SO
CHAPTER III.
Shipping of different ports, 1750 — old French war — destroying
the tea — burning of the Gaspe — battle of Lexington, &e. —
commencement of revolution  29
CHAPTER IV.
PriArateers — first naval action of the revolution — Lee, Captain
Manly — laws of Congress — first American vessels of war —
ofiicers of naAry first appointed — expedition of Commodore
Hopkins — battle Avith the Glasgow — Edward taken by the
Lexington  36
CHAPTER V.
Paul Jones — his first cruise as a, commander — Doria, Captain
Biddle — Defence, Captain Harding, takes British transports —
cruise of the Providence and Alfred — cruise of Reprisal, in
Europe — Lexington, do. — Captain Wicke's cruises — Lexing
ton taken — loss of Reprisal — Captain Gustavus Conyngham's
cruises  48
1 * (5)

VI CONTKNTS. CHAPTER VI.
Captain Mugford — Sachem 10— Andrea Doria 14— Captain Ro
binson takes the Racehorse, Lieutenant Jpn^s — galleys in the
Delaware — action in the Hudson — Ranger's action in the
West-Indies — battle on Lake Champlain — General Arnold. . . 59
CHAPTER VII.
Cruise and blowing up of Randolph 33 — loss of Cabot 14 — ac
tion of Trumbull 28, Captain Saltonstall — capture of Fox 28—
capture of Hancock 32, Captain Manly — vessels destroyed in
the Delaware, by the English — Augusta 64, blown up — cruise
of Raleigh 32, Captain Thompson, and her action with the
Druid 20  64
CHAPTER VIII.
French alliance — new frigates built — Providence 12, Captain
Rathburne, seizes New Providence — capture of the Alfred 24
 do. of Virginia 28, Captain Nicholson — frigates burned by
the enemy in the Delaware — cruise of the Ranger 16, Paul
Jones — takes the Drake 16 — Major Talbot cuts out the Pigot
8 — ^loss of Raleigh 32, Captain Barry  72
CHAPTER IX.
Alliance sails for France — mutiny — cruise of Warren 33, Queen
of France 24, and Ranger 16 — Paul Jones's celebrated cruise
round Scotland^his battle with the Serapis  81
CHAPTER X.
Serapis and her consorts arrive in Holland — Paul Jones quits
Holland in the Alliance — Alliance sails for America — Com
modore Jones's return in the Ariel 20 — cruise of Deane 32,
and Boston 24 — Providence captures the Diligent — Massachu
setts' cruiser, Hazard, captures Active 14 — unfortunate expe
dition to the Penobscot  104
CHAPTER XI.
Vessels taken at Charleston, S. C. — battle of the Trumbull and
Watt — cruises of the Alliance 32, Captain Barry — captures
the Atalanta and Trepassy — capture of Confederacy 32 — do.

CONTENTS. Vll
of Trumbull 28 — Congress privateer takes the Savage 16 —
cruise of the Alliance In the West-Indies — escape of the
Hague 32, Captain Manly  108
CHAPTER XII.
Battle of the Hyder Ally, Captain Barney, and Monk, Captain
Rogers — state cruisers — South Carolina — her capture — end of
war of revolution  117
CHAPTER XIII.
Commencement of present navy — quasi war with France  123
CHAPTER XIV.
First vessel at sea — le Croyable taken — escape of the Retaliation,
Lieutenant Bainbridge  126
CHAPTER XV.
Vessels of war at sea in 1799 — Constellation 38, captures I'ln-
surgente 36 — vessels at sea in 1800 — action between Constel
lation and la Vengeance — Lieutenant Hull cuts out the Sand
wich — loss of I'Insurgente and Pickering— rcruise and actions
of Enterprise, Lieutenant Commandant Shaw — Boston en
gages boats — captures the Berceau — French privEiteers taken
— Experiment, Lieutenant Commandant Maley, engages
barges — Experiment, Lieutenant Commandant Stewart, cap
tures Diana — captures English privateer — end of French war
— peace establishment  130
CHAPTER XVI.
War with Tripoli — Commodore Dale'^ squadron — Enterprise
captures the Tripoli — negotiations  ,,.  150
CHAPTER XVII.
Law of 1802' — Commodore Morris' squadron sent to Mediterra
nean — Boston 24, Captain M'Neill — Constellation opens the
war before the town of Tripoli — movements of squadron under
Coinmpdore Morris — arrives off Tripoli — attack on wheat ves
sels — attack on gun-boats — John Adams, Captain Rodgers,
destroys an enemy's cruiser — gallant behaviour of Lieutenant
Commandant Hull — Commodore Morris returns home — deaths
and resignations  155

Vm CONTENTS.
CHAPTER XVIII.
Small cruisers built — third squadron sent to Mediterranean, under
Commodore Preble — treaty with Morocco — Philadelphia cap
tures a Moorish cruiser  165
CHAPTER XIX.
Philadelphia 38, Captain Bainbridge — appears off Tripoli —
chases a xebec — is lost on a reef, and crew captured — list of
her officers — movements of Commodore Preble — sends ketch
Intrepid, Lieutenant Decatur, to destroy the Philadelphia —
frigate burned  169
CHAPTER XX.
Year 1804— -Siren takes the Transfer — affair with gun-boats to
the westward of Tripoli — Commodore Prebl« appears off the
port — forces of respective parties — action of 3d of August. . . . 185
CHAPTER XXI.
Preparations for new attack — attack of 17th of August — No. 8,
gun-boat, blown up — John Adains, Captain Chauncey, arrives
from America — narrow escape of the Argus, Captain Hull —
bombardmei)t of the 24th — attack of 25th — attack of 3d of
September  196
CHAPTER XXIL
Ketch Intrepid — preparations — her attack — the explosion — ^pro
bable causes of the disaster — private journal of Captain Bain
bridge — arrival of squadron of Commodore Barron — Commo-
modore Preble returns home  205
CHAPTER XXIII.
Force in Mediterranean, close of 1804 — expedition of General
Eaton — force May, 1805 — end of Tripolitan war  216
CHAPTER XXIV.
Commodore Rodgers goes to Tunis — dictates a treaty — condition
of the navy 1805-6-7 — Leander kills a man off Sandy Hook
—Chesapeake 38, Commodore Barron, fitted for the Mediter
ranean — English demand for deserters — frigate sails — attacked
by Leopard 50 — particulars of the affair — courts martial  221

CONTENTS. IX
CHAPTER XXV.
Gun-boats — embargo of 1807 — naval force on the coast — vessels
on the lakes — vessels in active service — 1811 — President
punishes Little Belt  232
CHAPTER XXVI.
State of navy 1812 — marine corps — English navy — American do.
— ^prospects of a war with England — Captains Bainbridge and
Stewart remonstrate against laying up the vessels of war —
feeling of country, and of the navy  239
CHAPTER XX VII.
War declared, June 18th, 1812 — situation of American navy —
squadron of Commodore Rodgers — chase of Belvidera 36—
unsuccessful pursuit of West-India convoy — English squadron
under Commodore Broke, takes the Nautilus 12, Lieutenant
Commandant Crane — celebrated chase of the Constitution 44,
Captain Hull — cruise of the Essex 32, Captain Porter — cap
tures the Alert 18 — second cruise of the Constitution — action
with the Gtieniere — squadron of Commodore Bainbridge. . . . 244
CHAPTER XXVIII.
Commodore Rodgers — action of United States and Macedonian
cruise of Argus — action of Wasp and Frolic  263
CHAPTER XXIX.
Cruise of the Constitution, Commodore Bainbridge, Hornet,
Captain Lawrence — action between Constitution and Java —
Hornet blockades Bonne Citoyenne — action between Hornet
and Peacock — Hornet returns home — new vessels ordered to
be built  269
CHAPTER XXX.
Essex 32, Captain Porter — takes the Nocton — doubles Cape
Horn — makes prizes — equips a sloop of war  278
CHAPTER XXXI.
Cruises of Essex and Georgiana^prizes — equips Essex Junior
proceeds to the Marquesas  284

X CONTENTS.
CHAPTER XXXII.
Arrival at Nooaheevah — sails for Valparaiso — arrival of PhoBbe
and Cherub — attempt on the latter — blockade — action of
Phoebe and Cherub with Essex — capture of the Essex — Essex
Junior sails for America — Lieutenant Gamble  289
CHAPTER XXXIII.
Chesapeake Bay — Constellation frigate — blockaded — Chesa
peake 38, Captain Lawrence — sails from Boston — her action
with the Shannon 38  301
CHAPTER XXXIV.
Smaller cruisers — Vixen — Siren — Enterprise — captures the
Boxer — chased on the southern coast — Rattlesnake taken. . . . 310
CHAPTER XXXV.
New sloops of war — ^Argus' cruise in,^ritish channel — captured
by the Pelican  314
CHAPTER XXXVI.
Chesapeake Bay — gun-boats attack British frigates Narcissus
and Junon — attack on Craney Island — Asp taken — Commo
dore Decatur chased into New London — Lieutenant Kearny
takes the Hebrus' tender — do. Severn's — gun-boat, No. 160,
taken—affair in the Delaware  318
CHAPTER XXXVn.
New vessels launched — Frolic taken by the Orpheus — cruise of
the Adams — run on a rock — attacked and burned — Wasp 18,
sails for English channel — action with the Reindeer — goes
into France — sails again — action with the Avon — continues
her cruise — probable fate  334
CHAPTER XXXVni.
Captain Sir Peter Parker — Commodore Barney in Chesapeake
Bay — his different actions — flotilla burnt — Bladensburgh —
vessels destroyed at Washington — Baltimore — death of Gene
ral Ross  333

CONTENTS. XI
CHAPTER XXXIX.
Loss of gun-boats at New Orleans — gallant conduct of the Caro
lina — Louisiana cannonade — battle of New Orleans  340
CHAPTER XL.
War on the lakes — enemy's force — first attack on Sackett's Har
bour — Commodore Chauncey takes command — upper lakefr—
Lieutenant Elliott cuts out two brigs from under Fort Erie —
John Adams' crew arrives — Commodore Chauncey attacks
Kingston— bloody affair at Erie, under Lieutenant Angus. . . . 347
CHAPTER XLI.
Character of vessels on Lake Ontario — new vessels built^— attack
on York — do. on Fort George  358
CHAPTER XLIL
British attack Sackett's Harbour— building— loss of Growler and
Eagle, on Lake Champlain — attempt on American vessels fails
— Lake Ontario—York taken a second time — manoeuvring of
two squadrons— Hamilton and Scourge lost in a squall — ac
tion—Growler and Julia taken  365
CHAPTER XLIII.
Squadrons in front of each other — fruitless manoeuvres — actions
without results— action off York — English squadron driven to
Burlington Bay— enemy escapes — British gun-vessels cap
tured—American troops transported  375
CHAPTER XLIV.
Captain Perry on Lake Erie — enemy's force — Americans get
out of Presque Isle — American force — first cruise — ^reinforce
ment of officers and men — battle of Lake Erie  383
CHAPTER XLV.
Increased force on Lake Ontario — Oswego taken— Sackett's Har
bour blockaded — English party in Salmon river taken — ^block
ade of Sackett's Harbour raised — ^handsome exploits of Lieu
tenant Gregory— Americans blockade Kingston— English two-
decker gets out^— end of the season  396

XII CONTENTS.
CHAPTER XLVI.
Lake Champlain— naval forces — Americans cannonade English
army— battle of Plattsburg Bay  404
CHAPTER XLVII.
Upper lakes — English surprise American schooners off Fort Erie
— do. in Lake Huron— recapitulation of the service performed
on the lakes  417
CHAPTER XLVIII.
Constitution, Captain Stewart — action with Cyaneand Levants—
Port Praya— English squadron appears— chase of Constitution
and her prizes— escape of Constitution and Cyane— capture
of Levant — services of Old Ironsides  421
CHAPTER XLIX.
President, Commodore Decatur— her capture— action between
Hornet and Penguin— chase of Hornet— Peacock takes the
Nautilus— end of war  429
CHAPTER L.
War against Algiers — squadron despatched to the Mediterranean
—capture of an Algerine frigate, and of a brig — submission of
the Regency — treaty concluded— -increase of the American
navy— its present condition, and future prospects  441

NAVAL HISTORY

UNITED STATES.

CHAPTER I.
1607.

Notwithstanding the insular position of its seat pf au
thority, the naval ascendency of England is of comparatively
recent date ; Spain, and even the diminutive communities of
Portugal and Holland, manifesting as great a spirit of nautical
enterprise, during the century and a half that succeeded the
important discovery of the western hemisphere, and that of a
passage by sea to India. While these three nations were colo
nising extensively, and laying the foundations of future states,
the seamen of England expended their energies in predatory
expeditions that were rapacious in their object and piratical in
spirit. Familiar political causes, beyond a question, had an
influence in bringing about these results ; for, while the ac
cession of the House of Hapsbourg to the throne of Spain and
the Indies, created a power able to cope with Europe, as it then
existed, England, driven entirely from her continental posses
sions, had Scotland for a troublesome neighbour, and Ireland
for a discontented and turbulent subject, to check her efforts
abroad. It is probable, too, that the civil contests, in which
England was so long engaged, had a serious effect on her
naval advancement, and the struggle that succeeded the de
thronement of the family of Stuart, could not fail to lessen
exertions that were directed to interests without the territory
more immediately in dispute. As a consequence of all these
causes, or of that portion of them which was in existence at
the commencement of the seventeenth century, when England
seriously commenced the business of colonisation, Spain,
France, and Portugal were already in possession of what were
2 (13^

14 NAVAL HISTORY. [1607-20.
then considered the most favourable regions on the American
continent. When, indeed, the experiment was finally and suc
cessfully made, individual enterprise, rather than that of the
government, achieved the object ; and for many years the
power of the crown was exercised with no other aim than to
afford an ill-regulated, and frequently an insufficient protec
tion. It was Englishmen, and not England, that founded the
country which is now known as the United States of America.
The vessels employed in the earliest communications "be
tween the colonies and the mother country, were small, vary
ing from fifty to two hundred tons in burthen. The expedition
to Plymouth was first attempted in the May Flower, a bark of
one hundred and eighty tons, and the Speedwell, of sixty tons ;
but the latter proving leaky, after twice returning to port to
refit, was abandoned, and the voyage was made in the former
vessel alone. The May Flower sailed from Plymouth, in Eng
land, on the 6th of September, and, after a stormy passage,
made Cape Cod on the 9th of November.
The first conflict that took place between the colonists and
,any of their civilized neighbours, occurred in 1613, when an
expedition from Virginia, under the orders of Captain Samuel
Argal, arriving on the coast of Nova Scotia, made an attack
on the new French post of St. Sauveur, which was reduced
without difficulty. Argal had eleven vessels with him, most
of which, however, were quite small, and his armaments
amounted in the whole to fourteen light guns. The French
were entirely without artillery. The avowed object of this
enterprise was fishing, but the armament has induced a suspi
cion that the end actually effected was also kept in view.
Whatever might have been the intention in fitting out the first
force under Captain Argal, it is quite certain, that, on his
return to Virginia, he was formally sent against the French in
Acadie, with three vessels, better prepared, and that he laid
waste the whole of their possessions. Both of these occur
rences took place in a time of profound peace, and grew out
of a claim of the English, to the possession of the whole coast,
as far north as the 46th degree of latitude.
On his return to Virginia, Captain Argal entered the bay of
New York, and deijnanded possession of that territory also,
under the plea that it had been discovered by an Englishman.
Hendrick Christaens, whom Argal styled " a pretended Dutch
Governor,"" had no force to resist such a claim, and was com
pelled to submit. On the return to Virginia, one of the three

1614-39.] NAVAL HISTORY. 15
vessels employed in this expedition waa lost, and another hav
ing been driven as far east as the Azores, proceeded to Eng
land; while Captain Argal alone got into the Chesapeake,
The prisoners taken on this occasion narrowly escaped being
executed as pirates !
This was the first warlike maritime expedition attempted by
the American colonists, if a few parties sent in boats against
the savages be excepted. The Dutch were not dispossessed
by the useless attempt on their settlement, which appears to
have been viewed more as a protest than a conquest, for they
continued to increase and to govern themselves for near half
a century longer. The first decked vessel built within the old
United States, of which we have any account, was constructed
by Schipper Adrian Blok, on the banks of the Hudson, and
probably within the present limits of New York, during the
summer of 1614. This vessel De Laet terms a " yacht," and
describes as having been of the dimensions of thirty -eight feet
keel, forty-four and a half feet on deck, and eleven feet beam.
In this "yacht" Blok passed through Hell Gate, into the
Sound,. and steering eastward, he discovered a small island,^
which he named after himself; going as far as Cape Cod, by
the Vineyard passage.
According to the same authority, the Dutch at New Amster
dam, who had constructed a fort, and reinforced their colony,
soon after built many more small vessels, sloops and periaguas,
opening a trade with the savages, by means of the numerous
bays," sounds, and rivers of their territory.
It was also in 1614 that the celebrated Capt. John Smith
arrived from England, and sailed on a coasting voyage, with
the double purpose of trade and discovery. He went himself
in a boat, having a crew of only eight men, and the profits,
as well as the discoveries, abundantly rewarded the risks.
As early as in 1629 the New England Company employed
five ships of respectable size, in the trade with the colony.
Most of these vessels were armed, and all took colonists in their
outward passages. A small ship was built at or near Boston,
in 1633, which was one of the first vessels, if not the first
vessel of any size constructed in New England. But the pro
gress of the colony of Massachusetts Bay was so rapid, that
in 1639 laws were passed to encourage the fisheries, which
may be considered as the elementary school of American nau
tical enterprise. The first engagement that probably* ever oc
curred between inhabitants of the American colonies, and ene-

16 NAVAL HISTORY. [1636
mies afloat, was a conflict between John Gallop, who was en
gaged in a trade with the Indians, in a sloop of twenty tons,
and some Narragansetts, who had seized upon a small vessel
belonging to a person of the name of Oldham, known to have
been similarly occupied. As this, in a certain sense, may be
deemed the earliest sea-fight of the nation, it is worthy to be
related. Some time in May, 1636, Gallop in his little sloop, manned
by two men and two boys, himself Included, was standing
along the Sound, near Plum Island, when he was compelled
by stress of weather to bear up for the islands that form a chain
between Long Island and Connecticut. On nearing the land,
he discovered a vessel very similar to his own, which was im
mediately recognised as the pinnace of Mr. Oldham, who had
sailed with a crew of two white boys and two Narragansett
Indians. Gallop hailed on approaching the other craft, but
got no answer ; and, running still nearer, no less than four
teen Indians were discovered lying on her deck. A canoe,
conveying goods, and manned by Indians, had just started for
the shore. Gallop now suspected that Oldham had been over
powered by the savages ; a suspicion that was confirmed by
the Indians slipping their cable, and standing off before the
wind, in the direction of Narragansett Bay. Satisfied that
a robbery had been committed. Gallop made sail in chase, and
running alongside the pinnace, he fired' a volley of duck-shot
at the savages. The latter had swords, spears, and some fire
arms, and they attempted a resistance, but Gallop soon drove
them below to a man. Afraid to board in the fkce of such
odds. Gallop now had recourse to a novel expedient to dislodge
his enemies. As the pinnace was virtually adrift, she soon
fen to leeward, while the sloop hauled by the wind. As soon
as the two vessels were far enough asunder, Gallop put his
helm up, and ran directly down on the weather quarter of the
pinnace, striking her with so much violence as to come near
forcing her over on her side. The shock so much alarmed
the Indians, that six of them rushed frantically on deck, and
leaped into the sea. The sloop again hauled off, when« Gallop
lashed an anchon to her bows, and running down on the pin
nace a second time, he forced the flukes through the sides of
the latter, which are represented as having been made of boards.
The two vessels were now fast to each other, and the crew of
the .sloop began to fire through the sides of the pinnace, into
her hold. Finding it impossible, however, to drive his ene-

1636.] NAVAL HISTORY. 17
mies up. Gallop loosened his fasts, and hauled up to windward
a third time, when four or five more of the Indians jumped
overboard. One Indian now appeared on deck and offered to
submit. Gallop ran alongside, and received this man in the
sloop ; he was bound hands and feet, and put into the hold. An
other soon followed this example, and he was also received on
board the sloop and bound ; but, fearful if two of his wily
foes were permitted to commune together, that they would lib
erate themselves, the second prisoner was thrown into the sea.
Only two Indians now remained in the pinnace. They had
got into a small apartment below, and being armed, they show
ed a disposition to defend themselves, when Gallop removed
all the goods that remained into his own sloop, stripped the
pinnace of her sails, took her in tow, and hauled up for the
islands again. But the wind increasing, the pinnace was cut
adrift, and she disappeared in the direction of Narragansett
Bay, where it is probable she was stranded in the course of a
few hours.
On board the pmnace; Gallop found the body of Mr. Old
ham. The head had been cleft, the hands and legs were much
mangled, and the flesh was still warm. The corpse was thrown
into the sea.
Thus terminated this extraordinary conflict, in which Gal
lop appears to have shown as much conduct as courage-, and
which in itself illustrates the vast superiority that belongs to
professional skill on an element like the sea. As it was of the
last importance to create a respect for the English name, the
report of the conqueror on this occasion induced the govern
ment of Massachusetts to send an expedition against the of
fenders, under Mr. Endecott, one of the assistants, which did
the Indians much injury in the destruction of their dwellings
and crops, though the savages themselves took to flight. This
expedition, however, was followed up by others that met with
greater success.
The French in Acadie, also, gave rise to two or three unim
portant armaments, which led to no results worthy of being
recorded. Notwithstanding the frequency of the Indian conflicts, and
the repeated visits of the French, the first regular cruisers em
ployed by the American colonists appear to have owed their
existence to misunderstandings with the Dutch of the New
Netherlands. The colony of New Haven had so far increas
ed as to cause a vessel of one hundred and fifty tons to be
2*

18 NAVAL HISTORY. [1646-80.
built in Rhode Island, as early as the year 1646, but; the ship
was lost at sea on her first passage. Shortly after, a small
cruiser, carrying ten guns, and forty men, was employed by
the united colonies of Hartford and New Haven, to cruise in
Long Island Sound, with a view to prevent the encroachments
of the Dutch, and to keep open the communication with the
settlements they had made on the opposite shore. In 1654,
orders were received from Parliament to treat the Dutch as
enemies, but both communities were still too young and feeble
to engage in a warfare that was not considered of paramount
necessity. Nothing effective appears to have been done under
these instructions.
At a later day, or in 1665-6, Connecticut kept another
small vessel cruising off Watch Hill, in order to prevent the
Narragansett Indians from crossing to attack the Montauk
tribe, which had been taken under the protection of the colony.
In 1645, a ship of some size was built at Cambridge, Mas
sachusetts, and receiving an armament of fourteen guns, and
a crew of thirty men, she sailed for the Canary Isles, This
vessel fell in with a rover, of twenty guns, and seventy men,
supposed to belong to Barbary, when an action took place
that continued the entire day. The rover receiving some seri
ous injury in her rudder, the New England ship was enabled
to escape. Although the conflict between Gallop and the Nar
ragansetts is, in one sense, entitled to the precedency, this ac
tion may be set down as the first regular naval combat in which
any American vessel is known to haye been engaged.
An important change occurred, in 1664, in the situation of
the American colonies, by the capture of New Netherlands,
from the Dutch. The vessels employed on this service were
under the orders of Sir Robert Carr, while Colonel Richard
Nicoll commanded the troops. No resistance was made. In
consequence of this accession of territory, and the submission
of the Swedish settlements on the Delaware, the English Col
onies had entire possession of the coast, between the Bay of
Fundy and the Floridas.
While the English were thus occupying the coast, the French
were gradually .extending themselves along the chain of Great
Lakes in the interior, drawing a belt around the territories of
their rivals. In the course of events of this nature, de la Salle
launched a vessel often tons on Lake Ontario, in 1678, which
was the first decked boat that ever sailed on those waters.

1666-90.] NAVAL HISTORY. 1&
The following year, he caused a vessel of sixty tons to he
launched on Lake Erie.
The buccaneers began to commit depredations in the Ameri
can seas, about the year 1666 ; and piracies on a smaller
scale, were not unfrequent at a much earlier day. These
buccaneers originally were mere outlaws in the West India
Islands. Compelled at length to unite, they assembled at the
Tortugas, and began to plunder such vessels as approached
the shore ; most of their robberies being committed by means
of open boats. The Spanish vessels, in particular, became the
objects of their assaults ; and encouraged by success, they
began to cruise farther from the land. Their numbers rapidly
increased, and ere long they ventured to make descents on the
coasts, more especially on those of the Spanish settlements, in
quest of plunder. It is a mark of the peculiar character of the
age, that these freebooters often commenced their enterprises
with prayer ! — They spent their ill-gotten wealth as profligately
as it had been obtained, and like more powerful bodies of men,
were finally destroyed by the excesses engendered by their
own prosperity.
In consequence of the great number of privateers that sailed
out of Acadie, the general court of Massachusetts sent an expe
dition against Port Royal, in 1690. The forces were com
manded by Sir William Phipps, and amounted to between 700
and 800 men, who were embarked in eight small vessels.
This expedition sailed on the 28th of April, and returned on
the SOth of May, having been successful. The good fortune
that attended this enterprise, induced the government of Massa
chusetts to attempt another against a place as important as
Quebec. Sir William Phipps again commanded, having be
tween thirty and forty vessels, the largest of which was of 44
guns and 200 men, and the whole number of the troops and
seamen employed was about 2000. These forces reached
Quebec, October the 5th, 1690, and landed, October the 8th.
The force disembarked was about 12 or 1300 men, but it was
repulsed without much fighting. On their return to Boston,
the ships were dispersed by a gale, and little credit was gained
by the undertaking.
The Falkland, a fourth-rate, was launched in the Piscata-
qua, in 1690, and was the first ship-of-the-line ever built in
America. Much alarm existed along the coast, about this time, from
an apprehension of the French, who were understood to be

20 NAVAL HISTORY. [1700.
cruising in the American seas. We learn, indeed, from the
whole history of that period, how nearly balanced were the
naval powers of Europe ; England, France, Spain, and Hol
land, standing in mutual awe of each other, on the high seas.

CHAPTER II.
The close of the seventeenth century was the period when
the piracies had got to be the most serious, and when Kidd was
guilty of those acts that have since given him a notoriety that
would seem to be altogether disproportioned to his deeds.
During the wars of that day, the seas had been much infested
with a species of privateers, that often committed aggressions,
and even piracies, on neutral vessels. Most of these rovers
were English ; and it is said that they sometimes plundered
their own countrymen. New York was not entirely exempt
from the suspicion of having equipped several vessels of this
description, and very unpleasant surmises affected the charac
ters of some distinguished men of the colony, the governor,
Fletcher, among others. In appreciating such charges, it is
necessary to remember the character of the age, there being
no disgrace attached to adventures in private armed ships, and
the transition from fighting for plunder, and plundering unlaw
fully, is very trifling, in remote seas, where testimony is not
easily obtained, and the law is impotent. That which men can
practise with impunity, they are apt to undertake, when tempted
by cupidity; and that which is frequent, ceases to shock the
sense of right. It is by no means probable that either Governor
Fletcher, or any distinguished colonist, deliberately engaged in
piratical adventures ; but it is quite possible that such men may
have been concerned in the equipment of private cruisers, that
subsequently committed acts which the laws condemned. It
is possible, that when such vessels have returned, a rigid in
quiry into the origin of the plunder they brought with them,
was not always made. Such, in some measure, was the case
with Kidd, whose subsequent notoriety appears to have been
as much owing to the eclat with which he sailed, sanctioned
by government, and supported by men of character, and to

1699.] NAVAL HISTORY. 21
some strikmg incidents that accompanied his return, as to any
extraordinary excesses as a pirate. The facts of his case
appear to have been as follows :
Much odium having been cast on the colony of New York,
in consequence of the number of piracies that had been com
mitted by rovers sailing from the port of that name, the govern
ment in Englemd deemed it necessary to take serious measures
to repress the evil. This duty was in particular confided to
the Eiarl of Bellamont, who had been appointed the governor
of several of the colonies. Mr. Robert Livingston happening
to be in England when the subject was under discussion, and
bemg a man of mfluence in the colony of New York, he was
conferred with, as to the most advisable means of putting an
end to the practice. Mr. Livingston advised that a cruiser of
force should be sent out expressly to seize all lawless rovers,
and he introduced to Lord Bellamont, Captain Wm. Kidd, whom
he iiecommended as a seaman qualified to be put at the head
of sMch an adventuase. Captain Kidd was said to have a know
ledge of the pirates, and of their places of resort ; and at the
Scime time, to be a man on whose integrity and services full
reliance mi^it be placed. Tbe fii-st proposition was to employ
a king's ship of 30 guns and 150 men on this service; but the
war requiring all the regular cruisers, it is a proof of the spirit
of the tmesi that the matter was referred to private enterprise,
although ti>e semction of government was not only promised,
but obtained. Mr. Livingston took one-fifth of the shares, and
became the usual security for the lawfulness of Kidd's pro
ceedings. The Lord Chancellor, and several other distin
guished noblemen, took shares in the adventure also, and the
crown reserved to itself a tenth of the proceeds, as a proof that
it approved of the enterprise. Kidd received his commission
- and his orders from the Earl of Bellamont, whom he foUov/ed
to America for that purpose, sailing from Plymouth in Eng
land, April 1696, for New York. There is much reason fbr
thinking that Captain Kidd was not guilty of any illegal act
himself, until he found that his more legitimate enterprise was
not likely to be successfuL In the end, however, he went to
the eastward of the Cape of Good Hope, where he certainly
committed piracies, though to what extent is now questionable.
He was accused of ravaging the sea between Madagascar and
the coast, from Babelmandel to Malabar, and of committing
the usual excesses, though it is probable that there was much ex
aggeration mixed up with the histories and rumours of the day.

22 NAVAL HISTORY. [l^^S-
Some accounts confine his piracies to a single ship, though it
is more than probable that he had a disposition to the vocation,
and that he was easily diverted from the object with which he
had sailed, even if he did not contemplate piracy on quitting
port. After an absence of about three years, Kidd returned to
the American coast, first appearing oflT the east end of Long
Island. About thirty miles to the westward of Montauk, pro
tected from the ocean by the southern branch of the island just
mentioned, is a capacious bay that obtains its name from
another small island, which is so placed as to defend it against
the northeast gales. The latter island contains about three
thousand acres of land, and ever since the country has been
settled, or for two centuries, it has been the property of an
honourable family of the name of Gardiner, which has given
its name to both the island and the bay. The latter has an
anchorage that has long been known to seamen, and into
Gardiner's Bay Kidd sailed on this occasion. Anchoring near
the island, he landed, and buried some treasure; entrusting
Mr. Gardiner with the secret, and making the life of the latter
the pledge of his fidelity. This effected, the pirate again sailed,
and made similar deposits on other parts of the coast.
After a short interval, Kidd paid and discharged his crew,
and it is said burned his ship. He appeared in Boston in 1699,
and was "immediately seized by the order of Governor Bella
mont. Among his papers was found a record, containing lists
of his several deposits, which it is probable he held in reserve
for his own share of the booty, when he should have made his
peace with those in power with the remainder. The authori
ties, however, were inflexible, and commissioners were imme
diately sent in quest of the buried booty. When these persons
presented themselves to Mr. Gardiner, and assured him that
Kidd was in confinement, that gentleman led them to the spot
where the box was concealed, and it was recovered. The
papers of the Gardiner family show that the contents of the
box were bags, of gold dust, bags of gold bars, the latter to a
considerable amount, coined gold and silver, silver bars, pre
cious stones, silver lamps, &c., &c., in all to the amount of
near twenty thousand dollars. Most, if not all, of the other
deposits were also obtained. Kidd was sent to England, tried
and condemned. The indictments were for 'both murder and
piracy, but being found guilty of the first crime, he was never
tried for the last. He was not executed, until May the 9th,
1701.

1702-11.] NAVAL HISTORY. 23
The year that Kidd was sent to England, seven pirates were
executed in Charleston, South Carolina, that coast having been
much infested with these robbers.
From an early day the possession of Port Royal in Acadie,
appears to have been a favourite object with the colonists, most
probably from the great interest they felt in the fisheries. We
have already, seen that expeditions were sent against this place,
in the earlier wars, while we now find no less than three un
dertaken, with the same object, in the war of 1702-12. The
first of these expeditions was set on foot in 1707, being almost
purely of colonial origin. It sailed in May, in twenty-three
transports and whale-boats, under the convoy of the Deptford
man-of-war. Captain Stuckley, accompanied by the Province,
galley. Captain Southack. This expedition effected nothing.
The second attempt was not made until the year 1709, when
an enterprise on a larger scale was planned. According to
Trumbull, the colonies east of Connecticut, were ordered to
raise 1200 men for this undertaking, and to provide transports,
pilots, and provisions for three months, while Connecticut itself
and the more southern provinces, were to send a force of 1500
men, by land, against Montreal. The maritime part of the
expedition was abandoned, after waiting three months in the
port of Boston for the British ships that were to convoy it, arid
to aid in subduing the place. The attack on Montreal was
also given up, for want of the expected co-operation. The
third attempt was made in 1710, when a Colonel Nichol
son, of the English service, was entrusted with the command.
On this occasion the preparations were made conjointly by
the crown and the provinces, the latter furnishing the trans
ports and several cruisers. The fleet consisted, in all, of 36
sail ; viz. three fourth-rates, two fifth-rates, five frigates, a
bomb ketch, the Province, galley, and twenty-four transports.
In these vessels were embarked a regiment of marines, and
five regiments of provincials. The expedition saifed from
Boston on the 18th of September, arrived off Port Royal on
the 24th, and on the 1st of October the place submitted. Its
name was changed to Annapolis, by which appellation it is yet
known. Stimulated by this success, a still more important
attempt was made in 1 711, against the French possessions
on the banks of the St. Lawrence. England now appeared
disposed to put forth her power in earnest, and a fleet of fif
teen sail, twelve of which were sent directly from England,
and three of which had been stationed on the coast, were put

24 NAVAL HISTORY. [1711.
under the orders of Vice-admiral Sir F^ovenden Walker, for
that purpose. In this fleet were several. ships of the line, and
it was accompanied by forty transports and six store vessels.
Five of the veteran regiments that had served under Marlbo
rough, v?ere sent out with the fleet, and two regiments raised
in New England being added to them, the land forces amounted
to betvveen 6000 and 7000 men.
After considerable delay, the fleet i^ailed on the 30th of
July, 1711, when the Governor of Massachusetts ordered a
fast to be observed every Thursday, until the result should be
known. On the 14th of August the ships entered the St. Law
rence, and on the 18th the admiral, in order to collect his
transports, put into the bay of Gaspe. Here he remained
until the 20th, when the fleet proceeded. On the 20th the
ships were off sotindings, out of sight of land, and enveloped
in a fog, with a gale at E. S. E. The fleet now brought to
with the ships' heads to the southward. Notwithstanding this
precaution, it was soon discovered that the whole of them were
il) imminent jeopardy among the rocks, islands, and currents
of the north-shore, which was, moreover, a lee shore. Some
of the vessels saved themselves by anchoring, among which
was the Edgar, 70, the admiral's own ship ; but eight trans
ports were lost, together with a thousand people ; and the ex
pedition was abandoned. The admiral now dismissed tbe pro
vincial troops and vessels, and sailed for England with the re
mainder of the fleet. These signal disasters led to loud com
plaints and to bitter recriminations between the English and
the American officers. To the latter was attributed a fatal
loss of time, in raising their levies and making other prepara
tions, which brought -the expedition too late in the season ; and
.they were also accused of furnishing incompetent pilots. It is
probable that the first accusation was not without foundation,
since it has been a known national failing to defer all military
preparations to the latest possible moment, from the day the
country has been peopled ; though the last was no doubt un
merited, as there could be no motive for furnishing any other
pilots than the best that the colonies possessed. On the part
of the Americans, the admiral, and the English commanders
in general, were said to be opinionated a,nd indisposed to take
advice ; a charge quite as likely to be true, as it also accords
with national character, and more especially with the super
ciliousness with which the English were known to regard the
provincials. The admiral threw the responsibility of having

1717.1 NAVAL HISTORY. 25
hove-to the fleet on the pilots, who, in their turn, declared that
it was done contrary to their advice. Some French pilots are
said, by Charlevoix, to have also warned the admiral of his
danger, but he equally disregarded their information. It is in
favour of the provincials, that, one small victualler excepted,
none of their own vessels were lost, and that the crew of this
victualler was saved. Many of the pilots were sent to Eng
land to be examined before the Privy Council, but no investi
gation into the affair took place. The loss of the admiral's
papers is thought to have put an end to the contemplated in
quiry, the Edgar having been blown up, by accident, at Ply.
mouth, shortly after her return, by which event 400 men lost
their lives ; thus terminating a most disastrous expedition by a
dire calamity. It ought to be mentioned, that the colonies met
the charge of delay, by showing that the orders to raise troops,
and to make the other requisite preparations, were received
only sixteen days before Sir Hovenden Walker arrived in port
with his fleet.
The first negro slaves brought into the country, were landed
from a Dutch man-of-war, at James Town, in 1620.* Where
these poor Africans were obtained is not now known, but they
were most probably the victims of perfidy. The increase
among the blacks was very slow, however ; for thirty years
later the whites of Virginia were said to outnumber the ne
groes, in the proportion of fifty to one ; and even when the
colony had been settled seventy years, the slaves were not at
all numerous.f
The first American vessel engaged in the slave-trade, of
which we have any account, sailed from Boston, for the coast
of Guinea, in 1645, having been fitted out by Thomas Keyser
and James Smith.f The last of these worthies was a member
of the church. To the credit of the people of Boston, their
sense of right revolted at the act, the parties concerned were
arraigned, and the slaves were ordered to be restored to their
native country at the public expense.
We turn with satisfaction to the whale-fisheries. The com
mencement of this manly, lucrative, and hardy pursuit, dates
from an early period in the history of the country. The whale
frequenting the American seas at that time, the people of the
coasts kept boats, organized themselves into gangs, and when
ever a spout was seen, they would launch in pursuit. This
* Beverly. t Bancroft. t Ibid.
3

26 NAVAL HISTORY. [1739-44.
irregular system prevailed many years, until sloops, and other
small craft, began to be employed in the offing. These vessels
would range the coast, as far south as the West Indies, and
north to Davis's Straits. They occasionally crossed to the
Azores, where a rich booty was sometimes obtained in the
spermaceti. The whale-fishery on a larger scale, dates from about the
middle of the eighteenth century, when Massachusetts in par
ticular, engaged extensively in the enterprise. This colony
alone is said to have had no less than three hundred vessels
employed in the northern and southern whale-fisheries, previ
ously to the war of the Revolution. Her vessels led the way
to the South Atlantic, to the African coast, and to the Pacific
Ocean. After the war which was terminated by the peace of Utrecht,
most of the maritime colonies employed a species of guarda-
costas, small armed vessels, that were maintained for the sup
pression of piracies, and for the general protection of the
coasts. Some of these vessels were commanded by young
officers, who afterwards rose to more or less distinction, either
at home, or in the British service. Among others was Lieu
tenant Wooster, afterwards Captain Wooster, who commanded
the armed vessel employed by Massachusetts. This gentleman
was subsequently killed at Danbury, during the Revolution,
holding the rank of a Brigadier- General in the militia of his
native state.
England declared war, in 1739, against Spain, and the
American Colonies became the seat of many of her prepara
tions and levies. Natives of the country were much employed
in the different expeditions, and it is well known that the estate
which has since acquired so much celebrity on account of its
having been the property of Washington, obtained the appella
tion of Mount Vernon from the circumstance that an elder
brother, from whom that great man inherited it, had served in
the celebrated attack against Carthagena, under the admiral of
that name. In 1741, the colonies supplied many of the trans
ports sent against Cuba.
The year 1744 became memorable in the history of the
colonies, by another declaration of war against France. By
this time the importance of all the American provinces, whether
English, French, or Spanish, was certain to render them, more
or less, the seat of the contests ; and the great European states
interested, were now found seriously exhibiting their power in

1744-45.] NAVAL HISTORY. 27
the Western hemisphere. The short duration of the war, pro
bably, alone prevented America from being the scene of those
severe struggles that were deferred a few years by the peace
of Aix la Chapelle. Short as was the contest, however, it af
forded the colonists an opportunity of manifesting both their
spirit and their resources, by an expedition agamst Louis
bourg. The French had long been aware of the importance of a
port that commanded the entrance of the St. Lawrence, as
Gibraltar commands the approach to the Mediterranean, and
vast suras of money had been expended on the fortifications of
Louisbourg. It is said that no less than #6,000,000 were ap
propriated to this object, and a quarter of a century had been
consumed in the preparations. The place was so formidable
as to have been termed a second Dunkirk. So conscious had
Massachusetts become of her strength, however, that no sooner
was the declaration of war known, than Governor Shii'ley laid
propositions before the English ministry and the colonial legis
lature, for the reduction of this great naval and military sta
tion. The General Court of Massachusetts, at first, was afraid
to embark in so serious an enterprise without assurances of
support from home, as England was then affectionately termed,
hut the people of the colony getting a knowledge of the
Governor's wishes, seconded him so strongly with petitions,
that the measure was finally carried by a majority of one.
Connecticut, Rhode Island, and New Hampshire lent their aid,
and by the 25th of March, 1745, the expedition was ready to
sail. Not a British soldier was employed, and when the fleet
left Boston, it was with very uncertain hopes of being supported
by any of the King's ships.
The land forces, all levies of New England, no other colony
joining in the enterprise, were led by Colonel William Pep-
perel, of Kittery, in Maine, and the fleet was commanded by
Captain Edward Tyng, of the Massachusetts colonial marine.
The naval part of these forces consisted principally of vessels
equipped, or hired, for this especial service. There appear to
have been twelve in all, besides the transports, the largest car
rying but 20 guns. The land forces amounted to 4070 men.
From the various and contradictory accounts of this arma
ment, we gather the following list of the colonial cruisers en
gaged in the expedition, viz : Ships, Massachusetts, 20, Com
modore Tyng ; Csesar, 20, Captain Snelling ; Snows, Shirley,
20, Captain Rouse ; Prince of Orange, 16, Captain Smethurst ;

28 NAVAL HISTORY- [1745
Brig Boston Packet, 16, Captain Fletcher; and Sloops,

12, Donahue ;  , 8, Saunders ;  , Bosch ; a ship hired
by Rhode Island, 20, Captain Griffen, and two vessels of 16
guns each, belonging to Connecticut.
The fleet reached Canseau on the 4th of April, where it re
mained some weeks, to be joined by the levies of New Hamp
shire and Connecticut, as well as to allow time for the ice to
dissolve in the neighbourhood of Cape Breton. For the first
time, probably, in the history of the colonies, large military
preparations had been made in season, and the result triumph
antly showed the benefit of the unwonted alacrity. Here
Com. Warren, of the British navy, joined the expedition, with a
part of the squadron from the West-Indies, in which seas, and on
the American coast, he had long commanded. This excellent
and efficient officer, than whom there was not a braver in the
British marine, brought with him the Superb, 60, and three
ships of forty guns ; his broad pennant flying in the former.
Of course, he assumed the command of the naval operations,
though great distrust appears to have existed between him and
Colonel Pepperel to the last. After a conference with the
latter, he went off Louisbourg, which he blockaded.
Louisbourg was invested by land on the 30th of April, and
after a vigorous siege of forty-seven days, during which time
a severe cannonade was carried on, the place submitted. The
French flags were kept flying for some time after the surrender,
by which ruse two East Indiamen and a South Sea ship, all
richly laden, were decoyed into the mouth of the harbour and
captured. The value of these three vessels has been estimated
as high as $3,000,000.
While cruising off the port. Commodore Warren captured
the French man-of-war. Vigilant, 60, with troops and supplies
for the garrison. This important event, no doubt, was of great
moment to the result of the siege.
Although the naval part of the colonial expedition could
have been of no great account after the arrival of Commodore
Warren, it took the sea with creditable vigour, as soon as
Louisbourg had submitted. The Shirley, Galley, 20, Captain
Rouse, or as the vessel is sometimes called, the Snow, Shirley,
captured eight French vessels, and, in one instance, she brought
in two, taken after an obstinate and gallant resistance. For
this exploit, that officer received the commission of a captain
in the King's service.
No less than 400 privateers are said to have been out from

1749-50.] NAVAL HISTORY. 29
the colonies in this war, but the number is so incredible as to
give rise to the conjecture that the estimate includes letters of
marque and boats on the coast. Nothing worthy of much
notice occurred in America, during this short war, besides the
capture of Louisbourg, and this place was restored to the
French at the peace.

CHAPTER III.
The peace of Aix la Chapelle found the navigation of the
American colonies in a very flourishing condition. More than
a century had elapsed since the settlements had passed the
ordeal of their infant struggles, and although distant from each
other, and labouring under the disadvantages of a scattered
population, they were fast rising to the dignity and power of
states. The necessity of maintaining all their more important
communications by water, had a direct tendency to encourage
a disposition to the sea, and, although without a regular war
like marine, their mercantile tonnage probably equalled that
of the mother country, when considered in reference to popu
lation. The number of souls in all the provinces, at that
period, did not much exceed a million, if the Indians be excluded
from the computation. Of the tonnage it is not easy to speak
with accuracy, though we possess sufficient authority by which
to form some general estimates. The year of the peace, 500
vessels are said to have cleared from the single port of Boston,
and 430 to have entered ; this was exclusively of coasters and
fishing vessels. At Portsmouth, New Hampshire, there were
121 clearances, and 73 entries, besides 200 coasting vessels in
regular employment. The trade of New York and Philadel
phia was less than that of Boston, but still respectable. Thus
in 1749, or the year succeeding that of the peace, the clear
ances at Philadelphia were 291, and the entries 803 ; while
Boston, during the same period, had 504 clearances, and 489
entries. In 1750, a year m which the navigation had sensibly
diminished, the clearances of the former port were 286, and
the entries 232. Many ports, which have since lost most of
their navigation, then enjoyed a respectable trade, among
3*

30 NAVAL HISTORY. [1750-63.
which may be mentioned Newport, ^hpdp Islapd, ^nd Perth
Amboy, New Jersey.
Up to this perip4, the common vvhite pak of the forest was
the wood principally used ifi naval congtri^ptions, though the
chestntft was also foL|nd serviceabile in partipular parts of the
frames. But a new era in ship-building was £tt h^nd, through
the introduction of a wood that greatly abounded in the more
southern maritime regions of British America. In 1750, a
vessel called the Live Oak arrived in Charleston, South Caro
lina, having been built of the invaluable timber named, which
was now discovered to be one of the best materials for naval
architecture known. The Live Oak is said to have been the
first vessel in which this wood was ever used.
The tranquillity established by the treaty of Aix la Chapelle,
like that prodiiced by the peace of Utrecht, was of short con
tinuance. Di,sputes early commenced between the English and
French provinces, in relation to their boundaries ; and an in
land war actually broke out between them in 1754, though the
peace of Europe was not immediately disturbed by this remote
and local contest. This singular state of things continued
throughout 1755, and the campaign of that year was one of
the most important that had then occurred on the American
continent. Both nations reinforced their troops from Europe,
and strong squadrons were employed to protect the convoys ;
but there being no technical hostilities, commissions were not
issued to letters of marque and privateers. After many in
effectual attempts at an accommodation, however, the King of
Great Britain made a formal declaration of war on the 17th of
May, 1756.
Such was the commencement of the struggle that in America
is familiarly called " the old French war." Although this
contest was of the last importance to the colonies, by driving
the French from their part of the continent, and by leaving the
savages without an ally, its events were more properly con
nected with the movements of armies, than with any naval
operations of magnitude, so far as the latter belong to the
subject of this work. The beginning of the war was disas
trous ; but in the end, the celebrated Earl of Chatham suc
ceeded in infusing a portion of his own energy into the councils
of the King, and from that moment the most brilliant success
rewarded his efforts.
Peace was signed on the 10th of February, 1763, and from
that day France ceased to claim any portion of the American

1763-72.] NAVAL HISTORY. 31
Continent north of Louisiana, with the exception of two insig
nificant fishing stations, near the outlet of the St. Lawrence.
The conquests of this war were an incipient step towards the
eventual independence of the colonies, .since the latter found
themselves without any enemy in their vicinity, to cause them
to lean on England for succour, or to divert their policy from
those domestic measures which were more immediately con
nected with their internal prosperity.
At the close of this g];eat contest, the original American
colonies, or those which have since constituted the United
States, without including the Floridas and Louisiana, are sup
posed to have contained more than 1,200,000 souls, exclusively
of Indians. Censuses were actually taken in one or two of the
provinces. That of Massachusetts gave a return a little ex
ceeding 245,000, including 5000 people of colour. That of
Maryland, taken in 1755, gave a total of 107,208 whites, a
number considerably exceeding the estimates after the peace.
Immediately after the peace of 1763, commenced that legis
lative usurpation on the part of the mother country, which
twenty years later terminated in the independence of the colo
nies. ' Among the offensive measures adopted by parliament was a
duty on stamps, and another on tea. By the first, vessels
could not regularly proceed to sea, unless furnished with the
required stamps ; yet so strong was the opposition, that ships
actually ventured on the ocean without the necessary papers ,
nor is it known that any serious consequences resulted
from so bold a step. In the end, the stamp-officers having
resigned, and no one being willing to incur the odium of filling
their places, the courts of justice themselves transacted busi
ness without regard to those forms that the acts of pariiament
had rendered necessary. This tax was finally abandoned, and
substitutes were sought, that were believed to be more manage
able. Fresh attempts to enforce the navigation act, which had
virtually become a dead letter, were made in 1768, and a sloop
from Madeira, loaded with wine, was actually seized in Boston,
and placed under the guns of the Romney man-of-war. A
mob followed, and the public officers were compelled to seek
protection in the castle.
One of the first overt acts of resistance that took place in
this celebrated struggle, occurred in 1772, in the waters of
Rhode Island. A vessel of war had been stationed on the coast

32 NAVAL HISTORY. [1772-73.
to enforce the laws, and a small schooner, called the Gaspe,
with a light armament and twenty-seven men, was employed
as a tender, to run into the shallow waters of that coast. On the
17th of June, 1772, a Providence packet, that phed between
New York and Rhode Island, named the Hannah, and com
manded by a Captain Linzee, hove in sight of the man-of-war,
on her passage up the bay. The Hannah was ordered to
bring t^, in order to be examined ; but her master refused to
comply ; and being favoured by a fresh southerly breeze, that
was fast sweeping him out of gunshot, the Gaspe was signalled
to follow. The chase continued for five-and-twenty miles,
under a press of sail, when the Hannah coming up with a bar,
with which her master was familiar, and drawing less water
than the schooner. Captain Linzee led the latter on a shoal,
where she stuck. The tide falling, the Gaspe seWed, and was
not in a condition to be removed for several hours.
The news of the chase was circulated on the arrival of the
Hannah at Providence. A strong feeling was excited among
the population, and towards evening the town drummer ap
peared in the streets, assembling the people. A crowd being
collected, the drummer led his followers in front of a shed,
when a man disguised as an Indian suddenly appeared on the
roof, and proclaimed a secret expedition for that night, inviting
all of " stout hearts " to assemble on the wharf, precisely at
nine, disguised like himself. At the appointed hour, most of
the men in the place collected at the spot designated, when
sixty-four were selected for the undertaking that was in view.
This party embarked in eight of the launches of the different
vessels lying at the wharves, and taking with them a quantity
of round paving-stones, they pulled down the river in a body.
The commander is supposed to have been a Captain Whipple,
who afterwards held a commission in the service of Congress,
but none of the names were publicly mentioned at the time.
On nearing the Gaspe, about two in the morning, the boats
were hailed by a sentinel on deck. This man was driven be
low by a volley of stones. The commander of the Gaspe now
appeared, and ordering the boats off, he fired a pistol at them.
This discharge was returned from a musket, and the officer
was shot through the thigh. By this time, the crew of the
Gaspe had assembled, and the party from Providence boarded.
The conflict was short, the schooner's people being knocked
down and secured. All on board were put into the boats, and
the Gaspe was set on fire. Towards morning, she blew up.

1773.] NAVALHISTORY. 33
This bold step naturally excited great indignation in the
British officers, and all possible means were taken to discover
the offenders. The Government at home offered a reward of
£1000 sterling for the leader, and £500 to any person who
would discover the other parties, with the promise of a pardon
should the informer be an accomplice. But the feeling of the
times was too high for the ordinary means of. detection, no
evidence having ever been obtained sufficient even to arraign
a solitary individual, notwithstanding a Commission of Inquiry,
under the Great Seal of England, sat with that object, from
January to June, during the year 1773.
Although this affair led to no immediate results, it doubtless
had its influence in widening the breach between the opposmg
parties, and it is worthy of remark, that in it was shed the first
blood that flowed in the struggle for American Independence ;
the whole transaction being as direct a resistance to oppression,
as the subsequent, and better known fight at Lexington.
The year 1773 is memorable in American history, for the
resistance made by the colonists to the duty on tea. By means
of some management on the part of the British ministry, in
permitting the East India Company to export their teas free of
charges, it was possible to sell the article at a lower rate in
America, subject to the duty,'than it could have been sold pre
viously to the imposition of the tax. Fancying that this cir
cumstance would favour the views of all the parties in Europe,
for the warehouses of the company were glutted in conse
quence of the system of non-importation adopted by the colo
nists, several cargoes were sent to different ports, including
New York, Philadelphia, Charleston and Boston. The inhabi
tants of the two former places compelled the ships to return to
London, without unloading, while the people of Charleston
caused their vessel to be discharged, and the tea to be stored
in damp cellars, where it finally spoiled.
Three vessels loaded with the offensive article had been sent
to Boston, and the inhabitants succeeded in persuading the ship
masters to consent to return to London, without discharging,
but the consignees refused to release them from their charter-
parties, while the authorities denied the necessary clearances.
The Governor even withheld the permit necessary to pass the
fort. This conduct produced great excitement, and prepara-
tions were made to destroy the tea, under an apprehension that
it might be gradually and clandestinely landed. Suddenly, in
the dusk of the evening, a party disguised as Indians, and

34 NAVALHISTORY. [1773-74
which has been differently represented as composed of twenty
men up to eighty, appeared in the streets, marching swiftly in
the direction of the wharves. It was followed by a mob, and
proceeded to one of the tea-ships, which it boarded, and of
which it took possession without resistance. The hatches were
broken open, and the chests of tea were struck on deck, staved,
and their contents were thrown into the water. The whole
proceedings were conducted in the most orderly manner, and
with little or no noise, the labourers seldom speaking. So
much mystery attended, this affair, that it is not easy, even at
this remote day, to ascertain all the particulars ; and, although
the names of the actors have been mentioned openly of late,
for a long period apprehensions are said to have been enter
tained, by some engaged — men of wealth — that they might yet
be made the subjects of a prosecution for damages, by the East
India Company. Three hundred and forty-two chests of tea
were destroyed, which was probably the cargo of a single ship,
the two others quitting the port soon after.
This daring act was followed by the Boston Port Bill, a po
litical measure that was equally high-handed, since it denied
the people of the town all direct participation in commerce.
This sudden check, at twenty days' notice, to the trade of a
place that, the previous year, had seen 411 clearances, and
587 entries, to and from foreign ports, produced much distress
in the town itself, and greater indignation throughout the coun
try. It had been the misfortune of England, never to under
stand the character of the people of the American colonies ;
for, accustomed to dependencies that had been humbled by
conquest, she had not yet learned to appreciate the spirit of
those who were rapidly shooting up into political manhood by
their own efforts, and who had only placed themselves in the
situation they occupied, because they had found the liberty of
England herself, insufficient for their opinions and wants.
The people now began seriously to prepare for an appeal to
force, and they profited by the liberty that was still left them,
to organise military corps, with a view to recover that which
they had lost. A Congress of representatives from the differ
ent colonies convened, and a system of organisation and con
cert was adopted, that served to unite as many as possible in
the struggle that was fast approaching.
Towards the close of the year 1774, various steps were
taken in different parts of the country, that had a direct bear
ing on the civil war that was known to be at hand. Laws had

'74.] NAVAL HISTORY. 35
een passed in England prohibiting the exportation of arms
nd military supplies to America ; and the cannon and powder
f the Crown were seized at various points, either by the local
pvernments, or by private mdividuals. Twenty-six guns, of
ifferent calibres, were found on Fort Island and carried to
'rovidence, and the people of Rhode Island are said to have
;ot possession, in the whole, of quite forty guns, by these bold
neasures. At Portsmouth, New Hampshire, a body of 400
nen proceeded to the castle, at the harbour's mouth, keplj^ the
garrison in check, and breaking open the magazine, they car-
ied off one hundred barrels of powder.
While means like these were used to obtain the necessary
nilitary equipments, provisions, as well as arms, were collect-
d in different parts of the country, in readiness for a cam-
laign. Among other dep6ts of this nature, one had been made
it Concord, a small town at the distance of eighteen miles
rom Boston, and General Gage, who commanded the British
brces in America, deemed it essential that it should be destroy-
'd. A strong detachment was sent on this service, and it fell
n with a small body of American minute-men at Lexington.
These militia were dispersed by a volley, in which a few men
vere killed. This affair has always been considered the com-
nencement of the War of the Revolution ; and justly, as the
lostilities which were then commenced did not cease, until the
ndependence of the Colonies was acknowledged by Treaty.
The British proceeded to Concord, where they effected their
)bject, though not without resistance. The people now began
o collect in force, and as soon as the British resumed their
narch, on the return to Boston, they were assailed by the
"ormer from behind the walls and fences. So vigorously were
he troops pressed on this occasion, that it is thought they must
lave surrendered, had they not been met by a strong rein-
brcement, commanded by Lord Percy, which enabled them
o halt and recover their breath. As soon as the march was
•esumed, however, the provincials renewed the attack, and the
British did not succeed in gaining a place of security, until
hey reached Charlestown neck. In this affair the loss of the
Americans has been ascertained to have amounted to 50 killed,
!4 wounded, and 4 missing ; that of the British to 73 killed,
.74 wounded, and 26 prisoners.
The intelligence of this important event circulated like a
aging fire throughout the country, and it was everywhere
eceived as a call to battle. Reserve was thrown aside ; the

36 NAVAL HISTORY. [1775.
population flew to arms, and the military stores of the Crown
were seized wherever they could be found. An irregular body
of 20,000 men appeared before Boston, with incredible rapid
ity, confining the royal army to the occupation of the town.
With a view to reduce their enemies to still narrower limits.
Breed's Hill, a height that commands the inner harbour of
Boston, was seized, and a redoubt commenced. This step
brought on the combat that has since been termed the Battle
of Bunker's Hill, one of the most extraordinary conflicts of
modern times, and which may be said to have given birth to
American Independence. Washington was appointed Com
mander-in-Chief by the Congress of the United Colonies, and
the war commenced under the us^ual laws of civilised nations,
with the exception of the formality of a declaration.

CHAPTER IV.
The thirteen United Colonies possessed but scanty means
to contend with a power like that of Britain. Their popula
tion was less than three millions, their pecuniary resources
were of no great amount, and their military preparations in
significant. But the fire of true patriotism had been kindled,
and that which in other nations is effected by means of labour
ed combinations and political management, the people of Ame
rica were bent on doing of their own voluntary motion and
united efforts. The colonies of New England, in particular,
which possessed a population trained to liberty ; hardy, sim
ple, ingenious and brave ; rose as it might be to a man ; and
as this was the part of the country in which the flame broke
out, thither we must first direct our attention in order to find
the earliest evidences of its intensity.
On the ocean, the preparations for the struggle were even
smaller than those which had been made on the land. Con
gress had done nothing, and the provisions for naval defence
which, from time to time, had existed among the different col
onies, had never amounted to more than maintaining a few
guarda-costas, or to the temporary exertions of an expedition.
As soon as the struggle commenced in earnest, however, the

1775.] NAVAL HISTORY. 37
habits of the people, their aptitude for sea service, and the ad
vantages of both a public and a private nature, that were to
be obtained from successful cruising, induced thousands to turn
longing eyes to an element that promised so many flattering
resuUs. Nothing but the caution of Congress, which body was
indisposed at first to act as if general warfare, instead of a
redress of grievances, was its object, prevented a rushing to
wards the private cruisers, that would probably have given the
commerce of England a heavier and more sudden blow, than
it had ever yet received. But a different policy was pursued,
and the orders to capture, first issued, were confined to vessels
bringing stores and supplies to the British forces in America.
It was as late as the 1 0th of Nov. 1775, before Massachusetts,
the colony which was the seat of war, and which may be said
to have taken the lead in the revolt, established courts of ad
miralty, and enacted laws for the encouragement of nautical
enterprises. Washington followed this example by granting
commissions to vessels to cruise in the vicinity of Boston, with
the object already stated. But a due examination of the prac
tical measures of that day, will render it necessary to separate
the subject into three branches ; viz. one that refers solely to
the exertions of private, and frequently of unauthorized ad
ventures ; another that shall speak of the proceedings of the
different colonies ; and a third, whioh more properly comprises
the theme of this work, that shall refer to the policy pursued
by Congress, in behalf of the entire nation. In making these
distinctions, we shall be compelled to use brevity, as but few
authorities .now exist, and because the sameness and unimport
ance of many of the details deprive the subject of any interest
beyond that which is connected with a proper understanding
of the true condition of "the country.
The first nautical enterprise that succeeded the battle of
Lexington, was one purely of private adventure. The intel
ligence of this conflict was brought to Machias in Maine, on
Saturday, the 9th of May, 1775. An armed schooner in the
service of the crown, called the Mar^retta, was lying in port,
with two sloops under her convoy, that were loading with lum
ber on behalf of the King's government. The bearers of the
news were enjoined to be silent, a plan to capture the Marga-
retta having been immediately projected among some of the
more spirited of the inhabitants. The next day being Sunday,
it was hoped that the officers of the schooner might be seized
while in church, but the scheme failed in consequence of the
4

38 NAVAL HISTORY. [1775.
precipitation of some engaged. Captain Moore, who com
manded the Margaretta, saw the assailants, and, with his offi
cers, escaped through the windows of the church to the shore,
where they were protected by the guns of their vessel. The
alarm was now taken, springs were got on the Margaretta's
cables, and a few harmless shot were fired over the town, by
way of intimidation. After a little delay, however, the schooner
dropped down below the town, to a distance exceeding a league.
Here she was followed, summoned to surrender, and fired on
from a high bank, which her own shot could not reach. The
Margaretta again weighed, and running into the bay, at the
confluence of the two rivers, anchored.
The following morning, which was Monday, the llth of
May, four young men took possession of one of the lumber
sloops, and bringing her alongside of a wharf, they gave three
cheers as a signal for volunteers. On explaining that their
intentions were to make an attack on the Margaretta, a party
of about thirty-five athletic men was soon collected. Arming
themselves with fire-arms, pitchforks, and axes, and throwing
a small stock of provisions into the sloop, these spirited free
men got under way, with a light breeze at northwest. When
the Margaretta observed the approach of the sloop she weighed
and crowded sail to avoid a conflict that was every way unde
sirable, her commander not yet being apprised of all the facts
that had occurred near Boston. In jibing, the schooner car
ried away her main-boom, but continuing to stand on, she ran
into Holmes's Bay, and took a spar out of a vessel that was
lying there. While these repairs were making, the sloop hove
in sight again, and the Margaretta stood out to sea, in the hope
of avoiding her. The breeze freshened, and, with the wind
on the quarter, the sloop proved to be the better sailer. So
anxious was the Margaretta to avoid a collision, that Captain
Moore now cut away his boats ; but finding this ineffectual,
and that his assailants were fast closing with him, he opened
a fire, the schooner having an armament of four light guns,
and fourteen swivels. A man was killed on board the sloop,
which immediately returned the fire with a wall piece. This
discharge killed the man at the Margaretta's helm, and cleared
her quarter-deck. The schooner broached to, when the sloop
gave a general discharge. Almost at the same instant the two
vessels came foul of each other. A short conflict now took
place with musketry, Captain Moore throwing hand-grenades,
with considerable effect, in person. This officer was shot

1775.] NAVAL HISTORY. 39
down, however, when the people of the sloop boarded and took
possession of their prize.
The loss of life in this affair was not very great, though
twenty men, on both sides, are said to have been killed and
wounded. The force of the Margaretta, even in men, was
rhuch the most considerable, though the people of no regular
cruiser can ever equal in spirit and energy a body of volun
teers assembled on an occasion like this. There was origi
nally no commander in the sloop, but previously to engaging
the schooner, Jeremiah O'Brien was selected for that station.
This affair was the Lexington of the seas, for, like that cele
brated land conflict, it was a rising of the people against a
regular force, was characterised by a long chase, a bloody
struggle, and a triumph. It was also the first blow struck on
the water, after the war of the American Revolution had ac
tually commenced.
The armament of the Margaretta was transferred to a sloop,
and Mr. O'Brien made an attack on two small English cruisers
that were said to have been sent out from Halifax, expressly to
capture him. By separating these vessels, he took them both,
with little resistance, and the prisoners were all carried to
Watertown, where the provincial legislature pf Massachusetts
was then assembled. The gallantry and good conduct of Mr.
O'Brien were so generally admired, that he was immediately
appointed a captain in the marine of the colony, and sent on
the coast with his two last prizes, with orders to intercept ves
sels bringing supplies to the royal forces.
Many adventures or enterprises, more or less resembling
these of Captain O'Brien, took place on different parts of the
coast, though none of so brilliant and successful a character.
By way of retaliation, and with a view to intimidate, the Eng-
hsh commander-in-chief, Admiral Graves, sent a force under
the orders of Captain Mowat, to destroy the town of Falmouth,
and four hundred buildings were burned. An attempt to
land, however, was repulsed, when the ships retired. This
and similar steps produced the law of Massachusetts, already
mentioned as having been passed in Nov. 1775, granting com
missions and directing the seizure of British vessels under cer
tain circumstances, and which consequently put an end to the
expeditions we have classed among the unauthorised.
The colony of Massachusetts had recourse to energetic mea
sures for annoying the enemy on the coast, and for procuring
military supplies. Many small vessels were fitted out by that '

40 NAVALHISTORY. [1775.
as well as by other colonies, and ships were sent in different
directions with a view to purchase stores.
The want of powder, in particular, was so severely felt, that
all practicable means were adopted to obtain it. Among others,
General Washington borrowed two schooners of Massachusetts
and sent them into the Gulf of St. Lawrence, under the orders
of Captain Broughton, to intercept two. brigs, that were known
to be bound to Quebec with military supplies. The brigs
were not seen, but ten other English vessels were captured by
Captain Broughton, all of which were released as not coming
within the hostilities meditated by Congress.
That body, however, was by no means blind to the impor
tance of naval means of defence, without which no wa;r can
ever be conducted With credit and success by a country situ
ated like America; and we have now properly arrived at the
period when it is necessary to advert to the acts and legislation
of the General Government on this interesting subject.
Soon after he assumed the command of the troops before
Boston, General Washington, who so deeply felt the want of
munitions of war, issued several commissions to different small
vessels, giving their commanders instructions to cruise in or
near Massachusetts Bay, in order to intercept the British store
ships. The first vessel that got lo sea under this arrangement, was
the schooner Lee, Captain John Maiily, which sailed from
Marblehead near the close of November. On the 29th, Cap
tain Manly fell in with and captm-ed the English brig Nancy,
having on board ordnance stores, several brass guns, a consi
derable stock of fire-arms, and various military supplies.
Among other things of this nature, was a large mortar, which
was justly deemed an important addition to the means of a be
sieging army ; for, np to this time, the Americans before Bos
ton were particularly in want of artillery of every sort. On
the 8th of December, Captain Manly captured three more
Store-.ships, and succeeded in getting all his prizes safely into
port. Although it may not he strictly trUe to term the Lee, and the
other small cruisers similarly employed, the first vessels that
ever belonged to the General Government of this country, they
may be deemed the first that ever actually Sailed with autho
rity to cruise in behalf of the entire republic. But, while we
yield this precedency to Captain Manly and his associates, who
acted under the Orders of Washington, Congress itself had not

1775.] NAVAL HISTORY. 41
been altogether idle, and it is probable that the Commander-in-
Chief took the step just mentioned in accordance with the ex
pressed views of that body.
The first legislation of Congress on the subject of a navy,
preceded the law of Massachusetts, in point of time, though the
act was worded with great reserve. On the 13th of October,
1775, a law passed ordering one vessel of 10 guns, and another
of 14 guns to be equipped as national property, and to be sent
to the eastward on a cruise of three months, to intercept sup
plies for the royal troops. On the 29th of the same month a
resolution passed denying to private ships of war and mer
chant vessels the right to wear pennants in the presence of
" continental ships, or vessels of war," without the permission
of the commanding officers of the latter. The next day ano
ther law passed, authorising the fitting out of two more cruisers,
one to carry 20, and the other 36 guns.
A change in this cautious policy was produced by the depre
dations committed by the vessels under the command of Cap
tain Mowat. When the intelligence of that ruthless proceeding
reached Philadelphia, it produced a general prize law, with au
thority to capture all British vessels that were in any manner
connected with the pending struggle. As the country still ac
knowledged its connexion with the crown, perhaps this reserve
in conducting the war, was, in a measure, due to sound policy.
This law was followed by another, passed December 13th,
ordering thirteen sail of cruisers, to be constructed. Of the
latter vessels, three were to be of 24 guns, five of 28, and
five of 32.
These vessels appear to have been judiciously appointed in
order to effect the object in view. - The resources of America
did not admit of the construction of ships of a size fit to con
tend with the fleets, of England ; and even had the colonies been
in a condition to make such an exhibition of their power, the
time necessary to organise a proper marine, the want of navy
yards, and the impossibility of procuring, in season, naval
stores of the required quality, would have prevented them from
attempting it. The ships ordered were large enough to resist
the small cruisers of the crown, and were well adapted to de
stroy convoys and to capture transports and store-ships.
Bad as was the condition of the colonies, as respects naval
stores and the munitions of war, the country might be said to
be even worse off for persons suited to form a navy list.
There was no lack of competent navigators, or of brave sea-
4*

42 NAVAL HISTORY. [1775.
men, but the high moral qualities which are indispensable to
the accomplished officer, were hardly to be expected among
those who had received all their training ih the rude and im
perfect schools of the merchant ser'vice. Still, as a whole, the
merchant seairien of America were of a class superior to those
of most -other nations; the very absence of a regular marine,
which induced young men of enterprise to incur the dangers of
the seas in this mode in preference to remaining on shore, and
the moral superiority of the level of the population, producing
such a result. The Committee of Congress, to which the
duties of a Navy Department were assigned, was compelled,
in consequence of these difficulties, to select the new corps of
officers, principally, from such conspicuous persons among the
masters and mates of merchant ships as the country afforded";
a few of those who had been trained in the English marine,
but who had left it previously to the struggle, excepted. The
result was such as might have been anticipated. While many
gallant and suitable men were chosen, some of the corps had
little to recommend them besides their practical knpwledge of
seanianship. These were valuable qualities, certainly; but the
habits of subordination, the high feelings of personal pride and
self-respect that create an esprit de corps, and the moral cou
rage and lofty sentiments that come in time, to teach the
trained officer to believe any misfortune preferable to profes
sional disgrace, were hot always to be expected under such
circumstances. It has become impossible to establish, in all cases, who did
and who did not actually serve in the marine of the United
States, officers so frequently passing from the privateers into
the public vessels, and from the public vessels to the privateers,
as to leave this important branch of our subject involved in
much obscurity. Before we enter more fully into the details
on which reliance can be placed, it may be well, also, to ex
plain that the officers in the navy of the Confederation derived
their authority from different sources, a circtimstance that adds
to the difficulties just mentioned. In a good many instances.
Congress made the appointments by direct resolutions of its
own, as will appear in the case of the officers first named.
Subsequently, the Marine Committee possessed this power ;
and, in the end, not only did the diplomatic agents of the Go
vernment abroad exercise this high trust, but even the com
manders of squadrons and of ships were put in possession of
blank commissions to be filled at their particular discretion.

1775.] NAVAL HISTORY. 43
It will easily be understood how much this looseness in mana
ging an interest of so much moment, increases the difficulty of
obtaining the truth.
That the brave men who acted under the authority of
Washington, at the commencement of the contest, were not in
the navy, is evident from the circumstance that several of them
obtained rank in the service, as the reward of their conduct
while cruising in the sort of semi-official vessels that have been
already mentioned. It has been said, that the first regular
legislation of Congress, in reference to a marine, with a view
to resist the aggressions of the British Parliament, dates froni
a resolution of that body passed the i3th of October, 1775.
This resolution directed a committee of three, Messrs. Deane,
Langdon and Gadsden, to fit out two swift-sailing vessels, the
one of ten, and the other of fourteen guns, to cruise to the east
ward, to intercept the supplies and transports intended for the
British army at Boston. Under this law it is believed that a
brig called the Lexington, and a sloop named the Providence,
were equipped ; though it does not appear that either went on
the particular duty named in the resolution. On the 30th of
the same month, the committee was increased to seven ; and a
ship of 36 guns, and another of 20, were ordered to be provi
ded. Under this law, the Alfred and Columbus were pur
chased, though neither was of the force implied by the highest
rate named. The first of these ships is said to have had a
main-deck battery of 20 nines, while her armament on the
quarter-deck and forecastle, varied in the course of her ser
vice, from ten guns to twp. At the end of her career, she
carried no guns above. Less is known of the Columbus, but
she is believed to have had a gun-deck battery of 18 nines.
Both were clumsy and crank ships, and neither proved to be
a very good sailer.
On the 13th of December, of the same year, Congress di
rected the thirteen ships of war to be built, and the next day
the Marine Committee was so far increased as to contain one
member from each colony ; all the proceedings that have yet
been mentioned, having been directed rather to a redress of
grievances, than to independence.
On the 22d of December, 1775, Congress passed a resolu
tion declaring Esek Hopkins Commander-in-Chief, and ap
pointing officers for all the vessels then in service.
By this law it will be seen that Mr. Hopkins was not made
a captain, but the " Commander-in-Chief," a rank that was

44 NAVAL HISTORY. [1"5.
intended to correspond in the navy, to that held by Washing
ton in the army. His official appellation, among seamen, ap
pears to have been that of " Commodore," though he was fre
quently styled " Admiral," in the papers of the period. The
captains were particularly named to the respective ships, and
the law was so construed, that the lieutenants were attached
to the different vessels in the order in which they were re
spectively named.
By this resolution, or law, it would appear that two brigs,
the Andrea Doria, and the Cabot, had been purchased, most
probably by the Marine Committee, previously to its passage.
Of the precise force of the latter vessel no authentic account
can be found, but it is thought to have been 16 sixes. It
appears by a letter of Paul Jones, however, that the armament
of the Doria was 14 fours, and the Cabot may have been of
the sdme force.
The equipment of all the vessels mentioned, as well as of
two or three more of less size, was going on in the autumn
of 1775, the appointment of their officers was made at the
close of the year, arid the first ensign ever shown by a regu
lar American man-of-war, was hoisted in the Delaware, on
board the Alfred, by the hands of Paul Jones, some time about
the last of December. This event could not have occurred
previously to the vote appointing a commander-in-chief, as we
are expressly told that the flag was shown when that officer
first repaired on board his ship. What that ensign was, is not
now certainly known, but it is thought to have been a device
representing a pine tree, with a rattlesnake about to strike,
coiled at its root, and bearing the motto " don't tread on me."
The first regular cruisers that ever got to sea under the new
government were the Hornet 10, and Wasp 8, a sloop and a
schooner that had been equipped at Baltimore by the Marine
Committee, and which sailed in November, to join the squad
ron under Commodore Hopkins, in the Delaware. This pas
sage, however, cannot properly be called a cruise. For the
first of these we must probably refer to the Lexington 14, a
brig, the command of which had been given to John Barry, a
ship-master of Philadelphia, of credit and skill. By other
statements, the squadron under the orders of Commodore Hop
kins got out before the Lexington ; but we are disposed to
believe that this is an error ; not only because the sailing of
the Lexington appears to be asserted on the most probable au
thority, but because it is more reasonable to believe, that, as

1776.] NAVAL HISTORY. 45
between vessels fitted in the same place, and near the same
time, a single cruiser could precede a squadron. It would
seem that the Lexington was purchased earlier than the Alfred,
and, in the nature of things, was more readily equipped. The
honour has long been claimed for Captain Barry, and, on as
close an examination of the facts, as our means will allow, we
believe it to be his due. The Lexington must have left the
Capes of the Delaware late in January, or early in February,
1776, with orders to cruise to the southward.
The plans of Congress had changed between the time when
the vessels were ordered and that on which they were ready
for service. Commodore Hopkins was accordingly directed
also to proceed to the southward, with a view to act against
the naval force, which was then ravaging the coast of Vir
ginia, under Lord Dunmore. The squadron had got into the
Bay, and rendezvoused under Cape Henlopen, early in Feb
ruary. It consisted of the Alfred 24, Columbus 20, Doria 14,
Cabot 14, Providence 12, Hornet 10, Wasp 8, and Fly despatch
vessel. With this force Commodore Hopkins got to sea on
the 17th of February. On the night of the 19th, as the
squadron was steering south with a fresh breeze, the Hornet
and Fly parted company, and did not join again during the
cruise. No vessel of any importance was met until the ships
reached Abaco, in the Bahamas, where the squadron had been
ordered to rendezvous. Here Commodore Hopkins determined
to make a descent on New Providence, where it was under
stood a considerable amount of military stores was collected.
For this purpose, a body of 300 men, marines and landsmen,
under the command of Captain Nichols, the senior marine
officer of the service, was put into two sloops, with the hope
of surprising the place. As the squadron approached the
town, however, an alarm was given, when the sloops were
sent in, with the Providence 12, and Wasp 8, to cover the
landing. This duty was handsomely performed, and Captain
Nichols got complete possession of the forts, and entire com
mand of the place, in the course df the afternoon and of the
following morning, after a very insignificant resistance. Un
fortunately, the governor, aware of the motive of the descent,
found means to send away a considerable quantity of powder
during the night. Near a hundred cannon, and a large quan
tity of other stores, however, fell into the hands of the Ame
ricans. On this occasion, the first that ever occurred in the
regular American Navy, the marines under Captain Nichols,

46 NAVALHISTORY. [1776.
appear to have behaved with a spirit and steadiness that have
distinguished the corps, from that hour down to the present
moment. After retaining possession a few days. Commodore Hopkins
left New Providence on the 17th of March, bringing away with
him the governor and one or two men of note, and shaping his
course to the northward. Some of the smaller vessels appear
to have left him, as he proceeded along the coast, but, with
most of his force in company, he arrived off the east end of
Long Island, early in April. On the 4th, he captured a tender
of six guns, commanded by a son of Commodore Wallace, and
on the 5th he fell in with and took the British Bomb Brig Bol
ton, 8, Lieutenant Snead.
About one o'clock in the morning of the 6th of April, the
squadron being a little scattered, a large ship- was discovered
steering towards the Alfred. The wind was light, and the sea
quite smooth ; and about two, the stranger having gone about,
the Cabot closed with him, and hailed. Soon after the latter
fired a broadside. The first discharge of this little vessel ap
pears to have been well directed, but her metal was altogether
too light to contend with an enemy like the one she had as
sailed. In a few minutes she was compelled to haul aboard
her tacks, to get from under the guns of her antagonist, having
had her captain severely wounded, her master killed, and a
good many of her people injured.
The Alfred now took the place of the Cabot, ranging hE^id-
somely alongside of the enemy and delivering her fire. Soon
after, the Providence got under the stern of the English ship,
and the Andrea Doria was enabled to come near enough to do
some service. The Columbus was kept at a distance for want
of wind. After a smart cannonade of near an hour, the block
and wheel-rope of the Alfred were shot away, and the ship
broached to ; by which accident the enemy was enabled to rake
her with effect. Being satisfied, however, that victory was
impossible, the English commander profited by this accident,
to put his helm up, and brought all the American vessels
astern. Sailing better than any of the squadron, most of which
were deep, as well as dull, in consequence of the cannon and
stores they had taken on board, the enemy slowly but steadily
gained on his pursuers, though a warm cannonade was kept
up by both parties until past daylight. By six o'clock the
ships had got so far to the eastward, that Commodore Hopkins
felt apprehensive the firing would bring out the Newport

1776.] NAVAL HISTORY. 47
squadron ; and seeing little chance of overtaking the chase, he
made a signal for his vessels to haul by the wind. Capturing
a tender that was in company with the ship that had escaped,
the squadron now went into New London, the port to whioh it
was bound.
The vessel that engaged the American ships, on this occa
sion, was the Glasgow, 20, Captain Tyringham Howe, with a
crew of about one hundred and fifty souls. In every thing but
the number of her men, the Glasgow was probably superior to
any one ship in the American squadron ; but her close encounter
with, and eventual escape from so many vessels, reflected
great credit on her commander. She was a good deal cut up,
notwithstanding, and had four men killed and wounded. On
the other hand, both the Alfred and the Cabot suffered materi
ally, the former from having been raked, and the latter from
lying close alongside a vessel so much her superior in force.
The Alfred and Cabot had twenty-three men killed and
wounded, and one man on board the Columbus lost an arm
while in chase.
The result of this first essay of the American navy, caused
much exultation in the country. The affair was represented
as a sort of victory, in which three light vessels of war had
been taken, and one of force compelled to run. A short time,
however, served to correct these errors, and public opinion
probably went as far in the opposite extreme, where it would
seem to have been permanently fixed, by subsequent histo
rians. Commodore Hopkins was left in command some time longer,
it is true, and he carried the squadron to Rhode Island, a few
weeks after his arrival, but he never made another cruise in
the navy. On the 1 6th of October, Congress passed a vote of
censure on him, for not performing the duties on which he had
been sent to the southward ; and on the 2d of January, 1777,
by a vote of that body, he was forrnally dismissed from the
service. No commander-in-chief was subsequently appointed,
though such a measure was recommended to the national
legislature by a committee of its own body, August 24th, 1781.
As an offset to the escape of the Glasgow, the Lexington,
Captain Barry, fell in with the Edward, an armed tender of
the Liverpool, on the 17th of April, off the Capes of Virginia,
and after a close and spirited action of near an hour, captured
her. The Lexington had four of her crew killed and wounded,

48 NAVAL HISTORY. [1776.
while the Edward was cut nearly to pieces, and met with a
very heavy comparative loss in men.
It may better connect the history of this little brig, if we
add here, that she went to the West-Indies the following Octo
ber, under the command of Captain Halleck, and on her return
was captured near the spot where she had taken the Liverpool's
tender, by the Pearl frigate. It was blowing fresh at the time,
and, after taking out a few officers, and putting a crew on
board his prize, the commander of the Pearl ordered her to
follow his own ship. That night the Americans rose, and
overpowering the prize-crew, they carried the brig into Balti
more. The Lexington was immediately recommissioned,
under the orders of Captain Johnston, and in March she sailed
for Europe, where there will sopn be occasion to note her
movements.

CHAPTER V.
"When the American squadron had got into Newport, it be
came useless, from want of men. Many of the seamen had
entered for the cruise only, and Congress having authorised
the capture of all British vessels in March, so many persons
were now induced to go on board the privateers, that crews
were not easily obtained for the vessels of war. It is a singular
feature of the times, too, that the sudden check to navigation,
and the delay in authorising general captures, had driven a
great many of the seamen into the army. It is also easy to
imagine that the service was out of favour, after the affair with
the Glasgow ; fbr by events as trifling as this, are the opinions
of ordinary men usually influenced.
It has been said that the vessels were carried to Providence,
Rhode Island, and soldiers were borrowed from the army, in
order to effect even this. At Providence, courts-martial, the
usual attendants of military misfortunes, were assembled to
judge the delinquents. Captain Whipple, of the Columbus,
was tried for not aiding the Alfred in the action with the Glas
gow, and seems to have been acquitted. Captain Hazard, of

1776.] NAVAL HISTORY. 49
the Providence, was cashiered, though it does not appear on
what charge.
The day after the dismissal of her former commander, or
May the 10th, 1776, Paul Jones was directed by Commodore
Hopkins to take charge of the Providence, and to carry the
borrowed soldiers to New York, there to enlist a regular crew,
and return to the station. This duty having been successfully
performed, the sloop was hove out, cleaned, refitted, armed,
and manned for a cruise. On the 13th of June, Captain Jones
sailed from Newport, with a convoy loaded with military stores,
which he saw into Long Island Sound, a service attended with
risk, on account of the numerous cruisers of the enemy. While
thus employed, he covered the escape of a brig from St. Do
mingo, laden also with military stores, and bound to New
York, This brig was soon after bought into the service, and
became the Hampden 14. After performing this duty, the
Providence was employed in cruising between Boston and- the
Delaware, and ^he even ran as far south as Bermuda. On the
1st of September, while oh the latter service, this little sloop
made five sail, one of which was mistaken for a large mer
chantman. On getting near the latter vessel, she proved to be
a light English frigate, and a fast sailer. After a chase of four
hours by the wind, and in a cross sea, the enemy had so far
gained on the Providence as to be within musket-shot, on her
lee-quarter. The stranger had early opened with his chase
guns, and the Providence now returned the fire with her light
ibur-pounders, showing her colours. Perceiving that capture,
or some bold expedient, must soon determine his fate. Captain
Jones kept edging away, until he had got rather on the lee-
bow of the enemy, when the Providence suddenly went off
dead before the wind, setting every thing that would draw.
This unexpected manoeuvre brought the two vessels within
pistol-shot, but the English ship having been taken" completely
by surprise, before she could get her light sails set, the sloop
was nearly out of reach of grape. The Providence sailed the
best before the wind, and in less than an hour she had drawn
quite beyond the reach of shot," and finally escaped. This
affair has been represented as an engagement of several hours
with the Solebay 28, but, as has been said, it was little more
than a clever artifice, in which Captain Jones discovered much
steadiness and address. Not a shot touched the Providence,
though the Solebay fired a hundred.
Captain Jones now went to the eastward, where he made
5

50 NAVAL HISTORY. [1776.
several prizes. Here he was chased by the Milford 32, and
finding he could easily outsail her, he kept just out of gunshot
for several hours, the enemy, who measured his distance badly,
firing most of the time. This affair has also been exaggerated
into a running fight.
After this chase the Providence went upon the coast, off
Canseau, .and did much damage to the enemy's fishermen,
taking no less than twelve sail. Having made sixteen prizes
in all, some of which were valuable. Captain Jones returned to
Newport. Ere the return of the Providence, independence was declared,
and Congress had set about a more regular organisation of the
navy. October the 3d, it ordered another frigate and two cut
ters to be built ; and November the 9th, a law was passed,
authorising the construction of three seventy-fours, five more
frigates, a sloop of war, and a packet. In January of the suc
ceeding year, another frigate and another sloop of war were
ordered. Eight of the prizes were also directed to be taken
mto the service, in the course of the years 1776 and 1777,
while, as the war proceeded, divers small vessels were directed
to be built, or purchased.
When the squadron, under Commodore Hopkins, broke up,
all the ships did not remain idle, but the Columbus 20, made
a cruise, under Captain Whipple, to the eastward, and took a
few prizes. The Andrea Doria 14, Captain Biddle, went in
the same direction, and was even more successful than the
Providence in annoying the enemy. This vessel, a little brig,
carrying 14 fours, actually took two armed transports filled with
soldiers, and made prizes of so many merchantmen, that, it is
affirmed on plausible authority, when she got back into the
Delaware, but five of the common men who composed her
original crew were in her ; the rest having been put in the
prizes, and their places supplied by volunteers from among
the prisoners. Captain Biddle gained much credit for this
cruise, and he was appointed to the command, of the Randolph
32, then recently launched.
While the United States' ci'uisers were thus active in inter
cepting the British transports on the high seas, the colony
cruisers and privateers were busy in the same way in-shore.
Boston had been evacuated by the enemy on the 17th of
March, of this year, but vessels Continued to arrive from Eng
land until midsummer ; the fact not being known in time to
prevent their steering towards the wrong port. No less than

1776.] N AVAL HISTORY. 51
thirty sail fell into the hands of the Americans, in conse
quence of these mistakes.
The Connecticut colony brig Defence 14, Captain Harding,
left Plymouth, Massachusetts, early on the morning of the
17th of June, and, on working out into the bay, a desultory
firing was heard to the northward. The Defence crowded
sail in the direction of the cannonading, and about dusk she
fell in with four light American schooners, which had been en
gaged in a running fight with two British transports, that
proved too heavy for them. The transports, after beating off
the schooners, went into Nantasket Roads and anchored.
One of the schooners was the Lee 8, Captain Waters, in the
service of Massachusetts, the little cruiser that had so success
fully begun the maritime warfare under Captain Manly. The
three others were privateers.
After laying his plans with the commanders of the schooners.
Captain Harding stood into the roads, and, about eleven
o'clock at night, he anchored between the transports, within
pistol-shot. The schooners followed, but did not approach
near enough to be of much service. Some hailing now passed,
and Captain Harding ordered the enemy to strike. A voice
from the largest English vessel answered, " Ay, ay — I'll
strike," and a broadside was immediately poured into the De
fence. A sharp action, that lasted more than an hour, fol
lowed, when both the English vessels struck. These trans
ports contained near two hundred soldiers of the same corps
as those shortly after taken by the Doria, and on board the
largest of them was Lieutenant Colonel Campbell, who com
manded the regiment.
In this close and sharp conflict, the Defence was a good
deal cut up aloft, and she had nine men wounded. The
transports lost eighteen killed and a large number wounded.
Among the slain was Major Menzies, the officer who had
answered the hail in the manner stated.
The next morning the Defence, with the schooners in com
pany, saw a sail in the bay, and gave chase. The stranger
proved to be another transport, with more than a hundred men
of the same regiment on board. Thus did about five hundred
men, of one of the best corps in the British army, fall into the
hands of the Americans, by means of these light cruisers. It
should be remembered that, in this stage of the war, every
capture of this nature was of double importance to the cause,
as it not only weakened the enemy, but checked his intention

52 NAVALHISTORY. [1776,
of treating the American prisoners as rebels, by giving the
colonists the means of retaliation, as well as of exchange.
Colonel Campbell was subsequently imprisoned by Washing
ton, to compel the English to extend better treatment to the
Americans who had fallen into their hands.
To return to the vessels left at Rhode Island. When Cap
tain Jones came in from his last cruise in the Providence, a
project was formed to send a small squadron under his orders
to the coast of Nova Scotia, with the double view of distressing
the British trade, and of liberating about a hundred Americans
who were said to be confined in the coal-pits of that region.
For this purpose the Alfred 24, Hampden 14, and Providence
12, were put under the orders of Captain Jones ; but not hav
ing men enough for all three, that ofBcer selected the two first
for his purpose. While clearing the port, the Hampden got on
a ledge of rocks, and sustained material damage. The crew
of the Hampden were now transferred to the Providence, and
in the month of November Captain Jones got to sea, with both
vessels rather short manned. A few days out, the Alfred
made one or two small captures, and soon after she fell in with,
and, after a short combat, took the armed ship Mellish, loaded
with supphes for the army that was then assembling in Cana
da, to compose the expedition under General Burgoyne. On
board this vessel, in addition to many other articles of the last
importance, were ten thousand suits of uniform, in charge of a
company of soldiers. It was said at the time, that the Mellish
was the most valuable English ship that had then fallen into
the hands of the Americans. Of so much importance did Cap
tain Jones consider his prize, that he announced his intention
to keep her in sight, and to sink her in preference to letting
her fall into the enemy's hands again. This resolution, how
ever, was changed by circumstances.
The Providence had parted company in the night, and hav
ing taken a letter of marque from Liverpool, the Alfred was
making the best of her way to Boston, with a view to get the
Mellish in, when, on the edge of George's Banks, she made the
Milford 32, the frigate that had chased Captain Jones the pre
vious cruise, while in command of the Providence. The ene
my was to windward, but there was not time for him to close
before dark. The Alfred and the letter of marque hauled up
between the frigate and the other prizes, in order to cover them,
and directions were given to the latter to stand on the same
tack all night, regardless of signals. At midnight the Alfred

1776.] NAVAL HISTORY. 53
and letter of marque tacked, and the latter showed a top-hght
until morning. This artifice succeeded, the Milford appearing
in chase of the Alfred when the day dawned, while the Mellish
and her consorts had disappeared in the southern board.
The Milford had run to leeward in the course of the night,
and was now on the Alfred's lee quarter. Some manceuvring
took place to ascertain the stranger's force, for it was not then
known that the ship in sight was actually a frigate. In the
course of the day, the Alfred was compelled to carry sail hard,
but she escaped, though the letter of marque fell into the ene
my's hands. After eluding her enemy, and covering all her
prizes, the one just mentioned excepted, the Alfred went into
Boston, where she found the rest of the vessels, and where she
landed her prisoners. Another officer took charge of the ship,
and Captain Jones, who had been flattered with the hope of
having a still larger force put under his orders, was placed so
low on the list by the new regulation of navy rank, as to be
obliged to look round for a single ship, and that, too, of a force
inferior to the one he had just commanded.
While this service was in the course of execution at the
north, several small cruisers had been sent into the West In
dies, to convoy, in quest of arms, or to communicate with the
different public agents in that quarter. We have seen the man
ner in which the Lexington had been captured and retaken on
her return passage from this station, and we have now to al
lude to a short cruise of the Reprisal, Captain Wickes, in the
same quarter. This ship sailed early in the summer, for Mar
tinique, capturing several prizes by the way. When near her
port, the English sloop of war Shark 16, Captain Chapman,
laid her close alongside, and commenced a brisk attack, the
Reprisal being both lighter than the enemy, and short-handed.
Captain Wickes made so gallant a defence, however, that the
Shark was repulsed with loss, and the American got into the
island with credit, hundreds having witnessed the affair from
the shore. As this occurred early in the season, and before
the Declaration of Independence, the Shark followed the Re
prisal in, and her captain demanded that the governor should
deliver up the American ship as a pirate. This demand was
refused of course, and shortly after Captain Wickes returned
home. With a view to connect the train of events, we wdll
now follow this excellent officer to the European seas.
The Reprisal was the first -4merican man-of-war that ever
showed herself in the other hemisphere. She sailed from home
5*

54 NAVALHISTORY. [1776.
not long after the Declaration of Independence, and appeared
in France in the autumn of 1776, bringing in with her severa}
prizes, and having Dr. Franklin on board as a passenger. A
few privateers had preceded her, and slight difficulties had oc
curred in relation to some of their prizes that had gone into
Spain, but it is believed these were the first English captured
ships that had entered France since the commencement of the
American Revolution. The English ambassador complained
of this infraction of the treaty between the two countries, but
means were found to dispose of the prizes without detection.
The Reprisal having refitted, soon sailed towards the bay ot
Biscay, on another cruise. Here she captured several more
vessels, and among the rest a king's packet that plied between
Falmouth and Lisbon. When the cruise was up. Captain
Wickes went into Nantes, taking his prizes with him. The
complaints of the English now became louder, and the Ameri
can commissioners were secretly admonished of the necessity
of using greater reserve. The prizes were directed to quit
France, though the Reprisal, being leaky, was suffered to re
main in port, in order to refit. The former were taken into
the offing, and sold ; the state of the times rendering these in
formal proceedings necessary. Enormous losses to the cap
tors were the consequences, while it is not improbable that the
gains of the purchasers had their influence in blinding the lo
cal authorities to the character of the transaction. The busi
ness appears to have been managed with dexterity, and the
proceeds of the sales, such as they were, proved of great ser
vice to the agents of government, by enabling them to pur
chase other vessels.
In April the Lexington 14, Captain Johnston, arrived in
France, and the old difficulties were renewed. But the com
missioners at Paris, who had been authorised to equip vessels,
appoint officers and do other matters to annoy the enemy, now
planned a cruise that surpassed any thing of the sort that had
yet been attempted in Europe under the American flag. Cap
tain Wickes was directed to proceed to sea, with his own ves
sel and the Lexington, and to go directly off Ireland, in order
to intercept a convoy of linen ships that was expected to sail
about that time. A cutter of ten guns, called the Dolphin,
that had been procured by the commissioners to carry des
patches to America, was diverted from her original destination
and placed under the orders of Captain Wickes. The Dol
phin was commanded by Lieutenant S. Nicholson, a brother

1777.] NAVAL HISTORY. 55
of the senior captain, and a gentleman who subsequently died
himself at the head of the service.
Captain Wickes, in command of this light squadron, sailed
from Nantes about the commencement of June, going first into
the Bay of Biscay, and afterwards entirely around Ireland,
sweeping the sea before him of every thing that was not of a
force to render an attack hopeless. The linen ships were
missed, but many vessels were taken or destroyed. As the
American cruisers approached the French coast, on their re
turn, a line of battle ship gave chase, and followed them nearly
into port. The Lexington and Dolphin appear to have escaped
without much difficulty, by separating ; but the Reprisal was
so hard pressed, as to be obliged to saw her bulwarks, and
even to cut away some of her timbers ; expedients that were
much in favour among the seamen of the day, though of ques
tionable utility.
This was the first exploit of the kind in the war, and its
boldness and success seem to have produced so much sensa
tion in England, that the French government was driven to
the necessity of entirely throwing aside the mask, or of tak
ing some more decided step in relation to these cruisers. Not
being yet prepared for war, it resorted to the latter expedient.
The Reprisal and Lexington were ordered to be seized, and
held until security was given that they would quit the Euro
pean seas, while the prizes were commanded to leave France
without delay. The latter were accordingly taken outside the
port, and disposed of to French merchants, in the same in
formal manner, and with the same loss, as in the previous
cases, while the vessels of war prepared to return home.
In September the Lexington sailed from Morlaix, in which
port she had taken refuge in the chase, and next day she fell
in with the British man-of-war-cutter Alert, Lieutenant Bazely,
a vessel of a force a trifle less than her own, when an engage
ment took place. The' lightness of the vessels, and the rough
ness of the water, rendered the fire on both sides very ineffec
tive ; and after an action of two hours and a half, the Lexing
ton had expended nearly all her powder, without subduing her
gallant opponent. The Alert, however, had suffered so much
aloft, as to enable the brig to leave her. Notwithstanding this
advantage, so much activity was shown on board the English
vessel, that, after a chase of four hours, she was enabled to
get alongside of the Lexington again, while the latter was her
self repairing damages. A one-sided battle now occurred, the

56 NAVAL HISTORY. [1777.
Lexington not having it in her power to keep up a fire of any
moment, and after receiving that of his persevering antago
nist for another hour. Captain Johnston was compelled to
strike, to save the lives of his crew.
The fate of the Reprisal, a vessel that had even been more
successful than her consort, was still harder. This ship also
sailed for America, agreeably to the conditions made with the
French government, and foundered on the banks of Newfound
land, all on board perishing with the exception of the cook.
In Captain Wickes the country lost a gallant, prudent, and
efficient officer, and one who promised to rise high in the pro
fession had his life been spared.
To the untimely loss of the Reprisal, and the unfortunate
capture of the Lexington, must be attributed the little eclat
that attended the services of these two vessels in Europe. They
not only preceded all the other national cruisers in the Euro
pean seas, but they did great positive injury to the commerce
of the enemy, besides exciting such a feeling of insecurity ia
the English merchants, as to derange their plans, and to pro
duce other revolutions in the course of trade, that will be ad
verted to in the close of the chapter.
While the commissioners* were directing the movements of
Captain Wickes, in the manner that has been mentioned, they
were not idle in other quarters. A small frigate was building
at Nantes, on pubhc account, and there will be occasion here
after to speak of her services and loss, under the name of the
Queen of France. Some time in the spring of 1777, an agent
was sent to Dover by the American commissioners, where he
purchased a fine, fast-sailing English-built cutter, and had her
carried across to Dunkirk. Here she was privately equipped
as a cruiser, and named the Surprise. To the command of
this vessel Captain Gustavus Conyngham was appointed, by
filling up a blank commission from John Hancock, the Pres
ident of Congress. This commission bore date March 1st,
1777, and it would seem, as fully entitled Mr. Conyngham to
the rank of a captain in the navy, as any other that was ever
issued by the same authority. Having obtained his officers
and crew in Dunkirk, Captain Conyngham sailed on a cruise,
about the 1st of May, and on the 4th he took a brig called the
Joseph. On the 7th, when within a few leagues of the coast
of Holland, the Surprise ran alongside of the Harwich packet,
* Dr. Franklin and Silas Deane.

1777.] NAVAL HISTORY. 57
the Prince of Orange, which she boarded and took with so lit
tle previous alarm, that Captain Conyngham, stepping upon
the deck of his prize, walked coolly down into her cabin,
where he found her master and his passengers at breakfast.
The mail for the north of Europe being on board the Prince
of Orange, Captain Conyngham believed his acquisition to be
of sufficient importance to return to port, and accordingly re
appeared at Dunkirk in a day or two.
By referring to the dates, it will be seen, though both the
Reprisal and the Lexington, especially the firstj had cruised
in the European seas prior to the sailing of the Surprise, that
the latter vessel performed the exploit just mentioned, shortly
before Captain Wickes sailed on his cruise in the Irish and
English Channels. Coming as it did so soon after the cap
ture of the Lisbon packet, and occurring on one of the great
thoroughfares between England and the continent, coupled
with the fact that the cutter had been altogether equipped in a
French port, the loss of the Prince of Orange appears to have
attracted more attention than the transactions before described.
The remonstrances of the English ambassador were so earn
est, that Captain Conyngham and his crew were imprisoned,
the cutter was seized, and the prizes were liberated. On this
occasion the commission of Captain Conyngham was taken
from him, and sent to Versailles, and it seems never to have
been returned.
So completely was the English government deceived by this
demonstration of an intention on the part of the French min
istry to cause the treaty to be respected, that two sloops of
war were actually sent to Dunkirk to carry Captain Conyng
ham and his people to England, that they might be tried as
pirates. When the ships reached Dunkirk, as will be seen in
the succeeding events, the birds had flown.
The commissioners had in view the capture of some of
the transports with Hessian troops on board, and they were
no sooner notified of the seizure of the Surprise, than Mr.
Hodge, an agent who was of great service to the cause, was
directed to procure another cutter. One was accordingly pur
chased at Dunkirk, and fitted, with all despatch, for a cruise.
Means were found to liberate Captain Conyngham and his peo
ple, and this second vessel, which was called the Revenge,
sailed from Dunkirk on the 18th of July, or about the time
that Captain Wickes returned from his cruise with the three
other vessels. A new commission had been obtained for Cap-

58 NAVAL HISTORY. [1777,
tain Conyngham, previously to putting to sea,, which bore date
May 2d, 1777. As this second commission was dated ante
rior to the seizure of the old one, there is no question that it
was also one of those in blank, which had been confided to
the commissioners to fill at their discretion.
The Revenge proved exceedingly successful, making prizes
daily, and generally destroying them. Some of the most valu
able, however, were ordered into Spain, where many arrived ;
their avails proving of great moment to the agents of the Ame
rican government in Europe. It is even affirmed that the mo
ney advanced to Mr. Adams for travelling expenses, when he
landed in Spain from the French frigate La Sensible, a year
or two later, was derived from this source.
Having suffered from a gale. Captain Conyngham disguised
the Revenge, and took her into one of the small English ports,
where he actually refitted without detection. Shortly after, he
obtained supplies in Ireland, paying for them by bills on his
agents in Spain. In short, after a cruise of almost unprece
dented success, so far as injury to the English merchants was
concerned, the Revenge went into Ferrol, refitted, and finally
sailed for the American seas, where it would derange the or-
der of events to follow her at this moment.
The sensation created among the British merchants, by
the different cruises in the European seas, that have been
recorded in this chapter, is stated in the diplomatic correspond
ence of the day, to have been greater than that produced, in
the previous war, by the squadron of the celebrated Thurot.
Insurance rose to an enormous height, and, in speaking of the
cruise of Captain Wickes in particular, Mr. Deane observes
in one of his letters to Robert Morris, that it " effectually
alarmed England, prevented the great fair at Chester, occa
sioned insurance to rise, and even deterred the English mer
chants from shipping goods in English bottoms, at any rate,
so that in a few weeks, forty sail of French ships were load
ing in the Thames on freight ; an instance never before
known." In the same letter, this commissioner adds, — " In a
word, Cunningham (Conyngham) by his first and second bold
expeditions, is become the terror of all the eastern coast of
England and Scotland, and is more dreaded than Thurot was,
in the late war."
Insurance, in some instances, rose as high as twenty-five
per cent., and it is even affirmed that there was a short period

1776.] NAVAL HISTORY. 59
when ten per cent, was asked between Dover and Calais, a
distance of only seven leagues.
With a view to increase the naval force of the country, the
commissioners had caused a frigate of extraordinary size, and
of peculiar armament and construction for that period, to be
laid down at Amsterdam. This ship had the keel and sides
of a two-decker, though frigate-built, and her main deck arma
ment was intended to consist of thirty -two pounders. Her
name was the Indien. In consequence of the apprehen
sions of the Dutch government, and the jealousy of that of
England, Congress was induced, about this time, to make an
offering of the Indien to Louis XVI., and she was equipped
and got ready for sea, as a French vessel of war. In the end,
the manner in which this frigate was brought into the service
of one of the new American States, will be shown.

CHAPTER VI.
It is now necessary to revert to events that will require the
time to be carried back more than a twelvemonth.
Soon after the British left Boston, a Captain Mugford ob
tained the use of a small armed vessel belonging to govern
ment, called the Franklin, and getting to sea, he succeeded in
capturing the Hope, a ship that had on board fifteen hundred
barrels of powder, and a large quantity of intrenching tools,
gun-carriages, and other stores. This vessel was got into
Boston, in sight of the British squadron. Attempting another
cruise immediately afterwards, Captain Mugford lost his life
in making a gallant and successful effort to repel some of the
enemy's boats, which had endeavoured to carry the Franklin
and a small privateer that was in company, by boarding.
On the 6th of July, or two days after the Declaration of
Independence, the Sachem 10, Captain Robinson, sailed from
the Delaware on a cruise. The Sachem was sloop-rigged,
and one of the lightest cruisers in the service. When a few
days out she fell in with an English letter of marque, a Ja
maica-man, and captured her, after a sharp contest. Both
vessels are said to have suffered severely In this affair, and to

60 NAVAL HISTORY. [1776.
have had an unusual number of their people killed and wounded.
Captain Robinson was now compelled to return to refit, and
arriving at Philadelphia with his prize, the Marine Committee
rewarded him for his success by giving him the command of
the Andrea Doria 14, then recently returned from her cruise
to the eastward under Captain Biddle, which officer had been
transferred to the Randolph 32.
The Doria sailed shortly after for St. Eustatia, to bring
home some arms ; and it is said that the first salute ever paid
to the American flag, by a regular government, was fired in
return for the salute of the Doria, when she went into that
island. For this indiscretion the Dutch governor was subse
quently displaced.
On her return passage, off the western end of Porto Rico,
the Doria made an English vessel of war, bearing down upon
her with a disposition to engage. On ranging up abeam, the
enemy commenced the action by firing a broadside, which was
immediately returned by the Doria, A very sharp contest of
two hours followed, when the Englishman struck. The prize
proved to be the Racehorse 12, Lieutenant Jones, who had
been sent by his admiral to cruise expressly for the Doria.
Lieutenant Jones was mortally wounded, and a very large pro
portion of the Racehorse's officers and crew were either killed
or wounded. The Doria lost twelve men, including all the
casualties. Captain Robinson and his prize got safely into
Philadelphia, in due season. The Doria never went to' sea
again, being shortly after burned by the Americans to prevent
her falling into the hands of the British fleet, when the evacu
ation of Fort Mifflin gave the enemy the command of the
Delaware. . The galleys in the Delaware had a long and well-contested
struggle with the Roebuck, 44, Captain Hammond, and the
Liverpool, 20, Captain Bellew, about the first of May of this
year. The cannonade was handsomely conducted, and it re
sulted in driving the enemy from the river. During this .affairj
the Wasp, 8, Captain Alexander-, was active and conspicuous,
cutting out a tender of the English ships from under their
guns. A spirited attack was also made on the Phosnix, 44, and
Rose, 24, in the Hudson, on the third of August, by six
American galleys. The firing was heavy and well maintained
for two hours, both sides suffering materially. On the part
of the galleys, eighteen men were killed and wounded, and

1776.] NAVAL HISTORY. 61
several guns were dismounted by shot. The loss of the
enemy is not known, though both vessels were repeatedly
hulled. By this time the whole coast was alive with adventures of
such a nature, scarcely a week passing that did not give rise
to some incident that would have interest for the reader, did
the limits of our work permit us to enter into the details.
Wherever an enemy's cruiser appeared, or attempted to land,
skirmishes ensued ; and in some of these little affairs as much
personal gallantry and ingenuity were displayed as in many
of the more important combats. The coast of New England
generally, the Chesapeake, and the coast of the Carolinas,
were the scenes of most of these minor exploits, which, like all
the subordinate incidents of a great struggle, are gradually
becoming lost in the more engrossing events of the war.
October 12th, of this year, an armed British brig, the name
of which has been lost, fitted out by the government of the
Island of Jamaica, made an attempt on a small convoy of
American vessels, off Cape Nicola Mole, in the West-Indies,
then in charge of the privateer Ranger, 18, Captain Hudson.
Perceiving the aim of the enemy. Captain Hudson ran under
her stern, and gave her a severe raking fire. The action thus
commenced, lasted nearly two hours, when the Ranger
boarded, and carried the brig, hand to hand. The English
vessel, in this affair, reported thirteen men killed and wounded,
by the raking broadside of the Ranger alone. In the whole,
she had between thirty and forty of her people injured. On
her return from this cruise, the Ranger was purchased for the
navy. In order to command the Lakes Champlain and George,
across which lay the ancient and direct communication with
the Canadas, flotillas had been constructed on both those wa
ters, by the Americans. To resist this force, and with a view
to co-operate with the movements of their troops, the British
commenced the construction of vessels at St. John's. Several
men-of-war were laid up, in the St. Lawrence, and their offi
cers and crews were transferred to the shipping built on Lake
Champlain. October llth, General Arnold, who commanded the American
flotilla, was lying off Cumberland Head, when at eight in the
morning, the enemy appeared in force, to the northward,
turning to windward with a view to engage. On that day the
American vessels present,*consisted of the Royal Savage, 1 2,
6

62 NAVAL HISTORY. [1776.
Revenge, JO, Liberty, 10, Lee, cutter, 4, Congress, galley, 10,
Washington, do., 10, Trumbull, do., 10, and eight gondolas.
Besides the changes that had been made since August, two or
three of the vessels that were on the lake were absent on other
duty. The best accounts state the force of this flotilla, or of
the vessels present, as fPllows, viz :
Guns, 90,
Metal, 647 lbs.
Men, 600, including soldiers.
On this occasion, the British brought up nearly their whole
force, although having the disadvantage of being to leeward,
all their vessels could not get into close action. Captain
Douglas, of the Isis, had commanded the naval movements
that preceded the battles, and Lieutenant-General Sir Guy
Carleton, was present, in person, on board the Maria. The
first officer, in his official report of the events, mentions that
the Inflexible was ready to sail, within twenty-eight days after
her keel had been laid, and that he had caused to be equipped,
between July and October, " thirty fighting vessels of different
sorts and sizes, and all carrying cannon." Captain Pringle,
of the Lord Howe, was the officer actually in charge of the
British naval force on the lake, and he commanded in person
in the different encounters.
The action of the llth of October commenced at eleven in
the forenoon, and by half-past twelve it was warm. On the
part of the British, the battle for a long time was principally
carried on by the gun-boats, which were enabled to sweep up
to windward, and whioh, by their weight of metal, were very
efficient in smooth water. The Carleton, 12, Lieutenant Dacres,
was much distinguished on this day, being the only vessel .of
size that could get into close fight. After maintaining a hot
fire for several hours. Captain Pringle judiciously called off
the vessels that were engaged, anchoring just out of gun-shot,
with an intention to renew the attack in the morning. In this
affair the Americans, who had manifested great steadiness
throughout the day, had about 60 killed and wounded, while
the British acknowledged a loss of only 40. The Carleton,
however, suffered considerably.
Satisfied that it would be impossible, successfully, to resist so
great a superiority of force, General Arnold got under way, at
two P. M., on the 12th, with the wind fresh ahead. The
enemy made sail in chase, as soon as this departure was dis
covered, but neither flotilla could make much progress on ac-

1776.] NAVAL HISTORY. 63
count of the gondolas, which were unable to turn to windward.
In the evening the wind moderated, when the Americans gained
materially on their pursuers. Another change occurred, how
ever, and a singular variation in the currents of air, now fa
voured the enemy ; for while the Americans in the narrow
part of the lake, were contending with a fresh southerly breeze,
the English got the wind at northeast, which brought their
leading vessels within gunshot at 12, meridian, on the 13th.
On this occasion. Captain Pringle, in the Maria, led in per
son, closely supported by the Inflexible and Carleton. The
Americans were much scattered, several of their gondolas
having been sunk and abandoned, on account of the impossi
bility of bringing them off. General Arnold, in the Congress
galley, covered the rear of his retreating flotilla, having the
Washington galley, on board of which was B*-igadier-General
Waterbury, in company. The latter had been much shattered ^
in the fight of the llth, and after receiving a few close broad
sides, she was compelled to strike. General Arnold now de
fended himself like a lion, in the Congress, occupying the three
vessels of the enemy so long a time, as to enable six of his
little fleet to escape. When further resistance was out of the
question, he ran the Congress on shore, set fire to her, and she
blew up with her colours flying.
Although the result of this action was so disastrous, the
American arms gained much credit by the obstinacy of the re
sistance. General Arnold, in particular, covered himself with
glory, and his example appears to have been nobly followed by
most of his officers and men. Even the enemy did justice to
the resolution and skill with which the American flotilla was
managed, the disparity in the force rendering victory out of
the question from the first. The manner in which the Con
gress was fought until she had covered the retreat of the gal
leys, and the stubborn resolution with which she was defended
until destroyed, converted the disasters of this part of the day,
into a species of triumph.
In these affairs, the Americans lost eleven vessels, princi
pally gondolas ; while on the part of the British, two gondolas
were sunk, and one blown up. The loss of men was supposed
to be about equal, no less than sixty of the enemy perishing in
the gondola that blew up. This statement differs from the
published official accounts of the English ; but those reports,
besides being meagre and general, are contradicted by too
much testimony on the other side, to command our respect.

64 NAVALHISTORY. [1776-77,
There has been occasion, already, to mention Mr. John
Manly, who, in command of the schooner Lee, made the first
captures that occurred in the war. The activity and resolu-
tion of this officer, rendered his name conspicuous at the com
mencement of the struggle, and it followed as a natural conse
quence, that, when Congress regulated the rank of the captains,
in 1776, he appears as one of them, his appointment having
been made as early as April the 17th, of this year. So highly,
indeed, were his services then appreciated, that the name of
Captain Manly stands second on the list, and he was appointed
to the command of the Hancock, 32. When Captain Manly
was taken into the navy, the Lee was given to Captain Wa
ters, and was present at the capture of the three transports off
Boston, as has been already stated. This little schooner, the
name of which will ever remain associated with American his
tory, in consequence of her all-important captures in 1775,
appears to have continued actively employed, as an in-shore
cruiser, throughout this year, if not later, in the pay of the
new state of Massachusetts. Captain Waters, like his prede
cessor. Captain Manly, was received into the navy on the
recommendation of Washington, a commission to that effect
having been granted by Congress, March 18th, 1777.

CHAPTER VII.
The year 1777 opened with better prospects for the Ameri
can cause. The hardy movements of 'Washington in New
Jersey had restored the drooping confidence of the nation, and
great efforts were made to follow up the advantage that- had
been so gloriously obtained. Most of the vessels authorised by
the laws of 1775, had been built and equipped during the year
1776; and America may now be said, for the first time, to
have had something like a regular navy, although the service
Was still, and indeed continued to be throughout the war, de
ficient in organization, system, and unity. After the first ef
fort connected with its creation, the business of repairing losses,
of increasing the force, and of perfecting that which had
been so hastily commenced, was either totally neglected.

1778.] NAVAL HISTORY. 65
or carried on in a manner so desultory and inefficient, as aoon
to leave very little of method or order in the marine. As a con
sequence, officers were constantly compelled to seek employ
ment in private armed ships, or to remain idle, and the disci
pline did not advance, as would otherwise have been the case
during the heat of an active war. To the necessities of the
nation, however, and not to a want of foresight and prudence,
must be attributed this state of things, the means of raising and
maintaining troops being obtained with difficulty, and the cost
of many ships entirely exceeding its resources. It is probable,
had not the public armed vessels been found useful in convey
ing, as well as in convoying the produce, by means of which
the loans obtained in Europe were met, and perhaps indispen
sable to keeping up the diplomatic communications with that
quarter of the world, that the navy would have been suffered
to become extinct, beyond its employment in the bays and
rivers of the country. This, however, is anticipating events, for
at the precise moment in the incidents of the war at which we
have now arrived, the exertions of the republic were perhaps at
their height, as respects its naval armaments.
One of the first, if not the very first of the new vessels that
got to sea, was the Randolph 32. It has been "seen that Cap
tain Biddle was appointed to this ship, on his return from his
successful cruise in the Andrea Doria 14. The Randolph was
launched at Philadelphia in the course of the season of 1776,
and sailed on her first cruise early in 1777. Discovering a
defect in his masts, as well as a disposition to mutiny in his
people, too many of whom were volunteers from among the
prisoners. Captain Biddle put into Charleston for repairs. As
soon as the ship was refitted, he sailed again, and three days
out, he fell in with and captured four Jamaica-men, one of
which, the True Briton, had an armament of 20 guns. The
Randolph returned to Charleston with her prizes, in safety.
Here she appears to have been blockaded by a superior Eng
lish force, during the remainder of the season. The state au
thorities of South Carolina were so much pleased with the zeal
and deportment of Captain Biddle, that they now added four
small cruisers of their own, the General Moultrie 18, the Polly
16, the Notre Dame 16, and the Fair American 14, to his
command. With these vessels in company, and under his or
ders. Captain Biddle sailed early in 1778, in quest of the Bri
tish ships, the Carrysfort 32, the Perseus 20, the Hinchinbrook
16, and a privateer, which had been cruising off Charleston for
6*

66 NAVAL HISTORY. [1778.
some time. The American squadron, however, had been de
tained so long by foul winds, that, when it got into the offing,
no traces of the enemy were to be discovered. For the further
history of the Randolph, we are unhappily indebted to the
British accounts.
By a letter from Captain Vincent, of his Britannic Majesty's
ship Yarmouth 64, dated March 17th, 1778, we learn that,
on the 7th of that month, while cruising to the eastward of
Barbadoes, he made six sail to the southwest, standing on a
wind. The Yarmouth bore down on the chases, which proved
to be two ships, three brigs and a schooner. About nine
o'clock in the evening she succeeded in ranging up on the
weather quarter of the largest and leading vessel of the stran
gers ; the ship next in size being a little astern and to leeward.
Hoisting her own colours, the Yarmouth ordered the nearest
ship to show her ensign, when the American flag was run up,
and the enemy poured in a broadside. A smart action now
commenced, and was maintained with vigour for twenty
minutes, when the stranger blew up. The two ships were so
near each other at the time, that many fragments of the wreck
struck the Y'armouth, and among other things, an American
ensign, rolled up, was blown in upon her forecastle. This flag
was not even singed. The vessels in company now steered
different ways, and the Yarmouth gave chase to two, varying
her own course for that purpose. But her sails had suffered
so much in the engagement, that the vessels chased soon run
her out of sight. In this short action the Yarmouth, by the
report of her own commander, had five men killed and twelve
wounded. On the 12th, while cruising near the same place, a
piece of wreck was discovered, with four men on it, who were
making signals for relief. These men were saved, and when
they got on board the Yarmouth, they reported themselves as
having belonged to the United States ship Randolph 32, Cap
tain Biddle, the vessel -that had blown up in action with the
English ship on the night of the 7th of the same month.
They had been floating ever since on the piece of wreck, with
out any other sustenance than a little rain-water. They stated
that they were a month out of Charleston.
We regard with admiration the steadiness and spirit with
which, according to the account of his enemy, Captain Biddle
commenced this action, against a force so vastly his superior ;
and, although victory was almost hopeless, even had all his
vessels behaved equally well with his own ship, we find it dif-

1777.] NAVAL HISTORY. 67
ficult, under the circumstances, to suppose that this gallant
seaman did not actually contemplate carrying his powerful an
tagonist, most probably by boarding.
In March, 1777, the United States brig Cabot, Captain 01-
ney, was chased Eishore, on the coast of Nova Scotia, by the
British frigate Milford, which pressed the Cabot so hard that
there was barely time to get the people out of her. Captain
Olney and his crew retreated into the woods, and subsequently
they made their escape by seizing a schooner, in which they
safely arrived at home. The enemy, after a long trial, got
the Cabot off, and she was taken into the British navy.
Shortly after this loss, or on the 1 9th of April, the Trum
bull 28, Captain Saltonstall, fell in with, off New York, and
captured after a smart action, two armed transports, with
stores of value on board. In this affair the enemy suffered
severely, and the Trumbull herself had 7 men killed and 8
wounded. The fbllowmg month the Hancock 32, Captain Manly, and
Boston 24, Captain M'Neil, sailed on a cruise to the eastward.
Towards the middle of May they made a sail to windward,
and gave chase. The Hancock being the fastest sailer ap
proached the stranger, a British frigate, first ; the two vessels
crossing each other on opposite tacks, and exchanging broad
sides in passing, at long shot. The American immediately
tacked and continued to gain on the chase. As soon as she
got within range of the stranger, the latter re-opened his fire,
but Captain Manly sent his people to their breakfast, finding
that little harm was done. In a short time the Hancock had
got far enough ahead and to windward to open her fire, when
the action commenced in earnest. After a close and warm
engagement of an hour and thirty-five minutes, the enemy
struck. At this time, or while the Hancock was lowering her
boat to take possession, the Boston came down from a wea-
therly position she had gained, and, it is said, fired a broad
side at the captured ship. Captain Manly rebuked his consort,
and the cannonade ceased altogether. The prize proved to be
the Fox 28, Captain Fotheringham. Her loss was heavy, hav-
ing no less than 32 men killed. The Hancock had 8 killed
and 13 wounded.
Manning her prize, the Hancock now proceeded off Hali
fax, the Boston in company. The vessels appeared before the
port on the first day of June. This brought out the Rainbow
44, Captain Sir George Collier, with the Flora 32, and Victor

68 NAVAL HISTORY. l^'^'^'^-
brig. The Flora gave chase to the Fox, the Boston being
about a league to windward, while the Rainbow and Victor
pursued the Hancock. The Fox was captured after a short
action, the Boston keeping aloof, and eventually escaping.
The wind fell, and Captain Manly was induced to lighten his
ship. This destroyed her trim, and it is thought occasioned
her loss. She was captured by the Rainbow and the Victor.
The enemy took the Hancock into their service, calling her
the Iris. She proved to be one of the fastest vessels they had,
but was eventually taken by the French in the West-Indies.
Capt. M'Neil was dismissed the service for his bad conduct on
these two occasions.
The occupation of Philadelphia by the British army, this
year, wrought a material change in the naval arrangements
of the country. Up to this time, the Delaware had been a
safe place of retreat for the different cruisers, and' ships had
been constructed on its banks in security and to advantage.
Philadelphia offered unusual faciUties for such objects, and
many public and private armed cruisers had been equipped at
her wharves, previously to the appearance of the British forces
under Sir William Howe. That important event completely
altered the state of things, and the vessels that were in the
stream at the time, were compelled to move higher up the river,
or to get to sea in the best manner they could. Unfortunately,
several of the ships constructed, or purchased, under the laws
of 1775 were not in a situation to adopt the latter expedient,
and they were carried to different places that were supposed
to offer the greatest security.
As a part of the American vessels and galleys were above,
and a part below the town, the very day after reaching the
capital, the EngUsh commenced the erection of batteries to in
tercept the communications between them. Aware of the con
sequences, the Delaware 24, Captain Alexander, and the An
drea Doria 14, seconded by some other vessels, belonging to
the navy, and to the State of Pennsylvania, moved in front of
these works, and opened a cannonade, with a view to destroy
them. The Delaware was so unfortunately placed, that when
the tide fell, she took the ground, and her guns became un
manageable. Some field-pieces were brought to bear on her,
while in this helpless situation, and she necessarily struck.
The other vessels were compelled to retire.
As the command of the river was indispensable to the Brit
ish, they now turned their attention at once to the destruction

1777.]^ NAVALHISTORY. 69
of the American works below the town. An unsuccessful
land attack was made by the Hessians, on Red Bank, and this
was soon followed by another on Fort Mifflin, which, as it
was entrusted to the shipping, comes more properly within our
observation. With a view to effect the reduction or abandon
ment of Fort Mifflin, the British assembled a squadron of ships
of a light draft of water, among which was the Augusta 64,
which had been partially stripped, and fitted in some measure
as a floating battery. As soon as the troops advanced against
Red Bank, as stated, the ships began to move, but some che-
vaux de frise anchored in the river, had altered its channel,
and the Augusta, and the Merlin sloop of war, got fast, in un
favourable positions. Some firing between the other vessels
and the American works and galleys now took place, but was
soon put a stop to by the approach of night. The next day
the action was renewed with spirit, the Roebuck 44, Isis 32,
Pearl 32, and Liverpool 28, being present, in addition to the
Augusta and Merhn. Fire-ships were ineffectually employed
by the Americans, but the cannonade became heavy. In the
midst of the firing, it is said that some pressed hay, which
had been secured on the quarter of the Augusta, to render her
shot-proof, took fire, and the ship was soon in flames. It now
became necessary to withdraw the other vessels, in order to
escape the effects of the explosion, and the attack was aban-
don,e4. The Augusta blew up, and the Merlin having been
set on fire by the British shared the same fate. A number of
the crew of the Augusta were lost in that ship, the conflagra
tion being so rapid as to prevent their removal. A second and
better-concerted attack, however, shortly after, compelled the
Americans to evacuate the works, when the enemy got com
mand of the river from the capes to the town. This state of
things induced the Americans to destroy the few sea vessels
that remained below Philadelphia, among which were the U.
S. brig Andrea Doria 14, and schooner Wasp 8, and it is be
lieved the Hornet 10 ; though the galleys, by following the Jer
sey shore, were enabled to escape above.
While these important movements were occurring in the
middle states, the Raleigh, a fine twelve-pounder frigate, that
had been constructed in New Hampshire, under the law of
1775, was enabled to get to sea for the first time. She was
commanded by Captain Thompson, and sailed in company
with the Alfred 24, Captain Hinman. These two ships ^ent

70 NAVAL HISTORY. [1777.
to sea, short of men, bound to France, where military stores
were in waiting to be transported to America.
The Raleigh and Alfred had a good run off the coast, and
they made several prizes of little value during the first few
days of their passage. On the 2d of September they over
took and captured a snow, called the Nancy, which had been
left by the outward-bound Windward Island fleet, the previous
day. Ascertaining from his prisoners the position of the West-
Indiamen, Captain Thompson made sail in chase. The fleet
was under the charge of the Camel, Druid, Weasel, and Grass
hopper, the first of which is said to have had an armament of
twelve-pounders. The following day, or September 3d, 1777,
the Raleigh made the convoy from her mast-heads, and by
sunset was near enough to ascertain that there were sixty sail,
as well as the positions of the men-of-war. Captain Thomp
son had got the signals of the fleet from his prize, and he now
signalled the Alfred, as if belonging to the convoy. After
dark he spoke his consort, and directed her commander to
keep near him, it being his intention to run in among the ene
my, and to lay the commodore aboard. At this time, the two
American ships were to windward, but nearly astern.
In the course of the night the wind shifted to the northward,
and the convoy hauled by the wind, bringing the American
ships to leeward. At daylight the wind had freshened, and it
became necessary to carry more sail than the Alfred (a ten
der-sided ship) could bear. Here occurred one of those in
stances of the unfortunate consequences which must always
follow the employment of vessels of'unequal qualities in the
same squadron, or the employment of officers not trained in
the same high school. The Alfred would not bear her can
vass, and while the Raleigh fetched handsomely into the fleet,
under double-reefed topsails, the former fell to leeward more
than a league. Captain Thompson did not dare to shorten
sail, lest his character might be suspected, and despairing of
being supported by the Alfred, he stood boldly in among the
British ships alone, where he hove his ship to, in order to per
mit the merchantmen astern to draw more ahead of him.
When his plan was laid, Captain Thompson filled away,
and stood directly through the convoy, luffing up towards the
vessel of war that was most to windward. In doing this he
spoke several of the merchantmen, giving them orders how to
steer, as if belonging himself to the fleet, and repeating all the
commqilore's signals. Up to this moment the Raleigh appears

1777.] NAVALHISTORY. 71
to have escaped detection, nor had she had any signs of pre
paration about her, as her guns were housed, and her ports
lowered. Having obtained a weatherly position, the Raleigh now ran
alongside of the vessel of war, and when within pistol-shot, she
hauled up her courses, ran out her guns, set her ensign, and
commanded the enemy to strike. So completely was this ves
sel taken by surprise, that the order threw her into great con
fusion, and even her sails got aback. The Raleigh seized this
favourable moment to pour in a broadside, which was feebly
returned. The enemy were soon driven from their guns, and
the Raleigh fired twelve broadsides into the English ship in
twenty minutes, scarcely receiving a shot in return. A heavy
swell rendered the aim uncertain, but it was evident that the
British vessel suffered severely, and this the more so, as she
was of inferior force.
A squall had come on, and at first it shut in the two ships
engaged. When it cleared away, the convoy was seen steer
ing in all directions, in the utmost confusion ; but the vessels
of war, with several heavy well-armed West-Indiamen, tacked
and hauled up for the Raleigh, leaving no doubt of their inten
tions to engage. The frigate lay by her adversary until the
other vessels were so near, that it became absolutely necessary
to quit her, and then she ran to leeward and joined the Alfred.
Here she shortened sail, and waited for the enemy to come
down, but it being dark, the British commodore tacked and
hauled in among his convoy again. The Raleigh and Alfred
kept near this fleet for several days ; but no provocation could
induce the vessels of war to come out of it, and it was finally
abandoned. The ship engaged by the Baleigh, proved to be the Dmid
20, Captain Carteret. She was much cut up, and the official
report of her commander, made her loss six killed, and twenty-
six wounded. Of the latter, five died soon after the action, and
among the wounded was her commander. The Druid was
unable to pursue the voyage, and returned to England.
The Raleigh had three men killed and wounded in the en
gagement, and otherwise sustained but little injury.
On the 14th of June of this year. Congress first adopted the
stars and stripes as the national flag.

72 NAVAL HISTORY. [1778,

CHAPTER VIII.
The year 1778 opened with still more cheerful prospects
for the great cause of American Independence ; the capture
of Burgoyne, and the growing discontents in Europe, render
ing a French alliance, and a European war, daily more pro
bable. These events, in truth, soon after followed ; and from
that moment, the entire policy of the United States, as related
to its marine, was changed. Previously to this great event.
Congress had often turned its attention towards the necessity
of building or purchasing vessels of force, in order to counteract
the absolute control which the enemy possessed, in the imme
diate waters of the country, and which even superseded the
necessity of ordinary blockades, as two or three heavy frigates
had been able, at any time since the commencement of the
struggle, to command the entrance of the different bays and
sounds. The French fleet, soon after the commencement of hostili
ties between England and France, appeared in the American
seas, and, in a measure, relieved the country from a species;
of warfare that Was particularly oppressive to a nation that
was then so poor, and which was exposed on so great an ex-
tent of coast.
As the occupation of New York and Philadelphia prevented
several of the new frigates from getting to sea at all, or occa-'
sioned their early loss. Congress had endeavoured to repair
these deficiencies by causing other vessels to be built, or pur
chased, at points where they would be out of danger from any
similar misfortunes. Among these ships were the Alliance 32,
Confederacy 32, Deane 32, (afterwards called the Hague,)
and Queen of France 28, all frigate-built, and the Ranger,
Gates, and Saratoga sloops of war. To these were added a
few other vessels, that were either bought or borrowed in
Europe. , The Alliance, which, as her name indicates, waa
launched about the time the treaty was made with France, was
the favourite ship of the American navy, and it might be added,
of the American nation, during the war of the Revolution ;
filling some such space in the public mind, as has since been
occupied by her more celebrated successor, the Constitution.

1778.] NAVAL HISTORY. 73
She was a beautiful and an exceedingly fast ship, but, as will
be seen in the sequel, was rendered less efficient than she
might otherwise have proved, by the mistake of placing her
under the command of a French officer, with a view to pay a
compliment to the new allies of the republic. This unfortunate
selection produced mutinies, much discontent among the offi
cers, and, in the end, grave irregularities. The Alliance was
built at Salisbury, in Massachusetts, a place that figured as a
building station, even in the seventeenth century.
The naval operations of the year open with a gallant Jittle
exploit, achieved by the United States sloop Providence, 12,
Captain Rathburne. This vessel carried only four-pounders,
and, at the time, is said to have had a crew of but fifty men
on board. Notwithstanding this trifling force. Captain Rath
burne made a descent on the Island of New Providence, at the
head of twenty-five men. He was joined by a few American
prisoners, less than thirty, it is said, and, while, a privateer of
sixteen guns, with a crew of near fifty men, lay in the harbour,
he seized the forts, got possession of the stores, and effectually
obtained command of the pla'ce. All the vessels in port, six in
number, fell into his hands, and an attempt of the armed popu
lation to overpower him, was suppressed, by a menace to burn
the town. A British sloop of war appeared off .the harbour,
while the Americans were in possession, but, ascertaining that
an enemy was occupying the works, she retired, after having
been fired on. The following day, the people assembled in
such force, as seriously to threaten the safety of his party and
vessel, and Captain Rathburne caused the guns of the fort to
be spiked, removed all the ammunition and small-arms, burned
two of his prizes, and sailed with the remainder, without leaving
a man behind him. In this daring little enterprise, the Ame
ricans held the place two entire days.
Captain John Barry, whose spirited action off the capes of
Virginia, in the Lexington 14, has been mentioned, and whose
capture of the Edward, on that occasion, is worthy of note, as
having been the first of any vessel of war, that was ever made
by a regular American cruiser in battle, was placed on the
regulated list of October, 1776, as the seventh captain, and
appointed to the command of the Effingham 28, then building
at Philadelphia. The Effingham was one of the vessels that
had been taken up the Delaware, to escape from the British
army ; and this gallant officer, wearied with a life of inactivity,
planned an expedition down the stream, in the hope of striking
7

74 NAVAL HISTORY. [177a
a blow at some of the enemy's vessels anchored off, or below
the town. Manning four boats, he pulled down with the tide.
Some alarm was given when opposite the town, but dashing
ahead, the barges got past without injury. Off Port Penn lay
an enemy's schooner of ten guns, and four transports, with
freight for the British army. The schooner was boarded and
carried, without loss, and the transports fell into the hands of
the Americans also. Two cruisers appearing soon after in the
river, however. Captain Barry destroyed his prizes, and es
caped by land, without losing a man.
Following the order of time, we now return to the movements
of the two ships under the command of Captain Thompson,
the Raleigh and the Alfred. After taking in military stores
in France, these vessels sailed for America, making a circuit
to the southward, in order to avoid the enemy's vessels of
force, and to pick up a few prizes by the way. They sailed
from I'Orient in February, 1778, and on the 9th of March,
were chased by the British ships Ariadne and Ceres, which
succeeded in getting alongside of the Alfred, and engaging her,
while the Raleigh was at a distance. Believing a contest
fruitless, after exchanging a few broadsides, the Alfred struck ;
but the Raleigh, though hard pressed, in the chase that suc
ceeded, made her escape. Captain Thompson was blamed in
the journals of the day, for not aiding his consort on this occa
sion ; and he appears to have been superseded in the command
of his ship, to await the result of a trial.
Among the frigates ordered by the act of 1775, was one
called the Virginia 28, which had been laid down in Maryland.
To this vessel was assigned Captain James Nicholson, the
senior captain on the list, an officer who had already mani
fested conduct and spirit in an affair with one of the enemy's
tenders off Annapolis, while serving in the local marine of
Maryland. The great embarrassment which attended most of
the public measures of the day, and a vigilant blockade, pre
vented the Virginia from getting to sea, until the spring of this
year, when having received her crew and equipments, she
made the attempt on the 30th of March.
The frigate appears to have followed another vessel down
the Chesapeake, under the impression that the best pilot of the
bay was in charge of her. About three in the morning, how
ever, she struck on the middle ground, over which she beat
with the loss of her rudder. The ship was immediately an
chored. Day discovered two English vessels of war at no

1778.] NAVAL HISTORY. 75
great distance, when Captain Nicholson got ashore with his
papers, and the ship was taken possession of by the enemy.
An inquiry, instituted by Congress, acquitted Captain Nichol
son of blame.
Leaving the ocean, we will again turn our attention to the
proceedings of the enemy In the Delaware. Early hi May, an
expedition left Philadelphia, under the command of Major Mait-
land, and ascended that river with a view to destroy the Ame
rican shipping, which had been carried up it to escape the in
vading and successful army of the enemy. The force consisted
of the schooners Viper and Pembroke ; the Hussar, Cornwallis,
Ferret, smd Philadelphia galleys; four gun-boats, and eighteen
flat-boats, under the orders of Captain Henry of the navy. The
2d battalion of the light-infantry, and two field-pieces composed
the troops. Ascending the stream to a point above Bristol, the
troops landed, without opposition. There does not appear to
have been any force to oppose the British on this occasion, or,
if any, one of so little moment, as to put a serious contest out
of the question. The Washington 32, and Effingham 28,
both of which had been built £it Philadelphia, but had never
got to sea, were burned. These ships had not yet received
their armaments.
About this time the celebrated Paul Jones, whose conduct
as a lieutenant in tbe Alfred, and in command of that ship, as
well as in that of the Providence 12, had attracted much atten
tion, appeared in the European seas in command of the Ranger
18, So cautious had the American government become, in
consequence of the British remonstrances, that orders were
given to the Ranger to conceal her armament while in France.
After going into Brest to refit. Captain Jones sailed from
port on the 10th of April, 1778, on a cruise in the Irish Chan
nel. As the Ranger passed along the coast, she made several
prizes, and getting as high as Whitehaven, Captain Jones de
termined, on the 17th, to make an attempt to burn the colliers
that were crowded in that narrow port. The weather, how
ever, prevented the execution of this project, and the ship pro
ceeded as high as Glentine bay, on the coast of Scotland, where
she chased a revenue vessel without success.
Quitting the Scottish coast, the Ranger next crossed to Ire
land, and arrived off Carrickfergus, where she was boarded by
some fishermen. From these men Captain Jones ascertained
that the Drake sloop of war, Captain Burden, a vessel of a
force about equal to that of the Ranger, lay anchored in the

76 NAVAL HISTORY. [11'78.
roads,-and he immediately conceived a plan to run in and take
her. Preparations were accordingly made to attempt the en
terprise as soon as it was dark.
It blew fresh in the night, but when the proper hour had
arrived, the Ranger stood for the roads, having accurately ob
tained the bearings of her enemy. The orders of Captain
Jones were to overlay the cable of the Drake, and to bring up
on her bows, where he intended to secure his own ship, and
abide the result. By some mistake, the anchor was not let go
in season, and instead of fetching up in the desired position,
the Ranger could not be checked until she had drifted on the
quarter of the Drake, at the distance of half a cable's length.
Perceiving that his object was defeated. Captain Jones ordered
the cable to be cut, when the ship drifted astern, and, making
sail, she hauled by the wind as soon as possible. The gale
increasing, it was with great difficulty that the Ranger wea
thered the land, and regained the channel.
Captain Jones now stood over to the English coast, and be
lieving the time more favourable, he attempted to execute his
former design on the shipping of Whitehaven. Two parties
landed in the night ; the forts were seized and the guns were
spiked ; the few look-outs that were in the works being con
fined. In effecting this duty, Captain Jones was foremost in
person, for, having once sailed out of the port, he was familiar
with the place. An accident common to both the parties into
which the expedition had been divided, came near defeating
the enterprise in the outset. They had brought candles in
lanterns, as lights and torches, and, now that they were wanted
for the latter purpose, it was found that they were all con
sumed. As the day was appearing, the party under Mr. Wal-
lingford, one of the lieutenants, took to its boat without effect
ing any thing, while Captain Jones sent to a detached building
and obtained a candle. He boarded a large ship, kindled a
fire in her steerage, and by placing a barrel of tar over the
spot, soon had the vessel in flames. The tide being out, this
ship lay in the midst of more than a handred others, high and
dry, and Captain Jones flattered himself with the hope of sig
nally revenging the depredations that the enemy had so freely
committed on th'l American coast. But, by.this time, the alarm
was effectually given, and the entire population appeared on
the adjacent high ground, or were seen rushing in numbers to
wards" the shipping. The latter were easily driven back by a
show of force ; and remaining a sufficient time, as he thought,

1778.] NAVAL HISTORY. 77
to make sure of an extensive conflagration, Captain Jones took
to his boats and pulled towards his ship. Some guns were fired
on the retiring boats without effect ; but the people of the place
succeeded in extinguishing the flames before the mischief be
came very extensive.
The hardihood, as well as the nature of this attempt, pro
duced a great alarm along the whole English coast ; and from
that hour, even to this, the name of Jones, in the midst of the
people of Whitehaven, is associated with audacity, destruction,
and danger.
While cruising, with the utmost boldness, as it might be in
the very heart of the British waters, with the coasts of the
three kingdoms frequently in view at the same moment. Cap
tain Jones, who was a native of the country, decided to make
an attempt to seize the Ekirl of Selkirk, who had a seat on St.
Mary's Isle, near the point where the Dee flows into the chan
nel. A party landed, and got possession of the house, but its
master was absent. The officer in command of the boats so
far forgot himself as to bring away a quantity of the family
plate, although no other injury was done, or any insult offered.
This plate, the value of which did not exceed a hundred pounds,
was subsequently purchased of the crew by Captain Jones, and
returned to Lady Selldrk, with a letter expressive of his regrets
at the occurrence.
After the landing mentioned, the Ranger once more steered
towards Ireland, Captain Jones still keeping in view his design
on the Drake, and arrived off Carrickfergus again, on the 24th.
The commander of the latter ship sent out an officer. In one
of his boats, to ascertain the character of the stranger. By
means of skilful handling, the Ranger was kept end-on to the
boat, and as the officer in charge of the latter could merely see
the ship's stern, although provided with a glass, he suffered
himself to be decoyed alongside, and was taken. From the
prisoners. Captain Jones learned that intelligence of his de
scents on Whitehaven and St. Mary's Isle had reached Belfast,
and that the people of the Drake had weighed the anchor he
had lost in his attempt on that ship.
Under these circumstances. Captain Jones believed that the
commander of the Drake would not long defer coming out in
search of his boat ; an expectation that was ishortly realised,
by the appearance of the English ship under way. The
Ranger now filled and stood off the land, with a view to draw
her enemy more into the channel, where she lay to, in waiting
1*

78 "NAVAL HISTORY. [1778.
fori the latter to come on. Several small vessels accompanied
the Drake, to witness the combat, and many volunteers had
gone on board her, to assist in capturing the American pri
vateer, as it was the feshion of the day to term the vessels of
the young republic. The tide being unfavourable, the Drake
worked out of the roads slowly, and night was approaching
before she drew near the Ranger.
The Drake, when she got sufficiently nigh, hailed, and re
ceived the name of her antagonist, by way of challenge, with
a request to come on. As the two ships were standing on, the
Drake a little to leeward and astern, the Ranger put her helm
up, a manoeuvre that the enemy imitated, and the former gave
the first broadside, firing as her guns bore. The wind ad
mitted of but few changes, but the battle was fought running
free, under easy canvass. It lasted an hour and four minutes,
when the Drake called for quarter, her ensign being already
down. The English ship was much cut up, both in her hull and
aloft, and Captain Jones computed her loss at about forty men.
Her captain and lieutenant were both desperately wounded,
and died shortly after the engagement. The Ranger suffered
much less, having Lieutenant Wallingford and one man killed,
and six wounded. The Drake was not only a heavier ship,
but she had a much stronger crew than her antagonist. She
had also two guns the most.
After securing her prize and repairing damages, the Ranger
went round the north of Ireland, and shaped her course for
Brest. She was chased repeatedly, but arrived safely at her
port with the Drake, on the 8th of May.
Mr. Silas Talbot, of Rhode Island, who had been a seaman
in his youth, had taken service in the army, and, October 10th,
1777, he had been raised to the rank of a Major, to reward
him for a spirited attempt to set fire to one of the enemy's
cruisers in the Hudson. In the autumn of the present year
(1778), MajorTalbot headed another expedition against the Brit
ish schooner Pigot 8, then lying in the eastern passage between
Rhode Island and the main land, in a small sloop that had two
light guns, and ¦ which was manned by 60 volunteers. The
Pigot had 45 men, and one heavy gun in her bows, besides
the rest of her.# armament. Her commander showed great
bravery, actually fighting- alone on deck, in his shirt, when
every man of his crew had run below. Major Talbot carried
the schooner without loss, and for his conduct and gallantry

177a] NAVAL HISTORY. 79
was promoted to be a Lieuteijant-Colonel. The following year
this officer was transferred to the navy. Congress passing an
especial resolution to that effect, with directions to the Marine
Committee to give him a ship on the first occasion. It does
not appear, however, that it was in the power of the commit
tee, at that period of the war, to appoint Captain Talbot to a
government vessel, and he is believed to have served, subse
quently, in a private armed ship.
In consequence of the investigation connected with the loss
of the Alfred, Captain Thompson was reheved from the com
mand of the Raleigh 32, as has been said already, and that
ship was given to Captain Barry. Under the orders of her
new commander, the Raleigh sailed from Boston on the 25th
of September, at six in the rnorning, having a brig and a sloop
under convoy. The wind was fresh at N. W., and the frigate
ran off N. E. At twelve, two strange sail were seen to lee
ward, distant fifteen or sixteen miles. Orders were given to
the convoy to haul nearer to the wind, and to crowd all the
sail it could carry, the strangers in chase. After dark the
Raleigh lost sight of the enemy, and the wind became light
and variable. The Raleigh now cleared for action, and kept
her people at quarters all night, having tacked towards the
land. In the morning it proved to be hazy, and the strangers
were not to be seen. The Raleigh was still standing towards
the land, which she shortly after made ahead, quite near.
About noon, the haze clearing away, the enemy were seen in
the southern board, and to windward, crowding sail in chase.
The weather became thick again, and the Raleigh lost sight
of her two pursuers, when she hauled off to the eastward.
That night no more was seen of the enemy, and at dayhght
Captain Barry took in every thing, with a view to conceal the
position of the ship, which was permitted to drift under bare
poles. Finding nothlHg visible at 6, A. M., the Raleigh
crowded sail once more, and stood S. E. by S. But at half
past 9, the two ships were again discovered astern, and in
chase. The Raleigh now hauled close upon a wind, heading
N. W., with her larboard tack^ aboard. The enemy also
came to the wind, all three vessels carrying fiard with a
staggering breeze. The Raleigh now fairly outsailed the
strangers, running 11 knots 2 fathoms, on a dragged bowline.
Unfortunately, at noon the wind moderated, when the lead-
¦ ing vessel of the enemy overhauled the Raleigh quite fast, and
even the ship astern held way with. her. At 4, P. M.,. the

80

NAVAL HISTORY. 1778.

Raleigh tacked to the westward, with a view to discover the
force of the leading vessel of the enemy ; and about the same
time she made several low islands, the names of which were
not known. At 5, P. M., the leading vessel of the enemy
having nearly closed, the Raleigh edged away and crossed her
fore foot, brailing her mizzen, and taking in her staysails.
The enemy showed a battery of 14 guns of a side, including
both decks, and set St. George's ensign. In passing, the
Raleigh delivered her broadside, which was returned, when
the stranger came up under the lee quarter of the American
ship, and the action became steady and general. At the
second fire, the Raleigh unfortunately lost her fore-topmast
and mizzen top-gallant-mast, which gave the enemy a vast
advantage in manceuvring throughout the remainder of the
affair. Finding the broadside of the Raleigh getting to be too
hot for him, the enemy soon shot ahead, and, for a short time,
while the people of the former ship were clearing the wreck,
he engaged to windward, and at a distance. Ere long, how
ever, the English vessel edged away and attempted to rake the
Raleigh, when Captain Barry bore up, and bringing the ships
alongside each other, he endeavoured to board, a step that the
other, favoured by all his canvass, and his superiority of sail
ing in a light breeze, easily avoided. By this time, the second
ship had got so near as to render it certain she would very
soon close, and, escape by flight being out of the question in
the crippled condition of his ship. Captain Barry called a coun
cil of his officers. It was determined to make an attempt to
run the frigate ashore, the land being then within a few miles.
The Raleigh accordingly wore round, and stood for the islands
already mentioned, her antagonist following her in the most
gallant manner, both ships maintaining the action with spirit.
About midnight, however, the enemy hauled off, and left the
Raleigh to pursue her course towards the land. The engage
ment had lasted seven hours, much of the time in close action,
and both vessels had suffered materially, the Raleigh in parti
cular, in her spars, rigging, and sails. The darkness, soon
after, concealing his ship. Captain Barry had some hopes of
getting off among the islands, and was in the act of bending
new sails for that purpose, when the enemy's vessels again
came in sight, closing fast. The Raleigh immediately opened
a brisk fire from her stern guns, and every human effort was
made to force the ship towards the land. The enemy, how
ever, easily closed again, and opened a heavy fire, which was

1778.] NAVAL HISTORY. 81
returned by the Raleigh until she grounded, when the largest
of the enemy's ships immediately hauled off, to avoid a
similar calamity, and, gaining a safe distance, both vessels
continued their fire, from positions they had taken on the
Raleigh's quarter. Captain Barry, finding that the island
was rocky, and that it might be defended, determined to land,
and to burn his ship ; a project that was rendered practicable
by the fact that the enemy had ceased firing, and anchored at
the distance of about a mile. A large party of men got on
shore, and the boats were about to return for the remainder,
when it was discovered that, by the treachery of a petty officer,
the ship had surrendered.
The officers and men on the island escaped, but the vessel
was got off and placed in the British navy. The two ships
that took the Raleigh were the Experiment 50, Captain Wal
lace, and the Unicorn 22. The latter mounted 28 guns, and
was the ship that engaged the Raleigh so closely, so long, and
so obstinately. She was much cut up, losing her masts after
the action, and had 10 men killed, besides many wounded.
The Americans had 25 men killed and wounded in the course
of the whole affair.

CHAPTER IX.
The year 1779 opens with the departure of the Alliance,
32, for France. It has already been stated that the command
of this ship had been given to a Captain Landais, who was
said to be a French officer of gallantry and merit. Unfortu
nately the prejudices of the seamen did not answer to the com
plaisance of the Marine Committee in this respect, and it was
found difficult to obtain a crew wiUing to enlist under a French
captain. When General Lafayette reached Boston near the
close of 1778, in order to embark in the Alliance, it was found
that the frigate was not yet manned. Desirous of rendering
themselves useful to their illustrious guest, the government of
Massachusetts offered to complete thfe ship's complement by
impressment, an expedient that had been adopted on more than
one occasion during the war ; but the just-minded and benevo-

82 NAVAL HISTORY. [1779,
lent Lafayette would not consent to the measure. Anxious to
sail, however, for he was entrusted with important interests,
recourse was had to a plan to man the ship, which, if less ob
jectionable on the score of principle, was scarcely less so in
'every other point of view.
The Somerset 64, had been wrecked on the coast of New
England, and part of her crew had found their way to Boston.
By accepting the proffered services of these men, those of some
volunteers from among the prisoners, and those of a few
French seamen that were also found in Boston after the de
parture of their fleet, a motley number was raised in sufficient
time to enable the ship to sail on the llth of January. With
this incomplete and mixed crew, Lafayette trusted himself on
the ocean, and the result was near justifying the worst fore
bodings that so ill-advised a measure could have suggested.
After a tempestuous passage, the Alliance got within two
days' run of the English coast, when her officers and passen
gers, of the latter of whom there were many besides General
Lafayette and his suite, received the startling information that
a conspiracy existed among the English portion of the crew,
some seventy or eighty men in all, to kill the officers, seize the
vessel, and carry the frigate into England. With a view to
encourage such acts of mutiny, the British Parliament had
passed a law to reward all those crews that should run away
with American ships ; and this temptation was too strong for
men whose service, however voluntary it might be in appear
ances, was probably reluctant, and which had been compelled
by circumstances, if not by direct coercion.
The plot, however, was betrayed, and by the spirited con
duct of the officers and passengers, the ringleaders were ar
rested. On reaching Brest, the mutineers were placed in a French
gaol, and after some delay, were exchanged as prisoners of
war, without any other punishment ; the noble-minded Lafa
yette, in particular, feeling averse to treating foreigners as it
would have been a duty to treat natives under similar circum
stances. On the 18th of April, the U. S. ships Warren 32, Captain
J. B. Hopkins, Queen of France 28, Captain Olney, and Ran
ger 18, Captain Simpson, sailed from Boston, in company, on
a cruise ; Captain Hopkins being the senior officer. When a
few days from port, these vessels captured a British privateer
of 14 guns, from the people of which they ascertained that a

1779.] NAVAL HISTORY. 83
small fleet of armed transports and store-ships had just sailed
from New York, bound to Georgia, with supplies for the ene
my's forces in that quarter. The three cruisers crowded sail
in chase, and off Cape Henry, late in the day, they had the
good fortune to come up with nine sail, seven of which they
captured, with a trifling resistance. Favoured by the dark
ness, the two others escaped. The vessels taken proved to be
his Britannic Majesty's ship Jason, 20, with a crew of 150
men ; the Maria armed ship, of 16 guns, and 84 men ; and the
privateer schooner Hibernia, 8, with a crew of 45 men. The
Maria had a full cargo of flour. In addition to these vessels,
the brigs Patriot, Prince Frederick, Bachelor John, and the
schooner Chance, all laden with stores, fell into the hands of
the Americans. Among the prisoners were twenty-four Brit
ish officers, who were on their way to join their regiments at
the south.
The command of the Queen of France was now given to
Captain Rathburne, when that ship sailed on another cruise, in
company with the Ranger, and the Providence 28, Captain
Whipple ; the latter being the senior officer. In July, this
squadron fell in with a large fleet of English merchantmen,
that was convoyed by a ship of the line, and some smaller
cruisers, and succeeded in cutting out several valuable prizes,
of which eight arrived at Boston, their estimated value exceed
ing a million of dollars. In the way of pecuniary benefits,
this was the most successful cruise made in the war.
Paul Jones had obtained so much celebrity for his services in
the Ranger, that he remained in France, after the departure of
his ship for America, in the hope of receiving a more import
ant command, the inducement, indeed, which had originally
brought him to Europe. Many different projects to this effect
had been entertained and abandoned, during the years 1778
and 1779, by one of which a descent was to have. been made
on Liverpool, with a body of troops commanded by Lafayette.
All of these plans, however, produced no results ; and after
many vexatious repulses in his applications for service, an ar
rangement was finally made to give this celebrated officer em
ployment that was as singular in its outlines, as it proved to
be inconvenient, not to say impracticable, in execution.
By a letter from M. de Sartine, the minister of the marine,
dated February 4th, 1779, it appears that the King of France
had consented to purchase and put at the disposition of Captain
Jones, the Duras, an old Indiaman of some size, then lying at

84 NAVAL HISTORY. [1779.
I'Orient. To this vessel were added three more that were pro
cured by means of M. le Ray de Chaumont, a banker of emi
nence connected with the court, and who acted on the occasion,
under the orders of the' French ministry. Dr. Franklin, who,
as minister of the United States, was supposed, in a legal sense,
to direct the whole affair, added the Alliance 32, in virtue of
the authority that he held from Congress. The vessels that
were thus chosen, formed a little squadron, composed of the
Duras, Alliance, Pallas, Cerf, and Vengeance. The Pallas
was a merchantman bought for the occasion ; the Vengeance
a small brig that had also been purchased expressly for the
expedition ; the Cerf was a fine large cutter, and, with the ex
ception of the Alliance, the only vessel of the squadron fitted
for war. All the ships but the Alliance were French-built,
and they were placed under the American flag, by the follow
ing arrangement.
The officers received appointments, which were to remain
valid for a limited period only, from Dr. Franklin, who had
held blank commissions to be filled up at his own discretion,
ever since his arrival in Europp, while the vessels were to
show the American ensign, and no other. In short, the French
ships were to be considered as American ships, during this
particulai* service, and when it was terminated, they were to
revert to their former owners. The laws and provisions of the
American navy were to govern, and command was to be exer
cised, and to descend, agreeably to its usages. Such officers
as already had rank in the American service, were to take
precedence of course, agreeably to the dates of their respective
commissions, while the new appointments were to be regulated
by the new dates. By an especial provision. Captain Jones
was to be commander-in-chief, a post he would have been
entitled to fill by his original commission ; Captain Landais
of the Alliance, the only other regular captain in the squad
ron, being his junior. The joint right of the American
minister and of the French government, to instruct the com
modore, and to direct the movements of the squadron, was also
recognised. From what source the money was actually obtained by
which this squadron was fitted out, is not actually known, nor
is it now probable that it will ever be accurately ascertained.
Although the name of the king was used, it is not impossible
that private adventure was at the bottom of the enterprise,
though it seems certain that the government was so far con-

1779.] NAVALHISTORY. 85
cerned as to procure the vessels, and to a certain extent to lend
the use of its stores. Dr. Franklin expressly states, that he
made no advances for any of the ships employed.
As every thing connected with this remarkable enterprise
has interest, we shall, endeavour to give the reader a better
idea of the materials, physical and moral, that composed the
force of Commodore Jones, in this memorable cruise.
After many vexatious delays, the Duras, her name having
been changed to that of the Bon Homme Richard, in compli
ment to Dr. Franklin, was eventually equipped and manned.
Directions had been given to cast the proper number of eighteen -
pounders for her ; but, it being ascertained that there would not
be time to complete this order, some old twelves were procured
in their places. With this material change in the armament,
the Richard, as she was familiarly called by the seamen, got
ready for sea. She was, properly, a single-decked ship ; or
carried her armament on one gun-deck, with the usual addi
tions on the quarter-deck and forecastle ; but Commodore
Jones, with a view to attacking some of the larger convoys of
the enemy, caused twelve ports to be cut in the gun-room be
low, where six old eighteen-pounders were mounted, it being
his intention to fight all the guns on one side, in smooth water.
The height of the ship admitted of this arrangement, though it
was foreseen that these guns could not be of much use, except
in very moderate weather, or when engaging to leeward. On
her main, or proper gun-deck, the ship had twenty-eight ports,
the regular construction of an English 38, agreeably to the old
mode of rating. Here the twelve-pounders were placed. On
the quarter-deck and forecastle, were mounted eight nines,
making in all a mixed and rather light armament of 42 guns.
If the six eighteens were taken away, the force of the Bon
Homme Richard, so far as her guns were concerned, would
have been about equal to that of a 32 gun frigate. The vessel
was clumsily constructed, having been built many years be
fore, and had one of those high old-fashioned poops, that caused
the stel-ns of the ships launched in the early part of the eigh
teenth century to resemble towers.
To manage a vessel of this singular armament and doubtful
construction, Commodore Jones was compelled to receive on
board a crew of a still more equivocal composition. A few
Americans were found to fill the stations of sea-officers, on the
quarter-deck and forward ; but the remainder of the people were
a mixture of English, Irish, Scotch, Portuguese, Norwegians,
8

86 NAVALHISTORY. [1779.
Germans, Spaniards, Swedes, Italians and Malays, with occa
sionally a man from one of the islands. To keep this motley
crew in order, one hundred and thirty-five soldiers were put on
board, under the command of some officers of inferior rank.
These soldiers, or marines, were recruited at random, and
were not much less singularly mixe^, as to countries, than the
regular crew.
As the squadron was about to sail, M. Le Ray appeared at
I'Orient, and presented an agreement, or concordat as it was
termed, for the signature of all the commanders. To this sin
gular compact, which in some respects, reduced a naval expedi
tion to the level of a partnership. Commodore Jones ascribed
much of the disobedience among his captains, of which he sub
sequently complained.
On the 19th of June, 1779, the ships sailed from the anchor
age under the Isle of Groix, off I'Orient, bound to the south
ward, with a few transports and coasters under their convoy.
These vessels were seen into their several places of destina
tion, in the Garonne, Loire, and other ports, but not without
the commencement of that course of disobedience of orders,
unseamanlike conduct, and neglect, which so signally marked
the whole career of this ill-assorted force. While lying
to, off the coast, the Alliance, by palpable mismanagement,
got foul of the Richard, and lost her mizzen-mast ; carrying
away, at the same time, the head, cut-water, and jib-boom of
the latter. It now became necessary to return to port to
refit. While steering northerly again, the Cerf cutter was sent in
chase of a strange sail, and parted company. The next morn
ing she engaged a small English cruiser of 14 guns, and after a
sharp conflict of more than an hour, obliged her to strike, but
was compelled to abandon her prize in consequence of the ap
pearance of a vessel of superior force. The Cerf, with a loss
of several men killed and wounded, made the best of her way
to I'Orient.
On the 22d, three enemy's vessels of war came in sight of
the squadron, and having the wind, they ran down in a line
abreast ; when, most probably deceived by the height and ge
neral appearance of the Richard, they hauled up, and by car
rying a press of sail, escaped.
On the 26th, the Alliance and Pallas parted company with
the Richard, leaving that ship with no other consort than the

1779.] NAVAL HISTORY. 87
Vengeance brig. On reaching the Penmarks, the designated
rendezvous, the missing vessels did not appear. On the 29th,
the Vengeance having made the best of her way for the roads
of Groix by permission, the Richard fell in with two more of
the enemy's cruisers, which, after some indications of an inten
tion to come down, also ran, no doubt under the impression
that the American frigate was a ship of two decks. On this
occasion Commodore Jones expressed himself satisfied with the
spirit of his crew, the people manifesting a strong wish to en
gage. On the last of the month, the Richard returned to the
roads from which she had sailed, and anchored. The Alliance
and Pallas came in also.
Another delay occurred. A court was convened to inquire
into the conduct of Captain Landais of the Alliance, and of
other officers, in running foul of the Richard, and both ships
underwent repairs. Luckily a cartel arrived from England,
at this moment, bringing with her more than a hundred ex
changed American seamen, most of whom joined the squadron.
This proved to be a great and important accession to the com
position of the crew of not only the Richard, but to that of the
Alliance, the latter ship having been but little better off than
the former in this particular. Among those who came from
the English prisons, was Mr. Richard Dale, who had been
taken as a master's mate in the Lexington 14. This young
officer did not reach France in the cartel, however, but had
previously escaped from Mill prison and joined the Richard.
Commodore Jones had now become sensible of his merit, and
in reorganizing his crew, he had him promoted, and rated
him as his first lieutenant^ The Richard had now nearly a
hundred Americans in her, and, with the exception of the com
modore himself and one midshipman, all her quarter-deck sea-
officers were of the number. Many of the petty officers too,
were Americans. In a letter written August the llth. Com
modore Jones states that the crew of the Richard consisted of
380 souls, including 137 marines or soldiers.
On the 14th of August, 1779, the squadron sailed a second
time from the roads of Groix, having the French privateers
Monsieur and Granville in company, and under the orders of
Commodore Jones. On the 18th a valuable prize was taken,
and some difficulties arising with the commander of the Mon
sieur in consequence, the latter parted company in the night
of the 1 9th. This was a serious loss in the way of force,
that ship having mounted no less than forty guns. A prize

88 NAVAL HISTORY. [1779,
was also taken on the 21st. On the 23d, the ships were off
Cape Clear, and, while towing the Richard's head round in a
calm, the crew of a boat manned by Englishmen, cut the tow-
line, and escaped. Mr. Cutting Lunt, the sailing-master of
the ship, manned another boat, and taking with him four sol
diers, he pursued the fugitives.. A fog coming on, the latter
boat was not able to find the ships again, and her people fell
into the hands of the enemy. Through this desertion and its
immediate consequences, the Richard lost twenty of her best
men. The day after the escape of the boat, the Cerf was sent
close in to reconnoitre, and to look for the missing people, and
owing to some circumstance that has never been explained,
but which does not appear to have left any reproach upon hex
commander, this vessel never rejoined the squadron.
A gale of wind followed, during which the Alliance and
Pallas separated, and the Granville parted company to convoy a
prize, according to orders. The separation of the Pallas is
explained by the fact that she had broken her tiller ; but that
of the Alliance can only be imputed to the unofficerlike, as
well as unseamanlike, conduct of her commander. On the
morning of the S7th, the brig Vengeahce was the only vessel
in company with the commodore.
On the morning of the 31st of August, the Bon Homme
Richard, being off Cape Wrath, captured a large letter of
marque bound from London to Quebec ; a circumstance that
proves the expedients to which the English ship-masters were
then driven to avoid capture, this vessel having actually gone
north-about to escape the cruisers on the ordinary track.
While in chase of the letter of marque, the Alliance hove in
sight, having another London ship, a Jamaica-man, in com
pany as a prize. Captain Landais, of the Alliance, an officer,
who, as it has since been ascertained, had been obliged to quit
the French navy on account of a singularly unfortunate tem
per, now began to exhibit a disorganising and mutinous spirit,
pretending, as his ship was the only real American vessel in
the squadron, that he was superior to the orders of the com
modore, and that he would do as he pleased with that frigate.
In the afternoon a strange sail was made, and the Richard
showed the AUiance's number, with an order to chase. In
stead of obeying this signal. Captain Landais wore and laid
the head of his ship in a direction opposite to that necessary
to execute the order. Several other signals were disobeyed

1779.] NAVAL HISTORY. 89
in an equally contemptuous manner, and the control of Com
modore Jones over the movements of this ship, which, on the
whole, ought to have been the most efficient in the squadron,
may be said to have ceased.
Commodore Jones now shaped his course for the second
rendezvous he had appointed, in the hope of meeting the miss
ing ships. On the 2d of September, the Pallas rejoined, hav
ing captured nothing. Between this date and the 13th of
September, the squadron continued its course round Scotland,
the ships separating and rejoining constantly, and Captain
Landais assuming powers over the prizes, as well as over his
own vessel, that were altogether opposed to discipline, and to
the usages of every regular marine. On the last day named,
the Cheviot Hills were visible.
Understanding that a twenty-gun ship with two or three
man-of-war cutters were lying at anchor off Leith, in the Frith
of Forth, Commodore Jones now planned a descent on that
town. At this time the Alliance was absent, and the Pallas
and Vengeance having chased to the southward, the necessity
of communicating with those vessels produced a delay fatal to
a project which had been admirably conceived, and which there
is reason to think might have succeeded. After joining his
two subordinates, and giving his orders. Commodore Jones
beat into the Frith, and continued working up towards Leith,
until the 17th, when, being just out of gun-shot of the town,
the boats were got out and manned. The troops to be landed
were commanded by M. de Chamilliard ; while Mr. Dale, of
the Richard, was put at the head of the seamen. The latter
had received his orders, and was just about to go into his boat,
when a squall struck the ships, and was near dismasting the
commodore. Finding himself obliged to fill his sails, Commo
dore Jones endeavoured to keep the ground he had gained, but
the weight of the wind finally compelled all the vessels to bear
up, and a severe gale succeeding, they were driven into the
North Sea, v/here one of the prizes foundered.
It is not easy to say what would have been the result of this
dashing enterprise, had the weather permitted the attempt.
The audacity of the measure might have insured a victory ;
and in the whole design we discover the decision, high moral
courage, and deep enthusiasm of the officer who conceived it.
It was the opinion of Mr. Dale, a man of singular modesty,
great simplicity of character, and prudence, that success would
have rewarded the effort.
8*

90 NAVAL HISTORY. [1779.
Abandoning this bold project with reluctance. Commodore
Jones appears to have meditated another still more daring ; but
his colleagues, as he bitterly styles his captains in one pf his
letters, refused to join in it. It is worthy of remark, that when
Commodore Jones laid this second scheme, which has never
been explained, before the young sea-officers of his own ship,
they announced their readiness as one man to second him,
heart and hand. The enterprise was dropped, however, ini
copsequence principally of the objections of Captain Cottineau,
of the Pallas, an officer for whose judgment the commodore
appears to have entertained much respect.
The Pallas and Vengeance even left the Richard, probably
with a view to prevent the attempt to execute this nameless
scheme, and the commodore was compelled to follow his cap
tains to the southward, or to lose them altogether. Off Whitby
the ships last named joined again, and on the 21st the Richard
chased a collier ashore between Flamborough Head and the
Spurn. The next day the Richard appeared in the mouth of
the Humber, with the Vengeance in company ; and several
vessels were taken or destroyed. Pilots were enticed on board,
and a knowledge of the state of things in-shore was obtained.
It appeared that the whole coast was alarmed, and that many
persons were actually burying their plate. Some twelve or
thirteen vessels in all had now been taken by the squadron,
and quite as many more destroyed ; and couphng these facts
with the appearance of the ships on the coast and in the Frith,
rumour had swelled the whole into one of its usual terrific
tales. Perhaps no vessels of war had ever before excited so
much alarm on the coast of Great Britain.
Under the circumstances. Commodore Jones did not think
it prudent to remain so close in with the lahd, and he stood
out towards Flamborough Head. Here two large sail were
made, which next day proved to be the Alliance and the Pallas.
This was on the 23d of September, and brings us down to the
most memorable event in this extraordinary cruise.
The wind was light at the southward, the water smooth, and
many vessels were in sight steering "in different directions.
About noon, his original squadron, with the exception of the
Cerf and the two privateers, being all in company, Commodore
Jones manned one of the pilot-boats he had detained, and sent
ber in chase of a brig that was lying-to, to windward. On
board this little vessel were put Mr. Lunt, the second lieu
tenant, and fifteen men, all of whom were out of the ship for

1770.] NAVAL HISTORY. 91
the rest of the day. In consequence of the loss of the two
boats off Cape Clear, the absence of this party hi the pilot-
boat, and the number of men that had been put in prizes, the
Richard was now left with only one sea-lieutenant, and with
little more than three hundred souls on board, exclusively of
the prisoners. Of the latter, there were between one and two
hundred in the ship.
The pilot-boat had hardly left the Bon Homme Richard,
when the leading ships of a fleet of more than forty sail were
seen stretching out on a bowline, from behind Flamborough
Head, turning down towards the Straits of Dover. From pre
vious intelligence this fleet was immediately known to contain
the Baltic ships, under the convoy of the Serapis 44, Captain
Richard Pearson, and a hired ship that had been put into the
King's service, called the Countess of Scarborough. The latter
was commanded by Captain Piercy, and mounted 22 guns.
As the interest of the succeeding details will chiefly centre in
the Serapis and the Richard, it may be well to give a more
minute account of the actual force of the former.
At the period of which we are now writing, forty-fours were
usually built on two decks. Such, then, was the construction
of this ship, which was new, and had the reputation of being
a fast vessel. On her lower gun-deck she mounted 20 eighteen-
pound guns ; on her upper gun-deck, 20 nine-pound guns ; and
on her quarter-deck and forecastle, 10 six-pound guns;
making an armament of 50 guns in the whole. She had a
regularly trained man-of-war's crew of 320 souls, 15 of whom,
however, were said to have been Lascars.
When the squadron made this convoy, the men-of-war were
in-shore, astern and to leeward, probably with a view to keep
the merchantmen together. The bailiffs of Scarborough, per
ceiving the danger into which this little fleet was running, had
sent a boat off to the Serapis to apprise her of the presence of
a hostile force ; and Captain Pierson fired two guns, signalling
the leading vessels to come under his lee. These orders were
disregarded, however, the headmost ships standing out until
they were about a league from the land.
Commodore Jones having ascertained the character of the
fleet in sight, showed a signal for a general chase, another to
recall the lieutenant in the pUot-boat, and crossed royal yards
on board the Richard. These signs of hostility alarmed the
nearest English ships, which hurriedly tacked together, fired
alarm guns, let fly their top-gallant sheets, and made other

92 NAVAL HISTORY. [1779.
signals of the danger they were in, while they now gladly
availed themselves of the presence of the vessels of war, to run
to leeward, or sought shelter closer in with the land. The
Serapis, on the contrary, signalled the Scarborough to follow,
and hauled boldly out to sea, until she had got far enough to
windward, when she tacked and stood in-shore again, to cover
her convoy.
The Alliance being much the fastest vessel of the American
squadron, took the lead in the chase, speaking the Pallas as
she passed. It has been proved that Captain Landais told the
commander of the latter vessel on this occasion, that if the
stranger proved to be a fifty, they had nothing to do but to
endeavour to escape. His subsequent conduct fully confirmed
this opinion, for no sooner had he run down near enough to the
two English vessels of war, to ascertain their force, than he
hauled up, and stood off from the land again. All this was
not only contrary to the regular order of battle, but contrary
ta the positive command of Commodore Jones, who had kept
the signal to form a line abroad, which should have brought
the Alliance astern of the Richard, and the Pallas in the van.
Just at this time, the Pallas spoke the Richard and inquired
what station she should take, and was also directed to form
the line. But the extraordinary movements of Captain Lan
dais appear to have produced some indecision in the command
er of the Pallas, as he, too, soon after tacked and stood off from
the land. Captain Cottineau, however, was a brave man, and
subsequently did his duty in the action ; and this manoeuvre
has been explained by the Richard's hauUng up suddenly for
the land, which induced him to think that her crew had muti
nied and were running away with the ship. Such was the
want of confidence that prevailed in a force so singularly com
posed, and such were the disadvantages under which this cele
brated combat was fought !
So far, however, from meditating retreat or mutiny, the peo
ple of the Bon Homme Richard had gone cheerfully to their
quarters, although every man on board was conscious of the
superiority of the force with which they were about to con
tend ; and the high unconquerable spirit of the commander
appears to have communicated itself to the crew.
It was now quite dark, and Commodore .Tones was compel
led to follow the movements of the enemy by the aid of a night-
glass. It is probable that the obscurity which prevailed add
ed to the indecision of the commander of the Pallas, for from

1779.] NAVALHISTORY. 93
this time until the moon rose, objects at a distance were dis
tinguished with difficulty, and even after the moon appeared,
with uncertainty. The Richard, however, stood steadily on,
and about half-past seven, she came up with the Serapis, the
Scarborough being a short distance to leeward. The Ameri
can ship was to windward, and as she drew slowly near. Cap
tain Pearson hailed. The answer was equivocal, and both
ships delivered their entire broadsides nearly simultaneously.
The water being quite smooth, Commodore Jones had relied
materially on the eighteens that were in the gun-room ; but at
this discharge two of the six that were fired bursted, blowing
up the deck above, and killing and wounding a large propor
tion of the people that were stationed below. This disaster
caused all the heavy guns to be instantly deserted. It at once
reduced the broadside of the Richard to about a third less than
that of her opponent, not to include the disadvantage of the
manner in which the force that remained was distributed
among light guns. In short, the combat was now between a
twelve-pounder and an eighteen-pounder frigate ; a species of
contest in which, it has been said, we know not with what
truth, the former had never been known to prevail. Commo
dore Jones informs us himself, that all his hopes, after this ac
cident, rested on the twelve-pounders that were under the com
mand of his first lieutenant.
The Richard, having backed her topsails, exchanged seve
ral broadsides, when she filled again and shot ahead of the
Serapis, which ship luffed across her stern and came up on
the weather quarter of her antagonist, taking the wind out of
her sails, and, in her turn, passing ahead. All this time, which
consumed half an hour, the cannonading was close and furi
ous. The Scarborough now drew near, but it is uncertain
whether she fired or not. On the side of the Americans it is
affirmed that she raked the Richard at least once ; but, by the
report of her own commander, it would appear that, on ac
count of the obscurity and the smoke, he was afraid to dis
charge his guns. Unwilling to lie by, and to be exposed to
useless injury, Captain Piercy edged away from the combat
ants, exchanging a broadside or two, at a great distance, with
the Alliance, and shortly afterwards was engaged at close
quarters by the Pallas, which ship compelled him to strike,
after a creditable resistance of about an hour.
The Serapis kept her luff, sailing and working better than
the Richard, and it was the intention of Captain Pearson to

94 NAVAL HISTORY. [1779.
pay broad off across the latter's fore-foot, as soon as he had
got fai' enough ahead ; but making the attempt, and finding
he had not room, he put his helm hard down to keep clear of
his adversary, when the double movement brought the two
ships nearly in a line, the Serapis leading. By these uncer
tain evolutions, the English ship lost some of her way, while
the American, having kept her sails trimmed, not only closed,
but actually ran aboard of her antagonist, bows on, a little on
her weather quarter. The wind being light, much time was
consumed-in these different manoeuvres j and near an hour had
elapsed between the firing of the first guns, and the moment
when the vessels got foul of each other in the manner just de
scribed. The English now thought it was the intention of the Ame
ricans to board, and a few minutes passed in the uncertainty
which such an expectation would create ; but the positions of
the vessels were not favourable for either party to pass into
the opposing ship. There being at this moment a perfect ces
sation of the firing, Captain Pearson demanded, " Have you
struck your colours ?" " I have not yet begun to fight," was
the answer.
The yards of the Richard were braced aback, and, the sails
of the Serapis being full, the ships separated. As soon as far
enough asunder, the Serapis put her helm hard down, laid all
aback forward, shivered her after-sails, and wore short round
on her heel, or was box-hauled, with a view, most probably,
of luffing up athwart the bow of her enemy, in order to again
rake her. Commodore Jones, by this time, was conscious of
the hopelessness of success against so much heavier metal,
and afler having backed astern some distance, he filled on the
other tack, luffing up with the intention of meeting the enemy
as he came to the wind, and of laying him athwart hawse. In
the smoke one party or the other miscalculated the distance,
for the two vessels came foul again, the bowsprit of the Eng
lish ship passing over the poop of the American. As neither
had much way, the collision did but little injury, and Commo
dore Jones, with his own hands, immediately lashed the ene
my's head-gear to his mizzen-mast. The pressure on the after-
sails of the Serapis, which vessel was nearly before the wind
at the time," brought her hull round, and the two ships gradu
ally fell close alongside of each other, head and stern, the jib-
boom of the Serapis giving way with the strain. A spare an-
chor of the English ship now hooked in the quarter of the

1779] NAVAL HISTORY. 95
American, and additional lashings were got out on board the
latter to secure her in this position.
Captain Pearson, who was as much aware of his advantage
in a regular combat as his opponent could be of his own infe
riority, no sooner perceived the vessels foul, than he dropped
an anchor, in the hope that the Richard would drift clear of
him. But such an expectation was perfectly futile, as the
yards were interlocked, the hulls were pressed close against
each other, there were lashings fore and aft, and even the orna
mental work aided in holding the ships together. When the
cables of the Serapis took the strain, the vessels slowly tend
ed, with the bows of the Serapis and the stern of the Richard
to the tide. At this instant the English made an attempt to
board, but were repulsed with trifling loss.
All this time the battle raged. The lower ports of the Se
rapis having been closed to prevent boarding, as the vessel
swung, they were now blown off, in order to allow the guns to
be run out ; and cases actually occurred in which the rammers
had to be thrust into the ports of the opposite ship in order to
be entered into the muzzles of their proper guns. It is evident
that such a conflict must have been of short duration. In ef
fect, the heavy metal of the Serapis, in one or two discharges,
cleared all before it, and the main-deck guns of the Richard
were in a great measure abandoned. Most of the people went
on the upper-deck, and a great number collected on the fore
castle, where they were safe from the fire of the enemy, con
tinuing to fight by throwing grenades and using muskets.
In this stage of the combat, the Serapis was tearing her an
tagonist to pieces below, almost without resistance from her
enemy's batteries ; only two guns on the quarter-deck, and
three or four of the twelves, being worked at all. To the for
mer, by shifting a gun from the larboard side. Commodore
Jones succeeded in adding a third, all of which were used with
effect, under his immediate inspection, to the close of the ac
tion. He could not muster force enough to get over a second
gun. But the combat would now have soon terminated, had
it not been for the courage and activity of the people aloft.
Strong parties had been placed in the tops, and, at the end of a
short contest, the Americans had driven every man belonging
to the enemy below ; after which they kept up so animated a
fire, on the quarter-deck of the Serapis in particular, as to
drive nearly every man off it, that was not shot down.
Thus, while the English had the battle nearly to themselves

96

NAVAL HISTORY. [1779,

below, their enemies had the control above the upper-deck.
Having cleared the tops of the Serapis, some American sea
men lay out on the Richard's main-yard, and began to throw
hand-grenades upon the two upper decks of the English ship ;
the men on the forecastle of their own vessel seconding these
efforts, by_ casting the same combustibles through the ports of
the Serapis. At length one man, in particular, became so
hardy as to take his post on the extreme end of the yard,
whence, provided with a bucket filled with combustibles, and a
match, he dropped the grenades with so much precision, that
one passed through the main hatch-way. The powder-boys
of the Serapis had got more cartridges up than were wanted,
and, in their hurry, they had carelessly laid a row of them on
the main-deck, in a line with the guns. The grenade just
mentioned set fire to some loose powder that was lying near,
and the flash passed from cartridge to cartridge, beginning
abreast of the main-mast, and running quite aft.
The effect of this explosion was awful. More than twenty
men were instantly killed, many of them being left with no
thing on them but the collars and wristbands of their shirts, and
the waistbands of their duck trowsers ; while the official returns
of the ship, a week after the action, show that there were no
less than thirty-eight wounded on board, still alive, who had
been injured in this manner, and of whom thirty were then said
to be in great danger. Captain Pearson described this explo
sion as having destroyed nearly all the men at the five or six
aftermost guns. On the whole, near sixty of the enemy's peo
ple must have been instantly disabled by this sudden blow.
The advantage thus obtained, by the coolness and intrepi
dity of the topmen, in a great measure restored the chances of
the combat, and, by lessening the fire of the enemy, enabled
Commodore Jones to increase his. In the same degree that it
encouraged the crew of the Richard, it diminished the hopes of
the people of the Serapis. One of the guns under the imme
diate inspection of Commodore Jones had been pointed some
time against the main-mast of his enemy, while the two others
had seconded the fire of the tops, with grape and canister.
Kept below decks by this double attack, where a scene of fright
ful horror was present in the agonies of the wounded, and the
effects of the explosion, the spirits of the English began to
droop, and there was a moment when a trifle would have in
duced them to submit. From this despondency they were tem-

1779.] NAVAL HISTORY. 97
iorarily raised, by one of those unlooked-for events that cha-
•acterise the vicissitudes of battle.
After exchanging the ineffective and distant broadsides,
ilready mentioned, with the Scarborough, the Alliance had
iept standing off and on, to leeward of the two principal ships,
)ut of the direction of their shot, when, about half-past eight
ihe appeared crossing the stern of the Serapis and the bow of
he Richard, firing at such a distance as to render it impossible
;o say which vessel would suffer the most. As soon as she
tiad drawn out of the range of her own guns, her helm was.
put up, and she ran down near a mile to leeward, hovering
ibout until the firing had ceased between the Pallas and the
Scarborough, when she came within hail and spoke both of
;hese vessels. Captain Cottineau of the Pallas earnestly en-
reated Captain Landais to take possession of his prize, arid
illow him to go to the assistance of the Richard, or to stretch
ip to windward in the Alliance himself, and succour the Com-
nodore. After some delay, Captain Landais took the important duty
jf assisting his consort, into his own hands, and making two
ong stretches, under his topsails, he appeared, about the time
It which we have arrived in the narration of the combat, di-
•ectly to windward of the two ships, with the head of the Al-
iance to the westward. Here the latter ship once more opened
ler fire, doing equal damage, at least, to friend and foe. Keep-
ng away a little, and still continuing her fire, the Alliance was
loon on the larboard quarter of the Richard, and, it is even
iffirmed, that her guns were discharged until she had got nearly
ibeam. "
Fifty voices now hailed to tell the people of the Alliance that
hey were firing into the wrong ship, and three lanterns were
ihown, in a line, on the offside of the Richard, which was the
egular signal of recognition for a night action. An officer
vas directed to hail, and to command Captain Landais to lay
he enemy aboard ; and the question being put whether the
irder was comprehended, an answer was given in the affirma-
ive. As the moon had been up some time, it was impossible not
0 distinguish between the vessels, the Richard being all black,
vhile the Serapis had yellow sides ; and the impression seems
0 have been general in the former vessel, that she had been
.ttacked intentionally. At the discharge of the first guns of
he Alhance, the people left one or two of the twelves on board
9

98 NAVAL HISTOR.Y. [1779.
the Richard, which they had begun to fight again, saying that
the Englishmen in the Alliance had got possession of the ship,
and were helping the enemy. It appears that this discharge
dismounted a gun or two, extinguished several lanterns on the
main deck, and did a great deal of damage aloft.
The Alliance hauled off to some distance, keeping always
on the off-side of the Richard, and soon after she reappeared
edging down on the larboard beam of her consort, hauling up
athwart the bows of that ship and the stern of her antagonist.
On this occasion, it is affirmed that her fire recommenced,
when, by possibility, the shot could only reach the Serapis
through the Richard. Ten or twelve men appear to have
been killed and wounded on the forecastle of the latter ship,
which was crowded at the time, and among them was an offi
cer of the name of Caswell, who, with his dying breath, main
tained that he had received his wound by the fire of the
Richard's consort.
After crossing the bows of the Richard, and the stern of
the Serapis, delivering grape as she passed, the Alliance ran
off to leeward, again standing off and on, doing nothing, for
the remainder of the combat.'
The fire of the Alliance added greatly to the leaks of the
Richard, which ship, by this time, had received so much water
through the shot-holes, as to begin to settle. It is even affirmed
by many witnesses, that the most dangerous shot-holes on
board the Richard, were under her larboard bow, and larboard
counter, in places where they could not have been received
from the fire of the Serapis. This evidence, however, is not
unanswerable, as it has been seen that the Serapis luffed up on
the larboard-quarter of the Richard in the commencement of
the action, and, forging ahead, was subsequently on her lar
board bow, endeavouring to cross her fore-foot. It is certainly
possible that shot may have struck the Richard in the places
mentioned, on these occasions, and that,, as the ship settled in
the water, from other leaks, the holes then made may have
suddenly increased the danger. On the other hand, if the Al
liance did actually'fire while on the bow and quarter of the
Richard, as would appear by a mass of uncontradicted testi
mony, the dangerous shot-holes may very well have come
from that ship.
Let the injuries have been received from what quarter they
might, soon after the AUiance had run to leeward, an alarm
was spread in the Richard that the ship was sinking. Both

1779.] NAVAL HISTORY. 99
vessels had been on fire several times, and some difficulty had
been experienced in extinguishing the flames ; but here was a
new enemy to contend with, and, as the information came from
the carpenter, whose duty it was to sound the pump-wells, it
produced a good' deal of consternation. The Richard had
more than a hundred English prisoners on board, and the
master-at-arms, in the hurry of the moment, let them all up
from below, in order to save their lives. In the confusion, the
master of the letter of marque, that had been taken off the
north of Scotland, passed through a port of the Richard into
one of the Serapis, when he informed Captain Pearson, that
a few minutes would probably decide the battle in his favour,
or parry his enemy down, he himself having been liberated in
order to save his life. Just at this instant the . gunner, who
had little to attend to at his qiiarters, came on deck, and
not perceiving Commodore Jones, or Mr. Dale, both of whom
were occupied with the liberated prisoners, and believing the
master, the only other superior he had in the ship, to be dead,
he ran up on the poop to haul down the colours. Fortunately
the flag-staff had been shot away, and, the ensign already
hanging in the water, he had no other means of letting his
intention be known, than by calling out for quarter. Captain
Pearson now hailed to inquire if the Richard demanded quar
ter, and was answered by Commodore Jones himself, in the
negative. It is probable that the reply was not heard, or, if
heard, supposed to come from an unauthorised source ; for, en
couraged by what he had learned from the escaped prisoner,
by the cry, and by the confusion that prevailed in the Rich
ard, the English captain directed his boarders to be called
away, and, as soon as mustered, they were ordered to take
possession of the prize. Some of the men actually got on the
gunwale of the latter ship, but finding boarders ready to repel
boarders, they made a precipitate retreat. All this time, the
top-men were not idle, and the enemy were soon driven below
again with loss.
In the mean while, Mr. Dale, who no longer had a gun
that could be fought, mustered the prisoners at the pumps,
turning their consternation to account, and probably keeping
the Richard afloat by the very blunder that had come so near
losing her. The ships were now on fire again, and both par
ties, with the exception of a few guns on each side, ceased
fighting, in order to subdue this common enemy. In the
course of the combat, the Serapis is said to have been set on

100 NAVAL HISTORY. [1779.
fire no less than twelve times, while, towards its close, as will
be seen in the sequel, the Richard was burning all the while.
As soon as order was once more restored in the Richard,
her chances of success began greatly to increase, while the
English, driven under cover, almost to a man, appear to
have lost, in a great degree, the hope of victory. Their fire
materially slackened, while the Richard again brought a few
more guns to bear ; the main-mast of the Serapis began to
totter, and her resistance, in general, to lessen. About an
hour after the explosion, or between three hours and three
hours and a half after the first gun was fired, and between two
hours and two hours and a half after the ships were lashed to
gether. Captain Pearson hauled down the colours of the Sera
pis with his own hands, the men refusing to expose themselves
to the fire of the Richard's tops.
When it was known that the colours of the English had
been lowered, Mr. Dale got upon the gunwale of the Richard,
and laying hold of the main-brace-pendant, he swung himself
on board the Serapis. On the quarter-deck of the latter he
found Captain Pearson, almost alone, that gallant officer having
maintained his post, throughout the whole of this close and
murderous conflict. Just as Mr. Dale addressed the English
captain, the first lieutenant of the Serapis came up from below
to inquire if the Richard had struck, her fire having entirely
ceased. Mr. Dale now gave the English officer to understand
that he was mistaken in the position of things, the Serapis
having struck to the Richard, and not the Richard to the Se
rapis. Captain Pearson confirming this account, his subordi
nate acquiesced, offering to go below and silence the guns that
were still playing upon the American ship. To this Mr. Dale
would not consent, but both the English officers were imme
diately passed on board the Richard. The firing was then
stopped below. Mr. Dale had been closely followed to the
quarter-deck of the Serapis, by Mr. Mayrant, a midshipman,
and a party of boarders; and as the former struck the quarter
deck of the prize, he was run through the thigh, by a boarding-
pike, in the hands of a man in the waist, who was ignorant of
the surrender. Thus did the close of this remarkable combat
resemble its other features in singularity, blood being shed and
shot fired, while the boarding officer was in amicable discourse
with his prisoners !
As soon as Captain Pearson was on board the Richard, and
Mr. Dale had received a proper number of hands in the prize.

1779.] NAVAL HISTORY. 101
Commodore Jones ordered the lashings to be cut, and the ves
sels to be separated, hailing the Serapis, as the Richard drifted
from alongside of her, and ordering her to follow his own ship.
Mr. Dale, noW had the head sails of the Serapis braced sharp
aback, and the wheel put down, but the vessel refused to answer
her helm or her canvass. Surprised and excited at this cir
cumstance, the gallant lieutenant sprang from the binnacle on
which he had seated himself, and fell his length on the deck.
He had been severely wounded in the leg by a splinter, and
until this moment was ignorant of the injury I He was replaced
on the binnacle, when the master of the Serapis came up and
acquainted him with the fact that the ship was anchored.
By this time, Mr. Lunt, the second lieutenant, who had been
absent in the pilot boat, had got alongside, and was on board
tfie prize. To this officer Mr. Dale now consigned the charge
of the Serapis, the cable was cut, and the ship followed the
Richard, as ordered.
Although this protracted and bloody combat had now ended,
neither the danger nor the labours of the victors were over.
The Richard was both sinking and on fire. The flames had
got within the ceiling, and extended so far that they menaced
the magazine, while all the pumps, in constant use, could barely
keep the water at the same level. Had it depended on the ex
hausted people of the two combatants, the ship must have soon
sunk, but the other vessels of the squadron sent hands on board
the Richard, to assist at the pumps. So imminent did the
danger from the fire become, that all the powder was got on
deck, to prevent an explosion. In this manner did the night
of the battle pass, with one gang always at the pumps, and
another contending with the flames, until about ten o'clock in
the forenoon of the 24th, when the latter were got under. After
the action, eight or ten Englishmen in the Richard, stole a
boat from the Serapis, and ran away with it, landing at Scar
borough. Several of the men were so alarmed with the con
dition of their ship, as to jump overboard and " swim to the
other vessels.
When the day dawned, an examination was made into the
condition of the Richard. Abaft, on a line with those guns of
the Serapis that had not been disabled, by the explosion, the
timbers were found to be nearly all beaten in, or beaten out,
for in this respect there was little difference between the two
sides of the ship; and it was said that her poop and upper
decks would have fallen into the gun-room, but for a few fut-
9*

102 NAVAL HISTORY. [1779.
tocks that had been missed. Indeed, so large was the vacuum,
that most of the shot fired from this part of the Serapis, at the
close of the action, must have gone through the Richard with
out touching any thing. The rudder was cut from the stern-
post, and the transoms were nearly driven out of her. All
the after part of the_ ship, in particular, that was below the
quarter-deck, was torn to pieces, and nothing had saved those
stationed on the quarter-deck, but the impossibility of suffi
ciently elevating guns that almost touched their object.
The result of this examination was to convince every one
of the impossibility of carrying the Richard into port, in the
event of its coming on to blow. Commodore Jones was ad
vised to remove~his wounded while the weather continued mo
derate, and he reluctantly gave the order to commence. The
following night and the morning of the succeeding day were
employed in executing this imperious duty; and about nine
o'clock, the officer of the Pallas, who was in charge of the
ship, with a party at the pumps, finding that the water had
reached the lower deck, reluctantly abandoned her. About
ten, the Bon Homme Richard wallowed heavily, gave a roll,
and settled slowly into the se'a, bows foremost.
The Serapis suffered much less than the Richard, the guns
of the latter having been so light, and so soon silenced ; but
no sooner were the ships separated, than her main-mast
fell, bringing down with it the mizzen-top-mast. Though
jury-masts were erected, the ship drove about, nearly helpless,
in the North Sea, until the 6th of October, when the remains
of the squadron, with the two prizes, got into the Te.xcl, the
port to which they had been ordered to repair.
In the combat between the Richard and the Serapis, an unu
sual number of lives was lost, though no regular authentic
report appears to have been given by either side. Captain
Pearson states the loss of the Richard at about 300 in killed
and wounded ; a total that would have included very nearly
all hands, and which was certainly a great exaggeration, or at
least a great mistake. According to a muster-roll of the offi
cers and people of the Richard, excluding the marines, which
is still in existence, 42 men were killed, or died of their wounds
shortly after the battle, and 41 were wounded. This would
make a total of 83, for this portion of the crew, which on the
roll amounted to 227 souls. But many of the persons named
on this list are known not to have been in the action at all ;
such as neither of the junior lieutenants, and some thirty men

1779.] NAVAL HISTORY. 103
that were with them, besides those absent in prizes. As there
were a few volunteers on board, however, who were not mus
tered, if we set down 200 as the number of the portion of the
regular crew that was in the action, we shall probably not be
far from the truth. By estimating the soldiers that remained
on board at 120, and observing the same proportion for their
casualties, we shall get 49 for the result, which will make a
total of 132, as the entire loss of the Richard. It is known,
however, that, in the commencement of the action, the soldiers,
or marines, suffered out of proportion to the rest of the crew,
and general report having made the gross loss of the Richard
150 men, we ar% disposed to believe that it was not far from
the fact.
Captain Pearson reported a part of his loss at 117 men,
admitting at the same time, that there were many killed and
wounded whose names he could not discover. It- is probable
that the loss of men, in the two ships, was about equal, and
that nearly or quite half of all those who were engaged, were
either killed or wounded. Commodore Jones, in a private let
ter, written some time after the occurrence, gives an opinion,
however, that the loss of the Richard was less than that of the
Serapis, That two vessels of so much fotce should lie lashed
together more than two hours, making use of artillery, mus
ketry, and all the other means of annoyance known to the
warfare of the day, and not do even greater injury to the
crews, strikes us with astonishment ; but the fact must be
ascribed to the peculiarities of the combat, which, by driving
most of the English under cover, and by keeping the Ameri
cans above the line of fire, protected each party from the mis
siles of the other. As it was, it proved a murderous and
sanguinary conflict, though, its duration would probably have
been much shorter, and its character still more bloody, but for
these unusual circumstances.

104 NAVAL HISTORY. [1780.

CHAPTER X.
The arrival of Paul Jones, in Holland, excited a great deal
of interest in the diplomatic world. The English demanded
that the prisoners should be released, and that Jones himself
should be given up as a pirate. The Dutch government,
though well disposed to favour the Americans, was not pre
pared for war, and it was induced to temporise. A long cor
respondence followed, which terminated in one of those politi
cal expedients that are so common, and in which the pains
and penalties of avowing the truth are avoided by means of
a mystification. The Serapis, which had been re-masted and
equipped, was transferred to France, as was the Scarborough,
while Commodore Jones took command of the Alliance, Cap
tain Landais having been suspended, and was ordered to quit
the country.
The Alliance went to sea on the 27th of December, 1779,
and reached the roads of Groix again. In safety, on the 10th
of February, 1780. She passed down the Channel, was near
enough to the squadron in the Downs to examine its force, was
several times chased, and made a short cruise in the Bay of
Biscay, after having touched in Spain. Captain Conyngham,
who had been captured in a privateer and escaped, joined the
Alliance, and went round to I'Orient in the ship.
Although it will be anticipating the events of another year,
we shall finish the history of this vessel, so far as she was
connected with the officer who first commanded her. Captain
Landais. This gentleman had been sent for to Paris, to ac
count for his conduct to the American minister, and subse
quently his claim to command the Alliance was referred to
Mr. Arthur Lee, who was on the spot, and who had long been
in Europe, as a conspicuous agent of the government. The
decision of this commissioner restored the Alliance to Captain
Landais, on the ground that his command having been given
to him by the highest authority of the country, a vote of Con
gress, he could not legally be deprived of it by any subordinate
authority. In June, Captain Landais sailed in the ship for
America, where she was given to an officer better fitted to
show her excellent qualities, and who, in the end, succeeded in

1780.] NAVAL HISTORY. 105
redeeming her character. During the passage home. Captain
Landais was deposed from the command, under the idea that
he was insane, and soon after he was discharged from the
navy. It is thought that the absence of Commodore Jones,
alone, prevented his receiving severer punishment.
Commodore Jones, anxious to get back to America, took
command of the Ariel 20, a little ship that the king of France
lent to his allies, to aid in transporting military stores ; and
in this vessel, with a portion of the officers and men who had
belonged to the Richard, he sailed from under Groix on the
7th of September. When a day or two out, the Ariel encoun
tered a severe gale, in which she came near being lost. The
ship was so pressed upon by the wind, that her lower yard-
arms frequently dipped, and though an anchor was let go, she
refused to tend to it. In order to keep her from foundering,
the fore-mast was cut away, and the heel of the main-mast
having worked out of the step, that spar followed, bringing
down with it the mizzen-mast.
Returnmg to I'Orient to refit, the Ariel sailed a second time
for America, on the 18th of December. During the passage,
she fell in with an enemy of about her own size, in the night,
and after much conversation, a short combat followed, when
the English ship intimated that she had struck, but taking ad
vantage of her position, she made sail and escaped. Some
unaccountable mistake was made by, or an extraordinary hal
lucination appears to have come over Commodore Jones, in
reference to this affair ; for, in his journal, he speaks of his
enemy as having been an English twenty-gun ship called the
Triumph, and the result as a victory. The Triumph, if such
was truly the name of the English ship, was probably a letter
of marque, unable to resist a vessel of war of any force, and
though not free from the imputation of treachery, she escaped
by out-manoeuvring the Ariel. On the 18th of February,
1781, after an absence of more than three years, Paul Jones
reached Philadelphia in safety.
Before we return to the American seas, and to the more
regular incidents of the year 1779, we will add that, after an
inquiry into the conduct of Captain Jones, as it was connected
with all his proceedings in Europe, Congress gave him a vote
of thanks, and, by a formal resolution, bestowed on him the
command of the America 74, the only one of the six ships of
that class that was ever laid down under the law of 1776.
The America never got to sea under the national colours, Coa-

106 NAVAL HISTORY. [1779.
gress presenting the ship to their ally, Louis XVI., to replace
the Magnitique 74, which had been lost in the port of Boston.
To return to the more regular order of events.
During the summer of 1779, the Deane 32, Captain Samuel
Nicholson, and the Boston 24, Capiain Tucker, made a cruise
in company. In August of that year, these two ships took
many prizes, though no action of moment occurred. Among
others were the Sandwich (a packet,) 16, two privateers, with
the Glencairn 20, and the Thorn 18. The last of these ves
sels was a man-of-war.
In the spring of this year, the Providence 12, Captain
Hacker, took a vessel of equal force, called-the Diligent, after
a sharp action.. The particulars of this engagement are lost,
though they are known to have been highly creditable to the
American officer. The Diligent appears to have been taken
into the service.
A bloody action also occurred, about the same time, between
the Massachusetts state-cruiser Hazard 14, Captain John Foster
Williams, and the Active 14, a vessel that Schomberg states to
have belonged to the king. The combat lasted half an hour,
and was determined in favour of the Hazard. The Active is said
to have had 33 killed and wounded, and the Hazard 8. Shortly
after this handsome affair. Captain Williams was appointed to
the ship Protector 20, belonging to the same state, and in June
he had a severe action with one of those heavy letters of
marque it was so much the custom to send to sea, at the period
of which we are writing, called the Duff; a ship said to have
been quite equal in force to the Protector. After a sharp con
test of more than an hour, the Duff blew up. The Protector
succeeded in saving 55 of her crew, having had 6 of her own
people killed and wounded in the battle.
The enemy having established a post on the Penobscot, and
placed in it a strong garrison, the State of Massachusetts de
termined to drive them from its territory, without calling upon
Congress for assistance. For this purpose, Massachusetts
made a draft of 1500 of her own militia, and got an order for
the U. S. ship Warren 32, Captain Saltonstall, the Diligent 14,
Captain Brown, and the Providence 12, Captain Hacker, to
join the expedition ; these being the only regular cruisers em
ployed on the occasion. Three vessels belonging to Massa
chusetts were also put under the orders of Captain Saltonstall,
and a force consisting of thirteen privateers was added. In

1779.] NAVAL HISTORY. 107
addition there were many transports and store-vessels. Gen
eral Lovel commanded the brigade.
This armament made its appearance off the Penobscot on
the 25th of July. While the militia were making their descent,
the Warren, and another vessel of some force, engaged the
enemy's works. The cannonading was severe, and the War
ren is said to have had 30 men killed and wounded, in the
action with the batteries, and in landing the troops. The latter
duty, however, was successfully performed by General Lovel,
with a loss of about one hundred men, including all arms.
Finding it impossible to carry the place with his present force,
the commanding officer now sent for reinforcements. ¦ On the
13th of August, while waiting for a return of the messenger,
information was received from the Tyrannicide, the look-out
vessel, that Sir George Collier, in the Rainbow 44, accom
panied by four other vessels of war, was entering the bay.
The troops immediately re-embarked, and a general, hurried,
and confused flight ensued. The British squadron, consisting
of tive vessels of war, quickly appeared, and a pursuit up the
river was commenced, and continued for a long distance. The
enemy soon got near enough to use their chase guns, and the
fire was returned by the Americans. It was undoubtedly the
wish of Captain Saltonstall, to reach the shallow waters before
he was overtaken ; but finding this impracticable, he ran his
ship ashore, and set her on fire. Others followed this example,
and most of the vessels were destroyed, though three or four
fell into the hands of the enemy.
Captain Saltonstall was much, and, in some respects, per
haps, justly censured, for this disaster, though it is to be feared
that it arose more from that habit of publicity, which is com
mon to all countries much influenced by popular feeling, than
from any other cause. Had a due regard T)een paid to secresy,
time might have been gained in that remote region, to effect
the object, before a sufficient force could be collected to go
against the assailants. In a military sense, the principal faults
appear to have been a miscalculation of means, at the com
mencement, and a neglect to raise such batteries as might have
protected the shipping against the heavy vessels of the enemy.
It could not surely have been thought that privateers, armed
with light guns, were able to resist two-deckers ; and the fact
that the English had a fleet of such vessels on the coast was
generally known.
The disastrous result of this expedition inflicted a severe blow

108 NAVAL HISTORY.. [1780
on American nautical enterprises. Many privateers and state
vessels, that had been successful against the enemy's com
merce, were either captured or destroyed. Among the vessels
blown up, was the Providence 12, one of the first cruisers ever
sent to sea by the United States, and which had become noted
for exploits greatly exceeding what might have been expected
from her force.

CHAPTER XI.
At the commencement of the year ¦ 1780, the French fleet
under Comte d'Estaing retired to the West-Indies, leaving the
entire American coast at the command of the British. Sir
Henry Clinton profited by the opportunity to sail against
Charleston, with a strong force in ships and troops, which
town he reduced after a short but vigorous siege. Several
American ships of war were in the harbour at the time, under
the command of Captain Whipple, and finding escape impos
sible, this officer carried his squadron into the Cooper, sunk
several vessels at its mouth, and landed all the guns and crews
for the defence of the town, with the exception of those of one
ship. The Providence 28, Captain Whipple, the Queen of
France 28, Captain Rathburne, the- Boston 24, Captain Tuck
er, the Ranger 18, Captain Simpson, and several smaller ves
sels, fell into the hands of the enemy.
The English government, by this time, found the system of
privateering so destructive to their navigation, that it had come
to the determination of refusing to exchange any more of the
seamen that fell into their power. By acting on this policy,
they collected a large body of prisoners, sending them to Eng
land in their return-ships, and sensibly affected the nautical
enterprises of the Americans, who, of course, had but a limit
ed number of officers and men fit to act on the ocean.
By the fall of Charleston, too, the force of the regular Ame
rican marine, small as it had always been, was still more re
duced. Of the frigates, the Alliance 32, the Hague (late
Deane) 32, Confederacy 32, Trumbull 28, and a ship or two.
bought or borrowed in Europe, appear to be all that were left,

1780.] NAVAL HISTORY. 109
while the smaller cruisers, like the pitcher that is broken by
going too often to the well, had not fared much better.
In consequence of all these losses, the advanced state of the
war, and the French alliance, which had brought the fleets of
France upon the American coast. Congress appears to have
thought any great efforts for increasing the marine unneces
sary at the moment. The privateers and state cruisers were
out and active as usual, though much reduced in numbers, and
consequently in general efficiency. In contrast to these di
minished efforts we find the British Parliament authorizing the
ministry to keep no less than 85,000 men employed in the
English navy, including the marines.
The first action of moment that occured this year between
any United States' vessel and the enemy, nevertheless, has
the reputation of having been one of the most hotly and obsti
nately contested combats of the war. June 2d, 1780, the
Trumbull 28, then under the command of Captain James Ni
cholson, the senior officer of the navy, while cruising in lat.
35° 54', long. 66° W., made a strange sail to windward from
the mast-heads. The Trumbull immediately furled all her
canvass, in the hope of drawing the stranger down upon her
before she should be seen. At eleven, the stranger was made
out to be a large ship, steering for the Trumbull's quarter ;
but soon hauling more astern, sail was got on the American
ship to close. After some manoeuvring, in order to try the
rate of sailing and to get a view of the stranger's broadside,
the Trumbull took in her light sails, hauled up her courses,
the chase all this time betraying no desire to avoid an action,
but standing directly for her adversary. When near enough,
the Trumbull filled, and outsailing the stranger, she easily
fetched to windward of her. The chase now fired three guns,
showed English colours, and edged away, under short sail,
evidently with an intention to pursue her course. Captain Ni
cholson harangued his men, and then made sail to bring his
ship up vvith the enemy. "When about a hundred yards dis
tant, the English ship fired a broadside, and the action began
in good earnest. For two hours and a half the vessels lay
nearly abeam of each other, giving and receiving broadsides
without intermission. At no time were they half a cable's
length asunder, and more than once the yards nearly inter
locked. Twice was the Trumbull set on fire by the wads of
her opponent, and once the enemy suffered in the same way.
10

110 NAVAL HISTORY. [1780.
At last the fire of the Englishman slackened sensibly, until it
nearly ceased.
Captain Nicholson now felt satisfied that he should make a
prize of his antagonist, and was encouraging his people with
that hope, when a report was brought to him, that the main
mast was tottering, and that if it went while near the enemy,
his ship would probably be the sacrifice. Anxious to secure
the spar, sail was made, and the Trumbull shot ahead again,
her superiority of sailing being very decided. She was soon
clear of her adversary, who made no effort to molest her.
The vessels, however, were scarcely musket-shot apart, when
the main and mizzen top-masts of the Trumbull went over the
side, and, in spite of every effort to secure them, spar after
spar came down, until nothing was left but the fore-mast.
Under such circumstances, the enerny, who manifested no
desire to profit by her advantage, went off on her proper
course. Before she was out of sight, her main top-mast also
was seen to fall.
It was afterwards ascertained that the ship engaged by the
Trumbull was a letter of marque called the Watt, Captain
Coulthard, a vessel of size, that had been expressly'' equipped
to fight her way. Her force is not mentioned in the English
accounts, but her commander, in his narrative of the affair,
in which he claims the victory, admits his loss to have been
92 men, in killed and wounded. Captain Nicholson estimates
her force at 34 or 36 guns, mostly twelve-pounders ; and he
states that of the Trumbull to have been 24 twelve-pounders
and 6 sixes, with 199 souls on board when the action com
menced. The Trumbull lost 39, in killed and wounded,
among the former of whom were two of her lieutenants.
In the way of a regular cannonade, this combat is generally
thought to have been the severest that was fought in the war
of the Revolution. There is no question of the superiority of
the Watt in every thing but sailing, she having been essen
tially the largest and strongest ship, besides carrying more
guns and men than her opponent. Owing to the difficulty of
obtaining seamen, which has been so often mentioned, the
Trumbull's crew was composed, in a great degree, of raw
hands, and Captain Nicholson states particularly that many
of his people were suffering under sea-sickness when they
went to their guns.
This action was not followed by another, of any importance,
in which a government cruiser was concerned, until the month

1781.] NAVAL HISTORY. ill
of October, when the U. S. sloop of war Saratoga 16, Captain
Young, fell in with, and captured a ship and two brigs, the
former, and one of the latter of which, were well armed. The
conflict with the ship, which was called the Charming Molly,
was conducted with a spirit and promptitude that are deserv
ing of notice. Running alongside. Captain Young delivered
his fire, and threw fifty men on the enemy's decks, when a
fierce but short struggle ensued, that ended in the capture of
the British ship. Lieutenant Joshua Barney, afterwards so
distinguished in the service, led the boarders on this occasion ;
and the crew that he overcame is said to have been nearly
double in numbers to his own party.
After making these and one other capture, the Saratoga
made sail for the Capes of the Delaware, with the intention of
convoying her prizes into port. The following day, however,
the convoy was chased by the Intrepid 74, Captain Molloy,
-which ship retook all the prizes, but was unable to get the
Saratoga under her guns. It is said, and we find no evidence
to contradict it, that the Saratoga never returned to port, the
vessel foundering, and her crew perishing at sea, unheard of.
The brevity of the regular naval annals of the three last
years of the war, compels us to compress their incidents into
a single chapter.
It has been stated already that Captain Landais was dis
missed from the service soon after his return home, when the
command of the Alliance 32 was given to Captain John Barry,
the officer who had made so gallant a resistance in the Ra
leigh, not long previously. In February, 1781, Captain Barry
sailed from Boston for France, in command of this favourite
ship, with Colonel Laurens on board, which well-known and
much-regretted young officer was charged with an important
mission to the French court. On the outward passage, the
Alliance captured a small privateer called the Alert, but no
event of any moment occurred. After landing Mr. Laurens,
the frigate sailed from I'Orient on a cruise, with the Marquis
de la Fayette 40, bound to America with stores, in company.
Three days afterwards, or on the 2d of April, 1781, they fell
in with and captured two Guernsey privateers, one of which,
the Mars, is said to have been a heavy vessel of 26 guns and
112 men, and the other, the Minerva, to have had an arma
ment of 10 guns, and a crew of 55 souls. Neither of these
cruisers appears to have made any resistance.
After this success, the Alliance parted company with her

112 NAVAL HISTORV. [1781.
consort and the prizes, and continued to cruise until the 28th
of May, when she made two sail, that were standing directly
for her. It was late in the day, and the strangers, when near
enough to remain in sight during the darkness hauled up on
the same course with the Alliance, evidently with a view to
defer the action until morning. At daylight on the succeed
ing day, it was nearly a dead calm, and when the mist cleared
away, the two strangers were seen at no great distance, with
English colours flying. They were now distinctly made out
to be a sloop of war apparently of 16 guns, and a brig of 14.
The sea was perfectly smooth, and there being no wind, the
two light cruisers were enabled to sweep up, and to select their
positions, while the Alliance lay almost a log on the water,
without steerage way. Owing to these circumstances, it was
noon before the vessels were near enough to hail, when the
action commenced. For more than an hour the Alliance
fought to great disadvantage, the enemy having got on her
quarters, where only a few of the aftermost guns would bear
on them. The advantage possessed by the English vessels,
in consequence of the calm, at one time, indeed, gave their
people the greatest hopes of success, for they had the fight
principally to themselves. While things were in this unfortu
nate state. Captain Barry received a grape-shot through his
shoulder, and was carried below. This additional and dis
heartening calamity added to the disadvantages of the Ameri
cans, who were suffering under the close fire of two spirited
and persevering antagonists. Indeed, so confident of success
did the enemy now appear to be, that when the ensign of the
Alliance was shot away, this fact, coupled with the necessary
slackness of her fire, induced their people to quit their guns,
and give three cheers for victory. This occurred at a moment
when a light breeze struck the Alliance's sails, and she came
fairly under steerage way. A single broadside from a man
ageable ship changed the entire state of the combat, and sent
the enemy to their guns, again, with a conviction that their
work yet remained to be done. After a manly resistance,
both the English vessels, in the end, were compelled to haul
doWn their colours.
The prizes proved to be the Atalanta 16, Captain Edwards,
with a crew of 130 men, and the Trepassy 14, Captain Smith,
with a crew of 80 men. Both vessels were much cut up, and
they sustained a joint loss of 41 men in killed and wounded.
The Alliance did not escape with impunity, having had 11

1781.] NAVAL HISTORY. 113
killed and 21 wounded, principally by the fire of her enemies,
while they lay on her quarter and across her stern. Captain
Barry made a cartel of the Trepassy, and sent her into an
English port with the prisoners ; but the Atalanta was retaken
by the enemy's squadron that was cruising off Boston, while
attempting to enter that harbour.
Fortune now became capricious, and we are compelled to
present the other side of the 'picture. Among the ships built
late in the war, was the Confederacy 32. This vessel had
been launched in 1778, at or near Norwich, in Connecticut ;
and the command of her was given to Captain Seth Harding,
the officer who was in the Defence 14, in the action in Nan
tasket Roads with the two transports captured in 1776. Cap
tain Harding had been commissioned in the navy, in which
his first command appears to have been this ship. The Con
federacy sailed for Europe in 1779, with Mr. Jay, the min
ister to Spain, on board, and was suddenly dismasted, a little
to the eastward of Bermuda. Spar followed spar, in this ca
lamity, until the ship lay a log on the water, with even her
bowsprit gone. This, like so many similar misfortunes that
have succeeded it, must probably be attributed to the rigging's
having slackened, when the ship got into a warm latitude, afler
having been set up in cold weather at home.
After several anxious weeks, the Confederacy got into Mar
tinique, where Mr. Jay obtained a passage in the French fri
gate I'Aurore, and the American vessel remained to refit.
From that time to the commencement of the present year, the
Confederacy was employed, like most of the large vessels of
the service in that stage of the war, in keeping open the com
munications between the country and the different ports where
supplies were obtained, and in transporting stores. Early in
1781, she went to Cape Francois, and, on the 22d of June,
while on her return, with clothing and other supplies on board,
and with a convoy in charge, she was chased by a large ship,
which succeeded in getting alongside of her. Captaih. Hard
ing had gone to quarters, and was about to open his fire, when
the enemy ran out a lower tier of guns, and a frigate being in
company a short distance astern, the American struck. Seve
ral of the convoy were also taken.
Captain Nicholson continued in command of the Trumbull,
after his severe conflict with the Watt, and we find him at sea
again in that ship, in the summer of 1781. She left the Dela
ware on the 8th of August, with a crew short of 200 men, of
10*

114 NAVAL HIS'TORY. [Hil.
which neai" 50 were of the questionable materials t'6 he found
amohg the prisoners of war. She had a convoy of twenty-
eight sail, and a heavy privateer was in company. Off the
Cape^, the TrUmbuU made three British cruisers astern. Two
of the enerily, one of which vvas a frigate, stood for the Trum
bull, which ship, by hauling up, was enabled to gain the wind
of them. Night was near, and it blew heavily. The mer
chantmen began to divel-ge from the course, though, by carry
ing easy sail, the Trumbull was enabled 16 keep most of them
ahead, and in their stations. While standing on in this man
ner, hoping every thing from the darkness, a squall carried
away the Trumbull's fore-top-mast, which in falling brought
down with it the main-top-jgallant-mast. As the weather was
thick and squally, the vessels in company of the Trumbull took
advantage of the obscurity and scattered, each making the best
of her way according to her particular rate of saihng. The
TrumbuU herself was compelled to bear up, in order to carry
the canvass necessary to -escape ; but with the wreck over her
bows, and a crew that was not only deficient in numbers, but
which was raw, and in part disaffected, her situation became
in the last degree embarrassing. Indeed, her condition has
been described as being so peculiarly distressing, as to form a
strong instance of the difficulties that sometimes accompany
naval warfare.
About ten o'clock at night, the British frigate Iris 32, one of
the vessels in chase, closed with the Trumbull, which ship, on
account of the heaviness of the weather, had- not yet been able
to clear the wreck. In the midst of rain and squalls, in a tem
pestuous night, with most of the forward h'amper of the ship
over her bows, or lying on the forecastle, with one of the arms
of the fore-topsail-yard run through her fore-sail, and the other
jammed on deck, and with a disorganised crew. Captain Nich
olson found himself compelled to go to quarters, or to strike
without resistance. He preferred the first ; but the English
volunteers, instead of obeying the order, went below, extin
guished the lights, and secreted themselves. Near half of the
remainder of the people imitated this example, and Captain
Nicholson could not muster fifty of even the diminished crew
he had, at the guns, The battle that followed, might almost
be said to have been fought by the officers. These brave men,
sustained by a party of the petty officers and seamen, managed
a few of the guns for more than an hour, when the General

1781.] NAVAL HISTORY. 115
Monk 18, coming up and joining in the fire of the Iris, the
Trumbull submitted.
In this singular combat, it has even been asserted that at no
time were forty of the Trumbull's people at quarters. It was
probably owing to this circumstance, that her loss was so
small, for the ship herself is said to have been extensively cut
up. She had five men killed and eleven wounded. Among
the latter were two of the lieutenants, and Mr. Alexander Mur
ray, a gentleman of Maryland, who had been educated to the
seas, and had been in the action with the Watt, but who was
now serving as a volunteer, and who, after commanding seve
ral private cruisers, entered the navy, and subsequently died at
the head of the service in 1821. Mr. Murray was particularly
distinguished in this affair, ahd the conduct of Captain Nichol
son met with much applause. The Iris suffered more than
could have been e-xpected under such circumstances, and re
ported seven men killed and wounded.
As affording some relief to the loss of the Trumbull, we now
come to a handsome exploit that occurred soon after, which
ought, perhaps, properly, to take its place among the deeds of
the private cruisers, but which is of sufficient importance t© be
mentioned here, and this so much the more, as a portion of
those engaged belonged to the regular service of the country.
A private cruiser called the Congress had been fitted out in
Philadelphia, in the course of the summer, and in September
she was cruising on the coast of the Carolinas and Georgia.
The Congress had an armament of 20 guns, according to the
American accounts, and of 24 according to the Enghsh, and
she was commanded by Captain Geddes. Few of her people
were seamen, of which there was now a great scarcity in the
country, but her complement was, in a great degree, made up
of landsmen.
On the morning of the 6th of September, cruising to the
eastward of Charleston, the Congress made a sail, to which
she gave chase. The stranger was soon discovered to be a
cruiser, and at first showed a disposition to engage, but after
some manoeuvring he stood off. At half-past ten the Congress
began to fire her bow guns, and at eleven being close up on the
enemy's quarter, she opened a heavy fire of musketry, which
did a good deal of execution. Drawing ahead, the Congress
now delivered her broadside, and it was returned with spirit.
At first the enemy got a cross-fire upon the Congress, and the
latter ship meetmg with an accident, fell astern to refit. But

116 NAVAL HISTORY. lI'5'8-2.
soon closing again, the combat was renewed with fresh vigour,
and the Congress having got her enemy fairly under her guns,
in less than an hour she left her a nearly unmanageable wreck
on the water. Notwithstanding his condition, the Englishman
showed no disposition to submit, and the Congress ran so close
alongside, that the men were said to be reciprocally burned by
the discharges of the guns. The quarter-deck and forecastle
of the enemy had scarcely a man left on it, and his fire began
to slacken in consequence of several of his guns having been
dismounted. In this stage of the engagement, shot were even
thrown by hand and did execution. At length the mizzen-
mast of the English ship fell, and the main-mast threatening to
follow it, her boatswain appeared on the forecastle, with his
hat in his hand, and called out that his commander had struck.
The prize proved to be the British sloop of war Savage 16,
Captain Sterling.
We have now reached the year 1782, which was virtually
the last of the war of the Revolution, though some events will
remain to be recorded in the early part of the year 1783. In
the commencent of this year, the Deane 32, made a successful
cruise, in which she took several private armed vessels of the
enemy. On this occasion, the Deane was commanded by
Captain Samuel Nicholson.
The favourite ship, the Alliance 32, Captain Barry, was
much employed this year, her superior sailing making her a
vessel in constant demand. Among other services that she
performed, this ship was sent to Havana for specie, whence
she sailed, in company with the Luzerne, a ship loaded with
supplies. Shortly after quitting port, some enemy's vessels
fell in with them, and gave chase. While running from this
force, a large sail was seen on the Alliance's weather bow,
which was soon made out to be a French 50, on two decks.
Exchanging signals, and supposing that the French frigate
would sustain him, Captain Barry immediately wore round
and brought the leading vessel of the enemy to action ; the
others manoeuvring in a way to engage the attention of the
fifty. The latter, however, kept her wind ; and after a sharp
fight of more than half an hour, the English ship engaged
with the Alliance, finding herself hard pushed, made signals
to her consorts to join, when Captain Barry hauled off. The
Alliance now stood for the French ship, and speaking her, it
was determined to bring the enemy to action again, in com
pany. On making sail in chase, however, it was soon found

1782.] NAVAL HISTORY. 117
that the fifty was too dull a sailer to give the least hope of
svertaking the enemy, and the attempt was abandoned.
In this action, the Alliance had 3 killed and 11 wounded ;
ivhile it is said that the loss of the enemy was very heavy.
Some statements place the latter as high as 87 men ; but no
iccounts can be discovered, that give a very clear history of
Jiis affair. Even the name of the English ship appears to be
lost. One of the enemy, by some of the accounts, was said to
be a ship of the line, and the vessel engaged by the Alliance,
a heavy sloop of war.*
The command of the Hague, one of the two frigates now
left in the American marine, was given to Captain Manly,
after her return from the cruise under Captain Nicholson ;
and this officer who had virtuallly begun the maritime war, on
Ihe part of the United States, in a manner closed it, by an
arduous and brilliant chase, in which he escaped from several
sf the enemy's ships in the West-Indies, after being for a con
siderable time under the guns of a vastly, superior force. This
Dccurrence may be said to have brought the regular naval
warfare of the United States to an end, so far as the govern
ment cruisers were concerned, peace having been made early
in 1783.

CHAPTER XII.
In March, 1782, the Delaware was much infested by barges
and small cruisers of the enemy, which not unfrequently made
prizes of vessels belonging to the Americans, as well as mo
lesting the people who dwelt near the water. With a view to
keep the navigation open against these marauders, the State
3f Pennsylvania determined to fit out a few vessels at its own
sxpense, and with such materials as could be hastily collected.
With this object, a small ship called the Hyder Ally was pur-
jhased. So suddenly did the local government come to its
* James, very inaccurate authority in general, says that this vessel was
he Sibyl, rating 20, and mounting 28 guns, Captain Vashon. It is quite
vobable he is right in thia instance.

118 NAVAL HISTORY. [1782.
resolution, that the vessel just named, when bought, had actu
ally dropped down the river, on an outward-bound voyage,
loaded with flour. She was brought back, her cargo was dis
charged, and an armament of 16 six-pounders was put upon
her. So little, however, was this ship ready for war, that she
had to be pierced in order to receive her guns, i Indeed, so
pressing was the emergency, that the merchants of Philadel
phia anticipated the passage of the law to authorise the pur
chase and equipment of this ship, by advancing funds for that
purpose ; and the act had not entirely gone through all its legal
forms, until after the exploit we are about to record had been
performed ! The commissioners entrusted with the duty of
preparing the ship, selected Lieutenant Joshua Barney, of the
United States navy, as her commander, a young officer of
great decision of character and personal bravery, who had
already distinguished himself in subordinate stations, on board
of different cruisers of the general government, but who, like
so many more of the profession, was obliged frequently to
choose between idleness and a service less regular than that to
which he properly belonged.
A crew of 110 men was put on board the Hyder Ally ; and
within a fortnight after he was appointed to command her, Cap
tain Barney sailed. It was not the intention of the authorities
of Pennsylvania, that this ship should go to sea, but merely
that she should keep the navigation of the river and bay open,
and drive off privateers, and other small cruisers. On the 8th
of April, the Hyder Ally got into the bay with a considerable
convoy of outward-bound merchantmen. The whole fleet had
anchored in the roads off Cape May, in waiting for a wind to
get to sea, when two ships and a brig, one of the former a
frigate, were seen rounding the Cape, with a view to attack
them. Captain Barney immediately ran up a signal for the
convoy to trip, and to stand up the bay again, the wind being
to the southward. This order was promptly obeyed, and in a
few minutes, the merchant vessels, with one exception, were
running off before the wind, with every thing set that would
draw, the Hyder Ally covering their retreat, under easy sail.
The vessel that remained, endeavoured to get to sea, by haul
ing close round the cape, but grounded and fell into tho hands
of the enemy. Another vessel got on the shoals, and was
taken by a boat from the nearest of the English cruisers.
An extensive shoal, called the "Over Falls," forms two
channels, in the lower part of Delaware Bay, and while the

r82.] NAVAL HISTORY. 119
Dnvoy passed up the easternmost of these channels, or that
'hich is known as the " Cape May Channel," the frigate stood
)wards the western, which offered a better chance to head the
igitives at the point where the two united, and which had the
lost water. The remaining ship and the brig, stood on in the
ireotion of the Hyder Ally.
It was not long before the brig, which proved to be a British
rivateer out of New York, called the Fair American, came
p with the Hyder Ally, when the latter offered her battle.
>ut firing a broadside, the privateer kept aloof, and continued
ip the bay. Captain Barney declined to return this fire, hold-
ig himself in reserve for the ship astern, a large sloop of war,
^hich was fast coming up. When the latter got quite near,
le Hyder Ally, which had kept close to the shoal, luffed, threw
1 her broadside, and immediately righting her helm, kept
way again. The enemy stood boldly on, and just as his for-
i^ard guns were beginning to bear, the two vessels being within
istol-shot, the Hyder Ally attempted to luff athwart his hawse,
ifhen the jib-boom of the English ship ran into her fore-rigging,
nd the two vessels got foul. It is said that Captain Barney
ibtained this advantage by deceiving his enemy, having given
.n order to port the helm, in a loud voice, when secret instruc-
ions had been given to the quarter-master at the wheel, to put
lis helm hard a-starboard. The Hyder Ally now opened a
evere raking fire, and in less than half an hour from the com-
nencement of the action, the stranger struck, the ships remain-
ng foul of each other.
The frigate, which had not actually got into the western
hannel, perceiving the state of things, changed her course,
tfith a view to get round to the combatants, and Captain Bar-
ley had no time to lose. Throwing his first lieutenant, with
. party, on board the prize, he ordered her to continue up the
lay, while he covered the retreat with his own ship. In the
nean while, the brig had run aground above, in chase of the
envoy. There is some reason to suppose that the commander
f the frigate did not know the result of the action, for he
nade signals to the prize, and anchored about sunset, leaving
tie Hyder Ally, which had been kept a long distance astern
f the other vessels, with a view to divert his attention, to pro-
eed to Philadelphia without further molestation.
Up to this moment. Captain Barney did not know even the
ame of his prize. He now made sail, however, and running
long^ide of her, for the first time he learned that he had cap-

120 NAVAL HISTORY. [1782.
tured his Britannic Majesty's ship General Monk 18, Captain
Rogers. This vessel had formerly been the American priva
teer. General Washington, and having fallen into the power
of Admiral Arbuthnot, he had taken her into the king's ser
vice, given her a new name, and promoted a favourite officer
to her command. The Monk mounted twenty nines, and is
said to have had a crew of 136 men. Captain Rogers report
ed his loss at six killed, and twenty-nine wounded ; but Cap
tain Barney stated it at twenty killed, and thirty-six wounded.
It is probable that the latter account is nearest to the truth, as
the commander of a captured vessel has not always as good
an opportunity as his captor, to ascertain his own loss. The
Hyder Ally had four killed, and eleven wounded.
This action has been justly deemed one of the most bril
liant that ever occurred under the American flag. It was
fought in the presence of a vastly superior force that was not
engaged ; and the ship taken was, in every essential respect,
superior to her conqueror. The disproportion in metal, be
tween a six-pounder and a nine-pounder, is one-half; and the
Monk, besides being a heavier and a larger ship, had the most
men. Both vessels appeared before Philadelphia a few hours
after the action, bringing with them even their dead ; and most
of the leading facts were known to the entire community of
that place.
The steadiness with which Captain Barney protected his i
convoy, the gallantry and conduct with which he engaged,
and the perseverance with which he covered the retreat of his
prize, are all deserving of high praise. Throughout the whole
affair, this officer discovered the qualities of a great naval cap
tain ; failing in no essential of that distinguished character.
The Monk, her old name having been restored, was taken
into the service of the State of Pennsylvania, and was shortly
after sent on duty in behalf of the United States, to the West-
Indies. During this cruise. Captain Barney, who commanded
her, had a warm engagement with an English brig, supposed
to be a privateer, of equal force, but she escaped from him,
the meeting occurring in the night, and the enemy manceuvring
and sailing particularly well. The name of his antagonist is
not known. In this affair, the Washington received some
damage in her spars, but met with no serious loss.
Massachusetts and South Carolina were the two states that
most exerted themselves, in order to equip cruisers of their
own. As early as September, 1776, one of the vessels of the

1782.] NAVAL HISTORY. 121
former is said to have captured an English sloop of war, after
a sharp action ; but we can discover no more than general and
vague accounts of the affair.
Among the vessels of Massachusetts was one named afler
the State itself, and a brig called the Tyrannicide. The latter
was a successful cruiser, and made many captures, but she
was lost in the unfortunate affair in the Penobscot. It is be
lieved that the Tyrannicide was built expressly- for a cruiser.
But the favourite officer of this service appears to have been
Captain John Foster Williams, who commanded a brig called
the Hazard, in 1779. In this vessel, in addition to the action
already related with the Active, Captain Williams performed
many handsome exploits, proving himself, on all occasions, an
officer of merit.
After quitting the Hazard, Captain Williams was transfer
red to the Protector 20, equally a state ship. In this vessel
he had the two actions mentioned in another chapter, — that
with the Duff, and that with the Thames, — in both of which
this gallant officer greatly distinguished himself. Soon after
this briUiant cruise he resumed the command of the Hazard,
which was also lost to the state in the unfortunate expedition
against the British in the Penobscot. It would probably have
been better for Massachusetts had it named this meritorious
officer to the command of the naval arrhament on that occa
sion. This unhappy affair appears, in a great degree, to have
put an end to the maritime efforts of Massachusetts, a state,
however, that was active to the last, in aiding the general
cause. Of the vessels of Carolina mention has already been made.
In the early part of the war several light cruisers were em
ployed, but as the contest advanced, this State entertained a
plan of obtaining a few vessels of force, with an intention of
striking a heavier blow than common against the enemy.'
With this view Commodore Gillon, the officer who was at the
head of its little marine, went to Europe, and large amounts
of colonial produce were transmitted to him, in order to raise
the necessary funds. In his correspondence, this officer com
plains of the difficulty of procuring the right sort of ships, and
much time was lost in fruitless negotiations for that purpose,
in both France and Holland. At length an arrangement was
entered into, for one vessel, that is so singular as to require
particular notice. This vessel was the Indien, which had been
laid down by the American commissioners, at Amsterdam, and
11

122 NAVAL HISTORY. [1782.
subsequently presented to France. She had the dimensions
of a small 74, but was a frigate in construction, carrying, how
ever, an armament that consisted of 28 Swedish thirty-sixes
on her gun-deck, and of 12 Swedish twelves on her quarter
deck and forecastle, or 40 guns in the whole. This ship,
though strictly the property of France, had been lent by Louis
XVI. to the Duke of Luxembourg, who hired her to the State
of South Carolina for three years, on condition that the State
would insure her, sail her at its own expense, and render to
her owner one-fourth of the proceeds of her prizes. Under
this singular compact, the ship, which was named the South
Carolina for the occasion, got out in 1781, and made a suc
cessful cruise in the narrow seas, sending her prizes into
Spain. Afterwards she proceeded to America, capturing ten
sail, with which she went into the Havana. Here Commodore
Gillon, with a view to distress the enemy, accepted the com
mand of the nautical part of an expedition against the Baha
mas, that had been set on foot by the Spaniards, and in which
other American cruisers joined. The expedition was success
ful, and the ship proceeded to Philadelphia. Commodore Gil
lon now left her, and after some delay, the South Carolina
went to sea in December, 1782, under the orders of Captain
Joyner, an officer who had previously served on board her as
second in command. It is probable that the movements of so
important a vessel were watched, for she had scarcely cleared
the capes, when, after a short running fight, she fell into the
hands of the British ship Diomede 44, having the Astrea 33,
and the Quebec 32, in company.
The South Carolina was much the heaviest ship that ever
sailed under the American flag, until the new frigates were
constructed during the war of 1812, and she is described as
having been a particularly fast vessel ; but her service appears
to have been greatly disproportioned to her means. She cost
the state a large sum of money, and is believed to have re
turned literally nothing to its treasury. Her loss excited much
comment. Admiral Arbuthnot reports among the " rebel ships of war"
taken or sunk at the capture of Charleston, " the Bricole,
pierced for 60, mounting 44 guns, twenty-four and eighteen-
pounders," &c. As there never was a vessel of this name in
the navy of the United States, it is probable that this ship was
another heavy frigate obtained by the State of South Carohna,
in Europe. Although this state had the pecuniary means to

1782.] NAVAL HISTORY. 123
equip a better marine than common, it had neither vessels,
building-yards, nor seamen. Most of its vessels were pur
chased, and its mariners were principally obtained from places
out of its Umits, Commodore Gillon and Captain Joyner being
both natives of Holland.
Thus terminated the first war in which America was en
gaged as a separate nation, after a struggle that had endured
seven years and ten months. Orders of recall were immedi
ately given to the different cruisers, and the commissions of
all privateers and letters of marque were revoked. The pro
clamation announcing a cessation of hostilities was made
on the llth of April, when the war finally terminated at all
points. It remains only to say that the navy of the Revolution, like
its army, was disbanded at the termination of the struggle,
literally leaving nothing behind it, but the recollections of its
services and sufferings.

CHAPTER XIII.
The country was too much exhausted by the war of the
revolution to incur the expense of a marine during a time of
peace. But the growing commerce of the country, as well as
its unprotected state, excited the cupidity of the Dey of Algiers,
who captured the schooner Maine, of Boston, on the 25th of
July, 1785, This unprovoked outrage was succeeded by
others, until the government of the United States, after negoti
ating in the best manner it could for the release of the vessels
and captives, found itself under the necessity of arming. This
decided measure was not taken, however, until after the or
ganisation of the government under the new constitution, and
during the Presidency of Washington. The construction of
six frigates was authorised by law, and the keels of the follow
ing vessels were laid, viz : the Constitution 44, United States
44, President 44, Chesapeake 38, Constellation 38, and Con
gress 38.
This was the commencement of the actual and permanent
marine of the country. Three of the ships just named are

124 NAVAL HISTORY. [1796-98.
now in use, and two are on foreign stations. In consequence
of an arrangement of the difficulties with Algiers, neither of
these vessels was launched for some years, the work on them
being suspended by an order of government. A navy was so
far created, notwithstanding, that the gentlemen appointed to
command the frigates, continued in service, as did some of the
inferior officers. Their duties were chiefly limited to taking
care of the ships that were still on the stocks, and the stores
that had been collected. The time was drawing near, how
ever, when a more active and serviceable marine was estab
lished. The President, in his annual speech to Congress, December,
1796, strongly recommended laws for the gradual increase of
the navy. It is worthy of remark, as appears by documents
published at the time, that, the peace obtained from the Dey
of Algiers cost the government of the United States near a
million of dollars, a sum quite sufficient to have kept the bar
barian's port hermetically blockaded until he should have
humbly sued for permission to send a craft to sea.
While these events were gradually leading to the formation
of a navy, the maritime powers of Europe became involved in
what was nearly a general war, and their measures of hostility
against each other had a direct tendency to trespass on the
privileges of neutrals. It would exceed thef limits of this work
to enter into the history of that system of gradual encroach
ments on the rights of the American people, which distinguished
the measures of both the two great belligerents, in the war that
succeeded the French Revolution ; or the height of audacity to
which the cruisers of France, in particular, carried their depre
dations, most probably mistaking the amount of the influence
of their own country, over the great body of the American
nation. Not only did they capture British ships within our
waters, but they actually took the same Uberties with Ameri
cans also. AU attempts to obtain redress from the French
government failed, and unable to submit any longer to such
injustice, the president, in April, 1798, recommended to Con
gress a plan of armament and defence, that it was hoped would
have the effect to check these aggressions, and avert an open
conflict. Down to this period, the whole military organization
of the country, was entrusted to one department, that of war ;
and a letter from the secretary of this branch of the govern
ment, to the chairman of a committee to devise means of pro
tection and defence, was the form in which this high interest

1798.] NAVAL HISTORY. 125
was brought before the nation, through its representatives.
Twenty small vessels were advised to be built, and, in the
event of an open rupture, it was recommended to Congress to
authorise the President to cause six ships of the line to be con
structed. This force was in addition to the six frigates au
thorised by the law of 1794.
The United States 44, Constitution 44, and Constellation 38,
had beeh got afloat the .year previous.
The United States was the first vessel that was got into the
water, under the present organisation of the navy. She was
launched at Philadelphia, on the 10th of July, 1797, and the
Constellation followed her on the 7th of September.
Congress acted so far on the recommendation of the secre
tary of war, as to authorise the President to cause to be built,
purchased, or hired, twelve vessels, none of which were to ex
ceed twenty -two guns, and to see that they were duly equipped
and manned. To effect these objects $950,000 were appro
priated. This law passed on the 27th of April, 1798, and on the
30th, a regular navy department was formally created. Ben
jamin Stoddart, of Georgetown, in the District of Columbia,
was the first secretary put at the head of this important branchof
the government, entering on his duties in June of the same year.
Down to this moment, the old treaty of alliance, formed be
tween France and the United States during the war of the
Revolution, and-some subsequent conventions, were legally in
existence ; but Congress by law solemnly abrogated them all,
on the 7th of July, 1798, on the plea that they had been re
peatedly disregarded by France, and that the latter country
continued, in the face of the most solemn remonstrances, to
practise a system of predatory warfare on the commerce of the
country. On the llth of July, 1798, a new marine corps was estab
lished by law, the old one having been disbanded with the navy
of the Revolution, to which it had properly belonged. On the
16th of the same month, a law was passed to construct three
more frigates. This act was expressed in such terms as to
enable the government immediately to complete the ships com
menced under the law of 1794, and which had been suspended
under that of 1796. The whole force authorised by law, on
the 1 6th of July, consequently, consisted of twelve frigates;
twelve ships of a force between 20 and 24 guns, inclusive ;
and six smaller sloops, besides galleys and revenue cutters ;
making a total of thirty active cruisers.
11*

126 NAVAL HISTORY. [1798.

CHAPTER XIV.
Although three of the frigates were launched in 1797,
neither was quite ready for service when the necessities of the
country required that vessels should be sent to sea. The
want of suitable spars and guns, and other naval stores, had
retarded the labour on the frigates, while vessels had been rea
dily bought for the sloops of war, which, though deficient in
many of the qualities and conveniences of regular cruisers,
were made to answer the exigencies of the times. Among
others that had been thus provided, was an Indiaman, called
the Ganges. Retaining her name, this vessel was brought
into the service, armed and equipped as a 24, and put under
the command of Captain Richard Dale, who was ordered to
sail on a cruise on the 22d of May. This ship, then, was the
first man-of-war that ever got to sea since the present organi
sation of the navy, or since the United States have existed un
der the constitution. Captain Dale was instructed to do no
more than pertains generally to' the authority of a vessel of
war, that is cruising on the coast of the country to which she
belongs, in a time of peace ; the law that empowered seizures
not passing until a few days after he had sailed. His cruising
ground extended from the east end of Long Island to the capes
of Virginia, with a view to cover, as much as possible, the
three important ports of Baltimore, Philadelphia, and New
York ; and, in anticipation of the act of the 28th of May,
Captain Dale was directed to appear off the capes of the De
laware on the 12th of June, to receive new orders. On that
day, instructions were accordingly sent to him to capture all
French cruisers that were hovering on the coast with hostile
views on the American commerce, and to recapture any of
their prizes he might happen to fall in with.
The Constellation 38, Captain Truxtun, and the Delaware
20, Captain Decatur, went to sea, early in June, under the last
of the foregoing orders, and with directions to cruise to the
southward of Cape Henry, as far as the coast of Florida.
When a few days out, the Delaware fell in with the French
privateer schooner Le Croyable 14, with a crew of 70 men.
Being satisfied that this vessel had already made several prizes,

1798.] NAVAL HISTORY. 127
and that she was actually cruising on soundings, in search of
more; Captain Decatur took her, and sent her into the Dela
ware. As the law directing the capture of all armed French
vessels passed soon after her arrival, Le Croyable was con
demned, and bought into the navy. She was called the Reta
liation, and the command of her was given to Lieutenant
Bainbridge. Le- Croyable was, consequently, not only the first capture
made, in what it is usual to term the war of 1798, but she
was the first vessel ever taken by the present navy, or under
the present form of government.
The activity employed by the administration, as well as by
the navy, now astonished those who had so long been accus
tomed to believe the American people disposed to submit to
any insult, in preference to encountering the losses of a war.
The United States 44, Captain Barry, went to sea early in
July, and proceeded to cruise to the eastward. This ship car
ried out with her many young gentlemen, who have since
risen to high rank and distinction in the service. But the law
of the 9th of that month, occurring immediately afterwards,
the government altered its policy entirely, and determined to
send, at once, a strong force among the West-India islands,
where the enemy abounded, and where the commerce of the
country was most exposed to his depredations. On the llth,
instructions were sent to Captain Barry, who now hoisted a
broad pennant, to go off Cape Cod, with the Delaware 20,
Captain Decatur, where he would find the Herald 18, Captain
Sevier, that officer preferring active service in a small vessel,
to waiting for the frigate to which he had been appointed, and
then to proceed directly to th% West-Indies, keeping to wind
ward. That well-known frigate, the Constitution 44, had been
launched at Boston, September 20th 1797 ; and she first got
under way, July 20th of this year, under Captain Samuel Ni
cholson, who, in August, with four revenue vessels in com
pany, was directed to cruise on the coast, to the southward of
Cape Henry.
Early in August, the Constellation 38, Captain Truxtun, and
the Baltimore 20, Captain Phillips, went to the Havana, and
brought a convoy of sixty sail in safety to the United States ;
several French cruisers then Jying in the port, ready to follow
the merchEmtmen, but for this force, the presence of which
prevented them from appearing outside the castle. By the

128 NAVALHISTORY. [1798,
close of the year, a force consisting of three frigates eleyen
sloops and brigs, and nine smaller vessels, was at sea; most
of the vessels being either in the West Indies, or employed in
convoying between the islands and the United States.
Besides the vessels named, many more were already laid
down ; and so great was the zeal of the commercial towns, in
particular, that no less than two frigates, and five large sloops
were building by subscription, in the different principal ports.
In addition to this force, must be enumerated eight large gal
leys, that were kept on the southern coast, to defend their
inlets. It has been stated that the privateer Le Croyable 14, cap
tured by the Delaware 20, had been taken into the service,
under the name of the Retaliation. In November, 1798,
the Montezuma 20, Captain Murray, Norfolk 18, Captain
Williams, and the Retaliation 12, Lieutenant-Commandant
Bainbridge, were cruising in company off Guadaloupe, when
three sails were made to the eastward, and soon after two
more to the westward. Captain Murray, who was the se
nior officer, was led to suppose, from circumstances, that the
vessels in the eastern board were British ; and speaking the
Retaliation, he ordered Lieutenant Bainbridge to reconnoitre
them, avhile with the Norfolk in company, he gave chase, him
self, in the Montezuma, to the two vessels to the westward.
The Retaliation, in obedience to these orders, immediately
hauled up towards the three strangers, and getting near enough
for signals, she showed her own number, with a view to ascer
tain if they were Americans. Finding that he was not under
stood. Lieutenant Bainbridge mistook the strangers for English
cruisers, knowing that several were on the station, and unluck
ily permitted them to approach so near, that when their real
characters were ascertained, it was too late to escape. The
leading ship, a French frigate, was an uncommonly fast sailer,
and she was soon near enough to open her fire. It was not
long before another frigate came up, when the Retaliation was
compelled to lower her flag. Thus did this unlucky vessel be
come the first cruiser taken by both parties, in this war. The
frigates by which the Retaliation was captured, proved to be
the Volontaire 36, and the Insurgente 32, the former carrying
44, and the latter 40 guns. Mr. Bainbridge was put on board
the Volontaire, while the Insurgente, perceiving that the
schooner was safe, contmued to carry sail in chase of the

1798.] NAVAL HISTORY. 129
Montezuma and Norfolk. As soon as a prize crew could bo
thrown into the Retaliation, the Volontaire crowded sail after
her consort. The chase now became exceedingly interestmg,
the two American vessels being fully aware, by the capture of
the schooner, that they had to deal with an enemy. The In
surgente was one of the fastest ships in the world, and her
commander an officer of great skill and resoliition. The two
American vessels were small for their rates, and, indeed, were
over-rated, the Montezuma being a little ship of only 347 tons,
and the Norfolk a brig of 200. Their armaments were merely
nines and sixes ; shot that would be scarcely regarded in a
conflict with frigates. The officers of the Volontaire collected
on the forecastle of their ship to witness the chase ; and the In
surgente being, by this time, a long way ahead, Captain St.
Laurent, the commander of the Volontaire, asked Mr. Bain-
"bridge, who was standing near him, what might be the force
of the two American vessels. With great presence of mmd,
Mr. Bainbridge answered, that the ship carried 28 twelves, and
the brig 20 nines. As this account quite doubled the real force
of the Americans, Captain St. Laurent, who was senior to the-
commander of the Insurgente, immediately threw out a signal
to the latter to relinquish the chase. This was an unmiUtary
order, even admitting the fact to have been as stated, for the
Insurgente would have been fully able to employ two such
vessels until the Volontaire could come up ; but the recent suc
cesses of the English had rendered the French cruisers wary,
and the Americans and English, as seamen, were probably
identified in the minds of the enemy. The signal caused as
much surprise to Captain Murray, in the Montezuma, as to
Captain Barreault, of the Insurgente ; for the latter, an excel
lent and spirited officer, had got so near his chases as to have
made out their force, and to feel certain of capturing both.
The signal was obeyed, however, and the Montezuma and
Norfolk escaped.
'When the two French Vessels rejoined each other, Captain
Barreault naturally expressed his surprise at having been re
called under such circumstances. An explanation followed,
when the ruse that had been practised by Mr. Bainbridge, was
discovered. It is to the credit of the French officers, that,
while they were much vexed at the results of this artifice, they
never visited the offender with their displeasure.
The United States 44, and Delaware 20, captured the pri-

130 NAVAL HISTORY. [1799.
vateers Sans Pareil 16, and Jaloux 14, in the course of the
autumn, and sent them in.
Thus terminated the year 1798, leaving the United States
with a hastily collected, an imperfectly organised, and un
equally disciplined squadron of ships, it is true ; but a service
that contained the germ of all that is requisite to make an ac
tive, an efficient, and a glorious marine.

CHAPTER XV.
The year 1799 opened with no departure from the policy
laid down by the government, and the building and equipping
of the different ships in various parts of the country, were
pressed with as much diligence as the public resources would
then allow. In the course of this season, many vessels were
launched, and most of them got to sea within the year. Inclu
ding all, those that were employed in 1798, those that were
put in commission early in the ensuing year, and those that
were enabled to quit port nearer to its close, the entire active
naval force of the United States, in 1799, would seem to have
been composed of the following vessels, viz :
United States  : . . 44, Delaware  20,
Constitution  44, Baltimore  20
Congress  38, , Patapsco  20.
Constellation . '.  38, Maryland  20,
Essex  32, Herald  18
General Greene  28, Norfolk  18,
Boston  28, Richmond  18,
Adams  28, Pinckney  18,
John Adams  28, Warren  18;
Portsmouth  24, Eagle,  18,
Connecticut  24, Pickering  14,
Ganges  24, Augusta  14
Geo. Washington, ... 24, Scammel  14;
Merrimack  24, Enterprise  12.
To these must be added a few revenue vessels, though most
of this description of cruisers appear to have been kept on tho

1799.] NAVAL HISTORY. 131
coast throughout this year. As yet, the greatest confusion and
irregularity prevailed in the rating, no uniform system appear
ing to have been adopted. The vessels built by the different
cities, and presented to the public, in particular, were rated too
high, from a natural desire to make the offering as respectable
as possible ; and it does not appear to have been thought expe
dient, on the part of the government, prematurely to correct
the mistakes.
On the 9th of February, the Constellation 38, Commodore
Truxtun, was cruising on her prescribed ground, Nevis bearing
W. S. W., distant five leagues, when she made a large ship
in the southern board. The Constellation being to windward
at the moment. Commodore Truxtun ran down towards the
stranger, who now set American colours, when the private
signals were shown. As the chase was unable to answer, he
seemed to think further disguise unnecessary, for he hoisted
the French ensign, and fired a gun to windward, by way of a
challenge, keeping under easy sail, to invite the contest. This
was the first opportunity that had occurred since the close of
the Revolution, for an American vessel of war to get alongside
of an enemy, of a force likely to render a combat certain, and
the officers and men of the Constellation displayed the greatest
eagerness to engage. On the other hand, the stranger be
trayed no desire to disappoint his enemy, waiting gallantly for
her to come down. When the Constellation had got abeam of
the French frigate, and so near as to have been several times
hajled, she opened her fire, which was returned promptly and
with spirit. The Constellation drew gradually ahead, both
ships maintaining a fierce cannonade. The former suffered
most in her sails and rigging, and while under the heaviest of
the fire of her antagonist, the fore-topmast was badly wounded,
»quite near the lower cap. The fore-top was commanded by
Mr. David Porter, a midshipman of great promise, and finding
thg,t his hails to communicate this important circumstance were
disregarded, in the heat of the combat, this young officer took
on himself the responsibility of cutting the stoppers and of
lowering the yard. By thus relieving the spar of the pressure
of the sail, he prevented the fall of the topmast and all its
hamper. In the mean time the weight and effect of the fire were
altogether in favour of the Constellation, and notwithstanding
the injury she received in her fore-topmast, that ship was soon
able to throw in two or three raking broadsides, which decided

132 NAVAL HISTORY. [1799.
the combat. After maintaining a close contest of about an hour,
the Constellation shot out of the smoke, wore round, and haul
ing athwart her antagonist's stern, was ready again with every
gun to rake her, when the enemy struck.
The prize proved to be the French frigate I'Insurgente, Cap
tain Barreault, the vessel that has already been mentioned, as
having captured the Retaliation, and chasing the Montezuma
and Norfolk, and one of the fastest ships in. the world. She
was much cut up, and had sustained a loss of 70 men, in
killed and wounded ; 29 of the former, and 41 of the latter.
The Constellation, besides the loss of the fore-topmast, which
had to be shifted, was much damaged aloft, suffering no mate
rial injury in her hull, however, and had only 3 men wounded.
Among the latter, was Mr. James M'Donough, a midshipman,
who had a foot shot off. Early in the combat, one of the men
flinched from his gun, and he was killed by the third lieuten
ant, to whose division he belonged.
The Insurgente's armament consisted of 40 guns, French
twelves, on her main-deck battery, and her complement of men
was 409. She was a ship a little heavier than a regular 32,
which would probably have been her rate in the English ma- '
rine, although a French twelve-pound shot weighs nearly thir
teen English pounds. On this occasion, the Constellation is
said to have carried but 38 guns, twelve less than have been
put upon her since the introduction of carronades, and she had
a crew of 309 men. But the main-deck battery of the Con
stellation was composed of twenty-fours, a gun altogether too
heavy for her size and strength, and from which she was re
lieved at the termination of this cruise, by exchanging her
armament for eighteens.
The Insurgente struck about half past three in the afternoon,
and Mr. Rodgers,* the first lieutenant of the Constellation, to- <
gether with Mr. Porter,"j" and eleven men, were thrown on
board her, to take possession, and to superintend the removal "
of the prisoners. It began to blow, and when the darkness
rendered it necessary to defer the duty, 173 of the prize's crew
were still in her. The wind continued to rise, and, notwith
standing every effort, the ships separated in the darkness.
The situation of Mr. Rodgers was now exceedingly critical.
The vessel was still covered with the wreck, while the wound-
* Late Coramodore Rodgers. t Commodore Porter.

1799.] NAVAL HISTORY. 133
ed, and even the dead were lying scattered about her decks,
and the prisoners early discovered a disposition to rise. The
gratings had been thrown overboard by the people of the In
surgente after she struck, and no handcuffs could he found.
Fortunately, Mr. Rodgers was a man of great personal resolu
tion, and of herculean strength, while Mr. Porter, though
young and comparatively slight, was as good a second, in such
trying circumstances, as any one could desire. As soon as it
was ascertained that the prisoners could not be got out of the
ship that night, they were all sent into the lower hold, the fire
arms were secured, and a sentinel was placed at each hatch
way, armed to the teeth, with positive orders to shoot every
man who should attempt to appear on deck, without permis
sion. In this awkward situation, Mr. Rodgers and his party
continued three days, unable to sleep, compelled to manage a
frigate, and to watch their prisoners with the utmost vigilance,
as the latter were constantly on the look-out for an opportunity
to retake the ship. At the end of that time, they carried the
Insurgente, in triumph, into St. Kitts, where they found that
the Constellation had already arrived.
One of the effects of the victory of the Constellation was to
render the navy still more popular, and the most respectable
families of the nation discovered greater anxiety than ever to
get their sons enrolled on its lists. The new ships were put
into the water as fast as possible, and, as soon as manned and
equipped, were sent on the different cruising grounds. L'ln-
surgente was taken into the service as a thirty -six, the com
mand of her was given to Captain Murray, late of the Monte
zuma 20, and she was permitted to cruise with a roving com
mission. In the mean time, the care of the government appeared to
extend itself, and it began to cast its eyes beyond the hazards
of the American seas.
At the close of the year, the Congress 38, Captain Sever,
and Essex 32, Captain Preble, sailed with orders to convoy
vessels as far as Batavia. The former of these vessels met
with an accident to which all new ships are liable on quitting
America in the winter. Her rigging having been set up in
cold weather, it became slack when she got into the gulf
stream, where she also encountered a strong southerly gale,
and she lost not only all her masts, but her bowsprit. The
main-mast went while Mr. Bosworth, the fourth lieutenant, was
aloft, endeavouring to lower the main-topmast, by which acci-
12

134 NAVAL HISTORY. [1^99.
dent that officer was lost. The crew of the top were all hap
pily saved.
The Congress returned to port, for repairs, but Captain Preble
proceeded on his cruise, carrying the pennant, for the first time
in a regular cruiser, to the eastward of the Cape of Good Hope.
The active measures resorted to by the American govern
ment having better disposed that of France to negotiate, and
pledges having been given that new ministers would be re
ceived with more respect than had been shown to those last
sent, who had met with insults and neglect, the United States
44, Commodore- Barry, sailed from Newport, Rhode Island, on
the 3d of November, having on board envoys to the French
Directory. Notwithstanding these measures to obtain peace.
Congress proceeded in the legislation necessary to establish a
marine. Many of the laws for the government of the navy
were amended, and new regulations were introduced as substi
tutes for such of the old ones as were found defective. The
appropriation for the support of the navy, during the year 1800,
the marine corps included, amounted to $2,482,953 90.
The new year consequently opened with increased efforts
to continue the singular war that had now existed eighteen
months. Many acquisitions were made to the navy, and the
following is a list of the vessels that appear to have been em
ployed in the course of the season, principally in the West-In
dies, viz :
United States  44, Portsmouth  24,
Constitution  44, Merrimack  24,
President  44, Delaware  20
Constellation  38, Baltimore  20
Congress  38, Maryland  20|
Chesapeake  38, Paitapsco ;  20
Philadelphia  38, Herald : .¦..-... ."  18
New York  36, Norfolk' .......  18
Insurgente  36, Richmond.  18,
Essex  "32, Pinckney  18
General Greene  28, Warren  18
Adams  28, Eagle  14
John Adams  28, Pickering  .14
Boston  28, Augusta  14
Geo. Washington .... 24, Scammel  14,
Connecticut  24, Enterprise  12
Ganges  24, Experiment  12
Trumbull  24,

1799.] NAVAL HISTORY. 135
By this time, the revenue vessels, with the exception of one
or two, appear to have been retained at home, and in the fore
going list, no mention is made of galleys. Laws had been
previously passed for the construction of six seventy -fours, and
contracts were already made for the collection of the necessary
materials. The cruising portion of the vessels were distributed in two
principal squadrons, the one on the St. Domingo station under
the orders of Commodore Talbot, whose broad pennant was
flying in the Constitution 44, and the other on the Guadaloupe
station, under the orders, first of Commodore Truxtun, in the
Constellation 38, and next under the orders of Commodore
Decatur, in the Philadelphia 38. The force of the former
varied from seven to twelve vessels, while that of the latter, in
April, consisted of thirteen sail.
Notwithstanding this exhibition of a respectable and active
force, the great facilities offered by the islands, and the strong
temptations that were to be found in the American West-India
trade, then one of the most considerable of the country, induced
the enemy to be constantly on the alert, and the seas were still
swarming with French cruisers, principally privateers. Gua
daloupe, in particular, was distinguished for the number of
captures made by its vessels ; and it was for this reason that
we now find the heaviest American squadron cruising in that
vicinity. On the 1st of February, 1800, the Constellation 38, Com
modore Truxtun, was again off the island of Guadaloupe,
alone, Basseterre bearing east five leagues, when a sail was
seen to the southeast, steering westward. Commodore Trux
tun at first supposed the ship in sight to be a large English
merchantman, from Martinico, of which he had some know
ledge, and, unwilling to be drawn to leeward of his cruising
ground, he hoisted English colours, by way of inducing her to
run down and speak him. This invitation being disregarded,
sail was made in chase, the Constellation gaining fast on the
stranger. As the former drew nearer, the ship to leeward was
discovered to be a French vessel of war, when the English
colours were hauled down, and the Constellation cleared for
action. The chase was now distinctly made out to be a heavy
frigate mounting 52 guns. As her metal was in all probability
equal to her rate, the only circumstance to equalise this dis
parity against the Constellation, was the fact that the stranger

136 NAVAL HIStORY. [1779.
was very deep, which was accounted for by a practice of send
ing valuable articles to France, at that time, in the ships of
war, as the safest means of transmission. Commodore Trux
tun was not discouraged by his discovery, but continued to
carry every stitch of canvass that would draw. Towards
noon, however, the wind became light, and the enemy had the
advantage in sailing. In this manner, with variable breezes,
and a smooth sea, the chase continued until noon on the 2d,
when the wind freshened, and the Constellation again drew
ahead. By the middle of the afternoon, the wind had every
appearance of standing, and the chase was rising fast.. It was
eight in the evening, nevertheless, before the two ships were
within speaking distance of each other, the stranger having
come up to the wind a little, and the Constellation doubling on
her weather quarter. Commodore Truxtun was about to speak
to the enemy, when the latter opened a fire from his stern and
quarter guns. In a few moments the Constellation, having
drawn still more on the weather quarter of the chase, poured in
a broadside, and the action began in earnest. It was a little
past eight when the firing commenced, and it was maintained
with vigour until near one in the morning, the two ships, most
of the time, running free, side by side, when the stranger
hauled up, and drew out of the combat. Orders were given
on board the Constellation to brace up in chase ; but at this
moment, a report was brought to Commodore Truxtun that the
main-mast was supported almost solely by the wood, every
shroud having been shot away, and many of them so repeatedly
cut as to render the use of stoppers impossible. At that time,
as has been said already, masts were usually, in the American
navy, of single sticks, and the spars, when they gave way,
went altogether. Aware of this danger. Commodore' Truxtun
ordered the men from the guns, to secure this all-important
mast, with the hope of getting alongside of his enemy again,
and, judging by the feebleness of her resistance for the last
hour, with the certainty of taking her, could this object be
effected. But no exertion could obviate the calamity, the
mast coming by the board within a few minutes after the ene-
myhad sheered off. All the topmen, including Mr. Jarvis,
the midshipman in command aloft, went over the side with the
spars, and, that gallant young officer, who had refused to
abandon his post, with all but one man, was lost.
The Constellation was no longer in a situation to resume .

1800.] NAVAL HISTORY. 137
the action, and her enemy was in a far worse condition, with
the exception that she still retained spars enough to enable her
to escape. Finding it impossible to reach any friendly port to
windward, as soon as 'the wreck was clear of his ship. Com
modore Truxtun bore up for Jamaica, where he arrived in
safety. In this close and hard-fought action, the Constellation had
14 men killed and 25 wounded, 11 of the latter dying of their
injuries. Her antagonist afterwards got into Curacoa, dis
masted, and in a sinking condition, reporting herself to have
had 50 of her people killed, and 110 wounded, in an engage
ment with the Constellation, that had lasted five hours within
pistol-shot. This statement is now known to be essentially
true, and it enables us to form a comparative estimate of the
merits of the action. The French vessel proved to be la Ven
geance, Captain Pitot.
The armament of the Constellation had been changed since
her action with the Insurgente, and her main-deck battery
now consisted of 28 eighteens, and she had 10 twenty-four-
pound carronades pn her quarter-deck, which were among the
first, if not the very first guns of this description ever intro
duced into the American navy. Her crew was composed of
310 souls.
The force of la Vengeance has been ascertained to have
been 28 eighteens, 16 twelves, and 8 forty- two-pound carron
ades. Her crew has been variously stated as having been be
tween 400 and 500 men. The metal was all according to
the French mode of weighing, which adds one pound to every
twelve. There is no question that the Constellation engaged a ma
terially superior force, or any doubt that she would have
brought la Vengeance into port, but for the loss of the mast.
It is even said that la Vengeance did strike her colours three
times, during the action, but finding that the Constellation con
tinued her fire, they were re-hoisted. If such an event oc
curred, it must have arisen from the fact that it was not per
ceived in the obscurity of the night. Commodore Truxtun
gained a great name by this action, and on his return to
America for repairs, he was appointed to the President 44, then
fitting for sea. Congress gave him a gold medal for his good
conduct, and the gallantry of Mr. Jarvis was approved in a
solemn resolution. The Constellation was now given to Cap
tain Murray, who had just returned from a short cruise in the
12*

138 NAVAL HISTORY. [1800.
Insurgente, and that officer went in her to the West-Indies,
where she joined the squadron under Commodore Talbot.
The latter officer had been cruising for some months on the
St. Domingo station, and about this time he planned an expe
dition that was quite in character with his own personal enter
prises during the war of the Revolution.
It was ascertained that a valuable French letter of marque,
was lying in Port Platte, a small harbour on the Spanish side
of the Island of St. Domingo, and as she was a dangerous ship
on account of her sailing. Commodore Talbot determined to
attempt cutting her out. This vessel had been the British
packet the Sandwich, and shp only waited to complete a cargo
of coffee,^ to make a run for France. The legality of the enter
prise was more than questionable, but the French picaroons
received so much favour in the Spanish colonies, that the
American officers were less scrupulous than they might other
wise have been.
As soon as it was determined to make the effort, Mr. Hull,
the first lieutenant of the Constitution went in, at night, with
one of the frigate's cutters, and reconnoitred. Commodore
Talbot was compelled to defer the expedition, for want of a
craft proper to avoid suspicion, when fortunately one was
found by accident. An American sloop called the Sally had
been employed on the coast of the island, under circumstances
that rendered her liable to detention, and she was brought out
of one of the small French ports, by a boat of the frigate.
This sloop had recently left Port Platte, with an intention of
soon returning there, and she, at once, afforded all the facilities
that could be desired.
Commodore Talbot, accordingly, threw a party of seamen
and marines into the Sally, and giving the command to Mr.
Hull, that officer was directed to proceed on the duty without
further delay. The sloop was manned at sea, to escape de
tection, and she sailed at an hour that would enable her to
reach Port Platte, about noon of the succeeding day. In the
course of the night, while running down for her port, under
easy sail, a shot suddenly flew over the Sally, and, soon after,
an English frigate ranged up alongside. Mr. Hull hove-to,
and when the boarding lieutenant got on the sloop's deck,
where he found so large a party of men and officers in naval
uniforms, he, was both startled and surprised. , He was told
the object of the expedition, however, and expressed his disap-

1800.] NAVAL HISTORY. 139
pointment, as his own ship was only waiting to let the Sand
wich complete her cargo, in order to cut her out herself!
The Sally's movements were so well timed, as to perrhit her
to arrive off the harbour's mouth at the proper hour. The
Sandwich was lying with her broadside bearing on the ap
proach, and there was a battery at no great distance to protect
her. As soon as near enough to be seen, Mr. Hull sent most
of his people below, and getting an anchor ready over the
stern, to bring the sloop up with, he stood directly for the
enemy's bows. So admir^ably was every thing arranged, that
no suspicion was excited, the Sally ran the Sandwich aboard,
and the Constitution's people went into her, and carried her with
out the loss of a man. At the same moment, Captain Car-
mick landed with the marines, entered the battery, and spiked
the guns.
Notwithstanding a great commotion on shore, the Americans
now went to work to secure their prize. The Sandwich was
stripped to a girtline, and every thing was below. Before sun
set she had royal yards across, her guns were scaled, her new
crew was quartered, and soon after she weighed, beat out of the
harbour, and joined the frigate.
No enterprise of the sort was ever executed with greater
steadiness, or discipline. Mr. Hull gained great credit by the
neatness with which he fulfilled his orders, and it was not pos
sible for an officer to have been better sustained ; the absence
of loss, in all cases of surprise, in which the assailed have the
means of resistance, being one of the strongest proofs not only
of the gallantry and spirit, but of the coolness of the assail
ants. In the end, however, this capture, which was clearly illegal,
cost the Constitution dear. Not only was the Sandwich given
up, but all the prize money of the cruise went to pay damages.
Early in May, the Chesapeake 38, went to sea, under the
command of Captain S. Barron. Her first duty was to convey
a quantity of specie from Charleston to Philadelphia, after
which she proceeded to cruise between the coast and the West-
India islands.
The Insurgente 36 had been given to Captain Fletcher,
when Captain Murray was transferred to the Constellation,
and in July she sailed on a cruise, with instructions to keep
between longitudes 66° and 68°, and to run as far south as
30° N. L. After this ship left the capes of Virginia, no au
thentic' accounts, with the exception of a few private letters

140 NAVAL HISTORY. [1800.
sent in by vessels spoken at sea, were ever received of her.
She had been ordered to cruise a short time in the latitude and
longitude mentioned, after which her commander was left at
liberty to pursue his own discretion, provided he returned to
Annapolis within eight weeks. Thirty-nine years have elapsed
and no further tidings of any belonging to this ill-fated ship
have ever reached their friends.
The Pickering 14, Captain Hlllar, also sailed in August, for
the Guadaloupe station, and never returned. As in the case
of the Insurgente, all on board perished, no information that
could be relied on ever having been obtained of the manner in
which these vessels were lost. Vague rumours were set afloat
at the time, and it was even affirmed that they had run foul
of each other in a gale, a tale that was substantiated by no
testimony, and which was probably untrue, as the Pickering
was sent to a station, which the Insurgente, under discretionary
orders, would be little apt to seek, since it was known to be
already filled with American cruisers. These two ships swelled
the list of vessels of war that had been lost in this manner to
three, viz : the Saratoga 16, the Insurgente 36, and the Pick
ering 14 ; to which may be added the Reprisal 16, though the
cook of the latter sloop was saved.
The nature of the warfare, which was now confined princi
pally to chases and conflicts with small fast-sailing privateers,
and a species of corsair that went by the local name of pica
roons, or with barges that ventured no grea't distance at sea,
soon satisfied the government that, to carry on the service to
advantage, it required a species of vessel different from the
heavy, short, sloop of twenty, or twenty-four guns, of which
so many were used in the beginning of the contest. Two
schooners had been built with this view, and each of them
fully proved their superiority over the old clumsy cruiser, that
had been inherited, as it might be, from the Revolution. One
of these vessels was called the Experiment, and the other the
Enterprise, and they were rated at twelve guns. The modern
improvements, however, did not extend to the armaments of
even these schooners, the old-fashioned six-pounder being still
used, where an 181b. carronade would now be introduced.
The Enterprise, Lieutenant Commandant Shaw, was very ac
tive this year, capturing la Citoyenne, privateer, of 6 guns and
47 men; la Seine 6, and 57 men; I'Aigle 10, and 78 men;
la Pauline 6, and 40 men ; and la Guadaloupeenne 7, and 45
men. Most of these vessels resisted, though neither was of a

1800.] NAVAL HISTORV. 141
force to afford much hope of success. La Citoyenne had 4
killed and 11 wounded before she struck; la Seine made an
obstinate resistance, holding out until she had 24 of her crew
killed and wounded, which was near half her complement ;
and I'Aigle lost 12 men, among whom was her first lieutenant,
in an action of fifteen minutes. In the last affair the Enter
prise had three men killed and wounded.
Near the close of her cruise, the Enterprise made a strange
sail a long distance to windward, late in the day, and hauled
up for her. Night coming on, the chase was lost sight of in
the darkness, when the schooner hove-to, to keep her station.
When the day dawned the stranger, a brig, was seen to wind
ward as before, and nearly in the position in which she had
last been observed. Both vessels now discovered a disposition
to close. At noon the Enterprise made the American signal,
which was not answered, the brig showing English colours.
The signals that had been established between the English and
tbe American commanders were next shown, but the stranger
could not reply. Believing the brig to be an enemy of a force
at least equal to his own. Lieutenant Commandant Shaw now
set his ensign as a challenge to come down, but, instead of
complying, the chase immediately hauled his wind. The En
terprise began turning to windward on short tacks, and sailing
uncommonly fast, it was soon apparent that the enemy would
be overhauled.
As soon as the French were satisfied that escape was im
possible, they cleared for action, and waiting until the Enter
prise was within half a mile to leeward, they began to fire.
Instead of returning a gun. Lieutenant Commandant Shaw
kept the schooner under all her canvass, and, about half an
hour after the brig had opened on him, he tacked in her
wake, and ranged up handsomely under her, lee, within pistol-
shot. As her guns bore, the Enterprise now poured in a close
and destructive fire, which lasted for a little more than an hour,
when the brig's fore-topmast being shot away, and the vessel
otherwise seriously injured, she struck.
The prize was the Flambeau privateer. She mounted 14
guns, and had more than 100 men. Her loss was very heavy,
about half her crew having been killed and wounded. The
Enterprise had 3 men killed and 7 wounded. This little affair
was considered one of the warmest combats of the war, and
it is seldom that so sharp a conflict occurs between vessels of
so small a force.

142 NAVAL HISTORY. [1800.
Lieutenant Shaw was justly applauded for his activity while
in command of this schooner, recapturing eleven American
vessels, besides taking those just mentioned, in a cruise of only
eight months. It was a proof of the greater efficiency of this
description of vessel than any other, in a warfare of such a
nature, that the Enterprise, a schooner of only 165 tons, car
rying an armament of 12 light guns, and with a crew that
varied from 60 to 75 men, destroyed more of the enemy's pri
vateers, and afforded as much protection to the trade of the
country, as any frigate employed in the war.
In March, the Boston 28, Captain Little, being near the
Point of St. Marks, having a merchant brig in tow, on her
way to Port-au-Prince, nine barges were discovered pulling
towards the vessels, coming from the small island of Gonaives,
with every appearance of hostile intentions. The barges were
"large, as usual, pulled 20 oars, and contained from 30 to 40
men each. As soon as their characters were properly made
out, the guns of the Boston were housed, and the ship was other
wise disguised. This stratagem succeeded so far as to draw
the barges within gun-shot ; but discovering their mistake be
fore they got as near as could be wished, they turned ahd be
gan to retreat. The Boston now cast off her tow, made sail
in chase, ran out her guns, and opened her fire. For two
hours she was enabled to keep some of the barges within
reach of her shot, and three of them, with all their crews,
were sunk. The remainder did not escape without receiving
more or less injury.
After this punishment of the picaroons, which were often
guilty of the grossest excesses, the Boston, having been home
to refit, was directed to cruise a short time, previously to go
ing on the Guadaloupe station again, between the American
coast and the West-India islands. While in the discharge of
this duty, November, 1800, in lat. 22° 50' N., and long. 51°
W., she made a French cruiser, which, instead of avoiding
her, evidently sought an encounter. Both parties being will
ing, the ships were soon in close action, when, after a plain,
hard-fought combat of two hours, the enemy struck. The
prize proved to be the French corvette le Berceau, Captain
Senes, mounting 24 guns, and with a crew a little exceeding
200 men. The Berceau was much cut up, and shortly after
the action her fore and main-masts went. Her loss in killed
and wounded was never ascertained, but from the number of
the latter found in her, it was probably between 30 and 40

NAVAL HISTORY. 143
men. Among the former were her first lieutenant, master,
boatswain, and gunner. The Boston mounted eight more light
guns than the Berceau, and had about an equal number of
men. She had 4 killed and 11 wounded. Among the latter
was her purser, Mr. Young, who died of his injuries. The
Berceau was a singularly fine vessel of her class, and had the
reputation of being one of the fastest ships in the French ma
rine. Like the combat between the Constellation and I'Insur
gente, the superiority of force was certainly in favour of the
American ship, on this occasion, but the execution was every
way in proportion to the difference.
The year 1800 was actively employed on both sides in the
West-Indies, for while the force of the French in vessels of
war seemed to decrease, as those of England and America
increased, the privateers still abounded. A great many Ame
rican merchantmen were captured, and the recaptures also
amounted to a number that it is now difficult to ascertain, but
which is known to have been large. Most of the privateers
were small schooners, filled with men, sufficient to subdue a
letter of marque by boarding ; but, as they offered no resist
ance to any of the cruisers except the smallest, a brief cata
logue of the prizes taken by the different large vessels, will at
once give an idea of the nature of the service that was per
formed by the West-India squadrons during this year. The
Baltimore 20, Captain Cowper, took la Brilliante Jeunesse 12,
with a crew of 62 men, and a vessel whose name is not known ;
the Merrimack 24, Captain Brown, the Phenix 14, with 128
men ; the Connecticut 24, Captain Tryon, le Piege 2, with 50
men, I'Unite I, with 50 men, and le Chou Chou ; the Boston
28, Captain Little, la Fortune, I'Heureux, and an open boat ;
Pickering 14, Captain Hillar, la Voltigeuse 10, with 60 men,
the Fly, and 1' Active 12, with 60 men ; Boston 32, in compa
ny with different vessels, the Flying Fish, la Gourde, le Peli
can, and I'Espoir; Herald 18 and Augusta 14, la Mutine 6,
with 60 men ; John Adams 28, Captain Cross, le Jason, with
50 men, la Decade ; the Trumbull 24, Captain Jewett, la Peg
gie, la Vengeance 10, and la Tullie; Enterprise 12, Lieuten
ant Commandant Sterrett, I'Amour de la Patrie 6, with 72
men ; the Patapsco 18, Captain Geddes, la Dorade 6, with
46 men ; the Adams 28, Captain Morris, I'Heureuse Rencon
tre 4, with 50 men, le Gambeau, 4 swivels and 16 men, la
Renommee, the Dove, and le Massena 6, with 49 men. Sev
eral of the frigates also made prizes of different small priva-

144 NAVAL HISTORY. [1800.
teers, barges, and boats ; and many vessels were chased on
shore, and either destroyed by boats or were bilged in striking.
The privateers taken and brought into port, during the years
1798, 1799, and 1800, amounted in all to rather more than
fifty saU. To these must be added several letters of marque.
But few merchant ships were taken, the French venturing but
little on the ocean, except in fast-sailing armed vessels. Still,
some valuable prizes of this nature were made, and several
ships of this class were driven ashore among the islands.
The constant changes that occurred among the commanders
of the different vessels, render it difficult to give clear accounts
of the movements of both. These changes were owing to the
rapidity and irregularities of the promotions in an infant ser
vice, officers who went out. at the commencement of the sea
son lieutenants, in many instances, returning home captains,
at its close. . In short, the officers, like the crews, were con
stantly passing from vessel to vessel, several serving in two or
three ships in as many years.
The Experiment 12, made her first cruise under the com
mand of Lieutenant Commandant Maley, and was much em
ployed in convoying through the narrow passages, where tho
vessels were exposed to attacks from large barges manned
from the shores. About the close of the year 1799, or at the
commencement of 1800, this schooner was becalmed in the
Bight of Leogane, with several sail of American merchantmen
in company and under convoy. While the little fleet lay in
this helpless condition, a good deal scattered, ten of tbe barges
mentioned, filled with negroes and mulattoes, came out against
it. The barges contained from 30 to 40 men each, who were
armed with muskets, cutlasses, and pikes, and in some of the
boats were light guns and swivels. As the Experiment was
partially disguised, the enemy came within reach of her grape
before the assault was made, when Lieutenant Commandant
Maley ran out his guns and opened his fire. This was the
commencement of a long conflict, in which the barges were
beaten off. It was not in the power of the Experiment, how
ever, to prevent the enemy from seizing two of her convoy,
which had drifted to such a distance as to be beyond protec
tion. A third vessel was also boarded, but from her the brig
ands were driven by grape, though not until they had murder
ed her master and plundered the cabin.
The barges went twice to the shore, landed their killed and
wounded, and took on board reinforcements of men. The

1800.] NAVAL HISTORY. 145
second attack they made was directed especially at the Ex
periment, there being no less than three divisions of the enemy,
each of which contained three heavy barges. But, after a pro
tracted engagement, which, with the intermissions, lasted seven
hours, the enemy abandoned further designs on this convoy,
_and retreated in disorder. The Experiment endeavoured to
follow, by means of her sweeps, but finding that some of the
more distant of the barges threatened two of her convoy that
had drifted out of gun-shot, she was obliged to give up the
chase. In this arduous and protracted engagement the Experiment
was fought with spirit, and handled with skill. The total ab
sence of wind gave the enemy every advantage ; but notwith
standing their vast superiority in numbers, they did not dare
to close. Two of the barges were sunk, and their loss in
killed and wounded was known to have been heavy, while the
Experiment had but two wounded, one of whom was Lieutenant
David Porter.
Shortly after this affair, the command of the Experiment was
given to Lieutenant Charles Stewart, late of the United States
44. Not long after he had got upon his station, this officer
fell in with, and took, after a slight resistance, the French
privateer les Deux Amis, of 8 guns, and between 40 and 50
men. The Deux Amis was sent in.
About a month after this occurrence, while cruising on her
station, the Experiment made two sail, which had the appear
ance of enemy's cruisers. The Frenchmen were a brig of
18 guns, and a three-masted schooner of 14, and they gave
chase to the American. Lieutenant-Commandant Stewart,
having soon satisfied himself of the superior saihng of his own
vessel, manoeuvred in a way to separate the enemy, and to
keep them at a distance until after dark. At length, finding
that the Frenchmen had given up the chase, and that the brig
was about a league ahead of the schooner, he cleared for ac
tion, closed with the latter, by running up on her weather
quarter, and gave her a broadside. The attack was so vigor
ous and close, that the enemy struck in a few minutes. Throw
ing his first lieutenant, Mr. David Porter, into the prize, Lieu
tenant-Commandant Stewart immediately made sail after the
brig ; but she had gained so much ahead, during the time lost
with the schooner, that she was soon abandoned, and the Ex
periment returned to her prize, which she carried into St. Kitts.
13

146 NAVAL HISTORY. [1800.
Mr. Stewart probably owed his success to the boldness of his
manoeuvres, as the brig was of a force sufficient to capture
him in a few minutes.
The vessel taken by the Experiment proved to be the French
man-of-war schooner la Diane, Lieutenant Perradeau, of 14
guns, and about 60 men. She was bound to France, with
General Rigaud on board ; and in addition to her regular crew,
30 invalid soldiers had been put in her, having served their
time in the islands. Her commander had been the first lieu
tenant of I'Insurgente, and the prize-officer of the Retaliation.
Returning to her station, the Experiment had next a combat
that was of a less agreeable nature. A suspicious sail had
been made in the course of the day, and chase was given until
dark. Calculating the courses and distances, Lieutenant-Com
mandant Stewart ordered the Experiment to be kept in the re
quired direction until midnight, when, if he did not close with
the stranger, he intended to give up the chase. At that hour,
the schooner was hauled by the wind, accordingly ; but, in a few
minutes, a sail was seen quite near, and to windward. The
Experiment went to quarters, ran up under the stranger's lee,
and hailed. Finding the other vessel indisposed to give an
answer, Lieutenant-Commandant Stewart ordered a gun fired
into him, which was returned by a broadside. A sharp action
now commenced, but, it blowing heavily, and the- schooner
lying over, it was found impossible to depress the guns suffi
ciently to hull the enemy. Planks were cut and placed be
neath the trucks of the gun-carriages, when the shot of the
Experiment told with so much effect, that her antagonist
struck. Mr. Porter, the first lieutenant of the Experiment,
was directed to take possession of the prize, but, on getting
alongside, he was refused permission to board. As soon as
this was known in the schooner, the boat was directed to pull
out of the line of fire, with a view to re-commence the action,
when the stranger hailed to say he submitted.
This vessel proved to be a privateer called the Louisa
Bridger, out pf Bermuda, with an armament of 8vuine-pound-
ers, and a crew of between 40 and 50 men. She was much
cut up, and had four feet water in her hold when she surren
dered. Her captain was among the wounded;
As soon as the nature of this unfortunate mistake was
known, every aid was afforded the privateer, "the Experiment
lying by her all next day, to assist in repairing her damages.

1800-01.] NAVAL HISTORY. 147
The Experiment received a good deal of injury in her rigging,
and had one man killed, and a boy wounded.
Active negotiations had commenced, and in the autumn of
1800 the hopes of peace became so strong, that the efforts to
increase the navy were sensibly relaxed, and the sailing of
many ships, that had been intended for distant stations, was
suspended. Negotiations for peace with France had been going on at
Paris, and a treaty to that effect was ratified by the Senate, on
the 3d of February, 1801. All the necessary forms having
been complied with on both sides, the Herald 18, Captain Rus
sel, was sent to the West-Indies, with orders of recall for the
whole force.
Thus ended the short and irregular struggle with France,
in which the present marine of the United States was founded,
most of the senior officers now in service having commenced
their careers as midshipmen during its existence.
The commencement of the year 1801, was distinguished by
a change of administration, for the first time since the adoption
of the constitution ; Mr. Jefferson and his political friends, who
were usually known by the name of the republican party, ex
pelling the federaUsts from power. A president of the United
States, however, is little more than an executive officer while
confined to the circle of his constitutional duties; and the
Congress that terminated on the 4th of March, 1801, the day
the change occurred, had passed a law, in some measure regu
lating a peace establishment for the navy. This law gave
great discretionary authority to the president, it is true ; for it
empowered him, whenever he should deem it expedient, to sell
any, or all of the vessels of the navy, with the exception of
thirteen of the frigates, which were named in the act, if, in his
opinion the good of the country might require it. To this part
of the law no great objections could be taken, even by the
friends of an enlarged and liberal policy, as most of the vessels
not excepted had been bought into, and were unsuited to the
service, more especially at a period, when new improvements
in naval architecture, that had been borrowed from the French,
were fast superseding the old mode of construction.
The law also directed the guns and stores of the vessels sold
to be preserved ; a provision that proved singularly unprofita
ble in the end, as the carronade now began to supersede the
small long gun, and two of the sloops would probably have

148 NAVAL HISTORY. [I86I.
furnished all the nines and sutes that have been used in the navy
for the last five-and-thirty years. The great error of this law
was in the limitation it set to the number of the different ranks
of officers. The whole of the sea-officers, sailing-masters ex
cepted, were confined to nine captains, thirty-six lieutenants,
and one hundred and fifty midshipmen ; the rank of master
commandant being abolished, should the president see fit to dis
charge those then in commission. The phraseology, as well
as the provisions of this law, betrayed that ignorance of the
details of the service, which has been so common ih the legis
lation of the country, omitting many directions that were indis
pensable in practice, and laying stress on others that were of
little or no moment.
The administration of 1801 exercised its authority under the
statute, which, it will be remembered, was enacted previously
to its accession to office, with a reasonable discretion ; and
though it may have made a few of those mistakes that are in
cidental to the discharge of all such trusts, it conformed to the
spirit of the law, with a due regard to liberality. The selec
tion of the officers to be retained was one of great delicacy and
importance, as the future character of the navy depended more
on the proper discharge of this duty than on that of any other.
The great defect of the law, indeed, was the narrow limits to
which the list of the superior sea-officers was confined, it being
at all times easier to build ships, than to form professional men
fit to command them. This part of his delegated duties the
president discharged in perfect good faith, apparently altogether
disregarding party considerations.
Although some meritorious officers were necessarily dis
missed, on this occasion, there is no question that the navy
was greatly benefited by the reduction ; the hurried manner
in which the appointments were originally made, having been
the means of introducing many persons into the service who
were unfitted for its duties.
The law of Congress directed that thirteen vessels, named
' in the act, should not be disposed of, leaving it discretionary
with the president to sell the remainder or not. The following
ships were retained, viz :
Constitution  ,.  44,
United States  44,
President  44,

1801.] NAVAL HISTORY. 149
Congress  38,
Constellation  38,
Chesapeake  88,
Philadelphia  38,
New York  36,
Essex  32,
General Greene  28,
Boston  28,
Adams  28,
John Adams  28,
Enterprise  12,
The reduction of the navy was greatly exaggerated at the
time, so far as the vessels alone were concerned. At the peace
with France, the cruising vessels in the service were thirty-
four in number, and of these, fourteen of the best were retained.
No frigate, unless the George Washington could be considered
one, was sold, and this ship had been purchased into the ser
vice, and not built for the public. As regards force, materially
more than one-half, perhaps four-fifths, was preserved, thp
eight largest frigates retained being more than strong enough
to contend with all the vessels sold.
13*

150 NAVAL HISTORY. [tiSM.

CHAPTER XVI.
We have now reached the period %Hen the American
marine assumed a fixed and, permanent character'. No more
reduction^. Were anticipated by those who understood the ne
cessities of the country, nor have any ever been steriously at
tempted. . ...
As ea^ly as in, 1800, the Bashaw of "Tripoli, ,Jussuf Cara-
malli, who had deposed, his brother |Hamet, and pow sat on
the throne of this depehdeiicy of the Porte, manifested a dispp-
sition to war. He had learned the concessipns made fp Al
giers, the maniiei: in which the Dey of that regency had been
bribed to do justice, and, by a course of reasoning that was
certainly plausible, if not true, he inferred that the governinent
vvhich had been ihddced to pay tribute to one pirate, might he
induced to pay tribute to another. The complaints on which
this semblance of royalty grounded his justification for war,
are such as. ought to be generally known. He accused the
American government of having bribed the subordinates of
Tunis at a higher price than it had bribed him ; he added, that
Algiers had received a frigate, while he had received none ;
and even in a letter to the president he said significantly, in
reply to some of the usual diplomatic professions of friendship,
" we could wish that these your expressions were followed by
deeds, and not by empty words. You will therefore endea
vour to satisfy us by a good manner of proceeding" — " But if
only flattering words are meant, without performance, every
one will act as he finds convenient. We beg a speedy answer,
without neglect of time, as a delay on your part cannot but be
prejudicial to your interests."
Shortly after, the Bashaw informed the American consul at
Tripoli, that he would wait six months for a present in money,
and if it did not arrive within that time, he would formally
declare war against the United States. Jussuf Caramalli was
as good as his word. No tidings of the money having reached
TripoU, the flag-staff of the American consulate was cut down
on the 14th of May, 1801, and war was proclaimed in the act.
While Tripoli went so directly to work, difficulties existed
with the other states of Barbary. Algiers complained that the

1801.] NAVAL HISTORY. 151
tribute was in arrears, and Tunis found fault with the quality
of various articles that had been sent to her, by way of bribing
her riot to seize American vessels. Certain planks and oars
were too short, and guns of a particular description were much
wanted. Morocco was also distrusted, although the prince of
that country had not yet deigned to intimate his wishes.
Timid as was the policy of the United States, and disgrace-
^ful as vvas that of all Christendom, at that period, in reference
to the Barbary powers, the former was too much flushed with
its recent successes against France, and too proud of its infant
marine, to submit to all these exactions without resistance.
Before it was known that Tripoli had actually declared war, a
sqiiadiron was ordered to be fitted for the Mediterranean, with
a view to awe the different sovereigns of Barbary, by its
presence. The vessels selected for this purpose consisted of
the President 44, Captain J. Barron ; Philadelphia 38, Captain
S. Barron; Essei 32, Captain Bainbridge, and Enterprise 12,
Lieutenant Commandant Sterrett. At the head of this force
was Captain Dale, an officer whose career we have had fre
quent occasion to notice, and who now hoisted his broad pen
nant in the President 44.
The ships rendezvoused in Hampton Roads, and sailed for
their place of destination. On the 1st of July they anchored
at Gibraltar, where they found the Tripolitan admiral, a rene
gade of the name of Lisle, in a ship of 26 guns, with a brig
of l6, in company. There is no question that the timely
appearance of the American squadron prevented these two
vessels from getting into the Atlantic, where they might have
struck a severe blow at the commerce of the country. The
admiral, however, protested there was no. war, though the
information derived from other sources, induced Corhmodore
Dale to distrust his sincerity. The Essex was sent along the
north shore to collect the Ainerican trade, and to give it con
voy ; the Philadelphia was ordered to cruise in the straits to
watch the twp Tripolitans, while the President and Enterprise
shaped their course towards Algiers, as ordered. The latter,
hb'tvever, soon parted company from the President on dijty.
The appearance of a ship of the President's force at Algiers
and Tunis, had an extremely quieting effect on the resentments
of their two princes ; and Mr. O'Brien, the consul at the for-mer
regency, ga-ve it as his opinion, that the arrival of the squadron
ih the M^ditei'raheaa, had riiore Weight in preserving the peace.

152 NAVAL HISTORY. [180L
than if the George Washington, which vessel was soon ex
pected, had come in with the tribute.
On the 1st of August, while running for Malta, the Enter
prise 12, Lieutenant Commandant Sterrett, fell in with and
spoke a polacre-rigged ship of 14 guns and 80 men, belonging
to Tripoli, that was known to be out on a cruise against the
American commerce. Running close alongside, an action was
commenced within pistol-shot, and it continued with little in
termission for three hours, when the Turk submitted. During
the combat, however, the Tripohtan struck three several times,
twice re-hoisting his colours, and opening his fire again, when
he thought an advantage might be obtained by attacking the
Americans unprepared. Irritated by this treachery, on the
last occasion the Enterprise resumed her fire, with an intention
to sink her opponent, but after some further though fruitless
resistance, the Turkish captain appcEwed in the waist of his
ship, and threw his ensign into the sea, bending his body and
supplicating for quarter by signs, when the fire of the schooner
was stopped.
The name of the captured ship was the Tripoli, and that of
her rais, or commander, Mahomet Sous. Although the Turks
showed courage — desperation would be a better term — this
first trial of skill with their trans-atlantic enemies was far from
creditable to them. The Enterprise raked her enemy repeat
edly, and the consequences were dreadfully apparent in the
result, 50 of the corsair's people having been killed and
wounded in the battle. The ship herself was a wreck, and
her mizzen-mast was shot away. On the other hand, the
Enterprise sustauied but little injury even aloft, and had not a
man hurt. Neither did she suffer materially in her hull.
The instructions of Lieutenant Sterrett did not permit him
to carry the Tripoli in, and Lieutenant David Porter took pos
session, and proceeded to dismantle her. Her armament was
thrown overboard, and she was stripped of every thing but one
old sail, and a single spar, that were left to enable her to reach
port. After attending to the wounded, the prize was aban
doned, and it is understood a long time elapsed before .she
got in. 'When her unfortunate rais appeared in Tripoli, even
his wounds did not avail him. He was placed on a jackass,
paraded through the streets, and received the bastinado. The
effect of this punishment appears to have been different from
what was expected, for it is said the panic among the sailors
became so great, in consequence, that it was found difficult to

1801.] NAVAL HISTORY. 153
obtain men for the corsairs that were then fitting for sea.
One thing is certain, that, though this war lasted three years,
and in the end became both spirited and active, very few Tri
politan cruisers ventured from port during its continuance ; or
if they quitted port, they were cautious to an extreme about
venturing from the land.
The President appeared off Tripoli on the 24th of August,
when an ineffectual attempt was made to establish a truce.
Remaining eighteen days in the vicinity of the town, and dis
covering no movement in or ajbout the port, Commodore Dale
ran down the coast some distance, when he crossed over to
Malta, in order to water his ship. As soon as this necessary
duty was performed, the President returned to Tripoli, and on
the SOth of August, she overhauled a Greek ship bound in,
with a cargo of merchandise and provisions. On board this
Vessel was an officer and twenty Tripolitan soldiers besides
twenty other subjects of the regency. All these persons were
taken on board the frigate, and an attempt was made, by
means of this lucky capture, to establish a system of exchange.
The negotiations were carried on through Mr. Nissen, the
Danish consul, a gentleman whose name, by means of his be
nevolence, philanthropy, and probity, has become indissolubly
connected with the history of the American marine.
It was soon discovered that the Bashaw cared very little
about his subjects, as he declared that he would not exchange
one American for all the soldiers. There was a little of the
art of the negotiator in this, however, as he agreed in the end
to give three Americans for all the soldiers, the officer in
cluded, and three more for eight of the merchants, disclaiming
the remaining six merchants as his subjects. Commodore
Dale appears to have become disgusted with this unworthy
mode of bargaining, for he sent his prisoners on board the
Greek again, and allowed the ship to go into Tripoli, relin
quishing his claim on the merchants altogether as non-com-,
batants, and consenting to take the three Americans for the
soldiers. '
Finding it necessary to go down to Gibraltar, the commo
dore now left Tripoli, and proceeded direct to the former place.
He was soon succeeded by the Essex, which also appeared off
the different Barbary ports.
In the mean time, the two Tripolitan cruisers at Gibraltar,
on its being ascertained that it was impossible for them to get
out while they Were so closely watched, were dismantled, and

154 NAVAL HISTORY. [1802,
their crews were privately sent across to Tetuan in boats, to
find their way home by land; men enough being left to
take care of the ships, and to navigate them, should an oppor
tunity occur to get to sea. The Bashaw complained loudly
of the blockade, as an innovation on the received mode of
warfare ; and the governments, of Algiers and Tunis, which
appeared to distrust the precedent, manifested a disposition to
join in the protest. The Dey of Algiers even went so far as
to ask passports for the crews of the two vessels at Gibraltar,
with a view to aid his neighbour ; but the request was denied.
The return of Commodore Dale's squadron was ordered to
take place on the 1st of December, at the latest; but discre
tionary powers appear to have been subsequently given to
him, as he left the Philadelphia and Essex behind him, and
proceeded home with his own ship and the Enterprise. The
practice of entering men for only a twelvemonth still prevailed,
and it was often imperative on vessels to quit stations at the
most unfortunate moments. The Philadelphia was left to
watch the Tripolitans, making Syracuse in Sicily her port of
resort ; while the Essex was kept at the straits, to blockade the
two vessels at Gibraltar, and guard the passage into the Atlan
tic. Both ships gave convoys when required.
Thus ended the first year of the war with Tripoli. Al
though little had been effected towards bringing the enemy to
terms, much was done in raising the tone and discipline of the
service. At Gibraltar, Malta, and other ports, the finest
cruisers of Great Britain were constantly met ; and the Ame
rican ships proving to be entirely their equals, in construction,
sailing, and manoeuvring, a strong desire was soon excited to
render them, in all other respects, as good as those that were
then deemed the model-ships of the world. A similar oppor
tunity had occurred while cruising in the West-Indies ; but
then a large proportion of the vessels employed were of infe
rior qualities, and some of the officers were unfit to hold com
missions in any service. All the purchased ships had now
been sold, and the reduction law had cleared the lists of those
who would be likely to lessen the ambition, or alarm the pride
,of an aspiring and sensitive marine. Each day added to the
knowledge, tone, esprit de corps, and seamanship of the
younger officers ; and as these opportunities continued to in
crease throughout the whole of the Mediterranean service, the
navy rapidly went on improving, until the commander of an
American ship was as ready to meet comparisons, as the com
mander of any vessel of war that floated.

180-2.] NAVAL HISTORY. 155

CHAPTER XVII.
Early in the year 1802, Congress enacted laws that obvi
ated some constitutional scruples of the executive, and which
fully authorised the capture and condemnation of any Tripo
litan vessels that might be found. It is worthy of remark,
that this law itself did not contain a formal declaration of War,
while it provided for all the contingencies of such a state of
things, even to empowering the president to issue commissions
to privateers and letters of marque ; and it may be inferred
from this fact, that it was supposed the act of the enemy was
sufficient to render the country technically a belligerent. One
of the sections of this lavv, however, was of great service to
the navy, by enabling crews to be shipped for two years.
As the President and Enterprise had returned home, and
the time of service of the people of the two ships that were
left in the Mediterranean was nearly up, preparations were
now made to send out a relief squadron. For this service the
following ships were commissioned, viz. the Chesapeake 38,
Lieutenant Chauncey, acting captain ; Constellation 38, Cap
tain Murray ; New York 36, Captain James Barron ; John
Adams 28, Captain Rodgers ; Adams 28, Captain Campbell ;
and Enterprise 12, Lieutenant Commandant Sterrett. Com
modore Truxtun was selected to command this squadron, and
he had proceeded to Norfolk for that purpose, when a question
arising about allowing him a captain in the flag-ship, he was
induced to resign. Commodore Morris was appointed to suc
ceed Commodore Truxtun, and shortly after he hoisted his
broad pennant in the Chesapeake.
The vessels fitting for the Mediterranean being in different
states of forwardness, and there existing a necessity for the
immediate appearance of some of them in that sea, they did
not sail in a squadron, but as each was ready. The Enterprise
was the first that left home, sailing in February ; and she was
followed, in March, by the Constellation. The Chesapeake
did not get out until April, and the Adams followed her in June.
The two other ships were detained until September. There
was, however, one other vessel at sea, all this time, to which it
will be necessary to make a brief allusion.

156 NAVAL HISTORY. [1802.
Shortly after his accession to office, in 1801, Mr. Jefferson
appointed Mr. Robert R. Livingston minister to France, and the
Boston 28, Captain M'Niell, was directed to carry the new en
voy tp his place of destination. This duty performed, the.
ship had been ordered to join the squadron in the Mediterra
nean, for service in that sea. The departure of the Boston
was so timed as to bring her on the station under both com
mands, that of Commodore Dale, and that of Commodore
Morris. This cruise has become memorable in the service,
on account of the eccentricities of the officer in command of the
ship. After encountering a heavy gale of wind in the Bay of
Biscay, in which he showed perfect seamanship, and the utmost
coolness, under circumstances particularly trying, Captain
M'Niell landed his passengers, and proceeded to the Mediter
ranean. Here he cruised for some time, avoiding his senior
officers, whenever he could, passing from port to port, appear
ing off Tripoli, and occasionally affording a convoy. After a
time, the Boston returned home, and was put out of commis
sion, her commander quitting the service under the reduction
law. The Essex and Philadelphia also returned home, as soon
as relieved.
We have now reached the summer of 1802, and must con
fine the narrative of events to the movements of the different
vessels that composed the squadron under the orders of Com
modore Morris. In some respects, this was the best appointed
force that had ever sailed from America. The ships were well
officered and manned; and the crews had been entered for two
years, or double the usual period. The powers given to the
commanding officer, appear to have been more ample than
common ; and so strong was the expectation of the government
that his force was sufficient to bring the enemy tP terms, that
Commodore Morris was associated with Mr. Cathcart, the late
consul at Tripoli, in a commission to negotiate a peace. He
was also empowered to obtain gun-boats, in order to protect
the American trade in the Straits of Gibraltar.
As there were no means of bringing the Bashaw of Tripoli
to terms but blockade and bombardment, two material errors
seem to have been made in the composition of the force era-
ployed, which it is necessary to mejition. There was no fri
gate in this squadron that carried a long gun heavier than an
eighteen-pounder, nor was there any mortar vessel. _ Heavy
carronades had come into use, it is true, and most ships carri
ed more or less of them ; but these are guns unsuited to batter-

1802.] NAVALHISTORY. 157
ing under any circumstances, and were particularly unfitted
for an assault on works that it is difficult to approach very near,
on account of reefs of rocks. There was also a singular de
ficiency in small vessels, without which a close blockade of a
port like Tripoli, was extremely difficult, if not impossible. It
will be remembered, that the schooner Enterprise was the only
vessel left in the navy by the reduction law, that was not fri
gate-built, and none had yet been launched to supply the de
fect The government, however, had become aware of the
great importance of light cruisers, and several were laid down
in the summer of this year, under authority granted for that
purpose. As has been seen, the Enterprise 12, Lieutenant Command
ant Sterrett, was the first vessel of the new squadron that
reached the Mediterranean. She was soon followed by the
Constellation 38, Captain Murray, which ship arrived off Tri
poli fearly in May, where she found the Boston 28, Captain
M'Niell, blockading the port. The latter ship, in a few days,
quitted the station, and never re-appeared on it. A Swedish
cruiser was also off the port, assisting to blockade.*
After being off the port some time, the Constellation was
lying three or four leagues from the town, when the look-out
aloft reported several small vessels to the westward, stealing
along shore. The wind was quite light, and the Swedish fri
gate, at the moment, was a long distance outside. Sail was
got on the Constellation, and towards noon the strangers were
made out to be seventeen Tripolitan gun-boats, which, as it
was afterwards ascertained, had gone out at night, with the
intention of convoying into port, an American prize that was
expected from Tunis, but which had failed to appear. Fortu
nately the wind freshened as the Constellation drew in with
the land, and about one o'clock hopes were entertained of cut
ting off all, or a portion of the enemy. The latter were divi
ded ictto two divisions, however, and that which led, by pull
ing directly to windward, effected its escape. The division
in the rear, consisting of ten boats, was less fortunate, the
Constellation being enabled to get it, for a short time, under
her fire.
The wind blew nearly from the direction of the town, and
the Tripolitans still endeavoured to cross the bows of the ship,
* Sweden was at war with Tripoli, at this time, also ; but peace was
made in the course of the summer.
14

158 NAVAL HISTORY. [1803.
as she was standing in ; but Captain Murray, having run into
ten fathoms, opened upon the enemy, time enough to cut off all
but one boat of the rear division. "This boat, notwithstanding
a hot discharge of grape, succeeded in getting to windward,
and was abandoned to attend to the remainder. The enemy
now opened a fire in return, but the Constellation having, by
this time, got the nearest boats fairly under her broadside, soon
compelled the whole nine to bear up, and to pull towards the
shore. Here they got into nooks behind the rocks, or in the
best places of refuge that offered, while a large body of cavalry
appeared on the sand-hills above them, to prevent a landing.
Deeming it imprudent to send in the boats of a single frigate
against so formidable a force. Captain Murray wore and stood
off shore, soon after speaking the Swede, who had not been
able to close in time to engage.
This little affair was the first that ocQurred off the port of
Tripoli, in this war ; and it had the effect of rendering the ene
my very cautious in his movements. The gun-boats were a
good deal cut up, though their loss was never ascertained.
The cavalry, also, suffered materially, and it was said that an
officer of high rank, nearly allied to the Bey, was killed. The
Constellation sustained some trifling damage aloft, but the gun
boats were too hard pressed to render their fire very serious.
The batteries opened upon the ship, also, on this occasion, but
all their shot fell short.
After waiting in vain for the re-appearance of the Boston,
Captain Murray was compelled to quit the station for want of
water, when Tripoli was again left without any force before it.
The Chesapeake 38, Acting Captain Chauncey, wearing the
broad pennant of Commodore Morris, reached Gibraltar May
25th, 1802, where she found the Essex 32, Captain Bain
bridge, still blockading the Tripolitan cruisers. The latter ves
sel was sent home, and the Chesapeake, which had need of
repairs, having sprung her mainmast, continued in the straits
for the purpose of refitting, and of watching the enemy. Com
modore Morris also deemed it prudent to observe the move
ments of the government of Morocco, which had manifested a
hostile disposition. The arrival of the Adams 28, Captain
Campbell, late in July, finally placed the flag-ship at liberty,
ahd she sailed with a convoy to various ports on the north
shore, having the Enterprise in company. This long delay
below, of itself, almost defeated the possibility of acting effi-

1803.] NAVAL HISTORY. 159
ciently against the town of Tripoli that summer, since, further
time being indispensable to collect the different vessels and to
make the necessary preparations, it would bring the ships be
fore that place too late in the season. The fault, however, if
fault there was, rested more with those who directed the pre
parations at home, than with the commanding officer, as the
delay at Gibraltar would seem to have been called for by cir
cumstances. The Chesapeake, following the north shore, and
touching at many ports, anchored in the, roads of Leghorn, on
the 12th of October. At Leghorn the Constellation was met,
which ship shortly after returned home, in consequence of a
discretionary power that had been left with the Commodore.
Orders were now sent to the different vessels of the squadron
to rendezvous at Malta, whither the Commodore proceeded
with his own ship. Here, in the course of ihe month of Jan
uary, 1803, were assembled the Chesapeake 38, Acting Cap
tain Chauncey ; New York 36, Captain J. Barron ; John
Adams 28, Captain Rodgers, and Enterprise 12, Lieutenant
Commandant Sterrett. Of the remaining vessels that had been
put under the orders of Commodore Morris, the Constellation
38, Captain Murray, had gone into a Spanish port to repair
some damages received in a gale of wind, and she shortly
after sailed for home ; the Boston 28, Captain M'Niell, had
not joined, and the Adams 28, Captain Campbell, was cruising
off Gibraltar. On the 30th of January, 1803, the ships first
named left Malta with an intention to go off Tripoli, but a se
vere gale coming on, which lasted eleven days, the Commo
dore was induced to bear up, and to run down to Tunis, where
it was understood the presence of the squadron would be use
ful. On tbe llth of March he left Tunis, touched at Algiers,
and anchored again at Gibraltar on the 23d of the month.
The reason assigned for carrying the ships below, when it
had been the original design to appear off the enemy's port,
was the want of provisions, as well as to make the transfers and
arrangements dependent on shifting the pennant of the com
manding officer, from the Chesapeake to the New York, the
former ship having been ordered home by the navy depart
ment. The squadron was now reduced to the New York 36,
the Adams 28, the John Adams 28, and the Enterprise 12.
Acting Captain Chauncey accompanied the Commodore to the
first of these vessels, and Captain Barron was transferred to
the Chesapeake. The Adams was despatched with a convoy,

160 NAVAL HISTORY. [1803.
with orders to go off Tripoli, as soon as the first duty was per
formed. The ships appear to have been detained some time at Malta
by the repairs that were rendered necessary in consequence
of an accident that had occurred to the New York. On the
3d of May, however, the John Adams was sent off Tripoli,
alone, with orders to blockade that port. Shortly after this
ship reached her station, she made a sail in the offing, which
she intercepted. This vessel proved to be the Meshouda, one
of the cruisers that had been so long blockaded at Gibraltar,
and which was now endeavouring to get home under an as
sumed character. She had been sold by the Bashaw to the
Emperor of Morocco, who had sent her to Timis, where she
had taken in supplies, and was now standuig boldly for the
harbour of Tripoli. The reality of the transfer was doubted,
and as she was attempting to evade a legal blockade, the Me
shouda was detained.
About the close of the month. Commodore Morris hove in
sight, in the New York, with the Adams and Enterprise in
company. As the flag-ship neared the coast, several small
vessels, convoyed by a number of gun-boats, were discovered
close in with the land, making the best of their way towards
the port. Chase was immediately given, and finding them
selves cut off from the harbour, the merchant vessels, eleven
in all, took refuge in old Tripoli, while the gun-boats, by
means of their sweeps, were enabled to pull under the batte
ries of the town itself. No sooner did the vessels, small latine-
rigged coasters loaded with wheat, get into Old TripoU, than
preparations were made to defend them. A large stone build
ing stood on a bank some twelve or fifteen feet from the shore,
and it was occupied by a considerable body of soldiers. In
the course of the night, breast-works were erected on each
side of this building, by means of the sacks of wheat which
composed the cargoes of the feluccas. The latter were hauled
upon the beach, high and dry, immediately beneath the build
ing, and a large foi;ce was brought from Tripoli, to man the
breast-works. Mr. Porter, the first lieutenant of the flag-ship, volunteered
to go in that night, with the boats of the squadron, and destroy
the enemy's craft ; but, unwilling to expose his people under
so much uncertainty, the commodore decided to wait for day
light, in order that the ships might co-operate, and in the hope
of intimidating the Tripolitans by a show of all his force.

1803.] NAVAL HISTORY. 161
Mr. Porter, however, went in alone and reconnoitred in the
dark, receiving a heavy fire from the musketry of the troops
when discovered.
Next morning, the offer of Mr. Porter was accepted, and
sustained by Lieutenant James Lawrence of the Enterprise,
and a strong party of officers and men from the other ships,
he went boldly in, in open day. As the boats pulled up within
reach of musketry, the enemy opened a heavy fire, which
there was very little opportunity of returning. Notwithstand
ing the great superiority of the Turks in numbers, the party
landed, set fire to tho feluccas, and regaining their boats open
ed to the right and left, to allow the shot of the ships to com
plete the work. The enemy now appeared desperately bent
on preserving their vessels, and, regardless of the fire of the
ships, they rushed on board the feluccas, succeeded in extin
guishing the flames, and, in the end, preserved them.
This attack was made in the most gallant manner, and re
flected high credit on all engaged. The parties were so near
each other, that the Turks actually threw stones at the Ame
ricans, and their fire was sharp, heavy, and close. The loss
of the enemy could never be ascertained, but a good many
were seen to fall. Of the Americans, 12 or 15 were killed
and wounded ; and among the latter, was Mr. Porter, who re
ceived a slight wound in the right, and a musket-ball through
the left thigh, while advancing to the attack, though he con
tinued to command to the last. Mr. Lawrence was particu
larly distinguished, as was Mr. John Downes, one of the mid
shipmen of the New York.
Commodore Morris determined to follow up this attack on
the wheat vessels, by making another on the gun-boats of the
enemy. These gun-boats were stationed well out, near the rocks and
the mole, in a manner to admit of their giving and receiving
a fire ; and on the afternoon of the 28th of May, the prepar
ations having been previously made, a signal was shown from
the New York, for the John Adams to bear down upon the
enemy and commence an attack. Captain Rodgers obeyed the
order with promptitude, taking a position within reach of grape ;
but owing to the lightness of the wind, the two other ships
were unable to second him, as was intended. In consequence
of these unforeseen circumstances, the attack proved a failure,
in one sense, though the boats soon withdrew behind the rocks,
14*

162 NAVAL HISTORY. [1803.
and night brought the affair to an end. It is believed that
neither party suffered much on this occasion.
The next day Commodore Morris made an attempt to ne-
gptiate a peace, through the agency of M. Nissen, the Danish
consul, a gentleman who, on all occasions, appears to have
been the friend of the unfortunate, and active in doing good.
To this proposal the Bey listened, and one of his ministers was
empowered to meet the American commander on the subject.
Having received proper pledges for his safe return, Commo
dore Morris landed in person, and each party presented its
outlines of a treaty. The result was an abrupt ending of the
negotiation. This occurred on the 8th of June; and on the 10th, the
New York and Enterprise left the station for Malta. At the
latter place. Commodore Morris received intelligence concern
ing the movements of the Algerine and Tunisian corsairs, that
induced him to despatch the Enterprise, with orders to Captain
Rodgers to raise the blockade of Tripoli, and to join him, as
soon as circumstances would permit, at Malta.
After the departure of the flag-ship, the John Adams 28,
Captain Rodgers, and the Adams 28, Captain Campbell, com
posed the force left before the enemy's port. The speedy re
turn of the Enterprise 12, which was then commanded by
Lieutenant Commandant Hull, who had succeeded Lieutenant
Commandant Sterrett, added that light vessel to the squadron.
Some movements in the harbour, on the evening of the 21st
of June, induced Captain Rodgers, the senior officer present,
to suspect that it was intended to get a cruiser to sea that night,
or to cover the return of one to port. With a view to defeat
either of these plans, the Adams was sent to the westward, the
Enterprise to the eastward, while the John Adams remained in
the offing.
On the following morning, about 7 o'clock, the Enterprise was
seen to the southward and eastward with a signal for an enemy
flying. At that moment the John Adams was a few leagues
out at sea, and it was 8 o'clock before the two vessels could
speak each other. Captain Rodgers now found that a large
ship belonging to the Bashaw, had run into a deep narrow bay,
about seven leagues to the eastward of Tripoli, where she had
taken a very favourable position for defence, and anchored
with springs on her cable. At the same time it was ascertained
that nine gun-boats were sweeping along the shore, to aid in
defending her, while, as usual, a large body 6f cavalry was

1803.] NAVAL HISTORY. 163
hovering about the coast to resist any attack by means of boats.
The ship was known to be the largest of the Bey's remaining
corsairs, mounting 22 guns ; and she was very full of men.
Captain Rodgers owed the opportunity that now offered to
attack his enemy, to the steadiness and gallantry of Lieutenant
Commandant Hull, who, on making his adversary at daylight,
had cut him off from the town, with a spirit that did infinite
credit to that officer. The Tripolitan was treble the force of
the Enterprise, and had he chosen to engage the schooner, Mr.
Hull would, probably, have been obliged to sacrifice his little
vessel, in order to prevent his enemy from getting into port.
The dispositions of Captain Rodgers were soon made. He
stood in, with the Enterprise in company, until the John Ad
ams was within point-blank shot of the enemy, when she open
ed her fire. A smart cannonade was maintained on both sides,
for forty-five minutes, when the people of the corsair aban
doned their guns, with so much precipitation, that great num
bers leaped overboard, and swam to the shore. The John Ad
ams was now in quarter-less-five, by the lead, and she wore
with her head off shore. At the same time, the Enterprise
was ordered to occupy the attention of the enemy on the beach,
while boats could be got out to take possession of the aban
doned ship. But a boat returning to the corsair, the John Ad
ams tacked and renewed her fire. In a few minutes the co
lours of the corsair were hauled down, and all her guns were
discharged ; those which were pointed towards the Americans,
and those which were pointed towards the land. At the next
moment she blew up.
The explosion waa very heavy, and it tore the hull of the
Tripolitan entirely to pieces. The two after-masts were forced
into the air to twice their usual height, with all the yards, rig
ging, and hamper attached. The cause of this explosion is
unknown, though it might have been thought intentional, were
it not for the fact that the people of the boat that had returned
to her, were blown up in the ship, none having left her after
their arrival. As the shot of the John Adams was seen to
hull the enemy repeatedly, the corsair is also supposed to have
sustained a severe loss before her people first abandoned her.
The John Adams and Enterprise attempted to cut off the
division of gun-boats, but found the water shoal too far to sea
ward of them to render the fire of their guns effective. Know
ing the whole coast intimately, the latter were enabled to es
cape.

164 NAVAL HISTORY. [1803.
The ships before Tripoh, in obedience to the orders of Com
modore Morris, now sailed for Malta to join this officer, when
the whole squadron proceeded to different ports in Italy, to
gether. From Leghorn, the John Adams was sent down to
the straits with a convoy ; the Adams to Tunis and Gibraltar,
and the Enterprise back to Malta, in quest of despatches.
Soon after, the New York herself went below, touching at Mal
aga, where Commodore Morris found letters of recall. The
command was left temporarily with Captain Rodgers, who
hoisted a broad pennant in the New York, while Commodore
Morris took charge of the Adams, to proceed to America.
Captain Campbell, late of the Adams, was transferred to the
John Adams.
Commodore Morris reached home on the 21st of November,
1803 ; and the government, which professed great dissatisfac
tion at the manner in which he had employed the force en
trusted to his discretion, demanded the usual explanations.
These explanations not proving satisfactory, a Court of Inqui
ry was convened, by order of the department, dated March
10, 1804, and the result was an opinion that this officer had
not exercised due diligence and activity in annoying the ene
my, on various occasions, between the 8th of January, 1803,
and the period of the expiration of his command. In conse
quence of the finding of the Court of Inquiry, the president
dismissed Commodore Morris from the navy. This step has
generally been considered high-handed and unjust.
The death of Commodore Barry, the resignations of Com
modore Dale and Commodore Truxtun, with the dismissals of
Commodore Morris and Captain M'Niell, reduced the list of
captains to nine, the number named in the reduction law ; for
that act does not appear to have been rigidly regarded from
the moment of its passage. After the death of Commodore
Barry, Commodore S. Nicholson became the senior officer of
the service, making the second member of the same family
who had filled that honourable station.

1803.] NAVAL HISTORY. 165

CHAPTER XVIII.
The government soon became aware of the necessity of
possessing some light cruisers, which, to a marine, are what
the eyes and nerves are to man. Withotit vessels of this
character, a commander could never conduct a vigorous block
ade, like that required before Tripoli, in particular ; and a law
passed February, 1803, authorising the construction of two
brigs and two schooners. In the course of the spring of that
year, these vessels were built, and the navy received an addi
tion to its list, of the Argus 16, Siren 16, Nautilus 12, and
Vixen 12. The two former were beautiful and very efficient
brigs, mounting 16 twenty-four pound carronades, and 2 long
twelves ; and the two latter were schooners, carrying 1 2
eighteen-pound carronades, and 2 light long guns, each.
They were all finely modelled and serviceable vessels of their
size, and are now intimately associated with the early traditions
of the navy. There was a singular conformity in their fates,
also, the whole four, in the end, falling into the hands of their
enemies. When Commodore Morris was recalled, the necessity of
sending out a new squadron was foreseen, the time of the
crews belonging to the ships left under the orders of Commo
dore Rodgers being so nearly expired. Indeed the latter
officer, when he hoisted his broad pennant, was notified that a
successor must soon arrive. The new squadron was so
differently organised from the two which had preceded it, as
to leave little doubt that the administration had discovered the
error which had been made in sending so many light frigates
on this service ; vessels that were nearly useless in a bombard
ment, while they could not command the shores, and that had
no other quality particularly suited to the warfare in which
they were engaged, than a fitness to convoy. Even for the
latter employment, the same force distributed in twice the
number of vessels, would have been much more efficient and
safe. The ships now selected to carry on the war against Tripoli,
were of an entirely different description. They consisted of
the Constitution 44, Philadelphia 38, Argus 16, Siren 16,

166 NAVAL HISTORY. [180a
Nautilus 12, Vixen 12, and Enterprise 12. The latter was
already on the station, and it was intended to keep her there,
by sending out men to supply the places of those who declined
to enter anew. As usual, these vessels sailed as they were
ready; the Nautilus 12, Lieutenant Commandant Somers,
being the first that got to sea. This schooner reached Gibral
tar on the 27th of July, 1803. She was soon followed by the
Philadelphia 38, Captain Bainbridge, which arrived at the
same place, August 24th. The Constitution 44, bearing the
broad pennant of Commodore Preble, who had been chosen to
command the squadron, arrived September I2th ; the Vixen
12, Lieutenant Commandant Smith, September 14th; the
Siren 16, Lieutenant Commandant Stewart, October 1st; and
the Argus 16, Lieutenant Commandant Decatur, November 1st.
When the last fell in with the Enterprise, Mr. Decatur took
command of that schooner, giving up the brig, by arrange
ment, to Mr. Hull, who was his senior officer.
The Philadelphia barely touched at Gibraltar ,j3ut hearing that
two Tripolitans were cruising off Cape de Gatt, Captain Bain
bridge proceeded, without delay, in quest of them. On the
night of the 26th of August, blowing fresh, two sails were made
from the Philadelphia, under Cape de Gatt ; the largest of which,
a ship, was carrying nothing but a fore-course. On running
alongside this vessel, and hailing, with a good deal of difficulty,
Captain Bainbridge learned that the stranger was a Barbary
cruiser. Further examination showed that this vessel be
longed to the Emperor of Morocco, and that she was the
Meshboha 22, commanded by Ibrahim Lubarez, and had a
crew of one hundred and twenty men.
The Moors were made to believe that the Philadelphia. was
an English frigate, and they admitted that the brig in company
was an American. The suspidons of Captain Bainbridge
were now awakened, for he could not well account for the brig's
being under so little sail, and he sent his first lieutenant on
board the Moor, to ascertain if there were any prisoners in his
ship. When the boat reached the Meshboha, the Moors re
fused to let the officer come over the side. Captain Bainbridge
now directed an armed force to go into the boat, when the offi
cer succeeded in executing his orders.
Below deck, were found the master and crew of the brig in
company, which was ascertained to be the Celia of Boston, a
prize to the Meshboha. The brig had been captured near Ma-
laga, nine days before ; and there was no doubt that the Moors

1803.] NAVAL HISTORY. 167
were waiting for other vessels. Cape de Gatt being a headland
commonly made by every thing that keeps the north shore of
the Mediterranean aboard.
Captain Bainbridge, on receiving this intelligence, did not
hesitate about taking possession of the Meshboha. Her people
could not all be removed until near daylight ; and during the
time that was occupied in transferring them to the frigate, the
brig had disappeared. On the afternoon of the 27th, however,
she WEis seen doubling the cape, coming from the eastward,
and hugging the land, while she steered in the direction of Al-
meria, probably with the hope of getting to the westward of
the ships, in order to run to Tangiers. Owing to light winds,
it was midnight before she could be re-taken.
It was now all-important to discover on what authority this
capture had been made. The Moorish commander, at first,
stated that he had taken the Celia, in anticipation of a war ; a
serious misunderstanding existing between the Emperor and
the American consul, when he left port. This story seemed
so improbable that it was not believed, and Captain Bainbridge
could only get at the truth by threatening to execute his pri
soner Eis a pirate, unless he showed his commission. This
menace prevailed, and Ibrahim Lubarez presented an order
from the Governor of Tangiers, to capture all Americans that
he might fall in with.
The Philadelphia returned to Gibraltar with her prizes, and
leaving the latter, she went off Cape St. Vincent, in quest of a
Moorish frigate that was said to be cruising there. Not suc
ceeding in finding the Moor, Captain Bainbridge ran through
the straits again, and went aloft. While at Gibraltar, Mr.
David Porter joined him as first lieutenant.
Shortly after the Philadelphia had gone to her station off
Tripoli, the New York 36, Commodore Rodgers, and the John
Adams 28, Captain Campbell, reached Gibraltar, in the ex-
pectation of meeting the new flag-ship. In a day or two the
Constitution came in, as did the Nautilus, which had been giv
ing convoy up the Mediterranean. As soon as Commodore
Preble was apprised of the facts connected with the capture
of the Meshboha, he saw the necessity of disposing of the
question with Morocco, before he left the entrance of the Me
diterranean again open, by going off Tripoli. Commodore
Rodgers was the senior officer, and his authority in those seas
had properly ceased, but, in the handsomest manner, he con
sented to accompany Commodore Preble to Tangiers, leaving

168 NAVAL HISTORY. [1803.
the lettter his power to act, as negotiator and commander-in-
chief. Accordingly the Constitution 44, New York 36, John
Adams 28, and Nautilus 12, went into the Bay of Tangiers,
October the 6th, 1803. Commodore Preble, on this occasion,
discovered that promptitude, spirit and discretion, which were
afterwards so conspicuous in his character; and after a short-
negotiation, the relations of the two countries were placed on
their former amicable footing. The commodore had an inter
view with the Emperor, which terminated in the happiest re
sults. On the part of Morocco, the act of the Governor of
Tangiers was disavowed ; an American vessel that had been
detained at Mogadore, was released ; and the Emperor affixed
his seal anew to the treaty of 1786. The commodore then
gave up the Meshboha, and it was also agreed to return the
Meshouda, the ship taken by the John Adams. Congress, in
the end, however, appropriated an equivalent to the captors of
these two vessels, in lieu of prize-money.
As soon as the difficulties with Morocco were settled, Com
modore Rodgers sailed for America ; and Commodore Preble
devoted himself with energy and prudence in making his pre
parations to bring Tripoli to terms. The latter had an ardu
ous task before him ; and its difficulties were increased by the
circumstance that he was personally known to scarcely an
officer under his command. During the war with France, thg.
ships had been principally officered from the states in which
they had been built ; and Captain Preble, a citizen of New
Hampshire, had hitherto commanded vessels under these cir
cumstances. He had sailed for the East Indies in 1800, in
the Essex 32, and had been much removed from the rest of
the navy, in the course of his service. By one of those acci
dents that so often influence the affairs of life, all the com
manders placed under the orders of Commodore Preble, with
the exception of Mr. Hull, came from the middle or the south
ern states ; and it is believed that most of them had never even
seen their present commander, until they went in person to re
port themselves and their vessels. This was not only true of
the commanders, but a large portion of the subordinate offi
cers, also, were in the same situation ; even most of those in
the Constitution herself, having been personally strangers to
the commander of the squadron. The period was now ap
proaching when the force about to be employed before Tripoli
was to assemble, and a service was in perspective that pro
mised to let the whole squadron into the secret of its com-

1803.] NAVAL HISTORY. 169
mander's true character. Previously to relating the events
that then occurred, however, it will be necessary to return to
the movements of the Philadelphia 38, Captain Bainbridge.

CHAPTER XIX.
It has been seen that the Philadelphia captured the Megh-
boha, on the night of the 26th of August, 1803. The return
to Gibraltar, the run off Cape Vincent, and the passage up the
Mediterranean, brought it late in the season, before that ship
could reach her station. Here the Vixen 12, Lieutenant Com
mandant Smith, which schooner had arrived at Gibraltar about
the middle of September, appeared also, and the blockade was
resumed by these two vessels, the Enterprise having gone
below. Unfortunately, soon after his arrival. Captain Bain
bridge sent the schooner in quest of a Tripolitan cruiser, that
he learned from the master of a neutral had got to sea a short
time previously. This left the frigate alone, to perform a very
delicate service, the blockading vessels being constantly com
pelled to chase in-shore.
Towards the last of the month of October, the wind, which
had been strong from the westward for some time previously,
drove the Philadelphia a considerable distance to the eastward
of the town, and on Monday, October the Slst, as she was
running down to her station again, with a fair breeze, about
nine in the morning, a vessel was seen in-shore, and to wind
ward, standing for Tripoli. Sail was made to cut her off.
Believing himself to be within long gun-shot a little before
eleven, and seeing no other chance of overtaking the stranger
in the short distance that remained, Captain Bainbridge opened
a fire, in the hope of cutting something away. For near an
hour longer, the chase and the fire were continued ; the lead,
which was constantly kept going, giving from seven to ten
fathoms, and the ship hauling up and keeping away, as the
water shoaled or deepened. At half-past eleven, Tripoli then
being in plain sight, distant a little more than a league, satisfied
that he could neither overtake the chase, nor force her ashore.
Captain Bainbridge ordered the helm a-port, to haul directly
15

170

NAVAL HISTORY. [1803.

off the land into deep water. The next cast of the lead, when
this order was executed, gave but eight fathoms, and this was
immediately followed by casts that gave seven, and six and a
half. At this moment, the wind was nearly abeam, and the
ship had eight knots way on her. When the cry of " half-
six" was heard, the helm was put hard down, and the yards
were ordered to be braced sharp up. While the ship was
coming up fast to the wind, and before she had lost any of her
way, she struck a reef forwards, and shot up on it, until she
lifted between five and six feet.
This was an appalling accident to occur on the coast of such
an enemy, at that season of the year, and with no other cruiser
near I It was first attempted to force the vessel ahead, under
the impression that the best water was to sea-ward ; but on
soundmg around the ship, it was found that she had run up
with such force, as to lie nearly cradled on the rocks ; there
being only 14 feet of water under the fore-chains, while the
ship drew, before striking, I85 feet forward. Astern there
were not 18 feet of water, instead of 20^, which the frigate
needed. Such an accident could only have occurred by the
vessel's hitting the reef at a spot where it sloped gradually, and
where, most probably the constant washing of the element had
rendered the surface smooth ; and by her going up, on the top
of one of those long, heavy, but nearly imperceptible swells,
that are always agitating the bosom of the ocean.
The vessel of which the Philadelphia had been in chase was
a large xebeck, and her commander, acquainted with the coast,
stood on, inside of the reef, doubled the edge of the shoal, and
reached Tripoli in safety. The firing, however, had brought
out nine gun-boats, which now appeared, turning to windward.
Not a moment was to be lost, as it would shortly be in the
power of these vessels to assail the frigate almost with impu
nity. Finding, on further examination, deep water in shore, the
yards were next braced aback, and the guns were run aft, in
the equally vain hope of forcing the ship astern, or to make
her slide off the sloping rocks on which she had run so hard.
It was some time before this project was abandoned, as it was
the most practicable means of getting afloat.
On a consultation with his officers, Captain Bainbridge next
gave orders to throw overboard the guns, reserving a few aft
for defence ; the anchors, with the exception of the larboard
bower, were cut from the bows. Before this could be effected
the enemy came within gun-shot, and opened his fire. For-

1803] NAVAL HISTORY. 171
tunately, the Tripolitans were ignorant of the desperate con
dition of the Philadelphia, and were kept at a respectful dis
tance by the few guns that remained ; else they might have
destroyed most of the crew, it being certain that the colours
would not be struck so long as there was any hope of getting
the ship afloat. The cannonade, which was distant and ineffi
cient, and the business of hghtening the frigate, went on at the
same time, and occupied several hours.
The enemy finally became so bold, that they crossed the
stern of the frigate, where alone they were at all exposed to
her fire, and took a position on her starboard, or weather qiTar-
ter. Here it was impossible to touch them, the ship having
heeled to port, in a way io render it impracticable to bring a
single gun to bear, or, indeed, to use one at all, on that side.
Captain Bainbridge now called another council of his offi
cers, and it was determined to make a last effort to get the
vessel off. The water-casks, in the hold, were started, and
the water was pumped out. All the heavy articles that could
be got at, were thrown overboard, and finally the fore-mast
was cut away, bringing down with it the main-top-gallant-mast.
Notwithstanding all this, the vessel remained as immovable as
the rocks on which she lay.
The gun-boats were growing bolder every minute, others
were approaching, and night was at hand. Captain Bain
bridge, after consulting again with his officers, felt it to be an
imperious duty to haul down his flag, to save the lives of the
people. Before this was done, however, the magazine was
drowned, holes were bored in the ship's bottom, the pumps
were choked, and every thing was performed that it was
thought would make the final loss of the vessel sure. About
five o'clock the colours were lowered.
It is a curious circumstance that this was the second in
stance in which an American vessel of war had been compel
led to haul down her flag, since the formation of the new ma
rine, and that in each case the same officer commanded. Af
ter the accounts given in this work, it is unnecessary to add
that on both occasions an imperious necessity produced this
singular coincidence.
The ship had no sooner struck than the gun-boats ran down
alongside of her, and took possession. The barbarians rushed
into the vessel, and began to plunder their captives. Not only
were the clothes which the Americans had collected in their
bags and in bundles, taken from them, but many officers and

172

NAVAL HISTORY. ' [1803.

men were gripped half-naked. They were hurried into boats,
and sent to TripoU, and even on the passage the business of
plundering went on. The officers were respected little more
than the common men, and, while in the boat. Captain Bain
bridge himself was robbed of his epaulets, gloves, watch, and
money. His cravat was even torn from his neck. He wore
a miniature of his wife, and of this the Tripolitans endeavour
ed to deprive him also, but, a youthful and attached husband, he
resisted so seriously that the attempt was relinquished.
It was near 10 o'clock at night, when the boats reached the
town; The prisoners were landed in a body, near the ba
shaw's palace, and they were conducted to his presence. The
prince received his captives in an audience hall, seated in a
chair of state, and surrounded by his ministers. Here Captain
Bainbridge was formally presented to him, as his prisoner,
when the bashaw himself directed all the officers to be seated.
The minister of foreign affairs, Mohammed D'Ghies, spoke
French, and through him the bashaw held a conversation of
some length with Captain Bainbridge. - The latter was asked
many questions concerning the Philadelphia, the force of the
Americans in the Mediterranean, and he was civilly consoled
for his captivity, by being reminded that it was merely the for
tune of war.
When the conversation had ended, the officers were con
ducted to another apartment, where a supper had been provided,
and as soon as this meal had been taken by those who had a
desire to eat, they were led back to the audience hall, and paid
their parting compliments to the bashaw. Here the captives
were informed that they were put under the special charge of
Sidi Mohammed D'Ghies, who conducted them to the house
that had lately been the American consulate. The building
was spacious and commodious, but almost destitute of furni
ture. It was one o'clock in the morning, but at that late hour
even, appeared Mr. Nissen, the Danish consul, bringing with
him the consolations of sympathy and hope. This benevolent
man was introduced to Captain Bainbridge, by Mohammed
D'Ghies, as his personal friend, and as one on whose honour,
humanity and good faith, full reliance might be placed. Mo
hammed D'Ghies, himself, was known by reputation to Cap
tain Bainbridge, and he had shown delicacy and feeling in the
exercise of his trust. His recommendation, which was point
edly significant, coupled with the manner of Mr. Nissen, excited
a confidence that in the end proved to be most worthily be-

1803.] NAVAL HISTORY. 173
stowed. Every thing that could be devised at that unseason
able hour, was done by Mr. Nissen. This was but the com
mencement of a series of indefatigable and unwearying kind
nesses, that endured to the last moment of the captivity of the
Americans. The misfortune that befel the Philadelphia, made a material
difference in the state of the war. Until this moment, the
bashaw had received but little to compensate him for the incon
venience to which he was put by the blockade, and for the loss
of his different cruisers. His corsairs had captured but very
few merchant vessels, and they ran the greatest risks, when
ever they appeared out of their own ports. As yet, it is true,
nothing had been attempted against his town, but he knew it
was at any time liable to a bombardment. It was thought,
therefore, that he was not indisposed to peace, when accident
threw the crew of the Philadelphia so unexpectedly into his
power. The bashaw, however, had now a hold upon his enemy, that,
agreeably to the usages of Barbary, enabled him to take much
higher ground in proposing his terms. In his previous nego
tiations, he had asked a large sum as the price of the few cap
tives he then held, but the demand had been rejected as unrea
sonable and exorbitant. On board the Philadelphia were three
hundred and fifteen souls, and among them were no less than
twenty-two quarter-deck officers,* gentlemen in whose fortunes
the bashaw well knew there would be a lively interest felt, to
say nothing of the concern that a government like that of
America was expected to manifest for the fate of its seamen.
Under these circumstances, therefore, the diyan of Tripoli felt
strongly encouraged to continue the war, in the hope of receiv
ing a high ransom for the prisoners, and in the expectation of
holding a check on the measures of its enemy, by its means of
retaliation. * William Bainbridge, captain ; David Porter, first lieutenant ; Jacob
Jones, second do. ; Theodore Hunt, third do. ; Benjamin Smith, fourth do, ;
William Osbom, lieutenant of marines ; John Ridgely, surgeon ; J. Cow
dery, do. mate ; Nicholas Harwood, do. do. ; Keith Spence, purser ; and
Bernard Henry, James Gibbon, Benjainin Franklin Reed, James Ren
shaw, Wallace Wormley, Robert Gamble, James Biddle, Richard R.
Jones, Daniel T. Patterson, Simon Smith, and William Cutbush, mid
shipmen ; William Anderson, captain's clerk. Of these gentlemen, Messrs.
J. Jones, Renshaw, Biddle, and Patterson, are still in service, and have all
worn broad pennants. Dr. Cowdery is the oldest surgeon now in the
navy. 15*

174 NAVAL HISTOliy. [1803.
The Philadelphia ran on the reef on the Slst of October, and
her people were landed during the night of the same day.
The Tripolitans set about their arrangements to get the ship
off, next morning, and as they were near their own port, had
so many gun-boats and galleys at their disposal, and were
unmolested by any cruiser, it was announced to the bashaw
that there were hopes of saving the frigate. In the course of
the 2d of November, it came on to blow fresh from the north
west, and the wind forcing the water up on the African coast,
while it bore on the larboard quarter of the ship, her stern was
driven round, and she floated, in part, though she continued to
thump as the seas left her. Anchors were now carried out,
all the disposable force of the town was applied, and on the 5th,
the Philadelphia was got into deep water. The same day, she
was brought within two miles of the city, where she was com
pelled to anchor, on account of the state of the weather. Here
she was kept afloat by means of pumping, while men were em
ployed in stopping the leaks. The business of scuttling ap-
ipears to have been but imperfectly performed, a few holes hav
ing been merely bored in the bottom of the ship, instead of
cutting through the planks, as had been ordered. The weather
continuing remarkably pleasant, the Turks finally succeeded
in not only getting the frigate into port, but in weighing all her
guns and anchors which lay in shallow water on the reef, as
well as in getting up nearly every thing else that had been
thrown overboard. The ship was partially repaired, her guns
were remounted, and she was moored off the town, about a
quarter of a mile from the bashaw's castle.
Commodore Preble, on his return from Tangiers to Gibral
tar, on the 15th of October, went round to Cadiz ; soon after,
he re-appeared at the former place, made a formal announce
ment of the blockade of TripoU, on the I2th of November, on
which day the ship he believed to be in the active execution
of that duty, was in the possession of the enemy, and on the
13th, he sailed for Algiers. After landing a consul at the lat
ter place, he proceeded to Malta, off which port he arrived on
the 27th of November. Here he was met by letters from Cap
tain Bainbridge, and he obtained a confirmation of the loss of
the Philadelphia, a rumour of which event had reached him
lower down the coast. The Constitution sailed immediately
for Syracuse, and got in next day.
On the 17th of December, 1803, Commodore Preble, after
making his preparations and disposing of his force in different

1803.] NAVAL HISTORY. 175
ways, sailed for Tripoli, with the Enterprise in company, off
which place he now appeared for the first time. The 23d of
the month, the Enterprise 12, Lieutenant Commandant Deca
tur, fell in with and captured a ketch, with seventy souls on
board. This ketch had been a French gun-vessel in Egypt,
that had been taken by the English and had passed into the
hands of the TripoUtans. She was now bound to Constanti-
nople, with a present of female slaves for the Porte. A few
days after this prize was taken, it came on to blow heavily
from the northeast, and finding the frigate in danger of being
lost on the coast, at that tempestuous season. Commodore Pre
ble returned to Syracuse; not, however, until he had recon
noitred his enemy, and formed his plan of operations for the
fiiture. Means had been found to communicate with Captain
Bainbridge, also ; and several letters were received from that
officer, pointing out different methods of annoying the enemy.
In a letter of the date of the 5th of December, 1803, Cap
tain Bainbridge suggested the possibility of destroying the
Philadelphia, which ship was slowly fitting for sea, there be
ing little doubt of her being sent out as a cruiser, as soon as
the mild season should return. Commodore Preble listened
to the suggestion, and being much in the society of the com
mander of the vessel that was most in company with the Con
stitution, Lieutenant Stephen Decatur, he mentioned the project
to that spirited officer. The expedition was just suited to the
ardour and temperament of Mr. Decatur, and the possession
of the prize at once afforded the means of carrying it into effect.
The ketch was accordingly appraised, named the Intrepid, and
taken into the service, as a tender. About this time. Lieute
nant Commandant Stewart, of the Siren, the officer who was
then second .in command in the Mediterranean, and who had
just arrived from below, offered to cut out the Philadelphia
with his own brig ; but Commodore Preble was pledged to Mr.
Decatur, who, at first, had proposed to run in with the Enterprise
and carry the ship. The more experienced Preble rejected the
propositions of both these ardent young men, substituting a
plan of his own.
Although Commodore Preble declined the proposal of Mr.
Decatur to carry in the Enterprise, the projected service was
assigned to the commander and crew of that schooner. It
being necessary, however, to leave some of her own officers
and people ¦ in her, a selection of a few gentlemen to join
in the expedition, was made from the flag-ship, and orders to

176 NAVAL HISTORY. [1804.
that effect were issued accordingly. These orders were dated
February the 3d, 1804, and they directed the different gentle
men named to report themselves to Lieutenant Commandant
Decatur, of the Enterprise. As it was intended that the crew
of the schooner should furnish the entire crew of the ketch, it
was not thought proper to add any men to this draft. In short,
the duty was strictly assigned to the Enterprise, so far as her
complement could furnish the officers required. On the after
noon of the 3d,, according to the orders they had just received,
Messrs. Izard, Morris, Laws, Davis, and Rowe, midshipmen
of the Constitution, went on board the schooner, and reported
themselves for duty to her commander. All hands were now
called in the Enterprise, when Lieutenant Commandant Decatur
acquainted his people with the destination of the ketch, and
asked for volunteers. Every man and boy in the schooner
presented himself, as ready, and willing to go. Sixty-two of
the most active men were selected, and the remainder, with a
few officers, were left to take care of the vessel. As the orders
to destroy the frigate, and not to attempt to bring her out, were
peremptory, the combustibles, which had been prepared for
this purpose, were immediately sent on board the Intrepid, her
crew followed, and that evening the ketch sailed, under the
convoy of the Siren 16, Lieutenant Commandant Stewart, who
was properly the senior officer of the expedition, though, owing
to the peculiar nature of the service, Mr. Decatur was permitted
to conduct the more active part of the duty, at his own discretion.
The party in the ketch consisted of Lieutenant Commandant
Decatur; Lieutenants Lawrence, Bainbridge, and Thorn; Mr.
Thomas M'Donough,* midshipman, and Dr. Heerman, sur
geon ; all of the Enterprise ; — Messrs. Izard, Morris, Laws,
Davis, and Rowe, midshipmen of the Constitution ; and Sal
vador Catalano the pilot, with sixty-two petty officers and com
mon men, making a total of seventy-four souls.
It is scarcely necessary to say that the accommodations
were none of the best, with so many persons cooped up in a
vessel of between forty and fifty tons ; and to make the matter
worse, it was soon found that the salted meat put on board
was spoiled, and that there was little besides bread and Water left
to subsist on. The weather, however, was pleasant, and the

* Mr. Thomas M'Donough, afterwards so distinguished, had belonged
to the Philadelphia, but escaped captivity by being lea at Gibraltar in the
prize Meshboha.

1804.] NAVAL HISTORY. 177
wind favourable, and the two vessels got in sight of Tripoli on
the afternoon of the 9th. To prevent suspicions, the Intrepid
now went ahead of the Siren ; and a little after dark, she had
stretched in quite near to the coEist, with a breeze at southwest,
anchoruig about a mile to the windward of the town. Shortly
after, the Siren, disguised, brought-to a little to seaward of her.
The -night came on dark and threatening, but it was in some
respects so fe.vourable to the enterprise, that Mr. Decatur was
reluctant to let it pass without making the attempt. The pilot,
however, pronounced it extremely hazardous to venture in
among the rocks at that moment, as he thought the sea must
be breaking across the entrance, by which it was proposed to
pass. Under the circumstances, Mr. Decatur, who displayed
as much conduct and prudence as daring gallantry throughout
this whole aiEiir, sent Mr. Morris and the pilot, in a boat with
muffled oars, to reconnoitre. This young officer pulled close
up to the western passage, and ascertained that the sea was so
high that it was, in fact, breaking entirely across the entrance ;
when he returned, and reported that it would be hazardous to
go in, and that to come out would be impossible.
The report was scarcely needed, for, by this time, the wind
had risen so high, aud so much sea had got up, that in hoisting
in the boat, it was stove, and when the anchor was weighed, for
it was necessary to get off the land as soon as possible, it was
found to be broken. The Siren had anchored a Uttle without
the ketch, and had hoisted out and armed her boat^, which
were to cover the retreat, but she, too, was compelled to get
under way, by the increasing violence of the wind. Several
hours were employed in a vain attempt to get her anchor, the
brig rolling gunwales-to, and a good many of her people,
together with Lieutenant Commandant Stewart, were hurt by
the capstan's running away with the biars. In the end, the
weather came on so bad, and the danger of being seen as the
day dawned was so much increased, that the anchor and cable
were left, the latter having been cut without the hawse-hole.
So sudden and violent was the gale, that there had been no
communication between the two vessels, the Siren having no
other intimation of the departure of the ketch, than by seeing
her light as she stretched out to sea. Luckily, the wind was
well to the westward, and both vessels got an offing before
they were seen from Tripoli. Here they lay-to, with their
heads off shore, certain of being far enough to leeward, to be

I'^^S NAVAL HISTORY. [1804.
out of sight in the morning. The wind began to haul to the
northward, and the gale lasted six days, during which time
great fears were entertained of the ketch's foundering at sea,
or of her being, at least, driven on the coast, the change in the
wind having brought the vessels on a lee shore. Before the
wind abated, they were driven up into the Gulf of Sydra, where
they were fairly embayed.
On the 15th the weather moderated, and the brig and ketch,
which had kept in company, notwithstanding the gale, endea
voured to fetch in with the land, and in the course of the night
they got so near, as 'to reconnoitre and ascertain their position.
Finding themselves too far to the eastward to effect any thing
that night, they hauled off again, in order to escape detection.
The next day, about noon, calculating that they were abreast
of the town, and the wind and weather being, in all respects,
favourable, both vessels kept away, the ketch leading some
distance, in order that the enemy might not suppose her a
consort of the Siren's, although the latter was so much dis
guised, as to render it impossible to recognise her. The wind
was fair, but light, and every thing looking favourable, Mr.
Decatur now seriously made his dispositions for the attack.
Apprehensive that they might have been seen, and that the
enemy had possibly strengthened the party on board the
frigate, Lieutenant Commandant Stewart sent a boat and eight
men from the Siren, to the ketch, under the orders of Mr. An
derson, one of his midshipmen ; which reinforcement increased
the number of the intended assailants to eighty-two, all told.
The orders of Lieutenant Commandant Decatur were clear
and simple. The spar-deck was first to be carried, then the
gun-deck ; after which the following distribution of the party
was made, in order to set fire to the ship. Mr. Decatur, with
Messrs. Izard and Rowe, and fifteen men, was to keep posses
sion of the upper deck. Mr. Lawrence, with Messrs. Laws
and M'Donough and ten men, was to repair to the berth-deck
and forward store-rooms. Mr. Bainbridge, with Mr. Davis and
ten men, was to go into the ward-room and steerage; Mr.
Morris, with eight men, was to go into the cockpit and after
store-rooms ; Mr. Thorn, with the gunner and surgeon, and
thirteen men, was to look after the ketch ; to Mr. Izard was
assigned the command of the launch should she be needed ; and
Mr, Anderson, with the Siren's cutter, was to secure all boats
alongside of the ship, and to prevent the people from swim-

1804.] NAVAL HISTORY. 179
ming ashore, with directions, however, to board as soon as the
first duty was performed.
Fire-arms were to be used only in the last extremity, and
the first object of every one was to clear the upper-deck and
gun-deck of the enemy. The watch-word was " Philadelphia."
These arrangements were plain and judicjous.
As the ketch drew in with the land, the ship became visible.
She lay not quite a mile within the entrance, riding to the
wind, and abreast of the town. Her fore-mast, which had
been cut away while she was on the reef, had not yet been
replaced, her main and mizzen-top-masts were housed, and
her lower yards were on the gunwales. Her lower standing
rigging, however, was in its place, and, as was shortly after
wards ascertained, her guns were loaded and shotted. Just
within her, lay two corsairs, with a few gun-boats, and a gal
ley or two.
It was a mild evening for the season, and the sea and bay
were smooth as in summer; as unlike as possible to the same
place a few days previously, when the two vessels had been
driven from the enterprise by a tempest. Perceiving that he
was likely fo get in too soon, when about five miles from the
rocks, Mr. Decatur ordered buckets and other drags to be towed
astern, in order to lessen the way of the ketch, without short
ening sail, as the latter expedient would have been seen from
the port, and must have awakened suspicion. In the mean
time the wind gradually fell, until it became so light as to leave
the ketch but about two knots' way on her, when the drags
were removed.
About 10 o'clock the Intrepid reached the eastern entrance
of the bay, or the passage between the rocks and the shoal.
The wind was nearly east, and, as she steered directly for the
frigate, it was well abaft the beam. There was a young moon,
and as these bold adventurers were slowly advancing into the
hostile port, all around them was tranquil and apparently with
out distrust. For near an hour they were stealing slowly
along, the air gradually failing, until their motion became
scarcely perceptible.
Most of the officers and men of the ketch had been ordered
to lie on the deck, where they were concealed by low bulwarks,
or weather-boards, and by the different objects that belong to
a vessel. As it is the practice of those seas, to carry many
men even in the smallest craft, the appearance of ten or twelve
would excite no alarm, and this number was visible. The

180 NAVAL HISTORY. [1804.
commanding officer, himself, stood near the pilot, Mr. Catala
no,* who was to act as interpreter. The quarter-master at the
helm, was ordered to stand directly for the frigate's bows, it
being the intention to lay the ship aboard ui that place, as the
mode of attack which would least expose the assailants to her
fire. The Intrepid was still at a consideS-able distance from the
Philadelphia, when the latter hailed. The pilot answered that
the ketch belonged to Malta, and was on a trading voyage ;
that she had been nearly wrecked, and had lost her anchors
in the late gale, and that her commander wished to ride by the
frigate during the night. This conversation lasted some time,
Mr. Decatur instructing the pilot to tell the frigate's people
with what he was laden, in order to amuse them, and the In
trepid gradually drew nearer, until there was every prospect
of her running foul of the Philadelphia, in a minute or two,
and at the very spot contemplated. But the wind suddenly
shifted, and took the ketch aback. The instant the southerly
puff struck her, her head fell off, and she got a stern -board ;
the ship, at the same moment, tending to the new current of
air. The effect of this unexpected change was to bring the
ketch directly under the frigate's broadside, at the distance of
about forty yards, where she lay perfectly becalmed, or, if
any thing, drifting slowly astern, exposed to nearly every one
of the Philadelphia's larboard guns.
Not the smallest suspicion appears to have been yet excited
on board the frigate, though several of her people were look
ing over the rails, and notwithstanding the moonlight. So
completely were the Turks deceived, that they lowered a boat,
and sent it with a fast. Some of the ketch's men, in the mean
time, had got into her boat, and had run a line to the frigate's
fore-chains. As they returned, they met the frigate's boat,
took the fast it brought, which came from the after part of the
ship, and passed it into their own vessel. These fasts were
put into the hands of the men, as they lay on the ketch's
deck, and they began cautiously to breast the Intrepid along
side of the Philadelphia, without rising. As soon as the latter
got near enough to the ship, the Turks discovered her anchors,
and they sternly ordered the ketch to keep off, as she had de
ceived them ; preparing, at the same time, to cut the fasts.
All this passed in a moment, when the cry of " Amerikanos"
* Now a sailing-master in the navy.

1804.] NAVAL HISTORY. 181
was heard in the ship. The people of the Intrepid, by a strong
pull, brought their vessel alongside of the frigate, where she
was secured, quick as thought. Up to this moment, not a
whisper had betrayed the presence of the men concealed.
The instructions had been positive to keep quiet until com
manded to show themselves ; and no precipitation, even in that
trying moment, deranged the plan.
Lieutenant Commandant Decatur was standing ready for a
spring, with Messrs. Laws and Morris quite near him. As
soon as close enough, he jumped at the frigate's chain-plates,
and while clinging to the ship himself, he gave the order to
board. The two midshipmen were at his side, and all the offi
cers and men of the Intrepid arose and followed. The three
gentlemen named were in the chains together, and Lieutenant
Commandant Decatur and Mr. Morris sprang at the rail above
them, while Mr. Laws dashed at a port. To the latter would
have belonged the honour of having been first in this gallant
assault, but wearing a boarding-belt, his pistols were caught
between the gun and the side of the port. Mr. Decatur's foot
slipped in springing, and Mr. Charles Morris first stood upon
the quarter-deck of the Philadelphia. In an instant, Lieu
tenant Commandant Decatur and Mr. Laws were at his side,
while heads and bodies appeared coming over the rail, and
through the ports in all directions.
The surprise appears to have been as perfect, as the assault
was rapid and earnest. Most of the Turks on deck crowded
forward, and all ran over to the starboard-side, as their ene
mies poured in on the larboard. A few were aft, but as soon
as charged, they leaped into the sea. Indeed, the constant
plunges into the water, gave the assailants the assurance that
their enemies were fast lessening in numbers by flight. It
took but a minute or two to clear the spar-deck, though there
was more of a struggle below. Still, so admirably managed
was the attack, and so complete the surprise, that the resist
ance was trifling. In less than ten minutes Mr. Decatur was
on the quarter-deck again, in undisturbed possession of his
prize. There can be no doubt that this gallant officer now felt bit
ter regrets that it was not in his power to bring away the ship
he had so nobly recovered. Not only were his orders on this
point peremptory, however, but the frigate had not a sail bent,
nor a yard crossed, and she wanted her foremast. It was
16

182 NAVAL HISTORY. [1804.
next to impossible, therefore, to remove her, and the command
was given to pass up the combustibles from the ketch.
The duty of setting fire to the prize, appears to have been
executed with as much promptitude and order, as every other
part of the service. The officers distributed themselves,
agreeably to the previous instructiohs, and the men soon ap
peared with the necessary means. Each party acted by itself,
and as it got ready. So rapid were they all in their move
ments, that the men with combustibles had scarcely time to
get as low as the cock-pit and after-store-rooms, before the
fires were lighted over their heads. When the officer entrusted
with the duty last mentioned had got through, he found the
after-hatches filled with smoke, from the fire in the ward-room
and steerage, and he was obliged to make his escape by the
forward ladders.
The Americans were in the ship from twenty to twenty-five
minutes, and they were literally driven out of her by the
flames. The vessel had got to be so dry in that low latitude,
that she burnt like pine ; and the combustibles had been as
judiciously prepared, as they were steadily used. The last
party up, were the people who had been in the store-rooms,
and when they reached the deck, they found most of their
companions already in the Intrepid. Joining them, and ascer
taining that all was ready, the order was given to cast off.
Notwithstanding the daring character of the enterprise in gene
ral, Mr. Decatur and his party now ran the greatest risk they
had incurred that night. So fierce had the conflagration al
ready become, that the flames began to pour out of the ports,
and the head-fast having been cast off, the ketch fell astern,
with her jigger flapping against the quarfer-gallery, and her
boom foul. The fire showed itself in the window at this criti
cal moment ; and beneath, was all the ammunition of the
party, covered with a tarpaulin. To increase the risk, the
stern-fast was jammed. By using swords, however, for there
was not time to look for an axe, the hawser was cut, and the
Intrepid was extricated from the most imminent danger, by a
vigorous shove. As she swung clear of the frigate, the flames
reached the rigging, up which they went hissing, like a rocket,
the tar having oozed from the ropes, which had been saturated
with that inflammable matter. Blatches could not have kindled
with greater quickness.
The sweeps were now manned. Up to this moment, every
thing had been done earnestly, though without noise, but as

1804,] NAVAL HISTORY. 183
soon as they felt that they had got command of their ketch
again, and by two or three vigorous strokes had sent her away
from the frigate, the people of the Intrepid ceased rowing, and
as one man, they gave three cheers for victory. This appeared
to arouse the Turks from their stupor ; for the cry had hardly
ended, when the batteries, the two corsairs, and the galley,
poured in their fire. The men laid hold of the sweeps' again,
of which the Intrepid had eight of a side, and favoured by a
light air, they went rapidly down the harbour.
The spectacle that followed, is described as having been
both beautiful and sublime. The entire bay was illuminated
by the conflagration, the roar of cannon was constant, and
Tripoli was in a clamour. The appearance of the ship was,
in the highest degree, magnificent ; and, to add to the effect,
as her guns heated, they began to go off. Owing to the shift
of wind, and the position into which she had tended, she, in
some measure, returned the enemy's fire, as one of her broad
sides was discharged in tbe direction of the town, and the
other towards Fort English. The most singular effect of this
conflagration was on board the ship, where the flames having
run up the rigging and masts, collected under the tops, and fell
o-ver, giving the whole the appearance of glowing columns and
fiery capitals.
Under ordinary circumstances, tbe situation of the ketch
would still have been thought sufficiently perilous, but after the
exploit they had just performed, her people, elated with suc-
•cess, regarded all that was now passing as a triumphal spec
tacle. Tbe shot constantly cast the spray arotmd them, or
were whistling over their heads ; but the only sensation they
produced, was by calling attention to the brilliant jets d'eau
that they occasioned as they bounded along the water. But
one struck the Intrepid, although she was within half a mile of
many of the heaviest guns for some time, and that passed
through her top-gallant-sail.
With sixteen sweeps, and eighty men elated with success,
Mr. Decatur was enabled to drive the little Intrepid ahead with
a velocity that rendered towing useless. Near the harbour's
mouth, he met the Siren's boats, sent to cover his retreat, but
their services were scarcely necessary. As soon as the ketch
was out of danger, he got into one, and pulled aboard the brig,
to report to Lieutenant Commandant Stewart, the result of his
undertaking. The Siren had got into the offing some time after the Intre-

184 NAVAL HISTORY. [1804.
pid, agreeably to arrangement, and anchored about three miles
from the rocks. Here she hoisted out the launch and a cutter,
manned and armed them, and sent them in, under Mr. Cald
well, her first lieutenant. Soon after the brig weighed, and
the wind having entirely failed outside, she swept into eight
fathoms water, and anchored again, to cover the retreat, should
the enemy attempt to board the Intrepid, with his gun-boats.
It will readily be supposed that it was an anxious moment, and
as the moon rose, all eyes were on the frigate. After waiting
in intense expectation near an hour, a rocket went up from the
Philadelphia. It was the signal of possession, and Mr. Stew
art ran below to get another for the answer. He was gone
only a moment, but when he returned, the fire was seen
shining through the frigate's ports, and in a few more minutes,
the flames were rushing up her rigging, as if a train had been
touched. Then followed the cannonade, and the dashing of
sweeps, with the approach of the ketch. Presently a boat was
seen coming alongside, and a man, in a sailor's jacket, sprang
over the gangway of the brig. It was Decatur, to announce
his victory !
The ketch and brig lay near each other, for about an hour,
when a strong and favourable wind arose, and they made sail
for Syracuse, which port they reached on the 19th. Here the
party was received with salutes and congratulations, by the
Sicilians, who were also at war with Tripoli, as well as by
their own countrymen.
The success of this gallant exploit laid the foundation of the
name which Mr. Decatur subsequently acquired in the navy.
The country generally applauded the feat ; and the command
ing officer was raised from the station of a lieutenant to that
of a captain. Most of the midshipmen engaged, were also pro
moted, and Lieutenant Commandant Decatur received a sword.
The Philadelphia was a frigate of the class that the English
termed a thirty -eight, previously to the war of 1812. Her
armament consisted of 28 eighteens, on her gun deck, and of
16 carronades and chase guns, above ; or of 44 guns in the
whole. No correct estimate has probably ever been made of
the number of men in her, when she was recaptured. Twenty
were reported to have been killed, and one boat loaded with
Turks is said to have escaped ; many also swam ashore, or to
the nearest cruisers. Some, no doubt, secreted themselves be
low, of whom the greater part must have perished in the ship,
as the party that set fire to the after-store-rooms had difficulty

1804.] NAVAL HISTORY. 185
in escaping from the flames. But one prisoner was made, a
wounded Turk, who took refuge in the ketch. On the part of
the Americans but a single man was hurt.
In whatever light we regard this exploit, it extorts our admi
ration and praise ; the boldness in the conception of the enter
prise, being even surpassed by the perfect manner in which all
its parts were executed. Nothing appears to have been want
ing, in a military point of view ; nothing was deranged ; no
thing defeated. The hour was well chosen, and no doubt it
was a chief reason why the corsairs, gun-boats, and batteries,
were, in the first place, so slow in commencing their fire, and
so uncertain in their aim whpn they did open on the Ameri
cans. In appreciating the daring of the attempt, we have only
to consider what might have been the consequences had the
assault on the frigate been repulsed. Directly under her guns,
with a harbour filled with light cruisers, gun-boats, and gal
leys, and surrounded by forts and batteries, the inevitable de
struction of all in the Intrepid must have followed. These
were dangers that cool steadiness and entire self-possession,
aided by perfect discipline, could alone avert. In the service,
the enterprise has ever been regarded as one of its most brilliant
achievements ; and to this day, it is deemed a high honour
to have been one among the Intrepid's crew. The effect on
the squadron then abroad can scarcely be appreciated ; as its
seamen began to consider themselves invincible, if not invul
nerable, and were ready for any service in which men could
be employed.

CHAPTER XX.
Thus opened the year 1804. The great distance, however,
that lay between the seat of war and the country, as well as
the infrequency of direct communications, prevented the gov
ernment at home, from getting early information of what was
passing in the Mediterranean. As a consequence, at the very
moment when Commodore Preble was beginning to show that
energy for which he was so remarkable, the department was
making preparations for superseding him in the command ; not
16*

186 NAVAL HISTORY. [1804.
from dissatisfaction, but, as was then believed, from necessity.
There were but three captains in the navy junior to Preble, and
one of these was a captive in Tripoli. The loss of the Phila
delphia had rendered it indispensable to send out another fri
gate, at least ; and the administration had now begun to take so
serious a view of the state of the relations of the country with
all the Barbary powers, as to see the importance of exhibiting
a force that should look down any further attempts on a trade,
which, in consequence of the general war that prevailed in
Europe, was beginning to whiten the seas of the old world
with American canvass. The Emperor of Morocco, who was
said to be a relative of the Bashaw of Tripoli, was distrusted
in particular, and many little occurrences had served to prove
the interest that the former felt in the affairs of the latter.
The ships that it was now decided to send into the Mediter
ranean, were the President 44, Congress 38, Constellation 38,
and Essex 32. They were put in commission early in the
season, and as soon as the choice was made, Commodore Pre
ble was apprised of it, and of the necessity that existed of send
ing out two officers who were his seniors in rank. About the
same time, Mr. Decatur was made a captain, for the destruc
tion of the Philadelphia, and the service received an important
impulse in the revival of the rank of masters and command
ers, which had been dropped altogether, under the reduction
law of 1801.
The Siren and Intrepid returned to Syracuse, after the suc
cessful attempt on the Philadelphia, on the 19th of. February
of this year. On the 2d of March, Commodore Preble, who
had so divided his force as to keep some of the small vessels off
Tripoli blockading, proceeded to Malta, and on his return, he
sailed again, on the 21st, for the station off the enemy's port.
The Siren 16, Lieutenant Commandant Stewart, and Nautilus
12, Lieutenant Commandant Somers, were the blockading ves
sels at this time, and, early one morning, while coming from
the eastward to recover lost ground, a vessel with the appear
ance of a brig of war, was seen lying-to in the offing. As soon
as he made the Americans, the stranger endeavoured to beat
back into the harbour again, out of which he had lately come,
but, the Nautilus being sent close in to employ the gun-boats,
should they attempt to come out, the Siren cut him off from the
port, and soon got alongside. This vessel proved to be the
Transfer, a privateer out of Malta, with a British commission,
and she had an armament of 16 carronades, and a crew of 80

1804.] NAVAL HISTORY. 187
men. When the Siren ran alongside, the Transfer's people
were at quarters; but, no, resistance being attempted, she was
captured for a violation of the blockade. Subsequent informa
tion induced Commodore Preble to believe that she belonged, in
fact, to the Bashaw of Tripoli, and that the commission under
which she sailed was obtained by means of the Tripolitan con
sul in Malta, who was a native of that island, and for whose
appearance on board the brig was actually waiting when taken.
As the Transfer had been an EngUsh gun-brig, and was
equipped for war. Commodore Preble sent her to Syracuse,
where she was appraised, manned, and taken into the service
for the time being. She was called the Scourge, and the com
mand of her was given to Lieutenant Commandant Dent, the
acting captain of the Constitution.
Remaining off Tripoli a few days, Commodore Preble was
next actively employed in running from port to port, in order
to look into the affairs of the different regencies, to communi
cate with the captives in Tripoli, and to make his arrangements
for pursuing a warfare better suited to bringing the bashaw to
terms. The king of the Two Sicilies being at war with Tri
poli, also, in furtherance of the latter duty, the Constitution
went to Naples, in order to obtain some assistance in executing
these projects. Here an order for two bomb-vessels and six
gun-boats was obtained, with the necessary equipments ; and
Commodore Preble sailed for Messina, where the different craft
lay. From this time until the middle of July, he was as ac
tively engaged as ever, in providing for the wants of the cap
tives, in settling a serious difficulty with Tunis, and in preparing
for an attack on Tripoli ; and we shall quit him, for a moment,
to return to the movements before that place.
In April, the Siren, Lieutenant Commandant Stewart ; Ar
gus, Lieutenant Commandant Hull ; Enterprise, Lieutenant
Commandant Decatur ; Vixen, Lieutenant Commandant Smith,
and Scourge, Lieutenant Commandant Dent, composed the
blockading force, when a felucca was seen stealing along"
shore, coming from the westward, with a view to enter the har
bour in a fog. A general chase ensued, and the felucca took
refuge behind a reef of rocks, about ten miles to the westward
of TripoU, where she was run upon a beach of sand. The Si
ren now made a signal for the boats to go in, in order to des
troy the enemy. Mr. Caldwell, the first lieutenant of the Siren,
being nearest in, went ahead with the launch and cutter of that
brig, while the others followed as the vessels came up. As he

188 NAVAL HISTORY. [1804.
approached the shore, the boat of Mr. Caldwell got on a sunken
rock, and the enemy, who had begun to collect in force, parti
cularly in cavalry, opened a sharp fire of musketry. Several
of the Americans were killed and wounded, and perceiving that
the enemy were both too strong and too well posted to be at
tacked by so feeble a force, Mr. Caldwell returned, directing
the different boats, as he met them, to retire also.
The Argus and schooners now obtained positions where they
could throw their shot into the felucca, which was soon ren
dered unseaworthy. While this was doing, the Siren ran
down, opened a ravine in which the Turks were posted, and
dislodged them by a smart discharge of grape. Afterwards, a
broadside or two were thrown in among a strong body of cav
alry, which had the effect of rendering them cautious in their
operations on the coast. This little affair illustrates the nature
of the ordinary warfare that was then carried on, the Tripoli
tans sending out bodies of soldiers to cover any- vessel that was
expected with supplies. On this occasion, the felucca was said
to be loaded with salt, an article that then bore an enormous
price in Tripoli.
It was July the 21st, 1804, when Commodore Preble was
able to sail from Malta, with all the force he had collected, to
join the vessels cruising off Tripoli. The blockade had been
kept up with vigour for some months, and the Commodore felt
that the season had now arrived for more active operations.
He had with him the Constitution, Enterprise, Nautilus, the
two bomb-vessels, and the six gun-boats. The bomb-vessels
were of only thirty tons measurement, and carried a thirteen-
inch mortar each. In scarcely any respect were they suited
for the duty that was expected of them. The gun-boats were
little better, being shallow,unseaworthy craft, of about twenty-
five tons burthen, in which long iron twenty-fours had been
mounted. Each boat had one gun, and thirty -five men ; the
latter, with the exception of a few Neapolitans, being taken
from the different vessels of the squadron. The Tripolitan
gun-boats, which have already been described, were altoge
ther superior, and the duty should have been exactly reversed,
in order to suit the qualities of the respective craft ; the boats
of Tripoli having been built to go on the coast, while those
possessed by the Americans were intended solely for harbour
defence. In addition to their other bad qualities, these Neapo
litan boats were found neither to sail nor to row even tolerably
well. It was necessary to tow them, by larger vessels, the

1804.] NAVAL HISTORY. 189
moment they got into rough water ; and when it blew heavily,
there was always danger of dragging them under. In addition
to this force, Commodore Preble had obtained six long twenty-
six pounders for the upper-deck of the Constitution, which were
mounted in the waist.
When the American commander assembled his whole force
before Tripoli, on the 25th of July, 1804, it consisted of the
Constitution 44, Commodore Preble; Siren 16, Lieutenant
Commandant Stewart; Argus 16, Lieutenant Commandant
Hull; Scourge 14, Lieutenant Commandant Dent; Vixen 12,
Lieutenant Commandant Smith; Nautilus 12, Lieutenant
Commandant Somers; Enterprise 12, Lieutenant Commandant
Decatur ; the two bomb- vessels, and six gun-boats. In some
respects this was a well-appointed force for the duty required,
while in others it was lamentably deficient. Another heavy
ship, in particular, was wanted, and the means for bombarding
had all the defects that may be anticipated. The two heaviest
brigs had armaments of twenty-four-pound carronades ; the
other brig, and two of the schooners, armaments of eighteen-
pound carronades ; while the Enterprise retained her original
equipment of long sixes, in consequence of her ports being
unsuited to the new guns. As the Constitution had a gun-
deck battery of thirty long twenty-fours, with six long twenty-
sixes, and some lighter long guns above, it follows that the
Americans could bring twenty-two twenty -fours and six twenty-
sixes to bear on the stone walls of the town, in addition to a
few light chase-guns in the small vessels, and the twelve-
pounders of the frigate's quarter-deck and forecastle. On the
whole, there appears to have been in the squadron, twenty-
eight heavy long guns, with about twenty lighter, that might
be brought to play on the batteries simultaneously. Opposed to
these means of offence, the bashaw had one hundred and fifteen
guns in battery, most of them quite heavy, and nineteen gun
boats that, of themselves, so far as metal was concerned, were
nearly equal to the frigate. Moored in the harbour were also
two large galleys, two schooners, and a brig, all of which
were armed and strongly manned. The American squadron
was manned by one thousand and sixty persons, all told, while
the bashaw had assembled a force that has been estimated as
high as twenty -five thousand, Arabs and Turks included. The
only advantage possessed by the assailants, in the warfare that
was so soon to follow, were those which are dependent on spirit,
discipline, and system.

190 NAVAL HISTORY. [1804.
The vessels could not anchor until the 28th, when they ran
in, with the wind at E. S. E., and came-to, by signal, about a
league from the town. This was hardly done, however, before
the wind came suddenly round to N. N. W., thence to N. N.
E., and it began to blow strong, with a heavy sea setting
directly on shore. At 6 P. M., a signal was made for the ves
sels to weigh, and to gain an offing. Fortunately, the wind
continued to haul to the eastward, or there would have been
great danger of towing the gun-boats under, while carrying
sail to claw off the land. The gale continued to increase until
the Slst, when it blew tremendously. The courses of the
Constitution were blown away, though reefed, and it would
have been impossible to save the bomb-vessels and gun-boats,
had not the wind hauled so far to the southward as to give
them the advantage of a weather shore, and of comparatively
smooth water. Fortunately, the gale ceased the next day.
On the third of August, 1804, the squadron ran in again
and got withiri a league of the town, with a pleasant breeze at
the eastward. The enemy's gun-boats and galleys had come
outside of the rocks, and were lying there in two divisions ;
one near the eastern, and the other near the western entrance,
or about half a mile apart. At the same time, it was seen that
all the batteries were manned, as if an attack was not only
expected, but invited.
At half-past 12, the Constitution wore with her head off
shore, and showed a signal for all vessels to come within hail.
As he came up, each commander was ordered to prepare to
attack the shipping and batteries. The bomb-vessels and gun
boats were immediately manned, and such was the high state
of discipline in the squadron, that in one hour, every thing was
ready for the contemplated service.
On this occasion, Commodore Preble made the following
distribution of that part of his force, which was manned from
the other vessels of his squadron.
One bomb-ketch was commanded by Lieutenant Command
ant Dent, of the Scourge.
The other bomb-ketch was commanded by Mr. Robinson,
first lieutenant of the Constitution.
First Division of gun-boats.
No. 1. Lieut. Com. Somers, of the Nautilus.
" 2. Lieut. James Decatur, of the Nautilus.
" 3. Lieut. Blake, of the Argus,,

1804] NAVAL HISTORY. 191
Second division of gun-boats.
No. 4. Lieut. Com. Decatur, of the Enterprise.
" 5. Lieut. Bainbridge, of the Enterprise.
" 6. Lieut. Trippe, of the Vixen.
At half-past one, the Constitution wore again, and stood
towards the town. At two, the gun-boats were cast off, and
formed in advance, covered by the- brigs and schooners, and
half an hour later, the signal was shown to engage. The
attack was commenced by the two bombards, which began to
throw shells into the town. It was followed by the batteries,
which were instantly in a blaze, and then the shipping on both
sides opened their fire, within reach of grape.
The eastern, or most weatherly division of the enemy's
gun-boats, nine in number, as being least supported, was the
aim of the American gun-boats. But the bad qualities of the
latter craft were quickly apparent, for, as soon as Mr. Decatur
steered towards the enemy, with an intention to come to close
quarters, the division of Mr. Somers, which was a little to lee
ward, found it difficult to sustain him. Every effort was made
by the latter officer, to get far enough to windward to join in
the attack ; but finding it impracticable, he bore up, and ran
down alone on five of the enemy to leeward, and engaged them
all within pistol-shot, throwing showers of grape, canister,
and musket-balls, among them. In order to do this, as soon
as near enough, the sweeps were got out, and the boat was
backed astern to prevent her from drifting in among the enemy.
No. 3 was closing fast, but a signal of recall* being shown
from the Constitution, she hauled out of the line to obey, and
losing ground, she kept more aloof, firing at the boats and
shipping in the harbour; while No. 2, Mr. James Decatur, was
enabled to join the division to windward. No. 5, Mr. Bain
bridge, lost her latine-yard, while still in tow of the Siren, but,
though unable to close, she continued advancing, keeping up a
heavy fire, and finally touched on the rocks.
By these changes, Lieutenant Commandant Decaturf had
three boats that dashed forward with him, though one belonged
to the division of Mr. Somers, viz. No. 4, No. 6, and No. 2.
¦* The signal was bent on by mistake, and was abroad a moment only,
but the fact that it was shown, was established before a Court of Inquiry,
which exonerated Mr. Blake from censure.
i He was Captain Decatur at the time, but the fact was not yet known
in the squadron.

192 NAVAL HISTORY. [1804.
The officers in command of these three boats, went steadily on
until within the smoke of the enemy. Here they delivered
their fire, throwing in a terrible discharge of grape and musket-
balls, and the order was given to board. Up to this moment,
the odds had been as three to one against the assailants ; and it
was now, if possible, increased. The brigs and schooners
could no longer assist. The Turkish boats were not only the
heaviest and the best in every sense, but they were much the
strongest manned. The combat now assumed a character of
chivalrous prowess and of desperate personal efforts, that be
longs to the middle ages, rather than to struggles of our own
times. Its details, indeed, savour more of the glow of romance,
than of the sober severity that we are accustomed to associate
with reality.
Lieutenant Commandant Decatur took the lead. He had no
sooner discharged his shower of musket-balls, than No. 4 was
laid alongside the opposing boat of the enemy, and he went
into her, followed by Lieutenant Thorn, Mr. M'Donough, find
all the Americans of his crew. The Tripolitan boat was
divided nearly in two parts, by a long open hatchway, and as the
people of No. 4 came in on one side, the Turks retreated to the
other, making a sort of ditch of the open space. This caused
an instant of delay, and, perhaps, fortunately, for it permitted
the assailants to act together. As soon as ready, Mr. Decatur
charged round each end of the hatchway, and after a short
struggle, a portion of the Turks were piked and bayoneted,
while the rest submitted, or leaped into the water.*
No sooner had Mr. Decatur got possession of the boat first
assailed, than he took her in tow, and bore down on the one
next to leeward. Running the enemy aboard, as before, he
went into him, with most of his officers and men. The cap
tain of the Tripolitan vessel was a large powerful man, and
Mr. Decatur personally charged him with a pike. The weapon,
however, was seized by the Turk, wrested from the hands of
the assailant, and turned against its owner. The latter parried
a thrust, and made a blow with his sword at the pike, with a
view to cut off its head. The sword hit the iron, and broke
at the hilt, and the next instant the Turk made another thrust.'

• It is probable that the crew of thia boat was in a measure staggered
by the close fire of the gun, as No. 4 approached, her captain having re.
ceived no fewer than fourteen musket-balls in his body^ by that one dis
charge.

1804.] NAVAL HISTORY. 193
Nothing was left to the gallant Decatur, but his arm, with
which he so far averted the blow, as to receive the pike through
the flesh of one breast. Pushing the iron from the wound, by
tearing the flesh, he sprang within the weapon, and grappled
his antagonist. The pike fell between the two, and a short
trial of strength succeeded, in which the Turk prevailed. As
the combatants fell, however, Mr. Decatur so far released him
self as to lie side by side with his foe on the deck. The Tri
politan now endeavoured to reach his poniard, while his hand
was firmly held by that of his enemy. At this criUcal instant,
when life or death depended on a moment well employed, or a
moment lost, Mr. Decatur drew a small pistol from the pocket
of his vest, passed the arm that was free round the body of the
Turk, pointed the muzzle in, and fired. The ball passed
entirely through the body of the Mussulman, and lodged in the
clothes of his foe. At the same instant, Mr. Decatur felt the
grasp that had almost smothered him relax, and he was liber
ated. He sprang up, and the Tripolitan lay dead at his feet.
In such a mMee it cannot be supposed that the struggle of
the two leaders would go unnoticed. An enemy raised his
sabre to cleave the skull of Mr. Decatur, while he was occupied
by his enemy, and a young man of the Enterprise's crew in
terposed an arm to save him. The blow was intercepted, but
the limb was severed to a bit of skin. A fresh rush was now
made upon the enemy, who was overcome without much further
resistance. An idea of the desperate nature of the fighting that distin
guished this remarkable assault, may be gained from the
amount of the loss. The two boats captured by Lieutenant
Commandant Decatur, had about eighty men in them, of whom
fifty-two are known to have been killed and wounded ; most
of the latter very badly. As only eight prisoners were made
who were not wounded, and many jumped overboard and
swam to the rocks, it is not improbable that the Turks suffered
still more severely. Lieutenant Commandant Decatur himself
being wounded, he secured his second prize, and hauled off to
rejoin the squadron ; all the rest of the enemy's division that
were not taken, having by this time, run into the harbour, by
passing through the openings between the rocks.
While Lieutenant Commandant Decatur was thus employed
to windward, his brother, Mr. James Decatur, the first lieu
tenant of the Nautilus, was nobly emulating his example in
No. 2. Reserving his fire, like No. 4, this young officer
17

194 NAVAL HISTORY. [1804.
dashed into the smoke, and was on the point of boarding, when
he received a musket-ball in his forehead. The boats met and
rebounded ; and in the confusion of the death of the command
ing officer of No. 2, the Turk was enabled to escape, under a
heavy fire from the Americans. It was said, at the time, that
the enemy had struck before Mr. Decatur fell, though the fact
must remain in doubt. It is, however, believed that he sus
tained a very severe loss.
In the mean time, Mr. Trippe, in No. 6, the last of the three
boats that was able to reach the weather division, was not idle.
Reserving his fire, like the others, he delivered it with deadly
effect, when closing, and went aboard of his enemy in the
smoke. In this instance, the boats also separated by the shock
of the collision, leaving Mr. Trippe, with Mr. J. D. Henley,
and nine men only, on board the Tripolitan. Here, too, the
commanders singled each other out, and a severe personal
combat occurred, while the work of death was going on around
them. The Turk was young, and of a large athletic form,
and he soon compelled his slighter but more active foe to fight
with caution. Advancing on Mr. Trippe, he would strike a
blow and receive a thrust in return. In this manner, he gave
the American commander no less than eight sabre wounds in
the head, and two in the breast ; when, making a sudden rush,
he struck a ninth blow on the head, which brought Mr. Trippe
upon a knee. Rallying all his force in a desperate effort, the
latter, who still retained the short pike with which he fought,
made a thrust that passed the weapon through his gigantic
adversary, and tumbled him on his back. As soon as the
Tripolitan officer fell, the remainder of his people submitted.
The boat taken by Mr. Trippe, was one of the largest be
longing to the bashaw. The number of her men is not posi
tively known, but, living and dead, thirty-six were fifund in
her, of whom twenty-one were either killed or wounded.
When it is remembered that but eleven Americans boarded
her, the achievement must pass for one of the most gallant on
record.* * While Mr. Trippe was so hard pressed by his antagonist, a Turk
aimed a blow at him, from behind ; but just before the latter struck, Ser
geant Meredith, of the marines, passed a bayonet through his body.
While the prizes were hauling off, no one had thought, in the confusion
of such a scene, of lowering the flag of the Tripolitan boat, and she was
seen advancing with the enemy's ensign set. The Vixen gave her a
broadside, which brought down colours, mast, latine-yard, and all. For
tunately, no one was hurt.

1804.] NAVAL HISTORV. 195
All this time the cannonade and bombardment continued
without ceasing. Lieutenant Commandant Somers, in No. 1,
sustained by the brigs and schooners, had forced the remain
ing boats to retreat, and this resolute officer pressed them so
hard as to be compelled to ware within a short distance of a
battery of twelve guns, quite near the mole. Her destruction
seemed inevitable, as the boat came slowly round, when a shell
fell into the battery, most opportunely blew up the platform,
and drove the enemy out, to a man. Before the guns could
be again used, the boat had got in tow of one of the small ves
sels. There was a division of five boats and two galleys of the
enemy, that had been held in reserve within the rocks, and
these rallied their retreating countrymen, and made two efforts
to come out and intercept the Americans and their prizes, but
they were kept in check by the fire of the frigate and small
vessels. The Constitution maintained a very heavy fire, and
silenced several of the batteries, though they re-opened as soon
as she had passed. The bombards were covered with the
spray of shot, but continued to throw shells to the last.
At half-past four, the wind coming round to the northward,
a signal was made for the gun-boats and bomb-ketches to re
join the small vessels, and another to take them and the prizes
in tow. The last order was handsomely executed by the brigs
and schooners, under cover of a blaze of fire from the frigate.
A quarter of an hour later, the Constitution herself hauled off,
and ran out of gun-shot.
Thus terminated the first serious attack that was made on
the town and batteries of Tripoli. Its effect on the enemy,
was of the most salutary kind ; the manner in which their
gun-boats had been taken, by boarding, having made a lasting
and 'deep impression. The superiority of the Christians in
gunnery, was generally admitted before ; but here was an in
stance in which the Turks had been overcome by inferior num
bers, hand to hand, a species of conflict in which- they had
been thought particularly to excel. Perhaps no instance of
more desperate fighting of the sort, without defensive armour,
is to be found in the pages of history. Three gun-boats were
sunk in the harbour, in addition to the three that were taken ;
and the loss of the "Tripolitans by shot, must have been very
heavy. About fifty shells were thrown into the town, but lit
tle damage appears to have been done in this way, very few
of the bombs, on account of the imperfect materials that had

196 NAVAL HISTORY. [1804.
been furnished, exploding. The batteries were a good deal
damaged, but the town suffered no essential injury.
On the part of the Americans, only 14 were killed and
wounded in the affair ; and all of these, with the exception of
one man, belonged to the gun-boats. The Constitution, though
under fire two hours, escaped much better than could have
been expected. She received one heavy shot through her
main-mast, had a quarter-deck gun injured,* and was a good
deal cut up aloft. The enemy had calculated his range for a
more distant cannonade, and generally overshot the ships.
By this mistake the Constitution had her main-royal-yard shot
away. On the occasion of the battle of the 3d of August, the offi
cers who had opportunities of particularly distinguishing them
selves, were Lieutenants Commandant Decatur and Somers ;
Lieutenants Trippe, Decatur, Bainbridge, and Thorn, and
Messrs. M'Donough, Henley, Ridgely, and Miller. But the
whole squadron behaved well ; and the Constitution was han
dled, under the fire of the batteries, with the steadiness of a
ship working into a roadstead.

CHAPTER XXI.
The vessels hauled off and anchored about two leagues
from TripoU, to repair their damages. On the morning of
the 5th, the Argus brought-to a small French privateer that
had just got out of the harbour, and Commodore Preble in
duced her commander to return and carry in all the badly
wounded among his prisoners. f From the captain of this ves
sel, he learned that the enemy had suffered even more than
* A shot came in afl, hit the gun, and broke in several pieces. Commo
dore Preble was directly in its range, but he escaped by the shot's break
ing. One of the fragments took off the tip of a marine's elbow, quite
near him.
t Mr. Morris of the Argus was rowing guard, close in, when he found
himself unexpectedly alongside of a strange sail. Without hesitating,
he boarded and carried her by surprise, when she proved to be the priva
teer in question.

1804.] NAVAL HISTORY. 197
had been supposed in the attack of the Sd, particularly in and
about the port. On the 7th, the privateer came out, bringing
a letter from the French consul, stating that the Bashaw was
' much more disposed to treat than previously to the late affair,
and advising the commodore to send in a flag of truce, with a
view to negotiate. As the castle made no signal to support
this proposition, it was not regarded.
Between the Sd and the 7th, the squadron was occupied in
altering the rig of the three captured gun-boats, and in putting
them in a condition for service. As soon as the latter were
equipped, they were numbered 7, 8, and 9, and the command
of them was given to Lieutenants Crane, Caldwell, and Thorn.
At 9 A. M., on the 7th, the light vessels weighed, and the bom
bards proceeded to take a position in a small bay to the west
ward of the town, where they were not much exposed to shot.
At half-past 2, the bombards, having gained their anchorage,
commenced throwing shells, and the gun-boats opened a heavy
fire on the batteries. The effect on the latter was soon appa
rent, and many of their guns were rendered useless. In the
height of the cannonade, a strange vessel appeared in the off
ing, and the Argus was sent in chase. The enemy now be
gan to get his galleys and gun-boats in motion, and once or
twice they advanced towards the opening between the rocks,
and commenced a fire ; but the Constitution, Nautilus, and
Enterprise, being stationed to windward to cut them off, and
the Siren and Vixen lying near the American gun-vessels to
cover the latter, the enemy, after the lesson received on the 3d,
were afraid to venture.
At half-past 3, or after the action had lasted about an hour,
a hot shot passed through the magazine of No. 8, Lieutenant
Caldwell, the boat taken by Mr. Trippe in the affair of the 3d,
and she immediately blew up. When the smoke cleared away,
all the after part of the boat was under water, while Mr. Rob
ert T. Spence, of the Siren, and 11 men were forward, load
ing the long twenty-six-pounder that formed her armament.
This gun was loaded and fired, and its gallant crew gave three
cheers as their vessel sunk beneath them. Mr. Spence, who
could not swim, saved himself on an oar, while the rest of the
people got on board the different boats, where they continued
to fight during the remainder of the action.
No. 8, when she blew up, had a crew of 28 persons in all,
of whom 10 were killed and 6 wounded. ¦ Among the former
was Mr. Caldwell, her commander, the first lieutenant of the
17*

198 NAVAL HISTORY. [1804.
Siren, and Mr. Dorsey, a midshipman of the same vessel.
These two officers were greatly regretted, as both bade fair to
be ornaments to their profession.*
At half-past 5, or after the cannonade had lasted nearly
three hours, the Constitution made a signal for the brigs and
schooners to take the bombards and gun-boats in tow, and the
squadron hauled off for its anchorage again. Just at this time,
the Argus made a signal that the sail in sight was a friend.
The gun-boats, in this attack, suffered considerably. In
consequence of the wind's being on-shore. Commodore Preble
had kept the frigate out of the action, and the enemy's batteries
had no interruption from the heavy fire of that ship. Several
of the American boats had been hulled, and all suffered ma
terially in their sails and rigging. No. 6, Lieutenant Wads
worth, had her latine-yard shot away. The killed and wounded
amounted to 18 men.
At 8 o'clock in the evening, the John Adams 28, Captain
Chauncey, from America, came within hail of the Constitution,
and reported herself. By this ship. Commodore Preble re
ceived despatches informing him of the equipment of the vessels
that were to come out under Commodore Barron, and of the
necessity, which was thought to exist, of superseding him in
the command. Captain Chauncey also stated the probability
of the speedy arrival of the expected ships, which were to sail
shortly after his own departure. As the John Adams had
brought stores for the squadron, and had put most of her gun-
carriages in the other frigates to enable her to do so, she could
be of no immediate use ; and the rest of the vessels being so
soon expected. Commodore Preble was induced to delay the
other attacks he had meditated, on the ground of prudence.
By the John Adams, intelligence reached the squadron of
the re-establishment of the rank of masters and commanders,
* Mr. Edmund P. Kennedy, one of the gunner's crew belonging to the
Siren, was the captain of the gun, on board No. 8, when she blew up.
Mr. Kennedy was a young gentleman of Maryland, who had quitted
school in quest of adventure, and, having been impressed into the British
navy, on obtaining his discharge in the Mediterranean, he entered under
the flag of his country. In consequence of his good conduct on this oc
casion, and from a desire to place him in a station better suited to his
pretensions, Commodore Preble made Mr. Kennedy an acting midship
man. The appointment was confirmed at home, and the, gentleman in
question has since worn a broad pennant. It is believed that this officer
and one other, are the only two in the navy who can Iroast of having gone
through all the gradations of the service, from forward, afl.

1804.] NAVALHISTORY. 199
and the new commissions were brought out to the officers be
fore Tripoli, who had been promoted. In consequence of these
changes, Lieutenant Commandant Decatur was raised to the
rank of captain, and became the second in command then pre
sent; while Lieutenants Commandant Stewart, Hull, Chauncey,
Smith, and Somers, became masters commandant, in the order
in which they are named. Several of the young gentlemen
were also promoted, including most of those who had a share
in the destruction of the Philadelphia.
The bashaw now became more disposed than ever to treat,
the warfare promising much annoyance, with no corresponding
benefits. The cannonading did his batteries and vessels great
injuries, though the town probably suffered less than might
have been expected, being in a measure protected by its walls.
The shells, too, that had been procured at Messina, turned out
to be very bad, few exploding when they fell.* The case was
different with the shot, which did their work effectually on the
different batteries. Some idea may be formed of the spirit of
the last attack, from the report of Commodore Preble, who
stated that nine guns, one of which was used but a short time,
threw 500 heavy shot, in the course of little more than two
hours. Although the delay caused by the expected arrival of the
reinforcement, was improved to open a negotiation, it was
without effect. The bashaw had lowered his demands quite
half, but he still insisted on a ransom of $500 a man for his
prisoners, though he waived the usual claim for tribute in fu
ture. These propositions were not received, it being expected
that, after the arrival of the reinforcement, the treaty might be
made on the usual terms of civilised nations.
On the 9th of August, the Argus, Captain Hull, had a nar
row escape. That brig having stood in towards the town, to
reconnoitre, with Commodore Preble on board, one of the hea
viest of the shot from the batteries, raked her bottom for some
distance, and cut the planks half through. An inch or two of
variation in the direction of this shot, would infallibly have
sunk the brig, and that probably in a very few minutes.
* According to the private journal of Captain Bainbridge, then a pri
soner in the town, out of forty-eight shells thrown by the two bombards in
the attack of the 7th, but one exploded. Agreeably to the records made
by this officer at the time, the bombs on no occasion did much injury, and
the town generally suffered less by shot even than was commonly sup-

200

NAVAL HISTORY. [1904.

No mtelligence arriving from the expected vessels. Com
modore Preble, about the 16th, began to make his prepara
tions for another attack, sending the Enterprise, Lieutenant
Commandant Robinson, to Malta, with orders for the agent to
forward transports with water, the vessels being on a short
allowance of that great essential. On the night of the 17th,
Captains Decatur and Chauncey went close in, in boats, and
reconnoitred the situation of the enemy. These officers, on
their return, reported that the vessels of the Tripolitan flotilla
were moored abreast of each other, in a line extending from
the mole to the castle, with their heads to the eastward, which
was making a defence directly across the inner harbour or
galley-mole. A gale, however, compelled the American squadron to stand
off shore on the morning of the 18th, which caused another
delay in the contemplated movements. While lying-to, in the
offing, the vessels met the transports from Malta, and the En
terprise returned, bringing no intelligence from the expected
reinforcement. On the 24th, the squadron stood in towards the town again,
with a light breeze from the eastward. At 8 P. M., the Con
stitution anchored just out of gun-shot of the batteries, but it
fell calm, and the boats of the different vessels were sent to
tow the bombards to a position favourable for throwing shells.
This was thought to have been effected by 2 A. M., when the
two vessels began to heave their bombs, covered by the gun
boats. At daylight, they all retired, without having received
a shot in return. Commodore Preble appears to have dis
trusted the result of this bombardment, the first attempted at
night, and there is reason to think it produced but little effect.*
The weather proving very fine and the wind favourable, on
the 28th, Commodore Preble determined to make a more vi
gorous assault on the town and batteries, than any which had
preceded it, and his dispositions were taken accordingly. The
gun-boats and bombards requiring so many men to manage
them, the Constitution and the small vessels had been com
pelled to go into action short of hands, in the previous affairs.
To obviate this difficulty, the John Adams had been kept be
fore the town, and a portion of her officers and crew, and
nearly all her boats, were put in reqpiisition, on the present
* Captain Bainbridge, in his private journal, says that all the shells
thrown on this occasion fell short.

1B04.] NAVAL HISTORY. 201
occasion. Captain Chauncey, himself, with about seventy of
his people, went on board the flag-ship, and all the boats of the
squadron were hoisted out and manned. The bomb vessels were
crippled and could not be brought into service, a circumstance
that probably was of no great consequence, on account of the
badness of the materials they were compelled to use.* These
two vessels, with the Scourge, transports, and John Adams,
were anchored well off at sea, not being available in the con
templated cannonading.
Every thing being prepared, a little after midnight the fol
lowing gun-boats proceeded to their stations, viz : No. 1, Cap
tain Somers ; No. 2, Lieutenant Gordon ; No. 3, Mr. Brooks,
master of the Argus ; No. 4, Captain Depatur ; No. 5, Lieu
tenant Lawrence ; No. 6, Lieutenant Wadsworth ; No. 7, Lieu
tenant Crane ; and No. 9, Lieutenant Thorn. They were di
vided into two divisions, as before. Captain Decatur having
become the superior officer, however, by his recent promotion.
About 3 A. M. the gun-boats advanced close to the rocks at
the entrance of the harbour, covered by the Siren, Captain
Stewart, Argus, Captain Hull, Vixen, Captain Smith, Nautilus,
Lieutenant Reed, and Enterprise, Lieutenant Commandant Ro
binson, and accompanied by all the boats of the squadron.
Here they anchored, with springs on their cables, and com
menced a cannonade on the enemy's shipping, castle, and
town. As soon as the day dawned, the Constitution weighed
and stood in towards the rocks, under a heavy fire from the
batteries. Fort EngUsh, and the castle. At this time, the ene
my's gun-boats and galleys, thirteen in number, were closely
and warmly engaged with the eight American boats ; and the
Constitution, ordering the latter to retire by signal, as their
ammunition was mostly consumed, delivered a heavy fire of
round and grape on the former as she came up. One of the
enemy's boats was soon sunk, two were run ashore to prevent
them from meeting a similar fate, and the rest retreated.
The Constitution now continued to stand on, until she had
run in within musket-shot of the mole, when she brought-to,
and opened upon the town, batteries, and castle. Here she
lay three-quarters of an hour, pouring in a fierce fire, with
* It is stated that Commodore Preble subsequently discovered lead in
the fuse-holes of many of the bombs. It was supposed that this had been
done by treachery, by means of French agents in Sicily, the shells having
been charged to resist the Frenqh invasion.

202 NAVAL HISTORY. [1904.
great effect, until finding that all the small vessels were out
of'gun-shot, she hauled off. About 700 heavy shot were thrown
at the enemy, in this attack, besides a good many from the
chase-guns of the small vessels. The enemy sustained much
damage, and lost many men. The American brigs and schoon
ers were a good deal injured aloft, as was the Constitution.
Although the latter ship was so long within reach of grape,
many of which shot struck her, she had not a man hurt I
Several of her shrouds, back-stays, trusses, spring-stays,
chains, lifts, and a great deal of running rigging were shot
away, and yet her hull escaped with very trifling injuries. A
boat -belonging to the John Adams, under the orders of Mr.
John Orde Creighton, one of that ship's master's mates, was
sunk by a double-headed shot, which killed three men, and
badly wounded a fourth, but the officer and the rest of the
boat's crew were saved.
In this attack a heavy shot from the American gun-boats
struck the castle, passed through a wall, and rebounding from
the opposite side of the room, fell within six inches of Captedn
Bainbridge, who was in bed at the moment, and covered him
with stones and mortar ; from under which he was taken, con
siderably hurt, by his own officers. More injury was done the
town in this attack, than in either of the others, the shot ap
pearing to have told on many of the houses.
From this time to the close of the month, preparations were
making to use the bombards again, and for renewing the can
nonading, another transport having arrived from Malta, with
out bringing ahy intelligence of the vessels under the orders
of Commodore Barron. On the" 3d of September, everything
being ready, at half-past two the signal was made for the small
vessels to advance. The enemy had improved the time as
well as the Americans, and they had raised three of their own
gun-boats that had been sunk in the affairs of the 3d and of
the 28th of August. These craft were now added to the rest
of their flotilla.
The Tripolitans had also changed their mode of fighting.
Hitherto, with the exceptionof the affair of the 3d, their galleys
and gun-boats had lain either behind the rocks, in positions to
fire over them, or at the openings between them, and they con
sequently found themselves to leeward of the frigate and small
American cruisers, the latter invariably choosing easterly
winds to advance with, as they would permit crippled vessels
to retire. On the 3d of August, the case excepted, the Turks

1804.] NAVAL HISTORY. 203
had been so roughly treated by being brought hand to hand,
when they evidently expected nothing more than a cannonade,
that they were not disposed to venture again outside of the har
bour. On the 3d of September, however, the day at which
we have now arrived, their plan of defence was judiciously
altered. No sooner was it perceived that the American squad
ron was in motion, with a fresh design to annoy them, than
their gun-boats and galleys got under way, and worked up to
windward, until they had gained a station on the weather side
of the harbour, directly under the fire of Fort English, as well
as of a new battery that had been erected a little to the west
ward of the latter.
This disposition of the enemy's force, required a correspond
ing change on the part of the Americans. The bombards
were directed to take stations and to commence throwing their
shells ; while the gun-boats, in two divisions, commanded as
usual by Captains Decatur and Somers, and covered by the
brigs and schooners, assailed the enemy's flotilla. This ar
rangement separated the battle into two distinct parts, leaving
the bomb vessels very much exposed to the fire of the castle,
the mole, crown, and other batteries.
The Tripolitan gun-boats and galleys stood the fire of the
American flotilla until the latter had got within reach of mus
ketry, when they retreated. The assailants now separated,
some of the gun-boats following the enemy, and pouring in
their fire, while the others, with the brigs and schooners, can
nonaded Fort English.
In the mean while, perceiving that the bombards were suf
fering severely from the undisturbed fire of the guns to which
they were exposed, Commodore Preble ran down in the Con
stitution, quite near the rocks, and within the bomb vessels,
and brought to. Here the frigate opened as warm a fire as
probably ever came out of the broadside of a single-decked
ship, and in a position where seventy heavy guns could bear
upon her. The whole harbour in the.vicinity of the town, was
glittering with the spray of her shot, and each battery, as usual,
was silenced as soon as it drew her attention. After throwing
more than three hundred round shot, besides grape and can
ister, the frigate hauled off, having previously ordered the
other vessels to retire from action, by signal.
The gun-boats, in this affair, were an hour and fifteen min
utes engaged, in which time they threw four hundred round
shot, besides grape and canister. Lieutenant Trippe, who

204 NAVAL HISTORY. [1804.
had so much distinguished himself, and who had received so
many wounds that day month, resumed the command of No.
6, for this occasion. Lieutenant Morris, of the Argus, was in
charge of No. 3. All the small-vessels suffered, as usual,
aloft, and the Argus sustained some damage in her hull.
The Constitution was so much exposed in the attack just
related, that her escape can only be attributed to the weight of
her own fire. It had been found, in the previous affairs, that
so long as this ship could play upon a battery, the Turks could
not be kept -at its guns ; and it was chiefly while she was veer
ing, or tacking, that she suffered. But, after making every
allowance for the effect of her own cannonade, and for the im
perfect gunnery of the enemy, it creates wonder that a single
frigate could lie opposed to more than double her own number
of available guns, and these too, principally, of heavier metal,
while they were protected by stone walls. On this occasion,
the frigate was not supported by the gun-boats at all, and she
became the sole object of the enemy's aim after the bombards
had withdrawn.
As might have been expected, the Constitution suffered more
in the attack just recorded, than in any of the previous affairs,
though she received nothing larger than grape In her hull.
She had three shells through her canvass, one of which ren
dered the main-top-sail momentarily useless. Her sails, stand
ing and running rigging were also much cut with shot. Cap
tain Chauncey, of the John Adams, and a party of his officers
and crew, served in the Constitution again on this day, and
were of essential use. Indeed, in all the service which suc
ceeded her arrival, the commander, officers, and crew of the
John Adams were actively employed, though the ship herself
could not be brought before the enemy, for the want of gun-
carriages. The bombards, having been much exposed, suffered accord
ingly. No. 1, was so much crippled, as tobe unable to move,
without being towed, and was near sinking when she was got
to the anchorage. Every shroud she had was shot away.
Commodore Preble expressed himself satisfied with the good
conduct of every man in the squadron. All the vessels appear
to have been well conducted, and efficient in their several sta
tions. Of the effect of the shells, there is no account to be re
lied on, though it is probable that, as usual, many did not ex
plode. There is no doubt, however, that the bombs were well
directed, and that they fell into the town.

1804] NAVAL HISTORY. 205
'While Commodore Preble was thus actively employed in
carrying on the war against the enemy, the attack just re
lated having been the fifth made on the town within a month,
he was meditating another species of annoyance, that was
now ready to be put in execution.

CHAPTER XXII.
The ketch Intrepid, which had been employed by Mr. Deca
tur in burning the Philadelphia, was stiU in the squadron, hav
ing been used of late as a transport between Tripoli and Mal
ta. This vessel had been converted into an " infernal," or,
to use more intelligible terms, she had been fitted as a floating
mine, with the intention of sending her into the harbour of Tri
poli, to explode among the enemy's cruiser's. As every thing
connected with the history of this little vessel, as well as with
the enterprise in which she was about to be employed, will have
interest with the public, we shall be more particular than com-.
mon in giving the details of this affair, as they have reached
us through public documents, and oral testimony that is deem
ed worthy of entire credit.
A small room or magazine had been planked up in the hold
of the ketch, just forward of her prindpal mast. Communi
cating with this magazine was a trunk or tube, that led aft, to
another room filled with combustibles. In the planked room,
or magazine, were placed one hundred barrels of gunpowder
in bulk, and on the deck immediately above the powder, were
laid fifty thirteen and a half inch shells, and one hundred nine
inch shells, with a large quantity of shot, pieces of kentledge,
and fragments of iron of different sorts. A train was laid in
the trunk, or tube, and fuses were attached in the proper man
ner. In addition to this arrangement, the other small room
mentioned was filled with splinters and light wood, which, be
sides firing the train, were to keep the enemy from boarding,
as the flames would be apt to induce them to apprehend an im
mediate explosion.
The plan was well laid. It was the intention to profit by
the first dark night that offered, to carry the- ketch as far as
13

206 NAVAL HISTORY- [1804
possible into the galley-mole, to light the fire in the splinter-
room, and for the men employed, to make their retreat in boats.
The arrangements for carrying this project into effect ap
pear to have been made with care and prudence. Still the
duty, on every account, was deemed desperate. It was neces
sary, in the first place, to stand in by the western or little
passage, in a dull-sailing vessel, and with a light wind, directly
in the face of several batteries, the fire of which could only be
escaped by the enemy's mistaking the ketch for a vessel en
deavouring to force the blockade. It would also be required to
pass quite near these batteries, and, as the ketch advanced, she
would be running in among the gun-boats and galleys of the
enemy. It is not necessary to point out the hazards of such
an exploit, as a simple cannonade directed against a smajl
vessel filled with powder, would of itself be, in the last degree,
dangerous. After every thing had succeeded to the perfect
hopes of the assailants, there existed the necessity of effecting
a retreat, the service being one in which no quarter could be
expected. Such a duty could be confided to none but officers and men
of known coolness and courage, of perfect self-possession, and
of tried spirit. Captain Somers, who had commanded one
division of the gun-boats in the different attacks on the town
that have been related, in a manner to excite the respect of all
who witnessed his conduct, volunteered to take charge of this
enterprise; and Lieutenant Wadsworth, of the Constitution, an
officer of great merit, offered himself as the second in com
mand. It being unnecessary to send in any more than these
two gentlemen, with the few men needed to manage the ketch
and row the boats, no other officer was permitted to go, though
it is understood that several volunteered.
The night of the 4th of September, or that of the day which
succeeded the attack last related, promising to be obscure, and
there being a good leading wind from the eastward, it was
selected for the purpose. Commodore Preble appears to have
viewed the result of this expedition with great anxiety, and to
have ordered all its preparations, with the utmost personal
attention to the details. This feeling is believed to have been
increased by his knowledge of the character of the officers
who were to go in, and who, it was understood, had expressed
a determination neither to be taken, nor to permit the ammuni
tion in the ketch to fall into the enemy's hands. The latter
point was one of great importance, it being understood that the

1804] NAVAL HISTORY. 207
Tripolitans, like the Americans, were getting to be in want of
powder.* In short, it was the general understanding in the
squadron, before the ketch proceeded, that her officers had deter
mined not to be taken. Two fast-rowing boats, one belonging
to the Constitution, that pulled six oars, and one belonging to
the Siren, that pulled four oars, were chosen to bring the party
off, and their crews were volunteers from the Constitution and
Nautilus. At the last moment, Mr. Israel, an ardent young
officer, whose application to go in had been rejected, found
means to get on board the ketch, and, in consideration of his
gallantry, he was permitted to join the party.
When all was ready, or about 8 o'clock in the evening of
the day just mentioned, the Intrepid was under way, with the
Argus, "Vixen, and Nautilus in company. Shortly after, the
Siren also weighed, by a special order from the commodore,
and stood in towards the western passage, or that by which
the ketch was to enter, where she remained to look out for the
boats. The Nautilus, Captain Somers' own vessel, accompanied the
ketch close in, but, on reaching a position where there was
danger of her creating suspicions by being seen, she hauled
off, to take her station, like the other small vessels, near the
rocks, in order to pick up the retreating boats. The last per
son of the squadron who had any communication with Captain
Somers, was Mr. Washington Reed, the first lieutenant of his
own schooner, the Nautilus, who left him about 9 o'clock. At
that time, all was calm, collected, and in order, on board the
" infernal." The general uneasiness was increased by the cir
cumstance that three gun-boats lay near the entrance ; and
some of the last words of the experienced Decatur, before
taking leave of his friend, were to caution him against these
enemies. The sea was covered with a dense haze, though the stars
were visible, and the last that may be said to have been seen
of the Intrepid, was the shadowy forms of her canvass, as she
steered slowly, but steadily, into the obscurity, where the eyes
* A day or two before the ketch was ready, the commodore himself
was trying a port-fire in the cabin of the Constitution, in the presence of
Captain Somers, and of one or two Other officers, and finding that one
burned a particular time, by the watch, he remarked that he thought " it
burned longer than was necessary, as the time might enable the enemy to
approach and extinguish it before the train would be fired." " I ask for
no port-fire at all," was the quiet answer of Captain Somers.

208 NAVAL HISTORY. [1804
of the many anxious spectators fancied they could still trace
her dim outUne, most probably after it had totally disappeared.
This sinking into the gloom of night, was no bad image of the
impenetrable mystery that has veiled the subsequent proceed
ings of the gallant party on board her.
When the Intrepid was last seen by the naked eye, she was
not a musket-shot from the mole, standing directly for the har
bour. One officer on board the nearest vessel, the Nautilus,
is said, however, to have never lost sight of her with a night-
glass, but even he could distinguish no more than her dim pro
portions. There is a vague rumour that she touched on the
rocks, though it does not appear to rest on sufficient authority
to be entitled to much credit. To the last moment, she ap
pears to have been advancing. About this time the batteries
began to fire. Their shot are said to have been directed to
wards every point where an enemy might be expected, and it
is not improbable that some were aimed at the ketch.
The period between the time when the Intrepid was last
seen, and that when most of those who watched without the
rocks learned her fate, was not long. This was an interval
of intense, almost -of breathless expectation ; and it was inter
rupted only by the flashes and the roar of the enemy's guns.
Various reports exist of what those who gazed into the gloom
beheld, or fancied they beheld ; but one melancholy fact alone
would seem to be beyond contradiction. A fierce and sudden
light illuminated the panorama, a torrent of fire streamed up
ward, and a concussion followed that made the cruisers in the
offing tremble from their trucks to their keels. This sudden
blaze of light was followed by a darkness of two-fold intensity,
and the guns of the battery became mute, as if annihilated.
Numerous shells were seen in the air, and some of them de
scended on the rocks, where they were heard to fall. The
fuses were burning, and a few exploded, but much the greater
part were extinguished in the water. The mast, too, had risen
perpendicularly, with its rigging and canvass blazing, but the
descent veiled all in night.
So sudden and tremendous was the eruption, and so intense
the darkness which succeeded, that it was not possible to ascer
tain the precise position of the ketch at the moment. In the
glaring, but fleeting Ught, no person could say that he had
noted more than the material circumstance, that the Intrepid
had not reached the point at which she aimed. The shells had
not spread far, and those which fell on the rocks were so many

1804.] NAVAL HISTORY- 209
proofs of this important truth. There was no other fact to in
dicate the precise spot where the ketch exploded. A few cries
arose from the town, but the subsequent and deep silence that
followed was more eloquent than any clamour. The whole
of Tripoli was like a city of tombs.
If every eye had been watchful previously to the explosion,
every eye now became doubly vigilant to discover the retreat
ing boats. Men got over the sides of the vessels, holding
lights, and placing their ears near the water, in the hope of
detecting the sounds of even muffled oars ; and often was it
fancied that the gallant adventurers were near. They never
re-appeared. Hour after hour went by, until hope itself be
came exhausted. Occasionally, a rocket gleamed in the dark
ness, or a sullen gun was heard from the frigate, as signals to
the boats ; but the eyes that should have seen the first, were
sightless, and the last tolled on the ears of the dead.
The three vessels assigned to that service hovered around
the harbour until the sun rose ; but few traces of the Intrepid,
and nothing of her devoted crew, could be discovered. "The
wreck of the mast lay on the rocks near the western entrance,
and here and there a fragment was visible nigh it. One of the
largest of the enemy's gun-boats was missing, and it was ob
served that two others, which appeared to be shattered, were
being hauled upon the shore. The three that had lain across
the entrance had disappeared. It was erroneously thought
that the castle had sustained some injury from the concussion,
though, on the whole, the Americans were left with the melan
choly certainty of having met with a serious loss, without ob
taining a commensurate advantage.
It is now known that the bottom of the ketch grounded on
the north side of the rocks, near the round battery at the end
of the mole ; and as the wind was at the eastward, this renders
it certain that the explosion took place in the w'estern entrance
to the harbour, and fully a quarter of a mile from the spot that
it was intended the ketch should reach. In the wreck were
found two mangled bodies, and four more were picked up on
the 6th, floating in the harbour, or lodged on the shore. These
bodies were in the most shocking state of mutilation, and,
though Captain Bainbridge and one or two of his companions
were taken to see them, it was found impossible to distinguish
even the officers from the men. It is understood that six more
bodies were found, the day after the explosion, on the shore to
18*

210 NAVAL HISTORY. [1804
the southward of the town, and that a six-oared boat, with one
body in it, had drifted on the beach to the westward.*
These statements account for all those who went in the
ketch, and furnish conjectural clues to facts that would other
wise be veiled in impenetrable mystery. The spot where the
boat was found, was a proof that the ketch had not got very
far into the passage, or the cutter could not have drifted clear
of the natural mole to the westward. The reason that the boat
and the ketch's bottom were not found near the same spot, was
probably because the first was acted on more by the wind, and
the last by the current ; and the fact that a boat may have
drifted through rocks, with which the shore is everywhere
more or less lined, that would have brought up the wreck.
As there was but one body found in the boat, we are left to
suppose it was that of the keeper. Of the four-oared boat, or
that which belonged to the Siren, there does not appear to have
been any tidings, and it was either destroyed by the explosion,
sunk by the fall of fragments, or privately appropriated to
himself by some Tripolitan.
From the fact of there being but a single man in the Consti
tution's cutter, there is reason to infer that most of the officers
and men were on board the ketch, herself, when she blew up.
No person is understood to say that any of the enemy's vessels
were seen near the ketch, when she exploded, and, with these
meagre premises, we are left to draw our inferences as to the
causes of the disaster.
That Captain Somers was as capable of sacrificing himself,
when there was an occasion for it, as any man who ever lived,
is probably as true as it is certain that he would not destroy
himself, and much less others, without sufficient reason. It
has been supposed that the ketch was hoarded by the enemy,
and that her resolute commander fired the train in preference
to being taken. The spirit created by the chivalrous exploits
of Decatur, and the high-toned discipline and daring of Pre
ble, had communicated to all under their orders as lofty senti
ments of duty and zeal as probably were ever found among
an equal body of generous and ardent young men ; but it is
not easy to discover a motive why the explosion should have
been an intentional act of the Americans, and it is easy to dis
cover many why it should not.
There would be but one sufficient justification for an offi-
* Captain Bainbridge's private jovurnal.

1804] NAVAL HISTORY. 211
cer's sacrificing himself or his people under such circum
stances, and that was the impossibility of preventing the ketch
from falling into the hands of the enemy, by any other means.
Neither the evidence of eye-witnesses, so far as it is available,
nor the accounts of the Tripolitans themselves, would appear
to show, that when the Intrepid exploded, any enemy was near
enough to retider so desperate a step necessary. According
to the private journal of Captain Bainbridge, neither the town
nor the Turks suffered materially, and he was carried to the
beach to see the dead bodies, on the 8th, or two days after the
affair. This alone would prove that the ketch did not reach
the mole. If the object were merely to destroy the powder,
the men would have been previously ordered into the boats,
and, even under circumstances that rendered a resort to the
fuse inexpedient, the train would have been used. That only
one man was in the largest boat, is known from the condition
in which she was found, and this could hardly have happened,
under any circumstances, had the magazine been fired inten
tionally, by means of the train. Every contingency had doubt
less been^foreseen. One man was as able as twenty to apply
the match, and we can see but one state of things, besides
being boarded by surprise, that would render it likely that the
match would have been used until the people were in their
boats, or that it would have been appUed at any other spot, than
at the end of the train, or aft. A surprise of the nature men
tioned, would seem to have been Impossible ; for, though the
night was misty, objects might still be seen at some little dis
tance, and it is probable, also, that the party had glasses.
From weighing these circumstances, it is the most rational
opinion that the Intrepid was not intentionally blown up. She
was under fire at the time, and though it is improbable that the
enemy had any shot heated to repel an attack so unexpected,
a cold shot might easily have fired a magazine in the situation
of that of the Intrepid. The deck of the ketch, moreover,
was covered with loaded shells, and one of these might have
been struck and broken. Some other unforeseen accident may
have occurred. On the other hand, it is necessary to state,
that Commodore Preble firmly believed that his officers blew
themselves up, in preference to being made prisoners ; an opin
ion in which it would not be difficult to coincide, were there
proof that they were in any immediate danger of such a ca
lamity. It was also the general conjecture in the squadron
then before Tripoli, that such had been the fate of these bold

212 NAVAL HISTORY. [1804
adventurers ; but it would seem to have been formed at the
time, rather on an opinion of what the party that went in was
capable of doing, than on any evidence of what it had actu
ally done.
As it is the province of the historian to present all the lead
ing facts of his subject, we shall add, on the other hand, that
many little collateral circumstances appear to have occurred,
which may be thought to give force to the truth of the com
mon impression. One of the best authenticated of these, is
connected with what was seen from a vessel that was watch
ing the ketch, though it was not the schooner nearest in. On
board this vessel a light was observed moving on a horizontal
line, as if carried swiftly along a vessel's deck by some one
in hurried motion, and then to drop suddenly, like a lantern
sinking beneath a hatchway. Immediately afterwards the
ketch exploded, and at that precise spot, which would seem to
leave no doubt that this light was on board the Intrepid. But
even this by no means establishes the fact that the explosion
was intentional. The splinters, that were to keep the enemy
aloof, had not been lighted, and this movement with the lan
tern may have been intended to fire them, and may have had
some accidental connexion with the explosion.
In addition to this appearsmce of the light, which rests on
testimony every way entitied to respect, there was a report
brought off by the prisoners, then in Tripoli, when liberated,
from which another supposition has been formed as to the fate
of this devoted vessel, that is not without plausibility. It was
said that most of the bodies found had received gun-shot
wounds, especially from grape. One body, in particular, was
described as having had the small remains of nankeen panta
loons on it, and it was also reported that the hair* was of a
deep black. Through this person, according to the report, no
less than three grape-shot had passed. This has been sup
posed to have been the body of Captain Somers himself, who
was the only one of the party that wore nankeens, and whose
hair was of a deep black. On the supposition that the proofs
of the grape-shot wounds actually existed, it has been conjec
tured that, as the ketch advanced, she was fired into with
grape, most of her people shot down, and that the magazine
was touched off by the two whose bodies were found in the
* It is possible certainly that this mark may have been observed, but
it is more probable that the hair would have been consumed. Still a hat
may have saved it.

1804] NAVAL HISTORY. 213
wreck, and who were probably below when the Intrepid ex
ploded. That a close fire was opened when the ketch appeared, is
beyond doubt, and that she was quite near the mole and crown
batteries when the explosion occurred, is known, not only by
meems of the glass, but by the parts of the wreck that fell on
the rocks. Indeed, the situation of the latter would give rea
son to suppose there might be some truth in the rumour that
she had grounded, in whioh case her destruction by means of
shot would have been rendered certain.
The prevalent opinion that the Intrepid was boarded by one
or more of the gun-boats that lay near the entrance, would
seem to have been entertained without sufficient proof. These
vessels lay some distance within the spot where the ketch blew
up, and it was not probable that they would have advanced to
meet a vessel entering the harbour ; for did they suppose her
a friend, there would have been no motive ; and did they sup
pose her an enemy, they would have been much more likely
to avoid her. So shy, indeed, had the Tripolitans become,
after the burning of the Philadelphia, and the boarding of their
boats, that it was found extremely difficult to get their small
vessels within the range of musket-balls. Captain Somers
was known to have felt no apprehensions of being boarded by
these three boats ; for, when cautioned by his friend Decatur
on that head, his answer was, " they will be more likely to
cut and run." In this opinion that cool and observant officer
was probably right. Had there been any vessel near the In
trepid when she blew up, the light of the explosion would have
permitted her also to be seen ; some portions of her wreck
would have been visible next day ; and her masts and sails
would probably have been flying in the air, as well as those
of the ketch.
But the fact that only thirteen bodies are spoken of in the
private journal of Captain Bainbridge, is almost conclusive
on the subject that no Tripolitan vessel was blown up on this
occasion. This entry was made at the time, and before the
nature of the expedition, or the number of those who had been
sent in the ketch, was known to the Americans in Tripoli. The
thirteen bodies account exactly for all on board ; and as they
came ashore in a most mutUated state, without clothes, in some
instances without legs, arms, or heads, it was impossible to
say whether they were the mangled remains of friends or
enemies. Had a Tripolitan blown up in company, there must

214 NAVAL HISTORY. [1804
have been many more bodies in the same state, instead of the
precise number mentioned, and Captain Bainbridge would have
been as likely to be taken to see a dead Turk, as to see a dead
American. The missing gun-boat, of which Commodore Preble speaks
in his report, may have been sunk by a falling shell ; she may
have been shattered and hauled into the galley-mole, out of
sight; or, she may have removed in the darkness, and been
confounded next morning with others of the flotilla. Observa
tions made, by means of glasses, in a crowded port, at a dis
tance of two or three miles, are liable to many errors. In
short, it would seem to be the better opinion, that, from some
untoward circumstance, the Intrepid exploded at a point where
she did little or no injury to the enemy.*
One of three things seems to be highly probable, concerning
this long-disputed point. The ketch has either exploded by
means of the enemy's shot, than which, nothing was easier in
the situation where she lay ; the men have accidentally fired
the magazine, while preparing to light the splinters below ; or
it has been done intentionally, in consequence of the desperate
condition to which the party was reduced, by the destruction
caused by grape. Of the three, after weighing all the circum
stances, it is natural to believe that the first was the most pro
bable, as it was certainly easier to cause a vessel like the
* The entry in the private journal of Captain Bainbridge, is as follows :
" Was informed that the explosion that we heard last night, proceeded
from a vessel (which the Americans attempted to send into the harbour,)
blowing up ; which unfortunate scheme did no damage whatever to the
Tripolitans ; nor did it even appear to heave them into confiision. " " On
the 8th, by the bashaw's permission, with Lieutenant  , went to the
beach of the harbour, and there saw six persons in a most mangled and
burnt condition, lying on the shore ; whom we supposed to have been part
of the unfortunate crew of the fire-vessel, the bottom of which grounded
on the north side of the rocks near the round battery. Two of these dis
tressed-looking objects were fished out of the wreck. From the whole of
them being so much disfigured, it was impassible to recognise any known
feature to us, or even to distinguish an officer fi-om a seaman. Mr. Cowdery,
who accompanied us, informed me that he saw six others yesterday, on
the shore to the southward, which were supposed to have come from the
same vessel. He also informed me that an American six-oared boat,
with one man in her, was found drifted on the beach to the westward."
On the subject of Commodore Preble's impressions of the fate of the
Intrepid, it may be well to say, that the Constitution left Tripoli soon
after the ketch was blown up, and that his letter was dated at Malta, Sep
tember 18th. Owing to this circumstance, he must necessarily have been
ignorant of facts that were subsequently ascertained.

1804.] NAVAL HISTORY. 215
Intrepid, with a hundred barrels of loose powder in her maga
zine, to explode by means of shot, than to cause a vessel like
No. 8, which is known to have been blown up, in this manner, in
the action of the 7th of August. As regards the grape-shot
wounds, it will be seen that Captain Bainbridge is silent.
A sad and solemn mystery, after all our conjectures, must
for ever veil the fate of those fearless officers and their hardy
followers. In whatever light we view the affEtir, they were the
victims of that self-devotion which causes the seaman and sol
dier to hold his life in his hand, when the honour or interest of
his country demands the sacrifice. The name of Somers has
passed into a battle-cry, in the American marine, while those
of Wadsworth and Israel are associated with all that can en
noble intrepidity, coolness, and daring.
The war, in one sense, terminated with this scene of sublime
destruction. Commodore Preble had eonsumed so much of
his powder, in the previous attacks, that it was no longer in his
power to cannonade ; and the season was fast getting to be
dangerous to remain on that exposed coast. The guns, mor
tars, shells, &c., were taken out of the small vessels, on ac
count of the appearance of the weather, the day after the loss
of the Intrepid ; and on the 7th, the John Adams, Siren, Nau
tilus, Enterprise, and Scourge, were directed to take the bom
bards and gun-boats in tow, and to proceed to Syracuse ; while
the Constitution, with the Argus and Vixen in company, main
tained the blockade. It is not known that another shot was
fired at Tripoli.
Three days later, or on the 10th of September, 1804, the Pre
sident 44, wearing the broad pennant of Commodore Barron,
hove in sight, with the Constellation 38, Captain Campbell, in
company, when the command was regularly transferred to the
former officer. On the 12th, two sail were cut off, while at
tempting to enter Tripoli loaded with wheat. On the 17th, the
Constitution reached Malta, with the two prizes ; and subse
quently. Commodore Preble went to Syracuse in the Argus.
At a later day, he came home in the John Adams, where he
arrived on the 26th of February, 1805. In the mean time,
Captain Decatur proceeded to Malta and took command of the
Constitution, which was the first frigate this celebrated officer
ever had under his orders.
The country fully appreciated the services of Commodore
Preble. He had united caution and daring in a way to denote
the highest military qualities ; and his success in general, had

216 NAVAL HISTORY. [1804
been in proportion. The attack of the Intrepid, the only ma
terial failure in any of his enterprises, was well arranged, and
had it succeeded, it would probably have produced peace in
twenty-four hours. As it was, the bashaw was well enough
disposed to treat, though he seems to have entered into some
calculations in the way of money, that induced him to hope
the Americans would still reduce their policy to the level of
his own, and prefer paying ransom to maintaining cruisers so
far from home. Commodore Preble, and all the officers and
men under his orders, received the thanks of Congress, and a
gold medal was bestowed on the former. . By the same reso
lution. Congress expressed the sympathy of the nation in be
half of the relatives of Captain Richard Somers, Lieutenants
Henry Wadsworth, James Decatur, James R. Caldwell, and
Joseph Israel, and Mr. John Sword Dorsey, midshipman ; the
officers killed off TripoU.

CHAPTER XXIII.
The squadron left in the Mediterranean, under the orders
of Commodore Barron, after the departure of Commodore
Preble, was much the strongest force that the country had then
assembled in that sea. It consisted of the following vessels,
viz. :
President  44, Capt. Cox ; Com. Barron.
Constitution  44, " Decatur.
Congress  38, " Rodgers.
Constellation  38, " Campbell.
Essex  32, " J. Barron.
Siren  16, " Stewart.
Argus  16, " Hull.
Vixen  .12, " Smith.
Enterprise  12, Lieut. Com. Robinson.
Nautilus  ...12, " " Dent.
The blockade of Tripoli was maintained by different vessels
during the bad season of 1804-t5 ; but no attack was attempted,
although preparations were made to renew the war in the
spring. One of the first measures of Commodore Preble, on
reaching America, was to urge upon the government the ne
cessity of building suitable bomb-ketches, and a few gun-boats

1804] NAVAL HISTORY. 217
fitted to cannonade a place like Tripoli. His advice was fol
lowed, the vessels being immediately laid down ; but it being
found impossible to have the ketches ready in time, the two
vessels before mentioned, were purchased, strengthened, and
equipped as bombards.
In November, Captain Rodgers, as the senior officer, was
put in command of the Constitution, while Captain Decatur
was transferred to the Congress. 'The winter and spring
passed in this manner, the blockade being maintained with
vigour, most of the time, though no event worthy of note oc
curred off the port. While matters remained in this state with
the ships, a movement by land was in the course of execution,
that must now be recorded, as it is intimately connected with
the history of the war.
It has been said already, that Jussuf CaramalU, the reigning
pacha, or bashaw of Tripoli, was a usurper, having deposed
his elder brother Hamet, in order to obtain the throne. The
latter had escaped from the regency, and, after passing a wan
dering life, he had taken refuge among the Mamelukes of
Egypt. It had often been suggested to the American agents,
that the deposed prince might be made useful in carrying on
the war against the usurper ; and at different times, several
projects had been entertained to that effect, though never with
any results. At length, Mr. Eaton, the consul at Tunis, who
had been a captain in the army, interested himself in the en
terprise ; and coming to America, he so far prevailed on the
government to lend itself to his views, as to obtain a species
of indirect support. Commodore Barron was directed to co
operate with Mr. Eaton, as far as he might deem it discreet.
When the new squadron arrived out, it was accordingly as
certained where the ex-bashaw was to be found, and Mr. Ea
ton at once commenced his operations. Two or three days
after Commodore Barron had assumed the command before
Tripoli, he sent the Argus 16, Captain Hull, with that gentle
man to Alexandria, where he arrived on the 26th of Novem
ber. On the 29th, Mr. Eaton, accompanied by Lieutenant
O'Bannon, of the marines, and Messrs. Mann and Danielson,
two midshipmen of the squadron, proceeded to Rosetta, and
thence to Cairo. The viceroy of Egypt received them with
favour, and permission was obtained for the prince of Tripoli
to pass out of the country unmolested, though he had been
fighting against the government, with the discontented Mame
lukes. 19

218 NAVAL HISTORY. [1805.
As soon as Hamet Caramalli received the proposals of Mr.
Eaton, he separated himself from the Mamelukes, attended by
about forty followers, and repaired to a point twelve leagues
to the westward of the old port of Alexandria. Here he was
soon joined by Mr. Eaton, at the head of a small troop of ad
venturers, whom he had obtained in Egypt. This party was
composed of all nations, though Mr. Eaton expressed his be
lief, at the time, that had he possessed the^ means of subsist
ence, he might have marched a body of 30,000 men against
Tripoli, the reigning bashaw having forced so many of his
subjects into banishment. Soon after the junction agreed
upon, Mr. Eaton, who now assumed the title of general,
marched in the direction of Derne, taking the route across the
Desert of Barca. This was early in 1805.
The Argus had returned to Malta for orders and stores, and
on the 2d of April, she re-appeared off Bomba, with the Hor
net 10, Lieutenant Commandant Evans, in company. Cruis
ing on this coast a few days, without obtaining any intelligence
of General Eaton and the bashaw. Captain Hull steered to the
westward, and, a few leagues to the eastward of Derne, he
fell in with the Nautilus, Lieutenant Commandant Dent. On
communicating with this vessel, which was lying close in with
the shore. Captain Hull ascertained that the expedition was on
the coast, and that it waited only for the arms and supplies
that had been brought, to attack Derne, from which town it
was but a league distant. A field-piece was landed, together
with some stores and muskets, and a Cew marines appear to
have been put under the orders of Mr. O'Bannon, of the corps,
when the vessels took their stations to aid in the attack.
It was 2, P. M., on the 27tb of April, 1805, that this assault,
so novel for Americans to be engaged in, in the other hemi
sphere, was commenced. The Hornet, Lieutenant Command
ant Evans, having run close in, and anchored with springs on
her cables, within pistol-shot of a. battery of eight guns, opened
her fire. The Nautilus lay at a little distance to the eastward,
and the Argus still further in the same direction, the two latter
firing on the town and battery. In about an hour, the enemy
were driven from the work, when all the vessels directed their
guns at the beach, to clear the way for the advance of the
party on shore. The enemy made an irregular but spirited
defence, keeping up a heavy fire of musketry, as the assail
ants advanced, from behind houses and walls. At half-past 3,
however. Lieutenant O'Bannon and Mr. Mann stormed the

1805.] NAVAL HISTORY. 219
principal work, hauling down the Tripolitan ensign, and, for
the fii-st time in the history of the country, hoisting that of
the republic on a fortress of the old world. The enemy were
driven out of this work with so much precipitation, that they
left its guns loaded, and even primed. The cannon were im
mediately turned upon the town, and Hamet Caramalli having
made a lodgment on the other side, so as to bring the enemy
between two fires, the place submitted. At 4 o'clock, the boats
of the vessels landed with ammunition for the guns and to
bring off the wounded, Derne being completely in possession
of the assailants.
In this affair, only 14 of the assailants were killed and
wounded. General Eaton being among the latter. The attack
was made by about 1200 men, while the place was supposed
to be defended by three or four thousand. One or two at
tempts were made by the Tripolitans, to regain possession, but
they were easily repulsed, and, on one occasion, with some
loss. The deposed bashaw remained in possession of the
town, and his authority was partially recognised in the pro
vince. General Eaton now earnestly pressed Commodore Bar-
"ron for further supplies and reinforcements, with a view to
march on TripoU ; but they were denied, on the ground that
Hamet Caramalli was in possession of the second province of
the regency, and if he had the influence that he pretended to
possess, he ought to be able to effect his object by means of
the ordinary co-operation of the squadron.
On the 22d of May Commodore Barron transferred the com
mand, on account of ill health. The entire force under this
new disposition, when the vessels known to be about to sail
should arrive, would be as follows :
Constitution .... 44,  Com, Rodgers.
President  44,  Capt. Cox.
Constellation . . . 38,  " Campbell.
Congress  38,  " Decatur.
Essex  32,  « J. Barron.
John Adams . . . 28,  " Chauncey.
Siren  -. . 16,  « Stewart.
Argus  16,  « Hull.
Vixen  12,  « Smith.
Nautilus  12,  Lieut. Com. Dent.
Enterprise  12,  " " Robinson.
Hornet  12,  ....." « Evans.

220
Bombs

NAVAL HISTORY.

[1805.

Gun-boats.

Spitfire 

No.

2... 3...

...1.. .2

gun, 

4...

...2

u

5...

...2

(C

6...

...2

cc

8...
...2
cc
9...
...2
cc
10...
...2
(C
11...
...1
cc
12 . . ,
...1
CC .
M'Niell.
Izard.Maxwell.
J. D. Henley.
Harrison. Lawrence.
Harraden. Elbert.Carter.
Shortly after assuming the command. Commodore Rodgers
transferred Captain J. Barron from the Essex 32 to the
President 44, giving the former ship to Captain Cox, who was
only a master and commander.
Negotiations for peace now commenced in earnest, Mr.
Lear having arrived off Tripoli, for that purpose, in the Essex,
Captain Barron. After the usual intrigues, delays, and pre
varications, a treaty was signed on the 3d of June, 1805. By
this treaty, no tribute was to be paid in future, but $60,000
were given by America, for the ransom of the remaining
prisoners, after exchanging the TripoUtans in her power, man
for man.
Thus terminated the war with Tripoli, after an existence of
four years. It is probable that the United States would have
retained in service some officers, and would have kept up a
small force, had not this contest occurred ; but its influence on
the fortunes and character of the navy is incalculable. It
saved the first, in a degree at least, and it may be said to have
formed the last.
805.] NAVAL HISTORY. 221

CHAPTER XXIV.
The business at Tripoli was no sooner completed, than Com-
nodore Rodgers sailed with thirteen vessels, gun-boats includ-
;d, and anchored in Tunis Bay on the 1st of August. This
noveraent was made in consequence of a dispute concerning
I xebeck captured by the Constitution, for endeavouring to vio-
ate the recent blockade in company with her prizes. As soon
IS the consul had repaired on board and communicated the
itate of things in the regency, a council of war was called.
The result wets a letter tp the Bey, demanding to know if a
Jeclaration made to the consul, in whioh he had said that the
ippearance of the American squadron off his port would be
:onsidered as the commencement of hostilities, was to be taken
.iterally or not. In this letter the Bey was given to under
stand, in the plainest manner, that hostilities would' commence
nn the part of the Americans, within thirty-six hours, should
be decline answering, or neglect the application.
The Bey, accustomed to regard the Americans as tributa
ries, had been seeking a cause for war, when he was suddenly
net by this high tone on the part of those whom he had hither-
X) found so much disposed to temporise. At first he appeared
x> place no faith in the demonstration, and the required an
swer was not sent. Commodore Rodgers, in consequence,
hrected Captain Decatur to land, to demand an audience of
,he Bey, and to obtain an unequivocal solution of the question
)f peace or war.
It is probable that the Bey regarded this mission as one of a
loubtful nature, also ; for he refused to receive Captain Deca-
iur in the character in which he had been sent. That spirited
officer, Uttle accustomed to temporising, declined being admit-
ed in any other. As soon as the intentions of both parties
lad been explained. Captain Decatur returned on board, when
' the royal breast " of the Bey " appeared to be panic-struck."
k letter was sent to the commodore, signed by the pacha him
self, in which he expressed a desire to treat, and using the
nost pacific language. Shortly after he announced a wish to
send a minister to "Washington. This moderated tone put an
snd to the threatened hostilities, and after a negotiation that.
19*

222 NAVAL HISTORY. [1805.
lasted nearly a month, the affair was arranged with the re
gency, to the satisfaction of one of the parties at least. The
xebeck was not given up. In September, a Tunisian ambas
sador embarked in the Congress 38, Captain Decatur, and in
due time he was landed at Washihgtoh.
Commodore Rodgers remained in Tunis Bay more than a
month, literally negotiating under the muzzles of his guns, and
the result proved the wisdom of the course he had taken. The
navy, the ablest of all negotiators in such matters,' had com
pletely reversed the ancient order of things ; for, ihstead of an
American agent's being compelled to solicit the restoration of
prizes, illegally taken, in Africa, an African agent was now
soliciting the restoration of prizes legally captured, in America.
At a later day, the xebeck ahd her prizes were given up, as
of no moment ; but when the Tunisian minister added a de
mand for tribute, agreeably to former usage, he met with an
explicit denial. After a short residence, he returned to his
master with the latter answer, but the Bey did not see fit to
take any steps in consequence. The impression made by the
attacks on "Tripoli, and by the appearance of the American
squadron before his own town, would seem to have been last
ing. After the settlement of the dispute with Tunis, the vessels
in the Mediterranean were gradually withdrawiT, though it was
still deemed necessary to keep a small squadron in that sea.
The government also became better apprised of the nature of
the force that was required, in carrying on a war with the
Barbary states, and several new vessels were put into the water
about this time, among whfch were two regularly constructed
bombards, the Etna and the Vesuvius. Two sloops of war,
of the most approved models, were also built, and became ac
tive cruisers on the peace establishment. These vessels were
the Wasp 18, and the Hornet 18, the former being a ship and
the latter a brig.
The condition of the navy may be said to have been nega
tive at the period of which we are now writing ; for, while all
who reflected seriously on the subject, felt the necessity of
greatly incrcEising this branch of the national defence, nothing
efficient was attempted, or, apparently, contemplated. Ships
of the line, without which it would be impossible to prevent
any of even the secondary maritime states of Europe from
blockading the ports of the country, were now scarcely men
tioned, and the materials that had been collected for that ob-

06.] NAVAL HISTORY. 223
ct in 1800, were rapidly disappearing for the purposes of
pairs and re-constructions. It is, indeed, difficult to imagine
policy as short-sighted and feeble, as that pursued by Con-
•ess at this particular juncture. With political relations that
3re never free from the appearances of hostilities, a trade
at covered all the seas of the known world, and an experi-
,ce that was replete with lessons on the necessity of repelling
itrages by force, this great interest was treated with a neglect
at approached fatuity. To add to this oversight, and to in
case the despondency of the service, as well as of all those
hose views extended to the future necessities of the country,
e government appears to have adopted a policy, in connexion
ith the defence of the harbours, bays, and sounds of the coast,
at was singularly adapted to breaking down the high tone
at the navy had acquired in its recent experience. This
plan," which has been generally known as the " gun-boat
)Ucy," originated as far back as the year 1803, though it did
)t become of sufficient moment to be particularly noticed until
le time at which we are now arrived, in the regular order of
rents. The gun-boats, at first, were well received in the service,
nee they gave enterprising young officers commands ; and the
issels originally constructed, were of an equipment, size and
rce, which in a measure removed the objections that young
a-officers would be apt to urge against serving in them. At
e close of the year 1806, the President announced to Con-
•ess that the gun-boats already authorised by a law of April
' the same year, 50 in number, were so far advanced as to
it it in the power of the government to employ them all, the
icceeding season; and the message contained a recommenda-
m to extend the system j
An event soon occurred that not only stimulated this policy.
It which induced the government to resort to new n^easures
protect the country, some of which were as questionable, as
ey were novel. A few ships had been kept in the Mediter-
nean, as stated ; and it is worthy of being noted, that, with a
immerce that, in 1807, employed 1,200,000 tons of shipping,
is was the only foreign station on which, an American cruis-
was ever seen ! Neither was there any proper home squad-
n, notwithstanding the constant complaints that were made
the wrongs inflicted by English and French cruisers, par-
;ulariy the former, at the very mouths of the harbours of the
untry.

224 NAVAL HISTORY. [1806.
On the 25th of April, 1806, the British ship Leander 50,
Captain Whitby, in endeavouring to cut off a small coaster,
that was running for Sandy Hook, fired a shot into her, which
killed one of her people. This outrage occurred quite near
the shore, and it excited a strong feeUng of indignation, in a
portion of the country, at least. But, unfortunately, party
spirit had, at that period, taken the worst, most dangerous, and
least creditable form, in which it can exist in any free country.
By neglecting to place the republic in an attitude to command
respect, the government had been compelled to appeal to argu
ments and' principles, in those cases in which an appeal to
force is the only preservative of national rights, and, in so do
ing, it opened the door to the admission of sophisms, counter
arguments and discussions, that, in the end, effectually arrayed
one-half of the community against the other, and this too, on
matters in which foreign nations were the real parties on one
side, and the common country on the other. In a word, the
great mistake was made of admitting of controversy concerning
interests that all wise governments hold to be beyond dispute.
While the feelings, policy, and preparations of the United
States were in the condition just mentioned, the Chesapeake
38, was put in commission, with a view of sending her to the
Mediterranean, as the relief-ship, the time of the people of the
Constitution 44, the only frigate left on that station, being
nearly up. Captain Charles Gordon, the youngest master-
commandant on the Ust, was attached to the Chesapeake as
her captain, and Captain James Barron was selected to hoist a
broad pennant in her, as commander of the squadron.
The ship remained at Washington, taking in her metsts and
stores, and receiving officers and men, until the close of the
spring. During this time the English minister informed the
government that three deserters from his B. M. ship Melampus,
had enlisted among the crew of the Chesapeake, and he re
quested that they might be given up. Although the right to
demand deserters is not recognised by the laws of nations,
there is usually a disposition between friendly governments to
aid each other in securing these delinquents, especially when
it can be done under circumstances that produce no direct in
jury ; and the matter was referred by the navy department,
to Commodore Barron, for investigation. The inquiry appears
to have been made in a proper temper, and with a sincere wish
to dismiss the men, should they actually prove to be what was
represented, though it might be questioned whether the Presi-

1807.] NAVAL HISTORY. 225
lent himself legally possessed any power to give them up to
;heir own officers. Commodore Barron directed Captain Gor-
ion to inquire into the matter with care, and to make his re
port. It was ascertained that the three men were actually
leserters from the ship named, but they all claimed to be im-
aressed Americans, who had availed themselves of the first
)pportunity that offered on landing in their native country, to
nake their escape from illegal and unjust detention. One of
hese men was said to be a native of the Eastern Shore, a part
jf the country in which Captain Gordon was born ; and that
officer, after a careful examination, appears to have been sa-
Isfied with the truth of his account. Another was a coloured
nan, and there was hardly a doubt of the truth of his allega-
ions ; while the case of the third seaman, though in part es-
ablished, was not entirely clear. Under the circumstances,
lowever, a seaman found in the country, and demanding the
Drotection of its laws as a native, could not be given up to a
service that was known constantly to violate the rights of in-
iividuals, on the naked demand of that service, and in the
ibsence of all affirmative proof of its not having abused its
power. The English minister received the report, and he ap
pears to have been satisfied, as no more was said^on the subject.
About the beginning of June, the Chesapeake sailed from
SVashington to Norfolk. At this time, there were but twelve
;uns on board ; and, as it is customary for all vessels
)f war to fire a salute in passing Mount Vernon, it was dis-
lovered, on that occasion, that some of the equipments were
mperfect. Orders were issued by Captain Gordon in conse-
]uence, though the circumstance probably excited less atten-
ion than would otherwise have been the case, on account of
he unfinished state of the vessel. The Chesapeake arrived in
Hampton Roads on the 4th of June ; and on the 6th, Commo-
lore Barron paid her a short visit.
Between the 6th and the 19th of June, the remainder of the
;uns and stores were received on board the Chesapeake, her
:rew was completed to about 375 souls, and Captain Gordon
eported her to Commodore Barron as ready for sea. Up to
he 6th of June, the people had not been quartered at all, and
letween that day and the time of sailing, they had been at
[uarters but three times ; on neither of which occasions were
he guns exercised.
About 8 A. M., June 22d, the Chesapeake got under way,
irom Hampton Roads, bound to the Mediterranean. At that

226 NAVAL HISTORY. [1807.
early day, the armament of the ship consisted of 28 eighteen-
pounders on her gun-deck, and of 12 carronades above, mak
ing a total of 40 guns.
A squadron of British ships of war, varying constantiy in
numbers and vessels, had been watching some French frigates
that lay at AnnapoUs several months. It was their practice to
lie in Lynnhaven, or occasionally to cruise in the offing. On
the 21st of June, this squadron had consisted of three vessels;
one of which was the Bellona 74, and another the Melampus
38, the ship from which the three seamen already mentioned,
had deserted. On the evening of the same day, a fourth ves
sel, which was afterwards ascertained to be the Leopard 50,
Captain Humphreys, came in and anchored. The Leopard was
a small two-decker, had a lower-deck battery of twenty-fours,
and is said to have mounted 56 guns. When the Chesapeake
weighed, up at Hampton Roads, the Leopard Iffted her anchor,
and preceded the American frigate to sea. The wind was
light, at northwest ; and as the Leopard got an offing, she dis
appeared behind Cape Henry.
A little after 12 o'clock, the Chesapeake was up with the
cape, when the wind shifted to the southward and eastward.
As she opened the offing, the Leopard was seen a few miles to
windward, heading to the eastward, with apparentiy very little
air. She soon took the new wind, however, when both ships
made stretches to get off the land, there being a good working
breeze and perfectly smooth water. The Leopard tacked with
the Chesapeake, though the latter ship appears to have closed
with her, the distance between the two vessels gradually less
ening. By some accounts, the English ship shortened sail in
order to allow this. Up to this moment, however, it is the bet
ter opinion, that there was nothing unusual or suspicious in her
movements. The British cruisers were in the habit of stand
ing out in this manner, and the Leopard obtained the weather
gage altogether by the shift of wind.
About 3 o'clock, both vessels having an offing of some six
or eight miles, the Chesapeake tacked to the eastward again,
and the Leopard, then about a mile to windward, wore round,
and came down upon her weather quarter, when she hailed, in
forming Commodore Barron that she had despatches for him.
Commodore Barron answered that he would heave-to, and re
ceive a boat. Both vessels now came to, the Chesapeake by
laying her main-topsail to the mast, while the accounts appear
uncertain, whether the Leopard backed her forward or her afler

307.] NAVAL HISTORY. 227
ails. At this time, it was observed by some of the officers on
oard the Chesapeake, that the English ship had her lower
orts triced up, and the tompions out of her guns. It does
ot appear that the latter fact, however, the only one of mo-
lent, was reported to either Captain Gordon or Commodore
iarron. In a few minutes, a boat from the Leopard came alongside
f the Chesapeake, and her officer was shown into the cabin,
diere he was received by Commodore Barron. Here the Eng-
sh lieutenant produced an order, signed by Vice-Admiral
ierkley, dated HaUfax, June 1st, and addressed to all thecap-
ains of the ships under his command, directing them, should
ley fall in with the Chesapeake out of the waters of the Uni-
3d States, and at sea, to show her commander this order ; to
require to search for deserters," and " to proceed and search
3r the same ;" offering at the same time, to allow of a similar
earch on board their own vessels. Accompanying this order,
fas a note from the commander of the Leopard, addressed to
be commander of the Chesapeake, referring to the order of the
ice-admiral, and expressing a hope " that every circumstance
especting them (the deserters) may be adjusted in a manner
hat the harmony subsisting between the two countries may
emain undisturbed." To this note, Commodore Barron re
amed an answer, stating that he knew. of no such deserters as
escribed. He added, that his recruiting office/s had been
articularly instructed by the government not to enter any de-
erters from the English ships, and that his orders would not
How him to suffer his people to be mustered by any officers
lut their own.
By referring to this correspondence, which has been often
irinted, it will be seen that neither the order of Vice-Admi-
al Berkley, the note of Captain Humphreys, nor the an-
wer of Commodore Barron, was perfectly explicit on the
mportant points, of whether force would be used, if the al-
eged deserters were not given up, or whether they would be
efused, could it be shown, by any other means than that of
leing mustered by foreign officers, that the men required were
.mong the Chesapeake's crew. In a word, the order and note
vere vague and general ; and the answer, as far as it went, the
nost direct document of the three, appears to have been framed
n a.sim.ilar spirit. The British officer was ordered to " re-
[uire" of the captain of the Chesapeake, " to search his ship
br deserters," &c., and " to proceed and search for the same,"

228 NAVAL HISTORY. [1807.
&c. Nothing is said of compelling a search ; and though the
term " require" was a strong one, the whole phraseology of the
order was such as might very well raise doubts, under the pe
culiar circumstances, how far a party, who made professions
of a desire to preserve the harmony of the two nations, might
feel disposed to violate public law, in order to enforce its ob
ject. The note of Captain Humphreys was just as explicit,
and just as vague as the order, being a mere echo of its spirit.
Commodore Barron very clearly refused to permit a British
officer to search for a deserter, while he did not touch the gene
ral principle, or what he might do, could it be shown by less
objectionable means, that there was a British deserter, of the
sort mentioned in the order, on board the Chesapeake, and the
demand on the part of the English officers, to search in person,
was abandoned. Had there even existed a clause in the treaty
between England and America, rendering it obligatory on the
two nations to deliver up each other's deserters, the requisition
of Vice-Admiral Berkley, taken as an order to search in per
son, would have so far exceeded the probable construction of
reason, as to justify an officer in supposing that nothing be
yond a little well-managed intimidation was intended, since
nations do not usually permit their treaties to be enforced by
any but their own agents. While there was something very
equivocal, beyond doubt, in the whole procedure of the Bri
tish, it was so high-handed a measure to commence a demand
for deserters, by insisting on a right to search a foreign vessel
of war in person for them, that it would be very difficult to be
lieve any design to enforce a demand so utterly out of the regu
lar course of things, could be seriously entertained. It ought
to be added, that the deserters alluded to in the order of Vice-
Admiral Berkley, were not those from the Melampus, already
spoken of, but men from other ships, who were supposed to
have entered on board the Chesapeake at a much later day.
The English lieutenant was on board the Chesapeake some
time ; the accounts of the length of his visit varying from 15"
to 45 minutes. It is probable he was fully half an hour in the
cabin. His stay appears to have been long enough to excite
uneasiness on board his own ship ; for, while Commodore Barron
was deliberating on the course he ought to pursue, information
was sent below that a signal was flying on board the Leopard,
which her officer immediately declared to be an order for the
return of the boat. Soon after this signal was shown, the
answer of Conimodore Barron was delivered.

1807.] NAVAL HISTORY. 229
Commodore Barron now sent for Captain Gordon, and told
him to get the gun-deck clear, a duty that had been commenced
an hour or two before, without reference to the Leopard. He
then went on deck. Soon after the English officer had passed
out of the ship into his own boat, by the larboard, or lee-gang
way. Commodore Barron appeared in the starboard, or weather-
gangway, to examine the Leopard. Here it would seem that
the latter was forcibly struck with the appearance of prepara
tion on board the English ship, and the idea that a resort
might be had to force began to impress him seriously. He
issued an order to Captain Gordon, to hasten the work on the
gun-deck, and to go to quarters. In consequence of the latter
order, a few taps were beaten on the drum, but that instrument
was stopped by directions of Commodore Barron, and instruc
tions were given to get the people to their quarters with as
little noise and parade as possible, in order to gain time, if the
Leopard really meditated hostilities.
It is not easy to imagine a vessel of war in a more unfor
tunate situation, than that of the Chesapeake at this particular
moment. With a ship of superior force within pistol-shot, on
her weather-quarter, her guns trained, matches burning, people
drilled, and every thing ready to commence a heavy fire, while
she herself was littered and lumbered, with a crew that had not
yet exercised her guns, and which had been only three times
even mustered at their quarters. The business of coiling away
her cables, which had lain on the gun-deck until after two
o'clock, was still going on, while the cabin bulk-head, cabin
furniture, and some temporary pantries were all standing aft.
A good deal of the baggage of the passengers in the ship was
also on the gun-deck. It would seem, however, that some of
the lieutenants had regarded the movements of the Leopard
with distrust from the beginning ; and the vessel being particu
larly well officered, these gentlemen soon made an active com
mencement towards getting the ship clear. The guns were all
loaded and shotted, but on examination, it was found that there
was a deficiency in rammers, wads, matches, gun-locks, and
powder-horns. While things were in this awkward condition.
Commodore Barron continued in the gangway examining the
Leopard. The cutter of the latter was a few minutes in pulling
back to that vessel, and as soon as the people were out of her,
she was dropped astern, where most of the boats were towing,
and the English ship hailed. Commodore Barron answered
that he did not understand the hail, when the Leopard fired a
20

230 NAVAL HISTORY. [1807.
shot ahead of the Chesapeake. In a few seconds this shot was
followed by an entire broadside. By this discharge, in addi
tion to many injuries done the ship. Commodore Barron, who
continued in the gangway, and his aid, Mr. Broom, were
wounded. The Leopard was now hailed, and some answer
was returned, but the noise and confusion rendered all attempts
at a communication in this mode useless.
Every exertion was making all the while, to get the bat
teries ready, and with the exception of the forward gun below,
the port of which was still down on account of the anchor, it
appears that one broadside might have been fired, had not the
means of discharging the guns been absolutely wanting. For
some timo, there was no priming powder, and when an insuffi
cient quantity did finally arrive, there were no matches, locks,
nor loggerheads. Some of the latter were brought from the
galley, however, and they were applied to the priming, but
were too cold to be of use. In the mean while, the Leopard,.
in an excellent position, and favoured by smooth water, was
deliberately pouring in her whole fire upon an unresisting ship.'
This state of things lasted from twelve to eighteen minutes,;
when Commodore Barron, having repeatedly desired that one
gun, at least, might be discharged, ordered the colours to be
hauled down. Just as the ensign reached the taffrail, one gun
was fired from the second division of the ship.*
The Chesapeake immediately sent a boat on board the
Leopard, to say that the ship was at the disposal of the Eng
Ush captain, when the latter directed his officers to muster the-
American crew. The three men claimed to be deserters from
the Melampus, and one that had run from the Halifax sloop of
war, were carried away. Commodore Barron now sent an
other note to Captain Humphreys, to state his readiness to give
up his ship ; but the latter declining to take charge of her, a
council of officers was called, and the Chesapeake returned to
Hampton Roads the same evening.
In this affair, the Leopard, of course, did not suffer at all.
Not so with the Chesapeake, although the injuries she sus
tained, were probably less than might have been expected.
The accounts of the duration of the firing, vary from seven to
twenty minutes, though the majority of opinions place it at
* This gun was discharged by means of a coal brought from the galley,
which was applied by Lieutenant Allen, the officer of the division, with
his fingers, aft^r an unsuccessful attempt to make use of a loggerhead.

1807.] NAVAL HISTORY. 231
about twelve. Three men were killed on tho spot ; eight were
badly, and ten were slightly wounded ; making a total of
twenty-one casualties. The Leopard appears to have thrown
the weight of her grape into the lower sails, the courses and
fore-topmast stay-sail having been riddled with that description
of shot. Twenty-one round shot struck the hull. All three
of the lower masts of the American frigate were injured,
and a good deal of rigging was cut ; still the impression
left by the occurrence, went to convince the American service,
that EngUsh fire was not so formidable as tradition and rumour
had made it.
The attack on the Chesapeake, and its results, created a
strong and universal sensation in America. At first, as ever
happens while natural feeling and national sentiment are unin
fluenced by calculations of policy, there was but one voice of
indignation and resentment, though, in a short time, the fiend
of party lifted his head, and persons were not wanting who
presumed to justify the course taken by the English vice-ad-
jmiral. Notwithstanding these exceptions, the general effect
was certainly very adverse to the British cause in America ;
and the injury was not fairly forgotten, until it had been ef
faced from the public mind by many subsequent victories.
Courts-martial were held on Commodore Barron, Captain
<jrordon. Captain Hall, of the marines, and the gunner of the
ship. The first was distinctly acquitted of cowardice, but was
found guilty of " neglecting, on the probability of an engage
ment, to clear his ship for action." The sentence was a sus
pension from pay and rank, for five years. Captain Gordon
was found guilty of negligently performing some of his minor
duties, and was privately reprimanded. Captain Hall received
the same sentence, a little mitigated ; and the gunner was
cashiered.

232 NAVAL HISTORY. [1807.

CHAPTER XXV.
Congress was convened on the 26th of October ; and, as
soon as there had been time to deliberate on what had passed,
the President, by his proclamation, interdicted all British ves
sels of war from entering the American waters. When the
national legislature assembled, a proposition to increase the
number of gun-boats was laid before it. Without a sufficient
naval force to raise a blockade that should be sustained by
three ships of the line ; with all the experience of the war of
the Revolution fresh in their recollections ; and witli the pros
pect of a speedy contest with a people that scarcely hesitated
about closing the ports of the Union in a time of peaee, the
legislators of the day misdirected the resources of a great and
growing country, by listening to this proposition, and creating
a species of force that, in its nature, is merely auxiliary to
more powerful means, and which is as entirely unfitted to the
moral character of the people, as it is to the natural formation
of the coast. On the 18th of December, a law was passed
authorising the construction of 188 gun-boats, in addition. fo
those already built, which would raise the total number of ves
sels of this description in the navy to 257. This was the de
velopment of the much-condemned " gun-'boat system," which,
for a short time, threatened destruction to the pride, discipline,
tone, and even morals, of the service.
There can be no question, that, in certain circumstances,
vessels of this sort may be particularly useful ; but these cir
cumstances are of rare occurrence, as they are almpst always
connected with attacks on towns and harbours. As the policy
is now abandoned, it is unnecessary to point out the details by
which it is rendered particularly unsuitable to this country,
though there is one governing principle that may be mention
ed, which, of itself, demonstrates its unfitness. The American
coast has an extent of near two thousand miles, and to protect
it by means of gun-boats, even admitting the practicability of
the method, would involve an expenditure sufficient to create
a movable force in ships, that would not only answer all the
same purposes of defence, but which would possess the addi
tional advantage of acting, at need, offensively. In other

1809.] NAVAL HISTORY. 233
words, it was entailing on the country the cost of an efficient
marine, without enjoying its advantages.
At the time when the laws of nations and the flag of the
United States were outraged, in the manner related in the pre
ceding chapter, the government was empowered to employ no
more than 1425 seamen, ordinary seamen and boys, in all the
vessels of the navy, whether in commission or in ordinary.
The administration felt that this number was insufficient for
the common wants of the service, and early in 1808, the se
cretary asked for authority to raise 1272 additional men, to
be put on board the gun-boats that were now ready to receive
them. The necessary law, however, was withheld.
The near approach of a war, that succeeded the attack of
the Leopard, appears to have admonished the English govern
ment of the necessity of using some efficient means of settling
the long-pending disputes between the two nations, and nego
tiations were carried on during the year 1808, in a temper that
promised a pacific termination to the quarrel ; and, in strict con
formity with a practice, (it would be an abuse of terms to call
it a policy,) that has long prevailed in the country, the time
that should have been actively employed in preparations, was
irreclaimably lost, in the idle expectation that they would not
be needed. No act was passed, nor any appropriation made,
either for the employment of more men, or for placing in com
mission any additional vessels, until the lastot January, 1809,
when the President was directed to equip the United States 44,
President 44, Essex 32, and John Adams 24 ; the latter ves
sel having been cut down to a sloop of war. By the same
law, the navy was greatly increased in efficiency, as respects
the officers and men, the President being authorised to appoint
as many additional midshipman as would make a total of 450,
and to employ in all, 5025 seamen, ordinary seamen, and
boys. By adding the remaining officers, and the marine corps,
the whole service could not have contained a total of less than
7000 persons, when the act was carried into execution.
The equipment of the ships just mentioned, and the active
employment of all the small vessels of the service, probably
saved the navy of the United States from a total disorganisa
tion. It was the means of withdrawing a large portion of the
officers from the gun-boats, and of renewing that high tone
and admirable discipline which had distinguished it at the close
of the Tripolitan war. By this time, nearly all the midship
men who had been before Tripoli, were lieutenants ; and there
20*

234 NAVAL HISTORY. [1810.
was already one instance in which an officer, who had enter
ed the navy as a midshipman, commanded the frigate in which
he had first served.*
In the course of the summer of 1808,, too, it was thought
prudent to make a commencement towards the employment
of a force on the lakes ; England already possessing ships on
Ontario and Erie.
There being no especial law for such an object, advantage
was taken of the discretionary powers granted to the President
under the act for building gun-boats. A few officers were
placed under the orders of Lieutenant M. T. Woolsey, and
that gentleman was empowered to make contracts for the con
struction of three vessels, one of which was to be built on
Lake Ontario, and the other two on Lake Champlain. The
two vessels constructed on Lake Champlain were ordinary
gun-boats, but that constructed on Lake Ontario was a regu
lar brig of war. The latter was of about two hundred and
forty tons measurement, was pierced for sixteen guns, and
when delivered by the contractors, in the spring of 1809, to
the sea-officers ordered to receive her, she mounted 16 twenty-'
four pound carronades. In consequence of an arrangement
that was made, about this time, with England, but which was
not ratified in Europe, this vessel, which was called the Onei
da, was not equipped and sent upon the lake till the following
year. This was a period of vacillating policy in both nations,
England, at times, appearing disposed to arrange amicably the
many different points that had arisen with America, and the
latter country acting, at moments, as if it believed war to be
impossible, while at others, it seemed to be in earnest with its
preparations. Thus passed the years 1808, 1809, and 1810,
the embargo having been raised, followed by a non-intercourse
law with Great Britain, and succeeded by an absence of all
restrictions. During this period of doubt, the vessels of the navy that
were in commission, were principally employed on the coast,
or they kept up the communications with the different diplo
matic agents in Europe, by carrying despatches. There is no
question that these were important years to the service ; for,
since the attack on the Chesapeake, the utmost vigilance pre
vailed, and every commander watched jealously for an oppor-
* Captain Decatur.

1811.] NAVAL HISTORY. 235
tunity to wipe out the disgrace, real or imaginary, of that un
fortunate affair. No more vessels were sent to the Mediterra
nean, but the whole maritime force of the republic was kept
at home. The country had now in active service the follow
ing vessels, viz :

Hornet  18,
Argus  16,
Siren  16,
Nautilus  12,
Enterprise  12,
Vixen  12.

President  44,
Constitution  44,
United States  44,
, Essex  32,
John Adams  20,
Wasp  18,
In addition to these cruisers, were a great number of gun
boats, which were principally commanded by sailing-masters,
who had been selected from among the officers of merchant
vessels. The Nautilus and Vixen had both been rigged into
brigs ; the Enterprise soon after was altered in the same man
ner ; and an occasion to rebuild the Hornet occurring, she was
converted into a ship, and pierced for two more guns, making
twenty in all. Unhappily, the opportunity was lost of equip
ping a force that could prevent blockades.
The EngUsh increased their cruisers on the American coast,
in proportion to the Americans themselves, though their ves
sels no longer lay off the harbours, impressing men, and de
taining ships. It was seldom that a British cruiser was now
seen near the land, the government probably cautioning its
commanders to avoid unnecessary exhibitions of this sort, with
a view to prevent colUsipns. Still they were numerous, cruised
at no great distance, and by keeping up constant communica
tions between Bermuda and Halifax, may be said to have in
tercepted neariy every ship that passed from one hemisphere
to the other.
Such, in effect, was the state of things in the spring of the
year 1811, when information was received by the senior offi
cer of the navy afloat, Commodore Rodgers, that a man had
been impressed from an American brig, at no great distance
from Sandy Hook, by an English frigate that was supposed to
be the Guerriere 38, Captain Dacres. The broad pennant of
Commodore Rodgers was flying on board the President 44,
Captain Ludlow, which ship was then anchored off Annapolis.
Repairing on board his vessel, he got under way, with an in
tention of proceeding off New York to inquire into the facts,
on the 10th of May ; passing the capes shortly after.

236 NAVAL HISTORY. [I81L
On the 16th of May, at noon, a sail was made from the
President, which ship was then about six leagues from the
land, to the southward of New York. It was soon perceived,
by the squareness of his yards, and the symmetry of his sails,
that the stranger was a vessel of war, and the American fri
gate stood for him, with an intention to get within hail. At 2
the President set her broad pennant and ensign. The stran
ger now made several signals ; but finding they were not an
swered, he wore and stood to the southward. Although the
President gained upon the chase, the wind lessened, and night
set in before she could get near enough to distinguish her force.
It was past 7 o'clock in the evening when the stranger took in
his studding-sails, hauled up his courses, and came by the
wind on the starboard tack. He now set an ensign at his gaff,
but it was too dark to discover the nation. As he came to the
wind, he necessarily showed his broadside, and was taken for
a small frigate.
The President continuing to stand down, the chase wore
four several times, in order to prevent the American frigate
from getting a position to windward. It was consequently
near half-past 8 before Commodore Rodgers could bring-to, as
he had desired, on the weather-bow of the stranger, or a little
forward of his beam ; when, being within a hundred yards, he
hedled, and demanded " what ship is that ?" No answer was
given to this question ; but it was repeated, word for word,
from the stranger. After a short pause the question was again
put, when the stranger fired a gun, the shot from which cut
away a breast-back-stay, and entered the main-mast. Com
modore Rodgers was on the point of ordering a shot to be
returned, when a gun was discharged from the second division
of the President. The stranger now fired three guns in quick
succession, and after a short pause, the remainder of his broad
side and all his musketry. The President, as a matter of
course, delivered her broadside in return. In a few minutes,
however, it was perceived on board the American vessel, that
they were engaged with an adversary so inferior as to render
her resistance very feeble, and orders were sent to the different
divisions to stop the fire.
The guns of the President were soon silent ; when, to the
surprise of all on board her, the stranger opened anew. The
fire of the American frigate recommenced, but it was again
stopped in the course of a very few minutes, in consequence
of the crippled condition of her antagonist, who lay nearly

1811.] NAVAL HISTORY. 237
end on, and apparently unmanageable. The American now
hailed again, and got sm answer that her adversary was a
British ship of war, though the name \\ ns inaudible, on ac
count of the wind, which had increased. Satisfied that his
late opponent was disabled, and having no desire to effect more
than had already been accomplished, Commodore Rodgers
gave the name of his own ship, wore round, and running a
short distance to leeward, he hauled by the wind again, with a
view to remain nigh the English vessel during the night. The
President kept lights displayed, in order to let her late antago
nist know her position, and wore several times to remain near
her. When the day dawned, the English ship was discovered
some distance to leeward, her drift in the night having been
considerable. The President bore up under easy canvass, and
running down to her, lowered a boat, and Mr. Creighton, the
first lieutenant, was sent on board, with an offer of services.
The stranger proved to be his Britannic majesty's ship Little
Belt 18, Captain Bingham. The Little Belt was a vessel of
twenty-two guns, but having a light spar-deck above, on which
no guns were mounted, she had the external appearance of a
small frigate. She had suffered severely by the fire of the
President, and thirty-one of her people had been killed and
wounded. As Captain Bingham declined receiving any assist
ance, the vessels parted, each making the best of her way to a
port of her own nation.
This occurrence gave rise to much angry discussion in Ame
rica, and widened the breach which already existed between
the EngUsh and the American nations. The account given
by Captain Bingham differed essentially from that of Commo
dore Rodgers, and official investigations were made on both
sides. On that of the Americans a formal court of inquiry
was held, and every sea-officer in the ship was examined, as
well as a great many of the petty officers. The testimony
was very clear, and it was in a great measure free from the
discrepancies that usually distinguish the accounts of battles,
whether by sea or land. The fact that the Little Belt fired
the first gun was established by the oath of the officer who
ordered the gun fired in return. This gentleman distinctly
testified that he gave the command, under a standing order of
the ship, and in consequence of having seen the flash and
heard the report of the Little Belt's gun. He not only testi
fied that he heard the report of the gun, but that he also heard

238 NAVAL HISTORY. ISIL
the noise made by the shot which had entered the mast. Other
officers and men corroborated this account, and in a way to
render their evidence not only consistent with itself, but with
probaMlity. As the President was very fuUy officered, the
number and respectability of the witnesses, put at rest all ca
villing about the facts.
It is believed that there was no proper court of inquiry held
on the conduct of Captain Bingham, though affidavits of most
of his officers were published. By that gentleman's official
account, as it has been given to the world, as well as by the
affidavits mentioned, it is affirmed that the President commenced
the action by firing, not a single gun, but an entire broadside.
He also intimated that the action lasted three quarters of an
hour, and appeared desirous of leaving the impression that the
President had sheered off.
As between the two governments, the question was reduced to
one of veracity. If the account of the American officer was true,
that of the English officer was untrue ; and if the account of the
English officer was true, that of the American officer was un
true. Each government seeming disposed to believe its own
officer, no poUtical consequences followed this rencontre. The
President sustained littie injury, no round shot, besides the one
in her main-mast, and another in her fore-mast, having struck
her ; and, of her people, one boy alone was slightly wounded
by a musket-ball. The Little Belt, on the other hand, having
suffered even out of proportion to the disparity of force between
the vessels, the American government was satisfied with the
punishment already inflicted on the assailants ; while the Ea-
glish government could not well insist on reparation, without
demanding that the American functionaries would not believe
their own officer. After some communications on the subject,
and an exchange of the testimony that had been given, nothing
further appears to have been done, or contemplated, by either
government.

1811.] NAVAL HISTORY. 239

CHAPTER XXVI.
It has been seen that no consequences, beyond an increased
alienation between the two countries, followed the rencontre
between the President and Little Belt.
Not long after the meeting between these two vessels, the
United States 44, bearing the -broad pennant of Commodore
Decatur, fell in with the Eurydice and Atalanta, British ships,
off New York, and, while the commanders were hailing, one
of the seamen of the former vessel, in carelessly handling the
lanyard of his lock, fired a gun. Happily both parties were
cool and discreet, and proper explanations having been made,
the English commander was entirely satisfied that no insult, or
assault, was intended.
Between the reduction in 1801, and the commencement of
1812, a period of eleven eventful years, during which the na
tion was scarcely a day without suffering violation of its neu
tral rights, not a single frigate had been added to the navy !
The ships of the line authorised in 1799 were entirely aban
doned, and notwithstanding the critical relations of the country,
the experience of the past, and so many years of commercial
prosperity, the navy, in some respects, was in a worse situa
tion than after the sale of the ships in 1801. Of the thirteen
frigates retained at that time, the Philadelphia 38, had been
taken and destroyed, and the New York 36, General Green
28, and Boston 28, had gone to decay, without repairs. Thus,
in point of fact, though twelve ships of this class appear on the
list of the day, but nine actually existed, for any practical pur
poses. The various vessels of inferior force, that have been
already mentioned in this work, as constructed under different
laws, had been added to the navy, while two or three tempo
rarily taken into the service were already sold. A few small
schooners had been purchased. Navy-yards had been estab
lished at Philadelphia, New York, Boston, Washington, Gos-
port, and Portsmouth, though they were still in their infancy,
and very incomplete. One hundred and seventy gun-boats had
also been built, and were distributed in the different ports of
the country.
While the navy on the whole, the gun-boats excepted, had

240 NAVAL HISTORY. [1812.
rather lost than gained in physical force, since the reduction
of 1801, it had improved immeasurably in discipline, tone, and
in an esprit de corps. The little that had been lost, in these
respects, through the service in gun-boats, was more than re
gained by the effect produced by the attack on the Chesapeake,
and the constant state of excitement that prevailed with regard
to English aggressions, during the few preceding years. The
lists of captains, masters-commandant, and lieutenants were
small, but filled with men trained to obedience, and, conse
quently, qualified to command. It is true, only one of the offi
cers of the revolution remained, at the head of the service; and
he was nearly superannuated by years and infirmities ; but
those to whom they had imparted their traditions and spirit
had succeeded them. Commodore Samuel Nicholson, who
had been employed in the year 1776, even, as commander of
the Dolphin 10, died at the head of the service at the close of
the year 1811. The celebrated Preble had preceded him to
the grave several years, and Commodore Murray alone re
mained of those officers who might be said to have belonged to
the old school. Still, the new school was in no respect infe
rior ; and in some particulars, it was greatly the superior of
that which had gone before it. The vessels, generally, were
good ships of their respective classes, and the officers, as a
body, were every way worthy to take charge of them. Se
veral of those who had been retained as midshipmen, after the
war with France, were already commanders, and the vessels
beneath the rate of frigates, with one exception, were com
manded by gentlemen of this description. The exception was
in the case of the Wasp 18, on board which ship was Captain
Jones, who had been the youngest of the lieutenants retained
in 1801, and who was now nearly the oldest master-command
ant. He had joined the service, however, as a midshipman.
If the naval armaments made by the country, under the
prospect of a war with Great Britain, are to be regarded with
the eyes of prudence, little more can be said, than to express
astonishment at the political infatuation which permitted the
day of preparation to pass unheeded. Still a little was done,
and that little it is our duty to record.
Early in 1809, the marine corps was augmented by an
addition of near 700 men, which probably put this important
branch of the navy, on a footing equal to the rest of the ser
vice, as it then existed ; the entire corps containing about 1300
men when full. On the SOth of March, 1812, or less than

1812.] NAVAL HISTORY. 241
three months previously to the war with England, Congress
authorised the President to cause three additional frigates to br
put in service, and the sum of $200,000 annually was appr(>
priated for the purchase of timber to rebuild the three frigates
that had been permitted to decay, and the one that had been
captured. When the amount of these appropriations is considered, the
conclusion would seem inevitable, that the government did not
at all anticipate hostilities, were it not for the more ample pre
parations that were making on land, and the large sums that
had been expended on gun-boats. It is not improbable, there
fore, that those to whom the direction of affairs was confided,
believed the naval force of the country too insignificant, and
that of Great Britain too overwhelming, to render any serious
efforts to create a marine, at that late hour, expedient. A com
parison of the naval forces of Great Britain and the United
States, with their respective conditions, will render this idea
plausible, although it may not fully justify it, as a measure of
policy. Ih 1812, the navy of Great Britain nominally contained
a thousand and si.xty sail, of which between seven and eight
hundred were efficient cruising vessels. France had no fleets
to occupy this great marine, Spain was detached from the alli
ance against England, the north of Europe no longer required
a force to watch it, and Great Britain might direct towards
the American coast, as many ships as the nature of the war
could possibly demand.
As opposed to this unexampled naval power, America had
on her list the following vessels, exclusively of gun-boats, viz :

Constitution  44,
President  44,
United States  44,
Congress  38,
Constellation  38,
Chesapeake  38,
New York  36,
Essex  32,
Adams  28,
Boston  28,

John Adams  28,
Wasp  18,
Hornet  18,
Argus  16,
Siren  16,
Oneida  16,
Vixen  14,
Nautilus  14,
Enterprise  14,
Viper  12.

Of these vessels, the New York 36, and Boston 28, were
unseaworthy, alid the Oneida 16, was on Lake Ontario. The
remainder were efficient for their rates ; though the Adams
21

242

NAVAL HISTORY. [1813.

required extensive repairs before she could be sent to sea. It
follows that America was about to engage in a war with much
the greatest maritime power that the world ever saw, possessing
herself but seventeen cruising vessels on the ocean, of which
nine were of a class less than that of frigates. At this time
the merchant vessels of the United States were spread over the
face of the entire globe. No other instance can be found of so
great a stake in shipping with a protection so utterly inade
quate. There can be but one manner of accounting for this extra
ordinary state of things ; that already mentioned of the belief
of the impossibility of keeping vessels at sea, in face of the
overwhelming force of Great Britain. It is in corroboration
of this opinion, that a project was entertained by the cabinet of
laying up all the vessels in ordinary, with a view to prevent them
from falling into the hands of the enemy. This step would
have been a death-blow to the navy, since the people would have
been perfectly justifiable in refusing to support a marine, that
was intended solely for peace. It is now understood that this
resolution was only prevented by the interference of two offi
cers of the service, who happened to be at the seat of govern
ment when the subject was under discussion. These gentle
men* are said to have made a vigorous written remonstrance
against the scheme, and by means of their representations to
have induced the cabinet to change its policy.
Under ordinary circumstances the intention just - stated,
would have been indicative of great feebleness of action, and
of a narrowness of views, that was entirely unsuited to the
characters of statesmen. But the circumstances were extra
ordinary. Not only was the marine of Great Britain much
the most powerful of any in the world, but it was more pow-
* Captains Bainbridge and Stewart. These two officers were shown
orders to Commodore Rodgers not to quit New York, but to keep the ves
sels in port to form a part of its habour defence. They sought an inter
view with the Secretary, who was infiuenced by their representations, and
who procured for them an audience of the President. Mr. Madison list
ened to the representations of the two captains, with attention, and ob.
served that the experience of the Revolution confirmed their opinions.
The Cabinet was convened, but it adhered to its former advice. Captains
Bainbridge and Stewart then addressed a strong letter to the President,
who took on himself to change the plan. It is said, that one or two of
the cabinet acceded to this decision, on the ground that the ships would
soon be taken, and that the country would thus be rid of the cost of main
taining them, and at more liberty to direct its energies to the army.

1812.] NAVAL HISTORY. 243
erful than those of all the rest of Christendom united. In ad
dition to its actual physical force, it had created for itself a
moral auxiliary that was scarcely less available in practice
than its guns and men. The reputation of invincibility was
very generaUy attached to an English man-of-war, and per
haps no people gave England more ample credit for every
species of superiority, whether physical or moral, that she
claimed for herself, than those of the United States of America.
The success of the British navy was indisputable, and as few
Americans then read books, or journals, in foreign tongues,
while scarcely a newspaper appeared without its columns con
taining some tribute to British glory, it would not be easy to
portray the extent of the feeling, or the amount of the credulity
that generally existed on such subjects.
That the officers of the navy should, in a great degree, be
superior to this dependent feeling was natural. They had en
joyed means of comparison that were denied the bulk of their
fellow-citizens, and the results had taught them more confi
dence in themselves. They knew that their ships were at
least as good as those of England, that they sailed as fast,
were worked as well, and, in every essential on which a sea
man prides himself, that England could justly claim no other
superiority than that which might be supposed to belong to her
greater experience in naval warfare. Against this odds, they
were willing to contend. Not so with the nation. Notwith
standing the best dispositions on the part of a vast majority of
the American people, the conviction was general that an
American vessel of war would contend against an English ves
sel of war with very few chances of success. After making
every allowance for equality in all the other essentials, the
great point of practice was against the former, and the confi
dence produced by a thousand victories, it was believed would
prove more available than zeal or courage.
It is not as easy to describe the feeling on the other side.
Among the young officers of the British navy it is pretty safe
to say that a notion of overwhelming superiority was very
generally prevalent ; but among the older men there were many
who had studied the American cruisers with observant eyes,
and a few who still recollected the war of the revolution, when
ill-equipped, uncoppered and half-manned ships, had rendered
victory dear, and, not unfrequently, defeat certain. The jour
nals of Great Britain indulged in that coarse and Impolitic
abuse, which has probably done more towards raising a hostile

244 NAVAL HISTORY. [1812.
feeling throughout Christendom against their nation, than any
poUtical injustice, or political jealousies ; and the few ships of
the American navy did not escape their sneers and misrepre
sentations. One of the very last of the vessels they attempted
to hold up to the derision of Europe was the Constitution, a
frigate that was termed " a bunch of pine boards," sailing
" under a bit of striped bunting." As indecorous as was this
language, and as little worthy as it might be to excite feeling,
or comment, America was too keenly alive to English opinion,
to hear it with indifference, and the day was at hand when she
exultingly threw back , these terms of reproach, with taunts
and ridicule almost as unbecoming as the gibes that had pro
voked them.
There is little doubt that even the friends of the navy looked
forward to the conflict with distrust, while the English felt a
confidence that, of itself, was one step towards victory.

CHAPTER XXVIL
Owing to grievances, that had long been drawing to a head.
Congress formally declared war against the King of Great
Britain on the 18th of June, 1812.
At the moment when this important intelligence was made
public, nearly all of the little American marine were in port,
or were cruising in the immediate vicinity of the coast. The
Wasp 18, Captain Jones, was alone on foreign service ; and
she was on her return from Europe with despatches.
But the declaration of war did not find the little marine of
America in a condition to act in a combined, intelligent, and
miUtary manner. The vesels were scattered ; some were un
dergoing repairs, others were at a distance ; and with the ex
ception of one small squadron, every thing was virtually com
mitted to the activity, judgment, and enterprise of the different
captains. In the port of New York, were collected the Presi
dent 44, Commodore Rodgers ; Essex 32, Captain Porter ; and
Hornet 18, Captain Lawrence. With the exception of the Es
sex, which ship was overhauling her rigging, and re-stowing her
hold, these vessels were ready to sail at an hour's notice. Com-

1812.] NAVAL HISTORY. 245
modore, Rodgers in anticipation of hostilities had dropped into
the bay, with the President and Hornet, where he was joined by
the United States 44, Commodore Decatur, Congress 38, Captain
Smith, and Argus 16, Lieutenant Commandant Sinclair, all of
which vessels arrived from the southward on the 21st of June.
Information had been received of the sailing of a large fleet
of Jamaica-men, under protection of a strong force ; and as
these vessels would naturally be sweeping along the American
coast, in the gulf stream, it was determined to make a dash
at this convoy, — as judicious a plan, under the circumstances,
as could then have been adopted. Within an hour after he
had received official information of the declaration of war, to
gether with his orders. Commodore Rodgers was under way.
The squadron passed Sandy Hook on the afternoon of the
21st of June, and ran off south-east. That night an American
was spoken that had- seen the Jamaica ships, and sail was in
stantly crowded in pursuit. On the 23d, however, at 6 A. M., --
a vessel was seen to the northward and eastward, which was
soon made out to be an enemy's frigate, and a general chase
took place. The wind was fresh for the greater part of the
day, and, the enemy standing before it, the President, an un
commonly fast ship off the wind, soon gained, not only on the
stranger, but on the rest of the squadron. About 4 P. M., she
was within gun-shot of the chase, but the wind had unfortu
nately fallen, and the American ships being just out of port,
and deep, their greater comparative weight, under such cir
cumstances, gave the enemy an advantage. Perceiving but
very faint hopes of getting alongside of the stranger, unless
he could be crippled, Commodore Rodgers determined to open
on him with his chase-guns. With this view, that officer went
forward, himself, to direct the cannonade, and about half-past
4, the forecastle gun was discharged. This was the first hos
tile shot fired afloat in the war of 1812, and the gun is under
stood to have been pointed by Commodore Rodgers in person.
The shot struck the chase in the rudder-coat, and drove through
the stern frame into the gun-room. The next gun was fired
from the first division below ; it was pointed and discharged
by Mr. Gamble, the second lieutenant, who commanded the
battery. The shot struck the muzzle of one of the enemy's
stern chasers, which it damaged. Commodore Rodgers fired
the third shot, which struck the stern of the chase, killed two
men, badly wounded two more, and slightly injured a lieuten
ant and two others. Mr. Gamble again fired, when the gim
21*

246 NAVAL HISTORY. [1812.
bursted. The shot flew broad off on the President's bow, and
the explosion kiUed and wounded sixteen men. The forecas
tle deck was blown up, and Commodore Rodgers was thrown
into the air, breaking a leg by the fall. This accident prevent
ed the guns of that side from being used for some time. The
pause enabled the enemy to open from four stern guns, other
wise he would have soon been driven from the after part of
his ship. The fire of the chase was spirited and good, one of
his shot plunging on the President's deck, killing a midship
man and one or two men. The President shortly after began
to yaw, with a view to shoot away some of the chase's spars,
and her fire soon compelled the latter to lighten. The enemy
cut away his anchors, stove his boats and threw them over
board, and started fourteen tons of water. By these means
he drew ahead, when about 7 o'clock the President hauled up,
and as a last resort, fired three broadsides, most of the shot
of which fell short.
Finding it impossible to get any nearer to the enemy, with
out rendering his own ships inefficient for a cruise, by lighten
ing. Commodore Rodgers ordered the pursuit to be abandoned,
about midnight. It was afterwards known that the vessel
chased was the Belvidera 36, Captain Byron, who gained much
credit for the active manner in which he saved his ship. The
Belvidera got into Halifax a few days later, carrying with her
the news of the declaration of war. The President had twenty-
two men killed and wounded on this occasion, sixteen of whom
suffered by the bursting of the gun. Among the former was
the midshipman mentioned ; and among the latter Mr. Gam
ble. The loss of the Belvidera was stated at seven killed and
wounded by shot, and several others by accidents. Captain
Byron included. She also suffered materially in her spars,
sails, and rigging ; while the injuries of this nature, received
by the President, were not serious.
The squadron now hauled up to its course, in pursuit of the
Jamaica-men ; and, from time to time, intelligence was obtain
ed from American vessels, of the course the fleet was steering.
On the 1st of July, the pursuing ships fell in with large quan
tities of cocoa-nut shells, orange-peels, &c. &c., which gave
an assurance that they had struck the wake of the English
men. This vms a little to the eastward of the Banks of New
foundland, and the strongest hopes were entertained of coming
up with the fleet before it could reach the channel. On the
9th of July, an English letter of marque was captured by the

1812.] NAVAL HISTORY. 247
Hornet, Captain Lawrence, and her master reported that he
had seen the Jamaica vessels the previous evening, under the
convoy of a two-decked ship, a frigate, a sloop of war, and a
brig. He had counted eighty-five sail. All possible means
were now used to force the squadron ahead, but without suc
cess, no further information having been received of the fleet.
The chase was continued until the ISth, when, being within a
day's run of the chops of the channel. Commodore Rodgers
stood to the southward, passing Madeira, and going into Bos
ton by the way of the 'Western Islands and the Grand Banks.
This cruise was singularly unfortunate, for such a moment,
although the ships were kept in the direct tracks of vessels in
crossing the ocean, each time. Seven merchantmen were
taken, however, and one American was recaptured. The
squadron was absent on this service seventy days.
The report of the Belvidera induced the enemy to collect
as many of his vessels in squadron as possible ; and a force
consisting of the Africa 6-4, Captain Bastard ; Shannon 38,
Captain Broke ; Guerriere 38, Captain Dacres ; Belvidera 36,
Captain Byron ; and .ffiolus 32, Captain Lord James Town-
send, ¦was soon united, in the hope of falUng in with Commo
dore Rodgers. Of this squadron, Captain Broke, of the Shan
non, was the senior officer. It appeared off New York early
in July, where it made several captures. The Nautilus 14,
Lieutenant Commandant Crane, arrived in the port of New
York shortly after the squadron of Commodore Rodgers had
sailed ; and this little brig went out with an intention of cruis
ing in the track of the English Indiamen, at the unfortunate
moment when Commodore Broke appeared off the coast. The
Nautilus got to sea quite early in July, and fell in with the
British squadron the next day. A short, but vigorous chase
succeeded, in which Mr. Crane threw overboard his lee-guns,
and did all that a seaman could devise to escape ; but the Nau
tilus buried, whUe the frigates of the enemy were enabled to
carry every thing to advantage, and he struck to the Shannon.
The Nautilus was the first vessel of war taken on either side,
in this contest ; and thus the service lost one of those cruisers,
which had become endeared to it, and identified with its his
tory, in connexion with the war before Tripoli. The enemy
took out the officers and people of their prize, threw a crew
into her, and continued to cruise in the hope of meeting the
American ships.
On her return from a recent run to Europe, the Constitution

248 NAVAL HISTORY. [1613,
44, Captain Hull, had gone into the Chesapeake. Here she
shipped a new crew, and on the 12th of July she sailed from
Annapolis, and stood to the northward. So rapidly had her
equipment been effected, that her first lieutenant joined her
only a fortnight before she sailed, and a draft of a hundred
men was received on the evening of the llth. Friday, July
the 17th, the ship was out of sight of land, though at no great
distance from the coast, with a light breeze from the N. E.,
and under easy canvass. At 1, she sounded in 22 fathoms;
and about an hour afterwards, four sail were made in the
northern board, heading to the westward. At 3, the Constitu
tion made sail, and tacked in 18^ fathoms. At 4, she disco
vered a fifth sail to the northward and eastward, which had
the appearance of a vessel of war. This ship subsequently
proved to be the Guerriere 38, Captain Dacres. By this time,
the other four sail were made out to be three ships and a brig ;
they bore N. N. W., and were all on the starboard tack, ap
parently in company. The wind now became very light, and
the Constitution hauled up her main-sail. The ship in the
eastern board, however, had so far altered her position by 6,
as to bear E. N. E., the wind having hitherto been fair for her
to close. But at a quarter past 6, the wind came out light at
the southward, bringing the American ship to windward. The
Constitution now wore round with her head to the eastward,
set her light studding-sails and stay-sails, and at half past 7,
beat to quarters, and cleared for action, with the intention of
speaking the nearest vessel.
The wind continued very light at the southward, and the
two vessels were slowly closing until 8. At 10, the Constitu
tion shortened sail, and immediately after she showed the pri
vate signal of the day. After keeping the lights aloft near an
hour, and getting no answer from the Guerriere, the Constitu
tion, at a quarter past 11, lowered the signal, and made sail
again, hauling aboard her starboard tacks. During the whole
of the middle watch the wind was very Ught, from the south
ward and westward. Just as the morning watch was called,
the Guerriere tacked, then wore entirely round, threw a rocket,
and fired two guns. As the day opened, three sail were dis
covered on the starboard quarter of the Constitution, and three
more astern. At 5 A. M., a fourth vessel was seen astern.
This was the squadron of Commodore Broke, which had
been gradually closing with the American frigate during the
night, and was now just out of gun-shot. As the ships slowly

1812.] NAVAL HISTORY. 249
varied their positions, when the mists were entirely cleared
away, the Constitution had two frigates on her lee quarter, and
a ship of the line, two frigates, a brig Emd a schooner astern.
The names of the enemy's ships have already been given ;
but the brig was the Nautilus, and the schooner another prize.
All the strangers had English colours flying.
It now fell quite calm, and the Constitution hoisted out her
boats, and sent them ahead to tow, with a view to keep the
ship out of the reach of the enemy's shot. At the same time,
she whipt up one of the gun-deck guns to the spar-deck, and
run it out aft, eis a stern-chaser, getting a long eighteen off the
forecastle also for a similar purpose. Two more of the
twenty-fours below were run out at the cabin windows, with
the same object, though it was found necessary to cut away
some of the wood-work of the stern frame, ia order fo make
room. By 6 o'clock the wind, which continued very light and
baffling, came out from the northward of west, when the ship's
head was got round to the southward, and all the light canvass
that would draw was set. Soon after, the nearest frigate, the
Shannon, opened with her bow guns, and continued firing for
about ten minutes ; but perceiving she could not reach the Con
stitution, she ceased. At half past 6, Captain Hull sounded
in 26 fathoms, when finding that the enemy was likely to
close, as he was enabled to put the boats of two ships on one,
and was also fevoured by a little more air than the Constitu
tion, all the spare rope that could be found, and which was fit
for the purpose, was payed down into the cutters, bent on, and
a kedge was run out near half a mile ahead, and let go. At
a signal given, the crew clapped on, and walked away with the
ship, overrunning and tripping the kedge as she came up with
the end of the line. While this was doing, fresh lines and an
other kedge were carried ahead, and, though out of sight of
land, the frigate glided away from her pursuers, before they
discovered the manner in which it was done. It was not long,
however, before the enemy resorted to the same expedient.
At half past 7, the Constitution had a little air, when she set
her ensign, and fired a shot at the Shannon, the nearest ship
astern. At 8, it fell calm again, and further recourse was had
to the boats and the kedges, the enemy's vessels having a light
air, and drawing ahead,"towing, sweeping, and kedging. By
9, the nearest frigate, the Shannon, on which the English had
put most of their boats, was closing fast, and there was every

250 NAVAL HISTORY. [1812.
prospect, notwithstanding the steadiness and activity of the
Constitutiori's people, that the frigate just mentioned would get
near enough to cripple her, when her capture by the rest of
the squadron would be inevitable. At this trying moment the
best spirit prevailed in the ship. Every thing was stoppered,
and Captain Hull was not without hopes, even should he be
forced into action, of throwing the Shannon astern by his fire,
and of maintaining his distance from the other vessels. It
was known that the enemy could not tow very near, as it
would have been easy to sink his boats with the stern guns of
the Constitution, and not a man in the latter vessel showed a
disposition to despondency. Officers and men relieved each
other regularly at the duty, and while the former threw them
selves down on deck to catch short naps, the people slept at
their guns.
This was one of the most critical moments of the chase.
The Shannon was fast closing, as has been just stated, while
the Guerriere was almost as near on the larboard quarter.
An hour promised to bring the struggle to an issue, when sud
denly, at 9 minutes past 9, a light air from the southward
struck the ship, bringing her to windward. The beautiful
manner in which this advantage was improved, excited admi
ration even in the enemy. As the breeze was seen coming,
the ship's sails were trimmed, and as soon as she was under
command, she was brought close up to the wind, on the lar
board tack ; the boats were all dropped in alongside ; those
that belonged to the davits were run up, while the others were
just lifted clear of the water, by purchases on the spare out
board spars, where they were in readiness to be used at a mo
ment's notice. As the ship came by the wind, she brought
the Guerriere nearly on her lee beam, when that frigate opened
a fire from her broadside. While the shot of this vessel were
just falling short of them, the people of the Constitution were
hoisting up their boats with as much steadiness as if the duty
was performing in a friendly port. In about an hour, how
ever, it fell nearly calm again, when Captain Hull ordered a
quantity of the water started, to lighten the ship. More than
two thousand gallons were pumped out, and the boats were
sent ahead again to tow. The enemy now put nearly all his
boats on the Shannon, the nearest ship astern ; and a few
hours of prodigious exertion followed, the people of the Con
stitution being compeUed to supply the place of numbers by
their activity and zeal. The ships were close by the wind,

1812.] NAVALHISTORY. 251
and every thing that would draw was set, and the Shannon
was slowly, but steadily, forging ahead. About noon of this
day, there was a little relaxation from labour, owing to the oc
casional occurrence of cat's-paws, by watching which closely,
the ship was urged through the water. But at quarter past
12, the boats were again sent ahead, and the toilsome work
of towing and kedging was renewed.
At 1 o'clock a strange sail was discovered nearly to lee
ward. At this moment the four frigates of the enemy were
about one point on the lee-quarter of the Constitution, at long
gun-shot, the Africa and the two prizes being on the lee-beam.
As the wind was constantly baffling, any moment might have
brought a change, and placed the enemy to windward. At
seven minutes before two, the Belvidera, then the nearest ship,
began to fire with her bow guns, and the Constitution opened
with her stern chasers. On board the latter ship, however, it
was soon found to be dangerous to use -the main-deck guns,
the transoms having so much rake, the windows being so high,
and the guns so short, that every explosion lifted the upper
deck, and threatened to blow out the stern frame. Perceiving,
moreover, that his shot did little or no execution. Captain Hull
ordered the firing to cease at half-past 2.
For several hours, the enemy's frigates were now within
gun-shot, sometimes towing and kedging, and at others en
deavouring to close with the puffs of air that occasionally
passed. At 7 in the evening, the boats of the Constitution were
again ahead, the ship steering S. W. ^ W., with an air so light
as to be almost imperceptible. At half past 7, she sounded in
24 fathoms. For hours, the same toilsome duty was going on,
until a little before 11, when a light air from the southward
struck the ship, and the sails for the first time in many weary
hours were asleep. The boats instantly dropped alongside,
hooked on, and were all run up, with the exception of the first
cutter. The topgallant studding-sails and stay-sails were set
as soon as possible, and for about an hour, the people caught
a Uttle rest.
But at midnight it fell nearly calm again ; though neither the
pursuers nor the pursued had recourse to the boats, probably
from an unwillingness to disturb their crews. At 2 A. M., it
was observed on board the Constitution that the Guerriere had
forged ahead, and was again off their lee-beam. At this time,
the top-gallant studding-sails were taken in.
In this manner passed the night, and on the morning of the

252 NAVAL HISTORY. [1812.
next day, it was found that three of the enemy's frigates were
within long gun-shot on the lee-quarter, and the other at about
the same distance on the lee-beam. The Africa, ahd the
prizes, were much farther to leeward.
A little after daylight, the Guerriere, having drawn ahead
sufficieritly to be forward of the Constitution's beam, tacked,
when the latter ship did the same, in order to preserve her po
sition to windward. An hour later the .Sk)lus passed on the
contrary tack, so near that it was thought by some who ob
served the movement, that she ought to have opened her fire ;
but, as that vessel was merely a twelve-pounder frigate, and
she was still at a considerable distance, it is quite probable her
commander acted judiciously. By this time, there was suffi
cient wind to induce Captain HuU'to hoist in his first cutter.
The scene, on the morning of this day, was very beautiful,
and of great interest to the lovers of nautical exhibitions. The
weather was mild and lovely, the sea smooth as a pond, and
there was quite wind enough to remove the necessity of any
of the extraordinary means of getting ahead, that had been so
freely used during the previous eight-and-forty hours. All the
EngUsh vessels had got on the same tack with the Constitution
again, and the five frigates were clouds of canvass, from their
trucks to the water. Including the American ship, eleven sail
Were in sight, and shortly after a twelfth appeared to wind
ward, that was soon ascertained to be an American merchant
man. But the enemy were too intent on the Constitution to
regard any thing else, and though it would have been easy to
capture the ships to leeward, no attention appears to have been
paid to them. 'With a view, however, to deceive the ship to
windward they hoisted American cplours, when the Constitu
tion set an English ensign, by way of warning the stranger to
keep aloof.
Until 10 o'clock the Constitution was making every prepara
tion for carrying sail hard should it become necessary, and she
sounded in 25 fathoms. At noon the wind fell again, though
it was found that while the breeze lasted, she had gained on
all of the enemy's ships ; more, however, on some, than on
others. The nearest vessel was the Belvidera, which was ex
actly in the wake of the Constitution, distant about two and a
half mUps, bearing W. N. W. The nearest frigate to leeward,
bore N. by W. i W. distant three or three and a half miles ;
the two other frigates were on the lee-quarter, distant about

1812.] NAVAL HISTORY- 253
five miles ; and the Africa was hull down to leeward, on the
opposite tack.
This was a vast improvement on the state of things that had
existed the day previous, and it allowed the officers and men
to catch a little rest, though no one left the decks. The lati
tude by observation this day, was 38° 47' N., and the longitude
by dead reckoning 73° 57' W.
At meridian the wind began to blow a pleasant breeze, and
the sound of the water rippling under the bows of the vessel
was again heard. From this moment the noble old ship slowly
drew ahead of all her pursuers, the sails being watched and
tended in the best manner that consummate seamanship could
dictate, until 4 P. M., when the Belvidera was more than four
miles astern, and the other vessels were thrown behind in
the same proportion, though the wind had again got to be very
light. In this manner both parties kept pressing ahead and to
windward, as fast as circumstances would allow, profiting by
every change, and resorting to all the means of forcing vessels
through the water, that are known to seamen. At a little be
fore 7, however, there was every appearance of a heavy squall,
accompanied by rain ; when the Constitution prepared to meet
it with the coolness Eind discretion she had displayed through
out the whole affair. The people were stationed, and every
thing was kept fast to the last moment, when, just before the
squall struck the ship, the order was given to clew up and clew
down. All the Ught canvass was furled, a second reef was
taken in the mizzen-topsail, and the ship was brought under
short sail, in an incredibly little time. The EngUsh vessels,
observing this, began to let go and haul down without waiting
for the wind, and when they were shut in by the rain, they
were steering in different directions to avoid the force of the
ej^pected squall. The Constitution, on the other hand, no
sooner got its weight, than she sheeted home and hoisted her
fore and main-top-gallant sails, and while the enemy most pro
bably believed her to be borne down by the pressure of the
wind, steering free, she was flying away from them, on an
easy bowUne, at the rate of eleven knots.
In a little less than an hour after the squall struck the
ship, it had entirely passed to leeward, and a sight was again
obtained of the enemy. The Belvidera, the nearest vessel, had
altered her bearings in that short perirfd two points more to
leeward, and she was a long way astern. The next nearest
22

254 NAVAL HISTORY. [1812.
vessel was still farther to leeward, and more distant, while the
two remaining frigates were fairly hull down. The Africa was
barely visible in the horizon !
All apprehensions of the enemy now ceased, though sail was
carried to increase the distance, and to preserve the weather-
gage. At half-past 10, the wind backed further to the south
ward, when the Constitution, which had been steering free for
some time, took in her lower studding-sails. At 11 the enemy
fired two guns, and the nearest ship could just be discerned.
As the wind baffled, and continued light, the enemy still perse
vered in the chase, but at daylight the nearest vessel was hull
down astern and to leeward. Under the circumstances it was
deemed prudent to use every exertion to lose sight of the
English frigates ; and the wind falling light, the Constitution's
sails were wet down from the skysails'"to the courses. The
good effects of this care were soon visible, as at 6 A. M. the
topsails of the enemy's nearest vessels were beginning to dip.
At a quarter past 8, the English ships all hauled to the north
ward and eastward, fully satisfied, by a trial that had lasted
nearly three days, and as many nights, under all the circum
stances that can attend naval manoeuvres, from reefed top
sails to kedging, that they had no hope of overtaking their
enemy. Thus terminated a chase, that has become historical in the
American navy, for its length, closeness, and activity. On
the part of the English, there were manifested much perse
verance and seamanship, a ready imitation, and a strong desire
to get alongside of their enemy. But the glory of the affair
was carried off by the officers and people of the Constitution.
Throughout all the trying circumstances of this arduous strug
gle, this noble frigate, which had so lately been the subject of
the sneers of the English critics, maintained the high character
of a man-of-war. Even when pressed upon the hardest, no
thing was hurried, confused, or slovenly ; but the utmost steadi
ness, order, and discipline reigned in the ship. A cool, dis
creet, and gallant commander, was nobly sustained by his
officers ; and there cannot be a doubt that had the enemy suc
ceeded in getting any one of their frigates fairly under the fire
of the American ship, that she would have been very roughly
treated. The escape itself, is not so much a matter of admi
ration, as the manner in which it was effected. A little water
was pumped out, it is true, and perhaps this was necessary, in
order to put a vessel fresh from port on a level, in Ught winds

1812.] NAVAL HISTORY. 255
and calms, with ships that had been cruising some time ; but
not an anchor was cut away, not a boat stove, nor a gun lost.
The steady and man-of-war like style in which the Constitution
took in all her boats, -as occasions offered; the order and ra
pidity with which she kedged, and the vigilant seamanship
with which she was braced up and eased off, extorted admira
tion among the more liberal of her pursuers. In this affair,
the ship, no less than those who worked her, gained a high
reputation, if not with the world generally, at least with those
who, perhaps, as seldom err in their nautical criticisms as any
people living.
The English relinquished the pursuit at 8 A. M., and at
half-past 8 the Constitution, discovering a vessel on her star
board bow, made sail in chase. At three-quarters past 9
brought to, and spoke an American brig. At 10 made sail
again in chase of another vessel on the lee bow, which also
proved to be an American, bound in. At meridian, hoisted in
the boat used in boarding, took a second reef in the topsails,
and stood to the eastward, the ship going into Boston near the
middle of the same month.
A few days after the chase of the Constitution, the English
squadron separated, the Africa returning to port with the
prisoners and prizes, and the frigates shaping their courses in
different directions, in the hope that the ship which had avoided
them so carefully when in company, might be less averse to
meeting either singly.
The Essex 32, Captain Porter, got to sea from New York,
not long after the departure of Commodore Rogers, and went
first to the southward. She made several prizes early, destroy
ing most of them, and receiving the prisoners on board. The
weather now compelled the Essex to run to the northward.
When a few weeks from port, a small fleet was approached at
night, which was immediately understood to be enemies. Out
of this fleet the Essex succeeded in getting a ship. On taking
possession of her prize, it was found filled with soldiers, and so
much time was necessarily consumed in securing the latter,
that the day dawned, and it became inexpedient to renew the
attempt on the convoy. The frigate was said to be the Mi
nerva 36, and the troops in the convoy amounted to near 1000
men. About 150 were taken in the prize.
A few days after this success, the Essex made a strange
sail to windward. At the moment, the frigate was disguised
as a merchantman, having her gun-deck ports in, top-gallant

256 NAVAL HISTORY. [1812.
masts housed, smd sails trimmed in a slovenly manner. De
ceived by these appearances, the stranger came running down
free, when the American ship showed her ensign and kept
away, under short sail. This emboldened the stranger, who
followed, and having got on the weather quarter of his chase,
he began his fire, setting English colours. The Essex now
knocked out her ports, and opened upon the enemy, who ap
pears to have been so much taken by surprise, that after receiv
ing one or two discharges, his people deserted their quarters, and
ran below. In eight minutes after the Essex had begun to fire,
the English ship struck. On sending Lieutenant Finch* on
board to take possession, the prize proved to be his Britannic
Majesty's ship Alert, Captain Laugharne, mounting 20 eigh
teen-pound carronades, and with a full crew. Mr. Finch
found seven feet of water in the Alert, and was obliged to ware
round, to keep her from sinking.
The Alert was the first vessel of war taken from the English
in this contest, and her resistance was so feeble as to excite
surprise. It was not to be expected, certainly, that a ship car
rying eighteen-pound carronades, could successfully resist a
ship carrying thirty-two-pound carronades, and double her
number of guns and men ; but so exaggerated had become the
opinion of the British prowess on the ocean, that impossibilities
were sometimes looked for. As it is understood that only a
part of the Essex's guns bore on the Alert, the manner in
which the latter was taken, must be attributed to a sudden
panic among her people, some of whom were censured after
their exchange. One or two of the officers even, did not
escape, the first lieutenant having been dismissed the service,
by a court-martial. The Alert had but three men wounded,
and the Essex sustained no injury at all.
Captain Porter, with the addition made by the crew of the
Alert, had many prisoners, and he felt the necessity of getting
rid of them. He accordingly entered into an arrangement
with Captain Laugharne, to convert the Alert into a cartel, and
to send her into St. John's. This project, so favourable to the
American interests, was successfully accomplished ; and it is
due to his character to say, that the officer in command at
Newfoundland, Admiral Sir J. T. Duckworth, while he pro
tested against the course, as unusual and injurious to a
nation like England, which had so many cruisers at sea, by
* Now Captain Bolton.

1812.] NAVAL HISTORY. 257
depriving her of the chances of recapture, honourably complied
with the conditions entered into by his subordinate.
The Essex continued to cruise to the southward of the
Grand Banks. On two occasions, she fell in with enemy's
frigates, and at one time was so hard pressed, as to be reduced
to the necessity of making every preparation to carry one by
boarding in the night, since, another English vessel of war
being in company, an engagement in the usual manner would
have been indiscreet. The arrangments made on board the
Essex, on this occasion, are still spoken of with admiration,
by those who were in the ship ; and there is great reason to
think they would have succeeded, had the vessels met. By
some accident, that has never been explained, the ships passed
each other in the darkness, and shortly after, the Essex came
into the Delaware to replenish her water and stores.
In the meanwhile, the Constitution was not idle. Remaining
at Boston a short time after his celebrated chase. Captain Hull
sailed again on the 2d of August, standing along the land to
the eastward, in the hope of falling in with some of the enemy's
cruisers, that were thought to be hovering on the coast. The
ship ran down, near the land, as far as the Bay of Fundy,
without seeing any thing, when she went off Halifax and Cape
Sable, with the same want of success. Captain Hull now de
termined to go farther east, and he went near the Isle of
Sables, and thence to the mouth of the Gulf of St. Lawrence,
to intercept vessels bound to HaUfax or Quebec. Here two
prizes, of little value, were taken and burned. On the morning
of the 15th, five sail were made, one of which was a sloop of
war. The Constitution gave chase, and the enemy soon set
one of his vessels, a prize brig, on fire. The chases now sepa
rated, and the sloop of war being to windward, the Constitution
followed a ship, which turned out to be an Englishman, al
ready a prize to an American privateer. This vessel had been
spoken by the sloop of war, but the appearance of the Consti
tution prevented her recapture. A brig was next chased to
leeward, and proved to be an American, with a prize crew on
board. She was retaken, and sent in. The remainder of the
vessels escaped.
The Constitution next stood to the southward, and on the
19th, at 2 P. M., in lat. 41° 41', long. 55° 48', a sail was
made from the mast-heads, bearing E. S. E., and to leeward,
though the distance prevented her character from being dis
covered. The Constitution immediately made sail in chase,
22*

258 NAVAL HISTORY. [1812.
and at 3, the stranger was ascertained to be a ship on the star-
board tack, under easy canvass, and close hauled. Half an
hour later, she was distinctly made out to be a frigate, and no
doubt was entertained of her being an enemy. The American
ship kept running free until she was within a league of the
frigate to leeward, when she began to shorten sail. By this
time, the enemy had laid his main-topsail aback, in waiting for
the Constitution to come down, with every thing ready to en
gage. Perceiving that the Englishman sought a combat. Cap
tain Hull made his own preparations with the greater delibera
tion. The Constitution, consequently, furled her top-gallant-
sails, and stowed all her light stay-sails and the flying jib.
Soon after, she took a second reef in the topsails, hauled up
the courses, sent down royal-yards, cleared for action, and
beat to quarters. At 5, the chase hoisted three English en
signs, and immediately after she opened her fire, at long gun
shot, waring several times, to rake and prevent being raked.
The Constitution occasionally yawed as she approached, to
avoid being raked, and she fired a few guns as they bore, but
her object was not to commence the action seriously, until
quite close.
At 6 o'clock, the enemy bore up, and ran off under his three
topsails and jib, with the wind on his quarter. As this "was an
indication of a readiness to receive his antagonist, in a fair
yard-arm and yard-arm fight, the Constitution immediately set
her main-topgallant-sail and foresail, to get alongside. At a
little after 6, the bows of the American frigate began to double
on the quarter of the English ship, when she opened with her
forward guns, drawing slowly ahead, with her greater way,
both vessels keeping up a close and heavy fire, as their guns
bore. In about ten minutes, or just as the ships were fairly
side by side, the mizzen-mast of the Englishman was shot
away, when the American passed slowly ahead, keeping up a
tremendous fire, and luffed short round the bows of the enemy,
to prevent being raked. In executing this manoeuvre, the ship
shot into the wind, got sternway, and fell foul of her antago
nist. While in this situation, the cabin of the Constitution took
fire from the close explosion of the forward guns of the enemy,
who obtained a small, but momentary advantage from his po
sition. The good conduct of Mr. Hoffman, who commanded
in the cabin, soon repaired this accident, and a gun of the ene
my's that threatened further injury, was disabled.
As the vessels touched, both parties prepared to board. The

1812.] NAVAL HISTORY. 259
EngUsh turned all hands up from below, and mustered forward
with that object, while Mr. Morris, the first lieutenant, with his
own hands endeavoured to lash the ships together. Mr. Alwyn,
the master, and Mr. Bush, the lieutenant of marines, were upon
the taffrail of the Constitution, to be ready to spring. Both
sides now suffered by the closeness of the musketry ; the Eng
lish much the most, however. Mr. Morris was shot through
the body, the bullet fortunately missing the vitals. Mr. Alwyn
was wounded in the shoulder, and Mr. Bush fell by a bul
let through the head. It being found impossible for either party
to board, in the face of such a fire, and with the heavy sea that
was on, the sails were filled, and just as the Constitution shot
ahead, the foremast of the enemy fell, carrying down with it
his mainmast, and leaving him wallowing in the trough of the
sea, a helpless wreck.
"The Constitution now hauled aboard her tacks, ran off a
short distance, secured her masts, and rove new rigging. At
7, she wore round, and taking a favourable position for raking,
a jack that had been kept flying on the stump of the mizzen-
mast of the enemy, was lowered. Mr. George Campbell
Read,* the third lieutenant, was sent on board the.prize, and
the boat soon returned with the report that the captured vessel
was the Guerriere 38, Captain Dacres, one of the ships that
had so lately chased the Constitution, off New York.
The Constitution kept waring to remain near her prize, and
at 2 A. M., a strange sail was seen closing, when she cleared
for action ; but at three, the stranger stood off. At daylight,
the officer in charge hailed to say that the Guerriere had four
feet water in her hold, and that there was danger of her sink
ing. On receiving this information. Captain Hull sent all his
boats to remove the prisoners. Fortunately, the weather was
moderate, and by noon this duty was nearly ended. At 3 P.
M., the prize crew was recalled, having set the wreck on fire ;
Emd in a quarter of an hour, the Guerriere blew np. Finding
himself incumbered with wounded prisoners. Captain Hull now
returned to Boston, where he arrived on the SOth of the same
month. It is not easy, at this distant day, to convey to the reader the
full force of the moral impression created in -America by this
victory of one frigate over another. So deep had been the ef
fect produced on the public mind by the constant accounts of
the successes of the English over their enemies at sea, that the
* Commodore Read, late in command of the East India squadron.

260 NAVAL HISTORY. [1812.
opinion of their invincibility on that element, already men
tioned, generally prevailed ; and it had been publicly predicted,
that before the contest had continued six months, British sloops
of war would lie alongside of American frigates with compara
tive impunity. Perhaps the only portion of the American
population that expected different results, was that which com
posed- the little body of officers on whom the trial would fall,
and even they looked forward to the struggle with a manly reso
lution, rather than with a very confident hope. But the termi
nation of the combat just related, very far exceeded the expecta
tions of the most sanguine. After making all proper allow
ance for the difference of force which certainly existed in fa
vour of the Constitution, as well as for the excuses that the
defeated party freely offered to the world, men on both sides
of the Atlantic, who were competent to form intelligent opin
ions on such subjects, saw the promise of many future suc
cesses in this. The style in which the Constitution had been
handled ; the deliberate and yet earnest manner in which she
had been carried into battle ; the extraordinary execution that
had been done in so short a time by her fire ; the readiness
ai)d gallantry with which she had cleared for action, so soon
after destroying one British frigate, in which was manifested a
disposition to meet another, united -to produce a deep convic
tion of self-reliance, coolness, and skill, that was of infinitely
more weight than the transient feeling which might result from
any accidental triumph.
In this combat, the Constitution suffered a good deal in her
rigging and sails, but very little in her hull. Her loss was
seven killed, and seven wounded. As soon as she had rove
new rigging, applied the necessary stoppers, and bent a few
sails, as has been seen, she was ready to engage another fri
gate. On the other hand, the Guerriere was completely dis
masted, had seventy-nine killed and wounded, and, according
to the statement of her commander in his defence, before the
court which tried him for the loss of his ship, she had received
no less than thirty shot as low as five sheets of copper beneath
the bends ! All this execution had been done between the
time when the ships opened their fire abeam, and the moment
when the Guerriere's masts fell ; for the few shot thrown by
the Constitution, previously to the first event, were virtually
of no use, and, subsequently to the last, she did not discharge
a gun. The whole period, between the time when the Guer
riere commenced her fire at long shot, and that when she ac-

1812.] NAVAL HISTORY. 261
tually hauled down her jack, something like two hours was
included in tbe enemy's accounts of the duration of the combat;
but it is well understood by professional men, that in truth the
battle was decided in about a fourth of that time.
Captain Dacres lost no professional reputation by his defeat.
He had handled his ship in a manner to win the applause of
his enemies, fought her gallantly, and only submitted when
further resistance would have been nearly impossible. Less
can be said in favour of the efficiency of the Guerriere's bat
teries, which were not equal to the mode of fighting that had
been introduced by her antagonist, and which, in fact, was
the commencement of a new era in combats between single
ships. We have dwelt at length on the circumstances connected
with this action, not only because it was the first serious con
flict of the w-ar, but because it was characterised by features
which, though novel at the time, became identified with nearly
all the subsequent engagements of the contest, showing that
they were intimately connected with the discipline and system
of the American marine.
Captain Hull having performed the two handsome exploits
recorded, now gave up the command of his frigate, in order to
allow others an equal chance to distinguish themselves, there
being unfortunately many more captains than vessels in the
navy, at that trying moment. Captain Bainbridge was named
to be his successor, being transferred from the Constellation
38, then fitting for sea at Washington, to the Constitution.
As Captain Bainbridge was one of the oldest officers of his
rank in the service, he was given a command consisting of his
own ship, the Essex 32, and the Hornet 18. He hoisted his
broad pennant on board the Constitution, accordingly, on the
15th of September, at Boston. Captain Stewart, lately re
turned from a furlough, was appointed to the Constellation 38,
and Mr. Charles Morris, the first lieutenant of the Constitution,
in the chase and in the battle, was shortly after promoted to
the rank of captain, passing the step of master-commandant, as
had been the case with Commodore Decatur.

262 NAVAL HISTORY. [1813.

CHAPTER XXVIII.
Congress did nothing of any moment towards increasing
the navy, on the oceah, during" the year 1812, although war
was declared in June. This neglect of so important a branch
of the public service, under circumstances that would seem so
imperiously to call for the fostering care and active exertions
of the government, must be ascribed to the doubts that still ex
isted as to the possibility of keeping ships at sea, in face of the
British navy. It had been customary to say, that France,
whenever she put a ship into the water, was merely building
for her great enemy ; and an opinion was prevalent, that Ameri
ca would be doing the same thing, if she wasted her resources
in creating a marine ; thus rendering it literally necessary for
the accompUshed officers who composed the germ of the ser
vice, to demonstrate, from fact to fact, their abiUty to maintain
the honour of the country, before that country would frankly
confide to them the means.
Commodore Rodgers, having refitted, sailed on a second
cruise, leaving the Hornet in port ; but Commodore Decatur,
in the United States 44, and the Argus 16, Captain Sinclair,
parted company with him, at sea, on the 12th of October, after
cruising some time without falUng in with any thing of im
portance. On the 17th, he captured the British packet Swal
low, with a large amount of specie on board, and continued
his cruise to the eastward. In the mean while, the United
States and Argus having separated, the former stood more to
the southward and eastward, with a view to get into the track
of the enemy's Indiamen. Sunday, October 25th, the United
States, then in lat. 29° N., long. 29° 30' W., made a large
sail to the southward and eastward. The stranger was run
ning down a little free, while the American ship was on a wind,
standing towards the chase, which was soon ascertained to be
an enemy. The latter having come within a league, hauled up,
and passed to windward, when, each party was enabled to see
that it had a frigate to oppose. The stranger now wore and
came round on the same tack as the United States, keeping
away sufficiently to g'et within reach of her long guns, when
she hauled up on an easy bowline, with her mizzen-topsail

1812.] NAVAL HISTORY. 263
aback. At this moment the distance between the two ships
a littie exceeded a mile, when the Englishman opened his fire.
Finding the enemy on his weather quarter. Commodore Deca
tur delivered his larboard broadside, wore round, and came up
to the wind on the other tack, heading northerly. It was ob
served that all the carronade-shot fell short, the enemy doing
very little Injury by his fire.
Having passed her antagonist, the United States delivered
her starboard broadside, and wore again, bringing her head
once more to the southward, or on the same tack as the ene
my, both ships steering rap full, with their mizzen-topsails
aback, and keeping up a heavy cannonade. In this manner
the action continued about an hour, the English vessel suffer
ing heavily, while her own fire inflicted very Uttle injury on
her antagonist. At length the stranger's mizzen-mast came
down over his lee quarter, having been shot away about ten
feet above the deck. He then fell off, and let his foresail drop,
apparently with a wish to close. As the ships got near to
gether, the shot of the American vessel did fearful execution,
the fore-course being soon in ribands, the fore and main-top
masts over the side, the main-yard cut away in the slings, and
the foremast tottering. The United States now filled her miz
zen-topsail, gathered fresh way, and tacked. As the stranger
was drifting dovm, nearly before the wind, and was almost un
manageable. Commodore Decatur had no difficulty in heading
up high enough to cross his wake, which he handsomely ef
fected, with his people still manning the larboard guns. At
the time the United States filled her mizzen-topsail, in prepa
ration for stays, it is said that the enemy, under the impression
she was about to run away, gave three cheers, and set a union
jack in his main rigging, all his other flags having come down
with the several spars. When, however, the American ship
was seen luffing up to close, the jack was lowered, and resist
ance ceased.
As the United States crossed the stern of the English ship,
the firing having ceased on both sides, she hailed and demand
ed the name of her antagonist, and whether she had submitted.
To the first interrogatory, Commodore Decatur was answered
that the ship .was the Macedonian 38, Captain Garden, and to
the second, that the vessel had struck. On taking possession,
the enemy was found fearfully cut to pieces, having received
no less than a hundred round shot in his hull alone. Of three

264 NAVAL HISTORY. [1812.
hundred men on board him, thirty six were killed, and sixty-
eight wounded.
The Macedonian was a very fine ship of her class, mount
ing, as usual, 49 guns ; eighteens on her gun-deck, and thirty-
two-pound carronades above. She was smaller, of lighter
armament, and had fewer men than her opponent of course,
but the disproportion between the force of the two vessels, was
much less than that between the execution. In this action,
the advantage of position was with the British ship until she
was crippled, and the combat was little more than a plain can
nonade, at a distance that rendered grape or musketry of little
or no use, for the greater part of the time. The fire of the
United States took effect so heavily in the waist of her antago
nist, that it is said the marines of the latter were removed to
the batteries, which circumstance increased the efficiency of
the ship, by enabling new crews to be placed at guns that had
been once cleared of their men. On the other hand, the ma
rines of the United States- remained drawn up in the waist of
that ship, most of the time quite useless, though they are un
derstood to have shown the utmost steadiness and good con
duct under the example of their gallant commandpr, the weight
of the enemy's fire passing a short distance above their heads.
The United States suffered surprisingly Uttle, considering
the length of the cannonade, and her equal exposure. She
lost one of her top-gallant masts, received some wounds in the
spars, had a good deal of rigging cut, and was otherwise
injured aloft, but was hulled a very few times. Of her officers
and people 5 were killed and 7 wounded. Of the latter, two
died, one of whom was Mr. John Musser Funk, the junior lieu
tenant of the ship. No other officer was hurt.
On taking possession of his prize, Commodore Decatur
found her in a state that admitted of her being taken into port.
When the necessary repairs were completed, the two ships made
the best of their way to America ; Commodore Decatur dis
continuing the cruise, in order to convoy his prize into port.
The United States arrived off New London on the 4th of De
cember, and about the same time the Macedonian got into New
port. Shortly after, both ships reached New York by the
Hell Gate passage.
The order and style with which the Macedonian was taken,
added materially to the high reputation that Commodore De
catur already enjoyed. His services were acknowledged in
the usual manner, and he was soon after directed to cruise in

1812.] NAVAL HISTORY. 265
the United States, with the Macedonian, Captain Jones, in
company. Mr. Allen, the first lieutenant of the United States,
was promoted to the rank of a master-commandant, and he
received due credit for the steady disciplme that the ship's com
pany had displayed.
The Argus, under Captain Sinclair, after separating from
the United States, cruised alone, making several captures of
merchantmen, though she met no vessel of war, of a force
proper for her to engage.
While these events were in the course of accomplishment,
the Wasp 18, Captain Jones, left the Delaware on a cruise.
She was one of the sloops built at the close of the Tripolitan
war, and like her sister ship the Hornet, a beautiful and
fest cruiser. The latter, however, which originally was a
brig, had been rebuilt, or extensively repaired at Washington,
on which occasion, she had been pierced for twenty guns, and
rigged into a ship. The Wasp still retained her old armament
and construction, having been a ship from the first, mounting
16 thirty-two pound carronades and 2 long twelves. Her com
plement of men varied from 130 to 160, according to circum
stances. She had been to Europe with despatches before the
declaration of war, and did not return home until some weeks
after hostilities had commenced.
The Wasp, after refitting, sailed on a cruise to the north
ward. She ran off Boston, made one capture, and after an ab
sence of three weeks, returned to the Delaware. On the 1 3th
of October, she sailed a second time, and ran offcast, southerly,
to clear the coast, and to get into the track of vessels steering
north. Three days out it came on to blow very heavily, when
the ship lost her jib-boom, and two men that were on it at the
moment. The next day the weather moderated, and about 11
o'clock in the night of the 17th, being then in latitude 37° N.,
and longitude 65° W., several sail were made. Two of these
vessels appeared to be large, and Captain Jones did not deem
it prudent to close, until he had a better opportunity of observ-
ing them, but hauUng off to a convenient distance, he steered
in the same direction with the unknown vessels, with the in
tention of ascertaining their characters in the morning. When
the day dawned, the strangers were seen ahead, and to lee
ward. Making sail to close, they were soon ascertained to be
a small convoy of six English ships, under the charge of a
heavy brig of war. Four of the merchantmen were armed,
apparentiy, mounting, as well as could be ascertained at that
23

266 NAVAL HISTORY. [1812,
distance, from 12 to 18 guns. The commander of the brig,
however, manifested no wish to avail himself of the assistance
of any of his convoy, but shortening sail, the latter passed
ahead, while he prepared to give battle.
The Wasp now sent down top-gallanf-yards, close reefed her
topsails, and was otherwise brought under short fighting can
vass, there being a good deal of sea on. The stranger was
under little sail also, and his main yard was on deck, where it
had been lowered to undergo repairs. As it was the evident
intention of the Englishman to cover his convoy, very little
manoeuvring was necessary to bring the vessels alongside of
each other. At 32 minutes past 11 A. M., the Wasp ranged
close up on the starboard side of the enemy, receiving her
broadside, at the distance of about sixty yards, and delivering
her own. The fire of the Englishman immediately became
very rapid, it having been thought at the time, that he dis
charged three guns to the Wasp's two ; and as the main-topmast
of the latter ship was shot away within five minutes after the
action commenced, appearances at first, were greatly in the
enemy's favour. In eight minutes, the gaff and mizzen top
gallant-mast also fell. But, if the fire of the Wasp was the
most deliberate, it was much the most deadly.
In consequence of the fall of the main-topmast of the Ame
rican ship, which, with the main-topsail-yard, lodged on the
fore and fore-topsail braces, it became next to impossible to
haul any of the yards, had circumstances required it, but the
battle was continued with great spirit on both sides, until the
ships had gradually closed so near, that the bends of the Wasp
rubbed against her antagonist's bows. Here the ships came
foul, the bo<vsprit of the enemy passing in over the quarter
deck of the Wasp, forcing her bows up into the wind, and en
abling the latter to throw in a close raking fire.
When Captain Jones perceived the effect of the enemy's fire
on his spars and rigging, he closed with a view to board ; but
finding his ship in so favourable a position, he countermanded
an order to that effect, and directed a fresh broadside to be de
livered. The vessels were now so near that in loading some
of the Wasp's guns, the rammers hit against the bows of her
antagonist, and the people of the Englishman could no longer
be kept at their quarters forward. The discharge of one or
two of the carronades swept the enemy's decks, when the im
petuosity of the Wasp's crew could no longer be restrained,
and they began to leap into the rigging, and from thence on

1812.] NAVAL HISTORY. 267
the bowsprit of the brig. As soon as Mr. Biddle, the first lieu
tenant of the Wasp, found that the people were not to be re
strained, he sprang into the rigging, followed by Lieutenant G.
Rodgers and a party of officers and men, and the attempt to
board was seriously made. On the forecastle of the brig Mr.
Biddle passed all his own people, but there was no enemy to
oppose him. Two or three officers were standing aft, most of
them bleeding. The decks were strewed with killed and wound
ed, but not a common hand was at his station ; all those that
were able having gone below, with the exception of the man
at the wheel. The latter had maintained his post. With the
spirit of a seaman, to the last.
The English officers threw down their swords in token of
submission, as Mr. Biddle passed aft ; and it ought to be added,
to the credit of the conquerors, notwithstanding the excitement
of such scenes are too apt to lead even the disciplined into ex
cesses, not an enemy was injured by the boarders. Mr. Bid
dle sprang into the main rigging, and lowered the English flag
with his own hands, when the combat ceased, after a duration
of 43 minutes.
The prize turned out to be the British sloop of war Frolic
18, Captain Whinyates, homeward bound, with the vessels in
the Honduras trade under convoy. The Frolic, with the ex
ception of being a brig, was a vessel of the size and construc
tion of the Wasp. She mounted, on her main deck, 16 thirty-
two pound carronades, four long guns, differently stated to
have been sixes, nines, and twelves, and had two twelve-pound
carronades on a topgallant forecastie. This armament would
make a force greater than that of the Wasp by four guns, a
disparity that is not immaterial in vessels so small. The two
crews were pretty equal in numbers, though it is probable that
the Wasp may have had a few men the most ; a difference that
was of Uttle moment under the circumstances, more particu
larly as the Frolic was a brig, and the battle was fought, by
both vessels, under very short sail.*
The Wasp was cut up aloft to an unusual degree, there hav
ing been no question that her antagonist's fire was heavy and
spirited. The braces and standing-rigging were nearly all
shot away, and some of the spars that stood were injured.
She had five men killed, and five wounded. The hull sus
tained no great damage.
* The Wasp's muster-roll, on the morning of the 18th October, con
tained the names of 138 persons, all told.

268 NAVAL HISTORY. [1812,
The FroUc was also much injured in her spars and rigging,
more particularly in the former ; and the two vessels were
hardly separated, before both her masts fell. She had been
hulled at almost every discharge, and was virtually a wreck
when taken possession of by the Americans, Her loss in
men was never accurately known, but her captain, first lieu
tenant, and master, were wounded ; the two latter mortally.
Mr. Biddle, who remained in charge of the prize, after so gal
lantly boarding her, stated, that as far as he could ascertain,
she had from 70 to 80 killed and wounded. Subsequent in
formation, however, has given reason to believe that the num-
ber~ was even greater. Captain Whinyates, in his official re
port, states that not 20 of his crew escaped unhurt, which
would probably raise the casualties to a number between 90
and 100.
The Frolic had scarcely submitted, when a large sail was
seen standing towards the two vessels, evidently a ship of force.
Instructions were given to Mr. Biddle to make the best of his
way to Charleston with the prize, and the Wasp began to make
sail, with an intention to continue her cruise ; but on opening
her canvass, and turning the reefs out of her topsails, they
were found ' to be nearly in ribands. The stranger, which
turned out to be the enemy's ship Poictiers 74, hove a shot
over the Frolic, in passing, and ranging up near the Wasp,
both vessels were captured. The Poictiers proceeded with her
two prizes to Berfflud.a, and the Americans, being paroled, soon
after returned home.
As this was the first combat -of the war between vessels of
a force so nearly equal as to render caviUing difficult, the re
sult occasioned much exultation in America, and greatly in
creased the confidence of the public, in supposing an Ameri
can ship had quite as many claims to conduct, courage, and
skill, as a British. Persons of reflection attached but lit
tle importance, it is true, to the mere fact that a few cruisers
had been taken in single combat, but the idea of British invin
cibility was destroyed, and vast moral results were distinctly
foreseen. In the pubUshed account of the captain of the Frolic, much
stress was laid on the crippled condition of his ship, when she
went into action. It is admitted that his vessel had her main-
yard on deck when she engaged, and, as little canvass was
required, her after-sail was reduced to her fore-and-aft main
sail. There are circumstances in which the loss of a brig's

1812. NAVAL HISTORY. 269
main-topsail would be of the last importance ; and there are
circumstances, again, in which it would be of but little mo
ment. On this occasion it does not appear to have materially
influenced the result; and the very fact that the yard was
down, may have prevented the mast from falling during the
engagement, instead of falling after it. On details of this na
ture, it is difficult to reason accurately, so much depending on
minute circumstances, that must escape the general observer.
Captain Jones was promoted shortly after this success, and
he was appointed to the command of the Macedonian 38,
which ship had been purchased and taken into the service.
The name of Mr. Biddle, who was an old lieutenant, and
whose spirited conduct in the action was much appreciated,
was also included in the list of masters and commanders that
was sent into the senate about the same time.

CHAPTER XXIX.
When Commodore Bainbridge took command of the three
Vessels that have been already mentioned, the Constitution 44,
his own ship, and Hornet 18, Captain Lawrence, were lying
in the port of Boston ; and the Essex 32, Captain Porter, had
just gone into the Delaware. Orders were sent to the latter
officer, to rendezvous first at Port Praya, in the island of St.
Jago ; and secondly at Fernando Noronha. Other places of
resort were pointed out ; and he was also instructed to cruise
in the track of the enemy's Indiamen, until a time mentioned,
when, if he failed to faU in with his senior officer, he was at
liberty to follow his own discretion. As the Essex never join
ed the other ships, we shall defer the account of her cruise, to
another chapter.
The Constitution and Hornet sailed from Boston on the 26th
of October. Touching at the different rendezvous, where they
appeared in the character of British vessels of war, letters
were left for Captain Porter, under the assumed name of Sir
James Yeo, of the Southampton 32, according to arrange
ment, and the ships proceeded.
Commodore Bainbridge arrived off St. Salvador on the 13th
23*

270 NAVAL HISTORY. [1812.
of December, and the Hornet was sent in to communicate with
the consul. Captain Lawrence found the British sloop of war
Bonne Citoyenne 18, Captain Green, in port, but about to
sail for England, with a very large amount of specie on board.
The presence of this vessel suggested a hope of being able to
get her out. After conversing with the consul, that gentleman
was empowered to inform the commander of tbe EngUsh ship,
that Captain Lawrence was desirous of meeting him at sea,
and to give the necessary pledges that the Constitution would
be out of the way. A correspondence took place between the
EngUsh and American consuls on the subject, and in the end.
Captain Green declined acceding to the proposal.
The Constitution left the Hornet to blockade the Bonne
Citoyenne alone, on the 26th, and stood to the southward,
keeping the land aboard. About 9 A. M. of the 29th, when in
lat. 13° 6' S., and long. 31° W., or at a distance often leagues
from the coast, two strange sail were made in-shore and to
windward. One of these vessels continued to stand in, while
the other, which was much the largest, altered her course in
the direction of the American frigate, which had tacked to
close with her. The day was pleasant, there was but little
sea, and the wind was light at E. N. E.
At 11 A. M., being satisfied that the strange sail was an
enemy's frigate, the Constitution tacked again to the southward
smd eastward, to draw her enemy off the land, which was
plainly in sight. At the SEime time, she set her royals, and
boarded main-tack, in order to effect this object.
At 12 M. the Constitution showed her colours, and shortly
after the stranger set the EngUsh ensign. Signals were made
by both ships, but proved to be mutually unintelligible. At
20 minutes past 1, P. M., believing himself far enough from
the land. Commodore Bainbridge took in his main-sail and
royals, and tacked towards the enemy. Soon after, both ships
had their heads to the southward and eastward, the Englishman
being to windward more than a mile distant, and well on the
Constitution's quarter.
The enemy had now hauled down his ensign, though he
kept a jack flying, and Commodore Bainbridge ordered a shot
fired ahead of him, to induce him to show his colours anew.
This order brought on a general fire, and the battle commenced
at 2, P. M., on both sides,' -with a furious cannonade. The
enemy sailed the best, and in the light wind that prevailed he
soon forged ahead, keeping away with a view to cross the

1812.] NAVAL HISTORY. 271
Constitution's bow, but was foiled by the latter ship's waring,
which brought the heads of the two combatants once more to
the westward. In performing these evolutions, as the enemy
steered free, and the Constitution luffed, the vessels got within
pistol-shot, when the foimer repeated the same attempt, the
ships waring together, bringing their heads once more to the
eastward. The English ship fore-reaching again, now en
deavoured to tack to preserve the weather-gage ; but failing,
she was obUged to ware, a manoeuvre that the Constitution had
already executed to avoid being raked, for the wheel of the
latter ship had been shot away, and it was difficult to watch
the vessel with the helm, as closely "as was desirable. The
Constitution, notwithstanding, was the first in coming to the
wind on the other tack, and she got an efficient raking fire at
her opponent.
Both vessels now ran off free, with the wind on the quarter,
the English ship still to windward, when the latter being
greatly injured, made an attempt to close, at 55 minutes past
2, by running down on the Constitution's quarter. Her jib-
boom ran into the Constitution's mizzen rigging, in which
situation she suffered severely, without being able to effect her
purpose. The head of her bowsprit was soon shot away, and
in a few minutes after, her foremast came by the board. The
Constitution shot ahead, keeping away to avoid being raked ;
in separating, the stump of the enemy's bowsprit passed over
the American frigate's taffrail.
The two ships now brought the wind abeam again, with
their heads to the eastward, and the Constitution having fore-
reached, in consequence of carrying the most sail, wore,
passed her antagonist, luffed up under his quarter, wore again,
and the Englishman having kept away, the vessels came
alongside of each other, and engaged for a short time, yard-
arm and yard-arm. In a few minutes the enemy lost his miz
zen-mast, leaving nothing standing but his main-mast, with the
yard shot away near the slings. As his fire had ceased, the
Constitution hauled aboard her tacks, and luffed athwart her
antago"nist's bow ; passing out of the combat to windward, at
five minutes past 4, with her topsails, courses, spanker, and jib
set. In executing this manoeuvre. Commodore Bainbridge was
under the impression that the enemy had struck, the ensign
which had been hoisted in his main-rigging being down, his
ship a wreck, and his fire silenced.
Having got a favourable weatherly position, the Constitution

272 NAVAL HISTORY. [1813.
passed some time in repairing damages, and ih securmg her
masts ; it being all-important to an American frigate so far
from home, without colonies or military stations to repair to,
and an ocean to traverse that was covered with enemies, to
look vigilantiy to these great auxiliaries. In about an hour,
observing an ensign stiU flying on board his enemy. Commo
dore Bainbridge wore round, and standmg directly across her
fore-foot, the English vessel anticipated his fire by striking.
The Constitution immediately wore, with her head on the
same tack as the captured vessel, hoisted out a boat, and sent
Mr. Parker, her first lieutenant, to take possession. The prize
proved to be the British frigate Java 38, Captain Lambert,
bound to the East Indies, having on board as passengers Lieu
tenant General Hislop and staff, together with several super
numerary sea-officers, and a considerable number of men
intended for other ships.
This combat lasted near two hours, from the commencement
to the end of the firing, and it had been warmly contested on
both sides, but with very different results. Although there
was more manceuvring than common, the Java had been lite
rally picked to pieces by shot, spar following spar, until she
had not one lefl. Her foremast was first cut away near the
cat-harpings, and afterwards, by a double-headed shot, about
five-and-twenty feet from the deck. The main-topmast went
early, and the main-mast fell after the Constitution hauled off.
The mizzen-mast was shot out of the ship, a few feet from the
deck, and the bowsprit near the cap. Her hull was also
greatly mjured ; and her loss in men, according to the British
published accounts, was 22 killed and 102 wounded ; though
there is good reason for supposing it was considerably greater.
Commodore Bainbridge stated it at 60 killed and 101 wounded.
There may have been some discrepancy in these statements,
in consequence of the great number of supernumeraries on
board the Java, which ship is said to have had more than 400
men in her when taken, or quite 100 more than her regular
complement.* Captain Lambert, of the Java, was mortally
* The British accounts state the crew of the Java at 377 men, includ
ing supernumeraries. Commodore Bainbridge reports that he furloughed
361 officers, seamen, marines, and boys, exclusively of 8 passengers and
9 Portuguese seamen, making 378 souls. If to these be added the 22
allowed to be killed by the enemy, a total of just 400 is obtained. But it
is said that a master-list, made five days after the Java sailed, contained
just 446 names.

1812.] NAVAL HISTORY. 273
wounded ; and one of her lieutenants, the master, and many
of her inferior officers, were slain, or seriously hurt.
The Constitution did not lose a spar. She went into action
with her royal-yards across, and came out of it with all three
of them in their places. An eighteen-pound shot passed
through the mizzen-mast ; the fore-mast was slightly wounded,
and the main-mast was untouched. The main-topmast was
also slightly wounded ; a few other spars were hit, without
being carried away ; the running rigging was injured a good
deal ; several shrouds were cut, and the ship received a few
round-shot in her hull. Of her crew, 9 were killed, and 25
were wounded. Among the latter were Commodore Bain
bridge, and the junior lieutenant, Mr. Alwyn. The last died
of his injuries, some time after the action. Commodore Bain
bridge was slightly hurt in the hip, early in the engagement,
by a musket-ball ; and the shot that carried away the wheel,
drove a small copper bolt into his thigh, inflicting a dangerous
wound, though he kept the deck until midnight.
Although the injuries to the hull of the Java were not of a
nature to render her being carried into port difficult, the
smoothness of the sea having prevented her from receiving
many shot below the water-line, there existed many o,bjections
to attempting it. In the first place, it was known that the
Brazilian government was favourable to that of Great Britain,
and there had been strong proof of it during the recent visit
of Commodore Bainbridge to St. Salvador. That officer,
therefore felt a hesitation about trusting his prize in a Bra
zilian port. The difficulty of obtaining masts of the neces
sary size, the distance from home, and the risks of recapture,
oh nearing the coast, united to render it expedient to destroy
her. After lying by her two or three days, therefore, with a
view to remove the wounded with proper care, the Java was
blown up, and the Constitution made the best of her way to
St. Salvador, where she immediately landed her prisoners on
parole. The same general peculiarities attended this combat, as had
distinguished the two other cases of frigate actions. In all
three, the American vessels were superior to their antagonists ;
but in all three, had the difference in execution been greatly
out of proportion to the disparity in force. The Java, like
the Guerriere, had been well handled, but her fire had been
badly aimed. It would seem that the Constitution actually
wore six times, after the action had fairly commenced ; and

274 NAVAL HISTORY. [1813,
allowing for the positions of the ships, the lightness of the
wind, and the space that it was necessary to run, in order to
avoid being raked while executing these evolutions, it is pro
bable that the cannonade did not actually occupy an hour.
The action must have terminated some miles to leeward of the
spot where it commenced.
On reaching St. Salvador, Commodore Bainbridge found the
Hornet off the port, and it was understood that the Bonne
Citoyenne had hove-short, with an intention of going to sea
that night. The arrival of the Constitution appears to have
produced a change in this plan, if it ever existed. Remaining
a few days in port to land his prisoners, and to complete his
arrangements. Commodore Bainbridge sailed for America,
January 6, 1813, and arrived at Boston on the 27th of Feb
ruary, after an absence of four months.
The Hornet was left with orders substantially discretionary.
She remained off St. Salvador, blockading the Bonne Citoyenne,
alone, for eighteen days, when she was chased into the har
bour by the Montagu 74, which vessel had come to relieve the
enemy's sloop of war from the awkward necessity of fighting
¦with so much treasure on board, or of the still more unpleEis-
ant dilemma of appearing indisposed to meet a ship of equal
force. It was late in the evening when the Montagu ap
proached, and the Hornet availed herself of the darkness to
ware and stand out again, passing into the offing without fur
ther molestation.
Captain Lawrence now hauled by the wind, to the north
ward and eastward, with the intention of going off Pernam-
buco. He made a few prizes, and continued cruising up the
coast, until the 24th of February, when the ship was near the
mouth of Demarara river. Here he gave chase to a brig,
which drew him into quarter-less-five, when, having no pilot,
he deemed it prudent to haul off shore. At this moment he
supposed himself to be about two and a half leagues from the
fort at the entrance of the river. Just without the bar, an
other brig was seen. As she had an English ensign set, and
bore every appcEirance of being a man-of-war, it was deter
mined to attack her. While the Hornet was beating round the
Carobana bank, which lay between her and the enemy, with a
view to get at him, another sail was made on her weather quar
ter, edging down towards her. It was now half past 3 P. M.,
and the Hornet continuing to turn to windward, with her ori
ginal intention, by twenty minutes past 4 the second stranger

1813.] NAVAL HISTORY. 275
was made out to be a large man-of-war brig. Shortly after
he showed English colours.
As soon as her captain was satisfied that the vessel ap
proaching was an enemy, the Hornet was cleared for action,
and her people went to quarters. The ship was kept close by
the wind, in order to gain the weather-gage, the enemy still
running free. At 5 10, feeling certain that he could weather
the Englishman, Captain Lawrence showed his colours and
tacked. The two vessels were now standing towards each
other, with their heads different ways, both close by the wind.
They passed within half pistol-shot at 5 25, delivering their
broadsides as the guns bore ; each vessel using the larboard
battery. As soon as they were clear, the Englishman put his
helm hard up, with the intention to ware short round, and get
a raking fire at the Hornet ; but the manoeuvre was closely
watched and promptly imitated, and, firing his starboard guns,
he WEis obliged to right his helm, as the Hornet was coming
down on his quarter, in a perfect blaze of fire. The latter
closed, and maintaining the admirable position she had taken,
poured in her shot with such vigour, that a little before 5 40,
the enemy not only lowered his ensign, but he hoisted it union
down, in the fore-rigging, as a signal of distress. His main
mast soon after fell.
Mr. J. T. Shubrick was sent on board to take possession.
This officer soon returned with the information that the prize
was the enemy's sloop of war Peacock 18, Captain Peake, and
that she was fast sinking, having already six feet of water in
her hold. Mr. Conner, the third lieutenant of the Hornet, and
Mr. B. Cooper, one of her midshipmen, were immediately des
patched with boats, to get out the wounded, and to endeavour
to save the vessel. It was too late for the latter, though every
exertion was made. Both vessels were immediately anchored,
guns were thrown overboard, shot-holes plugged, and recourse
was had to the pumps, and even to bailing ; but the short twi
light of that low latitude left the prize-crew, before the prisoners
could be removed. In the hurry and confusion of such a
scene, and while the boats of the Hornet were absent, four of
the Englishmen lowered the stern boat of the Peacock, which
had been thought too much injured to be used, jumped into it,
and pulled for the land, at the imminent risk of their lives.*
Mr. Conner became sensible that the brig was in momentary
* These adventurers got ashore safely.

276 NAVAL HISTORY. [1813.
danger of sinking, and he endeavoured to collect the people re
maining on board, in the Peacock's launch, which still stood
on deck, the fall of the main-mast, and the want of time, hav
ing prevented an attempt to get it into the water. Unfortunately,
a good many of the Peacock's people were below, rummaging
the vessel, and when the brig gave her last wallow it was too
late to save them.
The Peacock settled very easily but suddenly, in five and a
half fathoms water, and the two American officers, with most
of the men, and several prisoners, saved themselves in the
launch, though not without gi-eat exertions. Three of the
Hornet's people went down in the brig, and nine of the Pea
cock's were also drowned. Four more of the latter saved
themselves by running up the rigging into the foretop, which
remained out of water, after the hull had got to the bottom.
The launch had no oars, and It was paddled by pieces of
boards towards the Hornet, when it was met by one of the cut
ters of that ship, which was returning to the brig. The cutter
immediately pulled towards the Peacock's fore-mast, in the
hope of finding some one swimming ; but, with the exception
of those in the top, no person was saved.
In this short encounter, the Peacock had her captain and
four men killed, and thirty-three wounded. The Hornet had
one man killed, and two wounded, in addition to two men badly
biirned by the explosion of a cartridge. She suffered a good
deal aloft, had one shot through the foremast, and the bowsprit
was hit.
The Peacock was a vessel of the Hornet's size, being a littie
shorter, but having more beam. Her proper armament was
thirty-twos, but, for some reason that is not known, it had
been changed for lighter guns, and in the action she mounted
16 twenty-four pound carronades, 2 light long guns, a twelve
pound carronade on her topgallant forecastle, and another Ught
long gun aft. By her quarter-bill, she had 130 men on board,
at the time she was taken. This force rendered her inferior
to the Hornet, which ship mounted 18 thirty-two pound car
ronades and two long twelves. The Hornet in the action
mustered 135 men fit for duty.
Notwithstanding the superiority of the Hornet, the same dis
parity between the execution and the difference in force, is to
be seen in this action, as in those already mentioned. In al
lowing the Hornet to get the weather-gage, the Peacock was
out-manoeuvred ; but, with this exception, she is understood to

1813.] NAVAL HISTORY. 277
have been well managed, though her gunnery was defective.
The only shot that touched the hull of the Hornet, was one
fired as the latter ship was falling off, in waring ; it merely
glanced athwart her bows, indenting a plank beneath the cat
head. As this shot must have been fired from a starboard
gun of the Peacock, the fact demonstrates how well she was
handled ; and that, in waring, her commander had rightly esti
mated and judiciously used the peculiar powers of a brig,
though the quick movements of his antagonist deprived him of
tbe result he had expected, and immediately gave the Hornet
a decided advantage in position. It would be cavilling to deny
that this short combat was decided by the superior gunnery
and rapid handling of the Hornet.
As the brig at anchor might come out and attack her, the
greatest exertions were made on board the Hornet to be in
readiness to receive the enemy, and by 9 o'clock at night, new
sails had been bent, her boats were stowed, the ship was
cleared, and every thing was ready for another action. At 2
A. M., she got under way, and stood to the northward and
westward, under easy sail. Captain Lawrence finding that he
had now 277 souls on board, including the people of another
prize, and that he was short of water, determined to return
home. The allowance of water was reduced to three pints a
man, and the ship ran through the West-Indies, anchoring at
Holmes's Hole, in Martha's Vineyard, on the 19th of March ;
whence she came through the Vineyard and Long Island
Sounds to New York without meeting an enemy.
The. successes of the Constitution and Hornet, two of the
vessels of Commodore Bainbridge's squadron, served greatly
to increase the popularity of the navy. Their commanders
were rewarded with medals, swords, and votes of thanks, by
different legislatures ; and Captain Lawrence was promoted,
and transferred to the command of the Chesapeake.
Congress, by this time, began to feel more confidence in the
ability to withstand British prowess, and a law had been passed
on the 2d of January, to increase the naval force of the coun
try. By the provisions of this act, the President was empow
ered to build four ships to rate not less than seventy-four guns,
and six ships to rate at forty-four guns each. This was at
once multiplying the force of the navy tenfold, and it may be
esteemed the first step that was ever actually put in execution,
towards estabUshing a marine that might prove of material
moment, in influencing the results of a war. Measures were
24

278 NAVAL HISTORY. [1812.
taken immediately to lay the keels of some of the ships of the
line, and Commodore Bainbridge, being appointed to superin
tend the construction of one of them, relinquished the com
mand of the Constitution.
Another law« passed, on the Sd of March, directing six sloops
of war to be built on the sea-board, and authorising the construc
tion of as many vessels on the lakes as the public service re
quired. Congress also voted handsome sums to the officers
and crews of the ships that had destroyed captured vessels of
war, in the way of prize-money.

CHAPTER XXX.
When Commodore Bainbridge sailed from Boston, the Es
sex, still under the command of Captain Porter, was lying in
the Delaware. She quitted that river the 28th of October, or
two days after the other ships of the squadron had got to sea.
The Essex was singularly unfortunate in not faUing in with
an enemy of any sort for several weeks, and on the llth of
December, she crossed the equator in longitude 30° W., the
same bad luck attending her. On the 12th, however, about 2
P. M., a vessel was seen to windward, which had every ap
pearance of an enemy's man-of-war brig. At six, the stranger
began to show signals, which went to confirm the idea of his
character. As the chase was still to windward, and night
was coming on fast, an unsuccessful effort was made to decoy
her down, by making signals in return. At sunset the brig
showed English colours, and, when it was sufficiently dark, she
made spme night-signals. By 9 P. M. the Essex succeeded in
getting within musket-shot. Captain Porter soon after hailed,
and ordered the brig to settle her topsails, haul up her courses,
and to heave-to to windward. At the same time orders were
given to the differe-.it divisions not to fire into the stranger, as
it was very desirable to get possession without doing him any
injury. Instead of complying with the directions of Captain
Porter, however, the brig endeavoured to cross the stern of the
Essex, by keeping away, probably with an intention to rake
her, and to escape to leeward. This drew a volley of mus-

1813.] NAVAL HISTORY. 279
ketry from the frigate, which killed one man, when the brig
struck. The prize was the British government packet Nocton 10,
with a crew of 31 men. On board of her were found $55,000
in specie. The next day a crew of 17 men was put into the
Nocton, under the orders of Acting Lieutenant Finch, who was
instructed to make the best of his way to America. This offi
cer had got between Bermuda and the Capes of Virginia, in
the execution of his duty, when he was compelled to heave-to
in a gale. Just as the weather moderated, a British frigate was
made to windward. Mr. Finch tried the sailing of the brig
with the enemy, on different tacks, but finally put away dead
before the wind, as the only means of escape. As it was not
in the power of the prize-crew to make sail with sufficient
rapidity to compete with a frigate's complement of men, the
Nocton was soon within reach of the enemy's guns, and a few
shot were fired, which did some injury to her rigging. Mr.
Finch, however, held on, until the enemy had got close upon
his quarter, and was about to fire a volley of musketry, when,
escape being hopeless, he struck. Thus did the Essex lose
her first prize, though the specie had been taken out of her,
and was rendered secure by being subsequently used on ac
count of the government.
On the 14th, the Essex made the island of Fernando de No
ronha, and communicated with the land, without going in.
Here Captain Porter obtained the letter from Commodore Bain
bridge, informing him that he would find the other vessels off
Cape Frio. From this time, until the 25th, the ship was mak
ing her passage towards the coast ; on the afternoon of that
day, she hove-to off the pitch of the Cape, where no signs were
to be seen of the Constitution or Hornet. Three days after
wards, in fact, the first of these vessels captured the Java off
St. Salvador. After cruising a short time, at this rendezvous,
the Essex was drawn a long distance to leeward in chase ; and
in attempting to beat up again to her station, she was met by
heavy weather, which induced Captain Porter to change his
cruising ground. On the morning of the 29th, the frigate cap
tured an English merchant vessel, which proved to be one of
a convoy of six sail, in charge of a man-of-war schooner, that
had left Rio the night previously, this vessel having put back
in consequence of discovering a leak. On obtaining this intel
ligence. Captain Porter followed on the track of the convoy,
and after a long and fruitless chase, he determined to go off

280 NAVAL HISTORY. [1813,
St. Salvador, in order to intercept it. While beating up with
this intention, information was received from different Portu
guese vessels, of the presence of the other ships of the squadron
off the port, and rpnewed efforts were made to join. But strong
northerly winds prevailed, and Captain Porter, after struggling
with them a week, decided to run into St. Catherine's to water.
Having been disappointed in his attempts to fall in with the
coramodore, at three rendezvous, and ascertaining that the Mon
tagu 74, had sailed from Rio to raise the blockade of the ves
sels at St. Salvador, Captain Porter was greatly at a loss which
way to steer, in order to join the other ships. It was near the
end of January, 1813, and, in point of fact, the Constitution
had left the coast on the 6th of that month, on her way home.
As the Hornet followed her on the 24th, in determining to act
for himself, during the remainder of the cruise. Captain Porter
came to a happy decision.
The Essex left St. Catherine's on the 26th of January, 1813,
for the Pacific Ocean, and after a most tempestuous passage
round the Horn, she fell in with the pleasant southwest breezes
of that sea on the 5th of March, and at meridian of that day
her people got a distant view of the Andes. On the 5th, she
anchored at the island of Mocha.
The Essex was now fairly in the Pacific, though she had
not fallen in with an enemy for two months. There was but
one chart of the ocean in the ship, and that was very small
and imperfect ; the provisions were getting short, and the ves
sel was much in want of cordage. Notwithstanding these n(5-
cessities. Captain Porter felt reluctant to let his arrival be
know-n until he made a few captures, hoping to supply his ship
from prizes. Anxious to obtain information of the British force,
by the same means, he determined to cruise a short time before
he proceeded to Valparaiso. An ill fortune, however, continued
to prevail, and for many days the ship was enveloped in fogs.
She continued standing along shore, to the northward ; and on
the 13th, while running before a stiff southerly breeze, she
rounded the Point of Angels, shot into full view of the port and
town of Valparaiso, and was becalmed under the guns of a
battery. As he had English colours flying. Captain Porter came to a
conclusion not to go in, for, taking a survey of the shipping in
port, and perceiving several Spaniards ready to sail, he thought
it prudent to let them get to sea before the arrival of an Ameri
can cruiser became known in the place. The ship's head was

1813.] NAVAL HISTORY. 281
consequentiy kept to the northward, and the breeze striking
her again, she ran the town out of sight in an hour or two.
On the 15th, however, the ship returned, made the Point of
Angels once more, went in, and anchored.
To the astonishment of Captain Porter, he now ascertained
that Chili had declared itself independent of Spain, and his re
ception was as favourable as he could have desired. He also
learned that the Viceroy of Peru had sent out cruisers against
the American shipping, and that his appearance in the Pacific
was of the greatest importance to the American trade, which
lay at the mercy of the English letters of marque, and of these
Peruvian corsairs. This was cheering intelligence, after the
fatigues and disappointments of a cruise of so many months.
For more than a week the Essex was employed in victual
ling. During this time an American whaler came in from the
islands. According to the accounts of her master, the Ameri
can whalers, which had left home during a time of peace, lay
entirely at the mercy of those of the enemy ; several of which
had sailed as regular letters of marque, and all of which were
more or less armed. Many of the American vessels, as they
often kept the sea six months at a time, were probably still ig
norant of the war ; and it was known that one of them, at
least, had already fallen into the hands of the English. As
soon as imperfectly victualled, the frigate went to sea, to profit
by this intelligence.
On the 25th, the Essex fell in with the American whale
ship Charles, and learned that two other vessels, the Walker
and Barclay, had been captured a few days previously, off
Coquimbo, by a Peruvian, with an English ship in company.
Sail was made, in consequence, in the direction of Coquimbo,
and, a few hours later, a stranger was seen to the northward.
This vessel was soon ascertained to be a cruising ship, dis
guised as a whaler. She showed Spanish colours, when the
Essex set an Eriglish ensign, fired a gun to leeward, and the
Charles, which remained in company, hoisted the American flag
beneath an English jack. The Spaniard now ran down, and,
when about a mile distant, he fired a shot ahead of the Essex,
which that ship answered by throwing a few shot over him, to
bring him nearer. When close enough, the Spanish ship sent
an armed boat to board the Essex, and it was directed to go
back with an order for the cruiser to run under the frigate's
lee, and to send an officer to apologize for the shot she had
fired at an English man-of-war. This command was com-
24*

282 NAVAL HISTORY. [1813.
plied with, and the ship was ascertained to be the Peruvian pri
vateer Nereyda, armed with 15 guns, and with a full crew.
The lieutenant, who now came on board, informed Captain
Porter that they were cruising for Americans ; that they had
already taken the Walker and the Barclay ; that the EngUsh
letter of marque Nimrod had driven their prize-crew from on
board the Walker ; that they were then cruising expressly to
look for the Nimrod, with the intention of obtaining redress ;
and that they had mistaken the Essex for the latter ship. It
would seem that the Peruvians cruised against the Americans,
under the impression that Spain, then so dependent on Eng
land for her existence, would declare war speedily against the
United States, in consequence of the war declared by the latter
against the King of Great Britain, which might legalise their
captures. An interview with the master of the Walker satisfied Cap
tain Porter that the capttjred ships had been illegally seized ; and
hoisting American colours, he fired two shots over the Nereyda,
when that vessel struck. Her crew were all sent on board the
Essex, and the three ships stood in-shore to look into Coquimbo,
in the hope of finding the Nimrod and the prizes, but without suc
cess. The next morning, the entire armament of the Nereyda,
with all her ammunition, shot, small-arms, and light sails,
were thrown overboard, and she was otherwise put in a condi
tion to do no harm, when she was released. It is worthy of
remark, that the guns of this vessel were of iron, while her
shot of all descriptions were of copper ; the abundance of the
latter material in that part of the world, rendering it cheaper
than the metal usually employed for such purposes.
From the master and crew of the Barclay, Captain Porter
obtained a list of such of the whaling vessels as they knew to
be in the Pacific. It contained the names of twenty-three Ame
rican, and of ten English ships. The former was probably
the most correct, as his informants added that quite twenty
Englishmen were thought to be in that sea. The latter were,
in general, fine vessels of near 400 tons burthen, and, as has
been said already, they were all more or less armed.
On the 28th of April, the ship was up with the island of
San Gallan, when she hauled off to the northward and west
ward, with a view to cross the track of inward-bound vessels.
The next day, three sail were made, standing for Callao.
Every thing was set to cut the strangers off, particularly the
one nearest in, which had the appearance of the-Barclay. The

1813.] NAVAL HISTORY. 283
chase, however, would have escaped, had she not been be
calmed when she doubled the point of San Lorenzo. At this
moment the frigate was near a league distant, but, fortunately,
she kept the breeze until she had got within a hundred yards
of the enemy, when she lowered her boats, and took posses
sion. The prize proved to be the Barclay, as had been ex
pected. There was now a good opportunity of looking into
the harbour, and finding that nothing had arrived from Valpa
raiso to disclose his presence in the Pacific, Captain Porter
showed English colours, while the Barclay hoisted the Ameri
can under the enemy's ensign. In this manner both vessels
went into the offing, where the Barclay was given up to her
proper officers, though most of her crew having entered in the
Essex, and declining to rejoin the ship, her master preferred
keeping in company with the frigate, offering to act as a pilot
in searching for the enemy. With this understanding, the two
vessels stretched off to the northward and westward.
From the end of March until the middle of April, the Essex,
with the Barclay in company, was standing across from the
main towards the islands, and on the 17th she made Chatham
Island ; but no ship was found there. From this place the fri
gate went to Charles's Island, where she had the same want of
success. At the latter island, however, was a box called " the
post-office," in which the masters of the whalers were accus
tomed to leave written accounts of their luck and movements,
and much information weis obtained from them, concerning the
different ships in the Pacific.
The Essex continued passing from island to island, without
meeting with any thing, until her crew was aroused by the
cheering cry of " sail ho !" on the morning of the 29th. A
ship was made to the westward, and, soon after, two more a
little further south. Chase was given to the first vessel, which
was spoke under English colours, about 9 A. M. She proved
to be the British whale-ship Montezuma, with 1400 barrels of
oil on board. Throwing a crew into the prize, the Essex next
made sail after the two other ships, which had taken the alarm,
and endeavoured to escape. At 11 A. M., when the frigate
was about eight miles from the two strangers, it fell calm, and
the boats were hoisted out and sent against the enemy, under
Mr. Downes, the first lieutenant. About 2 P. M. the party got
within a mile of the nearest ship, when the two strangers, who
were a quarter of a mile apart, hoisted English colours, and
fired several guns. The boats now formed, and pulled for the

284 NAVAL HISTORY. [1813.
largest ship, which kept training her guns on them as they ap
proached, but struck without firing a shot, just as the boarders
were closing. The second vessel imitated her example, when
attacked in the same manner.
The prizes were the Georgiana and the Policy, both
whalers ; and the three ships, together, furnished the Essex
with many important supplies. They had bread, beef, pork,
cordage, water, and among other useful things, a great number
of Gallapagos tortoises.
The Georgiana had been built for the service of the English
East India Company, and having the reputation of being a fast
vessel. Captain Porter determined to equip her as a cruiser,
with the double purpose of having an assistant in looking for
the enemy, and of possessing a consort to receive his own crew
in the event of any accident's occurring to the Essex. This
ship was pierced for 18 guns, and had 6 mounted when taken.
The Policy was also pierced for the same number, and had 10
guns mounted. The latter were now added to the armament
of the Georgiana, which gave her 16 light guns. All the
small-arms were collected from the prizes and put in her, her
try-works were taken down, and other alterations made, when
Mr. Downes was placed in command, with a crew of 41 men.
By this arrangement, it was believed that the Georgiana would
be fully able to capture any of the English letters of marque,
known to be cruising among the islands. In consequence of
these changes, and the manning of the two other prizes, not
withstanding several enlistments, the crew of the Essex was
reduced to 264 souls, officers included. On the 8th of May, the
Georgiana 16, Lieutenant-Commandant Downes, hoisted the
American pennant, and fired a salute of 17 guns.

CHAPTER XXXI.
A FEW trials proved that the Georgiana could not hold way
with the Essex, and that her reputation, as a fast vessel, was
unmerited. Still, as she had been relieved from much of her
lumber, she outsailed the other ships, and hopes were enter
tained of her being made useful. Accordingly, on the 12th,

1813.] NAVAL HISTORY. 285
she parted company, with orders to cruise against the enemy,
and to rendezvous at different places on the coast, as well as
at various islands, in a regular succession as to time. The se-
paration was not long, however, the Georgiana looking into
Charles's Island, in quest of English vessels, at a moment
when the Essex happened to be there on the same errand.
The GeorgiEma was now sent to Albemarle Island, Captain
Porter having reason to suppose that a particular ship of the
enemy was in that quarter. The Essex continued in the vici
nity of Charles's Island, capturing the Atlantic, of 355 tons,
24 men, and 8 guns, on the evening of the 28th of May. The
same night she took the Greenwich, of 338 tons, 10 guns, and
28 men. These several captures nearly stripped the frigate
of her officers, and she sailed for Tumbez, where she arrived
on the 19th of June.
While cruising near James's Island, Mr. Downes had cap
tured the British whale ships the Catherine, of 270 tons, 8
guns, and 29 men, and the Rose, of 220 tons, 8 guns, and 21
men. These two vessels were taken with no resistance, their
masters having come on board the Georgiana, without sus
pecting her character. After manning his prizes, Mr. Downes
had but 20 men and boys left in the Georgiana, when he
. chased and closed with a third whaler, called the Hector, a
ship of 270 tons, 25 men, and 11 guns, though pierced for 20.
At this time, Mr". Downes had also 50 prisoners, most of whom
he was compelled to put in irons, before he brought the Hector
to action. When within hail, the latter ship was ordered to
haul down her colours, but refused, and the Georgiana opened
a fire upon her. A sharp combat followed, when the Hector
struck, with the loss of her maintopmast, having had most of
her standing and running rigging shot away. She had also
two men killed, and six wounded.
After manning the Hector, Mr. Downes had but 10 men left
in the Georgiana ; and, including the wounded, he had 73
prisoners. The Rose being a dull ship, he threw overboard
her guns, and most of her cargo, and, paroling his prisoners,
he gave her up to them, on condition that they should sail di
rect for St. Helena. As soon as this arrangement was made,
he made sail for Tumbez, to join the Essex, at which port he
arrived on the 24th of June.
The little fleet now amounted to nine sail, and there was an
opportunity to make new arrangements. The Atlantic being
nearly 100 tons larger than the Georgiana, as weU as a much

286 NAVAL HISTORY. [1813.
faster ship, besides possessing, in a greater degree, every ma
terial quality for a cruiser, IVIr. Downes and his crew were
transferred to her. Twenty guns were mounted in this new
sloop of war ; she was named the Essex Junior, and manned
with 60 men. The Greenwich was also converted into a store-
ship, and all the spare stores of the other vessels were sent on
board her. She was also armed with 20 guns, though her
crew was merely strong enough to work her.
On the SOth the fleet sailed, the Essex and Essex Junior
keeping in company, with all the carpenters at work at the
latter. On the 4th of July a general salute was fired, princi
pally with the guns and ammunition of the enemy. On the
9th, the Essex Junior parted company, bound to Valparaiso,
with the Hector, Catherine, Policy, and Montezuma, prizes,
and the Barclay, recaptured ship, under convoy.
As soon as out of sight of the other ships, the Essex, Green
wich, and Georgiana steered to the westward, with an inten
tion of going among the Gallapagos. On the 13th, three sail
were made off Banks' Bay, all on a wind, and a good deal
separated. The Essex gave chase to the one in the centre,
which led her down to leeward, leaving the Greenwich and
Georgiana a long distance astern and to windward. While
the frigate was thus separated from her prizes, one of the
strangers tacked, and endeavoured to cut the latter off, but the
Greenwich hove-to, got a portion of the people out of the
Georgiana, and bore down boldly on her adversary ; while the
Essex continued after the vessel she was chasing, which she
soon captured. This ship was the English whaler Charlton,
of 274 tons, 10 guns, and 21 men. Throwing a crew into
her, the frigate immediately hauled her wind.
It was now ascertained from the prisoners, that the largest
of the strange ships was the Seringapatam, of 357 tons, 14
guns, and near 40 men ; and the smallest, the New Zealander,
of 259 tons, 8 guns, and 23 men. The Seringapatam had
been built for a cruiser, and she was probably the most dan
gerous vessel to the American trade to the westward of Cape
Horn. Captain Porter felt a corresponding desire to get pos
session of her, and was much gratified with the bold manner
in which the Greenwich had borne down on her. This ship
was under the command of a very young officer, but he had
the advice of one of the sea-lieutenants, who was under sus
pension, and who behaved with great gallantry and spirit on
this occasion. Closing with the Seringapatam, the Essex be-

1813.] NAVAL HISTORY. 287
ing a long distance to leeward, the Greenwich brought her to
action, and after a few broadsides the English ship struck.
Soon after, however, and before possession could be taken, she
made an attempt to escape by passing to windward, in which
she was frustrated by the perseverance of the Greenwich,
which vessel kept close on the enemy's quarter, maintaining a
spirited fire, for the number of men on board. As the Essex
was coming up fast, the Seringapatam finally gave up the at
tempt, and running down to the frigate, again submitted.
In this affair, as in that of the boats, and in the capture of
the Hector by the Georgiana, the officers and men engaged
merited high encomiums for their intrepidity and coolness.
The Greenwich, after obtaining the hands from the Georgiana,
did not probably muster five-and-twenty men at quarters, and
the Seringapatam was much the better ship. The New Zea
lander was taken without any difficulty.
The Seringapatam had made one prize, her master having
turned his attention more to cruising than to whaling. On
inquiry, notwithstanding, it was found that he had adopted this
course in anticipation of a comraission, having actually sailed
without one. When this fact was ascertained, Captain Por
ter put the master in irons, and he subsequently sent him to
America to be tried. Finding himself embarrassed with his
prisoners. Captain Porter gave the Charlton up to them, and
suffered them to proceed to Rio de Janeiro, under parole. He
then took the guns out of the New Zealander, and mounted
them in the Seringapatam, by which means he gave the latter
ship an armament of 22 guns, though, as in the case of the
Greenwich, her people were barely sufficient to work her.
On tbe 25th of July, the Georgiana was despatched to the
United States with a full cargo of oil. As soon as the vessels
separated, the Essex, with the Greenwich, Seringapatam, and
New Zealander in company, shaped her course for Albemarle
Island. On the morning of the 28th, another strange sail was
discovered ; but as she had a fresh breeze, and the frigate was
becalmed, she was soon out of sight. When the wind came,
however, the Essex ran in a direction to intercept the stran
ger ; and the next morning he was again seen, from the mast
head, standing across the Essex's bows, on a bowline. As
the wind was light, recourse was now had to the drags, and the
ship got within four miles of the chase, which was evidently
an enemy's whaler. The stranger becoming alarmed, got his
boats ahead to tow, when Captain Porter sent a gig and whale-

288 NAVAL HISTORY. [1813.
boat, with a few good marksmen in them, under Acting Lieu
tenant M'Knight, with orders to take a position ahead of the
chase, and to drive in her boats, but on no account to attempt
to board. This duty was handsomely executed, though the
boats had great difficulty in maintaining their position within
musket-shot, as the enemy got two guns on his forecastle, and
kept up a warm discharge of grape.
At 4 P. M., the ships were little more than a league apart,
perfectiy becalmed, and Captain Porter ordered the boats into
the water, to carry the stranger by boarding. As the party
drew near, the enemy commenced firing, but, intimidated by
their steady and orderly approach, he soon lowered his ensign.
The boats were about to take possession, when a breeeze from
the eastward suddenly striking the English ship, she hauled
up close on a wind, hoisted her colours again, fired at the gig
and whale-boat as she passed quite near them, and went off,
at a rapid rate, to the northward. The party attempted to fol
low, but it was sunset before the Essex got the wind, and, un
willing to leave her boats out in the darkness, she was com
pelled to heave-to, at 9, in order to hoist them in. The next
morning the chase was out of sight.
This was the first instance, since her arrival in the Pacific,
in which the Essex had failed in getting alongside of a chase
that she did not voluntarily abandon. It produced much mor
tification, though the escape of the enemy was owing to one
of those occurrences, so common in summer, that leave one
ship without a breath of air, while another, quite near her, has
a good breeze.
On the 4th of August, the ships went Into James's Island
and anchored. Here Captain Porter made the important dis
covery that a large portion of his powder had been damaged
in doubling Cape Horn. Fortunately, the Seringapatam could
supply the deficiency, though, in doing so, that ship was ren
dered nearly defenceless. On the 22d of August, all the ves
sels proceeded lo Banks' Bay, where the prizes were moored,
and the Essex sailed on a short cruise, alone, on the 24th.
After passing among the islands, without meeting any thing,
a sail was discovered on the morning of the 15th of Septem
ber, apparently lying-to, a long distance to the southward and
to windward. The Essex was immediately disguised, by send
ing down some of the light yards, and the ship kept turning
to windward; under easy sail. At meridian, the vessels were
so near each other, that the stranger was ascertained to be a

1813.] NAVAL HISTORY. 289
whaler, in the act of cutting in. He was evidently drifting
down fast on the frigate. At 1 P. M., when the ships were
about four miles apart, the stranger cast off the whales, and
made all sail to windward. As it was now evident that he
had taken the alarm, the Essex threw aside all attempts at dis
guise, and pursued him, under every thing that would draw.
By 4 P. M., the frigate had the stranger within reach of her
guns ; and a few shot, well thrown, brought him down under
her lee. This ship was the Sir Andrew Hammond, of 301
tons, 12 guns, and 31 men ; and she proved to be the vessel
that had escaped, in the manner previously related. Fortu
nately, the prize had a large supply of excellent beef, pork,
bread, wood, and water, and the Essex got out of her an am
ple stock of those great necessaries. On returning to Banks'
Bay with her prize, the ship shortly after was joined by the
Essex Junior, on her return from Valparaiso. By this arrival.
Captain Porter discovered that several enemy's vessels of force
had sailed in pursuit of him ; and having by this time captured
nearly all the English whalers of which he could obtain intel
ligence, he determined to proceed to the Marquesas, in order
to refit, and to make his preparations for returning to America.
He was urged to adopt this resolution, also, by understanding
from Mr. Downes that the government of Chili no ' --"'• pre
served the appearance of amity towards the Unit-
was getting to be English in its predilections.

CHAPTER XXXII.
On the 23d of October the group of the Marquesas was
made from the mast-head of the Essex, and after passing
among the islands for a few days. Captain Porter took his ships
into a fine bay of Nooaheevah, where he anchored. Here he
was soon after joined by the Essex Junior, which vessel had
parted company to cruise, when he believed himself sufficiently
secure, to commence a regular overhauling of the different
ships. The situation of the Essex was sufficiently remarkable, at
this moment, to merit a brief notice. More than ten thousand
25

290 NAVAL HISTORY- [1813.
miles from home, without colonies, stations, or even a really
friendly port to repair to, short of stores, without a consort,
and otherwise in possession of none of the required means of
subsistence and efficiency, she had boldly steered into this dis
tant region, where she had found all that she required, through
her own activity ; and having swept the seas of her enemies,
she had now retired to these little-frequented islands to refit, with
the security of a ship at home. It is due to the officer, who
so promptly adopted, and so successfully executed this plan,
to add, that his enterprise, self-reliance, and skill, indicated a
man of bold and masculine conception, of great resources,
and of a high degree of moral courage ; qualities that are in
dispensable in forming a naval captain.
The island of Nooaheevah, on which Captain Porter landed
his stores, was intersected by valleys, and different tribes pos
sessed them, forming distinct communities, which not unfre
quently waged war on each other, converting this little and
retired fragment of the» earth into an epitome of the passions
and struggles of the world beyond it. In consequence of his
intimate connexion with the inhabitants of the valley in which
he was accidentaUy thrown. Captain Porter was compelled to
join in these hostilities, the assailants of his allies beginning to
treat him as an enemy. After some fruitless negotiating, a
party was sent against the hostile tribe, and several conflicts
occurred, in which the armed seamen and marines prevailed,
as a matter of course, though not without a sharp resistance.
This success quieted the island ; and during the remainder of
his stay. Captain Porter appears to have been unmolested.
It has been seen, that the Essex reached he Marquesas at
the close of October, and in the early part of December she
was again ready for sea. In the course of November, the New
Zealander was filled with oil, from the other prizes, and des
patched for America, under the charge of a master's mate.
Shortly after, a fort was constructed on a small conical hill,
near the water, when the Seringapatam, Sir Andrew Hammond,
and Greenwich, were warped close in, and moored under its
guns. ~ The command of this fort was given to Lieutenant John
M. Gamble, of the marines, a spirited and intelligent young
officer ; and Messrs. Feltus and Clapp, two of the midshipmen,
with twenty-one men, were put under his orders, having vo
lunteered to remain on the island during the contemplated
cruise of the Essex. This arrangement was made to secure
the means of future repairs, as it was now believed that no

1813.] NAVAL HISTORY. 291
more whalers were to be found, and the Essex was going to
sea, in the expectation of meeting one of the frigates that it
vvas known had been sent into the Pacific, in pursuit of her.
The Essex, and Essex Junior, quitted the harbour of Nooa
heevah, on the 12th of December, 1813, bound for the coast
of South America, which was made early in January. After
watering sit San Maria, and looking into Concepcion, the ships
proceeded to Valparaiso. Up to this time, not a dollar had
been drawn for, to meet the expenses of the frigate. The -ene
my had furnished provisions, sails, cordage, medicines, guns,
anchors, cables, and slops. A considerable amount of pay
even had been given to the officers and men, by means of ,the
money taken in the Nocton. Thus fer, the cruise had been
singularly useful and fortunate, affording an instance of the
perfection of naval warfere, in all that relates to distressing an
enemy, with the least possible charge to the assailants ; and it
remained only to' terminate it with a victory, over a ship of
equal force, to render it brilliant. It is, perhaps, a higher eu-
logisum on the officers and crew of this memorable Uttle frigate
to add, that while her good fortune appesured at last to desert
ber, they gave this character to their enterprise, by the manner
in which they struggled with adversity.
After the arrival at Valparaiso, it was found that the feelings
of the Chilian government had taken an entirely new direction,
as hiid been reported by Mr. Downes, favouring on all occa
sions the interests of the English, in preference to those of the
Americans. Without paying much regard to this circumstance,
however. Captain Porter determined to remain in, or off, the
port, in waiting for the Phoebe 36, Captain HiUyar, one of the
ships sent out in quest of him, under the impression that her
commander would not fe.il, sooner or later, to seek him at that
place. There was also the prospect of intercepting such of the
English traders as might happen to touch at the port
The Phoebe arrived as was expected, but instead of coming
alone, rfie had the Cherub 20, Captain Tucker, in company.
When these ships hove in sight, the Essex Junior was cruising
off the harbour, and she came in and anchored. As the Phoebe
alone was a vessel of a heavier rate than the Essex, this addi
tion to her force put a conffict between the four ships quite out
of the question. Captain Porter, who had every opportunity of
observing the armaments of the two English vessels, states, in
his official communications to the department, that the Phoebe
mounted 30 long eighteens, 16 thirty-two-pound carronades,

292 NAVAL HISTORY. [1813.
with one howitzer, and 6 threes in her tops. This was a forced
equipment for a ship of her rate, but she had probably taken
in extra guns with a view to meet the Essex. Her crew is said to
have consisted of 320 souls. The Cherub 20 mounted 18 thirty-
two pound carronades below, with 8 twenty-four pound car
ronades and 2 long nines above, making a total of 28 guns, and
her crew mustered 180 men and boys. In consequence of the
number of prizes that had been manned, some deaths that had
occurred, and the people placed in the Essex Junior, the Ame
rican frigate could muster but 255 souls, notwithstanding tbe
enlistments she had made from the whalers. The force of the
Essex Junior was too inconsiderable to be relied on, in an ac
tion against ships of a metal as heavy as that of the enemy.
She mounted 10 eighteen-pound carronades and 10 short sixes,
with a crew of 60 souls. Her guns would have been of little
service in a frigate action.
As the Phoebe came in, the wind was light, and she passed
quite near the Essex, with her people at quarters. Captain
Hillyar hailed, and inquired after the health of Captain Porter.
After making the usual reply, the latter informed the English
officer that if the vessels got foul, much confusion would ensue,
and that he could not be answerable for the consequences.
Captain Hillyar now observed that he did not meditate any at
tack, though the manner in which this was uttered, does not
appear to have quieted the suspicions of the American officers.
"While the two vessels and their crews were in this novel posi
tion, the Phoebe was taken suddenly aback, and her bows
payed off directly upon the Essex. Captain Porter immediately
called away his boarders, and for a few minutes there was
every appearance of a combat in a neutral port.
A great deal of confusion is said to have existed on board
the Phoebe, and her commsmder was earnest in his protesta
tions of an intention not to have recourse to hostilities, while
he handled his yards in a way to get a stern-board on his ship.
As she fell off, the jib-boom of the Phoebe passed over the
Essex's deck, and she lay, for a short time, with her bows ex
posed to the whole broadside of the American frigate, and her
stern to that of the Essex Junior. Captain Porter declining to
profit by his advantage, the Phoebe was enabled to get out of
her awkward situation, there being no doubt that she had lain
entirely at the mercy of her enemies. There can be little
question that this extraordinary occurrence would have fully

1814] NAVAL HISTORY. 293
justified the American ship in having recourse to her means
of defence.
The English ships, having obtauied some supplies, went
outside and cruised off Valparaiso for six weeks. During this
time, the Essex made several attempts to engage the Phoebe
alone, sometimes by bringing her to action with the Essex
Junior in company, and at others, by bringing her to action
singly, having the crew of the Essex Junior on board the fri
gate. Captain Porter ascertained to his satisfaction, that he
could easily outsail either of the enemy's vessels, but his
object was not so much to escape, as to capture the Phoebe,
which he had reason to thmk he might do, could he bring her
to close action, without her consort's interference.
A short time after the blockade had commenced. Captain
Porter determined to make an attempt on the Cherub by board
ing. A strong party was detailed for this service, Captain
Porter and Lieutenant Downes both accompanying it. The
boats went out at night, and at first had strong hopes of being
able to get alongside of the enemy ; but, by the subsequent
movements of the Cherub, the Americsms were induced to think
that the EngUsh received an intimation of their intention in the
course of the night.
Having heard that several other cruisers of the enemy might
soon be expected, Captsiin Porter now determined to go to sea,
on the first good occasion, and by leaving the Phoebe and
Cherub off the coast, to allow the Essex Junior to follow.
This plan was formed on the 27th of March. The very next
day the wind came on to blow fresh from the southward, when
the Essex parted her larboard bower, and dragged the other
anchor directly out to sea. The harbour of Valparaiso opens
to the northward, being formed by a headland on its western
side, and a cove that makes to the southward within it ; the
main coast sweeping round to the north and east again, afford
ing the necessary protection. On the 28th of March, when
the accident just mentioned occurred, the enemy's ships were
at no great distance off the point, though fer enough to allow
the Essex to fetch past to windward of them, by hugging the
land. The Point of Angels, however, is an exceedingly dan
gerous bluff to double, and most ships deem it prudent to reef
before going round it, on account of the liability to sudden and
violent squalls.
As there was no tune to lose, sail was got on the Essex.
On opening the enemy. Captain Porter took in his topgallant.
25*

294 Naval hisi-ory. [isii
sails, hauled close by the wind, and made an attenipt to pt'^
out, by keeping his weatherly position. Every thing looked
promising for a short time ; and there is littie question that the
ship would have gone clear, but, in doubling the headland, a
squall carried away the main-topmast, throwing several men
into the sea, all of whom were drowned.- Nothing remained,
of course, but to endeavour to regain the port, or to fight both
the enemy's ships, under the additiohal disadvantage of being
already crippled.
Finding it impossible to beat up to the common anchorage.
Captain Porter stood across the entrance Of the harbour, to itb
northeastern side, where he let go an anchor, aboiit three miles
from the town, a mile and a half from the Castello Viego,
which, however, was concealed by a bluff, half a mile from a
detached battery of ohe twenty-four-poUnd gun, and 'within
pistol-shot of the shote. NotVvithstanding this position, the
enemy continued to approach, and it soon became evident, by
the motto flags and jacks he set, that it was his serious inten
tion to engage. The Essex, in consequence, cleared for action,
and attempted to get a spring on her cable, but had not suc
ceeded in effecting this important object, when the Phosbe,
having obtained an advantageous position, nearly astern, about
4 P. M. opened her fire, at long shot. At the same time, the
Cherub commenced the action on the starboard bow. The fire
of the Phosbe, from the double advantage she possessed in her
long guns and her station, became very destructive, as scarce
a gun from the Essex could touch her. The Cherub, however,
was soon driven off, when she ran down to leeward, and en
gaged from a position near that taken by the Phoebe. Three
long tvvelves were got out aft, and they played with so much
effect on the enemy, that at the end of half an hour, both his
ships hauled off the land to repair damages. This important
fact, which is affirmed by the Americans, is sufficiently cor
roborated by the accounts of the enemy.
During this first attack, the Essex, through the great exer
tions of the master and boatswain, had succeeded in getting
springs on the cable no less than three different times, but
before the ship's broadside could be sprung to bear, they were
as often shot away. The ship also received a great deal of
injury, and several men had been killed and wounded. Not
withstanding all the disastrous circumstances under which they
engaged, and the superior force opposed to them, the officers
and crew Of the Essex were animated by the best spirit, and it

1814.] NAVAL HISTORY. 295
was not possible for efforts to be more coolly made, or better
directed. The enemy was not long in making his repairs, and both
ships next took a position on the starboard quarter of the
Essex, where it was not in the power of the latter vessel to
bring a single gun to bear upon them, as they were too distant
to be reached by carronades. Their fire was very galling, and
it left no alternative to Captain Porter, between submission,
and running down to assail them. He gallantly decided on
the latter. But, by this time, the Essex had received many
serious injuries, in addition to the loss of her topmast. Her
topsail sheets, topsail halyards, jib and fore-topmast staysail
halyards, had all been shot away. The only sail that could be
got upon the ship, to make her head pay off, was the flying
jib, which was hoisted, when the cable was cut, and the vessel
edged away, with the intention of laying the Phoebe aboard.
The fore-topsail and foresail were now let fall, though, for
want of tacks and sheets, they were nearly useless. Still the
Essex drove down on her assailants, closing near enough to
open with her carronades. For a few minutes, the firing on
both sides was tremendous, the people of the Essex proving
their discipline and gallantry, at that trying moment, in a way
to justify all the high expectations that had been formed of
them, though their decks were already strewed with killed, and
the cockpit was crowded with the wounded. This work proved
too hot for the Cherub, which hauled off a second time, nor
did she come near enough to use her carronades again, during
the remainder of the action, keeping up a distant fire with her
long guns.
The Phoebe showed no disposition to throw away the im
mense advantage she possessed, in her long eighteens; and
when she found the Essex's fire becoming warm, she kept
edging off, throwing her shot at the same time with fatal effect,
cutting down the people of her antagonist almost with impunity
to herself. By this time, many of the guns of the American ship
were disabled, and the crews of several had been swept away.
One particular gun Was a scene of carnage that is seldopi wit
nessed in a naval combat, nearly three entire crews falling at
it in the course of the action. Its captain alone escaped with
a slight wound.
This scene of almost unresisted carnage had now lasted
nearly two hours, and, finding it impossible to close with his
adversary, who chose his distance at pleasure. Captain Porter

296 NAVAL HISTORY. [1814.
felt the necessity of taking some prompt measure, if he would
prevent the enemy from getting possession of his ship. The
wind had got more to the westward, and he saw a hope of
running her ashore, at a spot 'where he might land his people
and set her on fire. For a few minutes every thing appeared
to favour this design, and the Essex had drifted within musket-
shot of the beach, when the wind suddenly shifted from the
land, paying the ship's head broad off, in a way to leave her
exposed to a dreadful raking fire. Still, as she was again
closing with the Phoebe, Captain Porter indulged a hope of
finally laying that ship aboard. At this moment. Lieutenant
Commandant Downes came on board of the Essex, in order to
receive the orders of his commanding officer, having pulled
through all the fire in order to effect this object. He could be
of no use, for the enemy again put his helm up, and kept
away, when Mr. Downes, after remaining in the Essex ten
minutes, was directed to return to his own ship, and to make
preparations to defend, or, at need, to destroy her. On going
away, he carried off several of the Essex's wounded, leaving
three of his own men behind him, in order to make room in
the boat.
The slaughter in the Essex having got to be horrible, the
enemy firing with deliberation, and hulling her at almost every
shot. Captain Porter, as a last resort, ordered a hawser to be
bent to the sheet-anchor, and the latter let go, in order to bring
the head of the ship round. This effected the object, and once
more the Americans got their broadside to bear, remaining
stationary themselves, while their enemy, a good deal crippled,
was drifting slowly to leeward. Even in these desperate cir
cumstances, a ray of hope gleamed through this little advantage,
and Captain Porter was beginning to believe that the Phoebe
would drift out of gun-shot, before she discovered his expedient,
when the hawser parted with the strain.
There weis no longer any chance of saving the ship. To
add to her distress, she was on fire, the flames coming up both
the main and forward hatchways ; and for a few minutes it
was thought she must consume. An explosion of powder also
occui^fed below, to add to the horrors of the scene, and Captain
Porter told his people, that in preference to being blown up,
all who chose to incur the risk, might make the attempt to
reach the shore by swimming. Many availed themselves of
the permission, and some succeeded in effecting their escape.
Others perished, while a few, after drifting about on bits of

1814] NAVAL HISTORY. 297
spars, were picked up by the boats of the enemy. Much the
greater part of the crew, however, remained in the ship, and
they set about an attempt to extinguish the flames ; the shot of
the enemy committing its havoc the whole time. Fortunately,
the fire was got under, when the few brave men who were left,
went again to the long guns.
The moment had now arrived, when Captain Porter was to
decide between submission or the destruction of the remainder
of his people. In the midst of this scene of slaughter, he had
himself been untouched, and it would seem that he felt himself
called ou to resist as long as his own strength allowed. But
his remaining people entreated him to remember his wounded,
and he at last consented to summon his officers. Only one.
Acting Lieutenant M'Knight, could join him on the quarter
deck ! The first lieutenant, Mr. Wilmer, had been knocked
overboard by a splinter, and drowned, while getting the sheet-
anchor from the bows ; Acting Lieutenant Cowell, the next in
rank, was mortally wounded ; Acting Lieutenant Odenheimer
had just been knocked overboard from the quarter, and did
not regain the vessel for several minutes. The reports of the
state of the ship were fearful. A large portion of the guns
were disabled, even had there been men left to fight them.
The berth-deck, steerage, ward-room, and cock-pit, were full
of wounded ; and the latter were even kUled by shot while
under the surgeon's hands. The carpenter was sent for, and
he stated that of his crew, he alone could perform any duty.
He had been over the side to stop shot-holes, when his slings
were cut away, and he narrowly escaped drowning. In short,
seventy-five men, officers included, were all that remained for
duty ; and the enemy, in perfectly smooth water, was firing his
long eighteens, at a nearly unresisting ship, with as much pre
cision as he could have discharged them at a target. It had
become an imperative duty to strike, and the colours were ac
cordingly hauled down, after one of the most remarkable com
bats that is to be found in the history of naval warfare.
In this bloody contest, the Essex had 58 men killed, in
cluding those who soon died of their hurts, and 66 wounded ;
making a total of 124, or nearly half of all who were on board
at the commencement of the action. Of the missing there
were 31, most of whom were probably drowned, either in at
tempting to swim ashore, when the ship was on fire, or by
being knocked overboard by the splinters, or pieces of the

298 NAVAL HISTORY. [1814
riggmg. Including the missing, the entire loss was 152, out
of 255.
The Essex, with a very trifling exception while closing,
fought this battle with her six long twelves, opposed by fifteen
long eighteens in broadside,* the long guns of the Cherub,
and, a good deal of the time, or while they lay on her quarter,
by the carronades of both the enemy's ships. Captain HiU-
yar's published official letter makes the loss of the Phoebe 4
killed and 7 wounded ; that of the Cherub, 1 killed and 3
wounded. There is no apparent reason for distrusting this
account, as Captain Hillyar's official letter was singularly
modest and just. Captain Tucker, of the Cherub, was wounded,
and the first lieutenant of the Phoebe was killed. The English
ships were cut up more than could have been expected under
the circumstances, the latter having received no less than
eighteen, twelve-pound shot below the water-line. It would
seem that the smoothness of the water rendered the fire very
certain, on both sides, and it is only to be regretted that the
Essex could not have engaged under her three topsails, from
the commencement. The engagement lasted nearly two hours
and a half, the long guns of the Essex, it is said, having been
fired no less than seventy-five times each, in broadside. The
enemy must have thrown, agreeably to the statements made
at the time, not less than 700 eighteen-pound shot, at the
Essex. The battle was witnessed by thousands from the shore ; and
so near were all the ships to the land, that, at one time, many
of the Phoebe's eighteen-pound shot struck the beach. This
fact appears to be well authenticated, and, of itself, it setties
the question of a violation of the neutrality of Chili ; since
even they who maintain the doctrine that jurisdiction does not
properly extend three leagues to sea, substitute the greatest
range of a shot, or a shell, in their place. During the action,
Mr. Poinsett, the American consul, repaired to the governor's
and asked the protection of the batteries in behalf of the Es
sex. He received the evasive answer, that, should the ship
succeed in reaching the ordinary anchorage, an officer would
be sent to the British commander, requesting him to cease his
fire. The governor, however, declined resorting to force, un-
* It has been said that the Phcebe mounted but 26 long eighteens, her
upper-deck long guns having been twelves. We have followed Captain
Porter's account, though the difference, under the peculiar circumstances,
was of no great moment.

1814] NAVAL HISTORY. 299
der any circumstances. This conduct left no doubt of a col
lusion between the English officers and the local authorities,
and Mr. Poinsett took the first occasion to quit the country.
In the mode in which he fought his ship, though it was much
criticised at the time, Captain Hillyar discovered seamanship
and a strict attention to his duty ; but his situation must have
been in the last degree painful, while compelled to avoid meet
ing the Essex singly, under circumstances that admit of no
other plausible construction than an obedience to the most
rigid orders.
Captain Porter now entered into an arrangement with Cap
tain Hillyar, under the provisions of which, the Essex Junior
was converted into a cartel, and a passport was given, by
means of which all the survivors of the Essex came home.
From this arrangement, however, Acting Lieutenant M'Knight,
Mr. Adams, the chaplain, and Mr. Lyman, a master's mate,
were exempted ; these three gentlemen, and eleven seamen,
being exchanged on the spot, for a part of the people of the
Sir Andrew Hammond, who were then prisoners in the Essex
Junior. Mr. M'Knight and Mr. Lyman went round to Rio de
Janeiro, in the Phoebe, in order to give some testimony in be
half of the captors. We shall have occasion to advert to the
two last hereafter.
The Essex Junior left Valparaiso shortly after this arrange
ment, encountering no difficulty in doubling the Horn. She
was brought-to, off New York, by the Saturn rasee. Captain
Nash. This officer questioned the authority of Captain Hill
yar to grant the passport, under which the Essex Junior was
sailing, and he directed that ship to lie by him during the
night. After some communications, the next morning, when
thirty miles from the beach. Captain Porter put off in a whale-
boat, and, though chased, by pulling vigorously for the land,
he got ashore on Long Island, escaping in a fog. It does not
appear, however, to have been the intention of Captain Nash
seriously to detain the Essex Junior. He probably distrusted
some artifice, as he permitted the ship to proceed, after again
examining her papers.
Thus terminated this enterprising and singular cruise, its
end proving as disastrous as its commencement had been for
tunate, though it was, at all times, highly creditable to the
spirit, resources, self-reliance, and zeal of those engaged in it.
Before quitting the subject, however, it remains to give a brief
account of the fortunes of the officers and men left at Nooa-

300 NAVAL HISTORY. [1814
heevah, with the three prizes, the Greenwich, the Sir Andrew
Haramond, and the Seringapatam, under the orders of Lieu
tenant Gamble of tbe marines.
The Essex had no sooner disappeared than the savages be
gan to pilfer, and to betray a turbulent disposition. Mr. Gam
ble was compelled to land a party, and to bring the natives to
terms by a show of force. Fortunately this object was effected
without firing a musket. In February, one of the small party
left was drowned, reducing their number to twenty-two, the
officers included. Not long after this event, four of the men
deserted in a whale-boat, carrying off with them several small
articles of value. But eighteen now remained.
On the 12th of April, Mr. Gamble began to rig the Seringa
patam and the Sir Andrew Hammond, with the intention of
quitting the islands, the long absence of the Essex inducing
him to despair of her return. Some symptoms of a mutiny
now began to show themselves, and he had all the arms and
ammunition brought on board the Greenwich, in which vessel
he lived ; but having occasion to be on board the Seringapa
tam, on the 7th of May, a party of six men rose, and took the
ship from him. During the time Mr. Gamble was in the hands
of these men, he was badly wounded in the foot by a pistol-
ball, and they succeeded in carrying off the Seringapatam,
sending the officer, and the people with him, on board another
vessel. Every exertion was made to get to sea with the Sir Andrew
Hammond, but on the 9th, the natives made an attack, and
Mr. Feltus, with three men, was killed, and one other was se
verely wounded. The situation of those that remained, now
became exceedingly critical, the whole party consisting of only
eight individuals, of whom two were badly wounded, one was
a cripple, and another was just recovering from a serious at
tack of the scurvy. In fact, there were but four men on board
the Sir Andrew Hammond fit for duty. The jib and spanker
were bent as fast as possible, the moorings were cut, and, un
der that short sail, the ship passed slowly out to sea, under
cover of the night. When safe in the offing, but six cartridges
were left, the Seringapatam having carried off most of the
ammunition in kegs.
To add to the difficulties of his situation, Mr. Gamble had
no chart. He made out to reach the Sandwich Islands, how
ever, in seventeen days, where he was captured by the Cherub,
and first learned the fate of the Essex. The Americans con-

1813.] NAVAL HISTORY. 301
tinued seven months in this ship, until they were landed at
Rio de Janeiro, from which port Mr. Gamble got to New York,
late in August, 1815.

CHAPTER XXXIII.
It has been seen, that the declaration of war found the naval
preparations in so imperfect a condition, that the Constellation
38, Chesapeake 38, and Adams 28, were not ready even to
receive crews, while it was found necessary to rebuild entirely
the New York 36, Boston 28, and General Greene 28. The
.appropriations for the repairs of the three first ships having been
made in March, 1812, the Constellation was equipped and
manned at Washington, in the course of the season. When
Commodore Bainbridge left her for the Constitution, the com
mand of this ship had been given to Captain Stewart, the offi
cer who had served as second in command under Commodore
Preble, during most of the operations of that celebrated cap
tain, before Tripoli. In the course of the month of January,
1813, Captain Stewart dropped down the river with an inten
tion to get to sea, but on reaching St. Mary's, an order was
received, that induced him to go to Annapolis, in order to
examine his powder. From this place, the ship was directed
to proceed to Norfolk. In executing this order, the Constella
tion anchored in Hampton Roads, and the next morning a fleet
of the enemy, consisting of several two-decked ships, frigates
and sloops of war, came in and anchored off Willoughby's
Point, where they were becalmed. While the English ships
were waiting for the turn of the tide, the Constellation was
kedged up until she grounded on the flats above; and the same
night, when she floated with the tide, she was carried up, and
anchored between the forts at Norfolk.
A few days later, the ConsteUation dropped down abreast of
Craney Island, with a view to cover the fortifications then
erecting at that place. At this time, the enemy was still lying
in force in Hampton Roads.
The Constellation was anchored in the middle of the chan
nel, which is quite narrow, and on each side of her were
26

302 NAVAL HISTORY. [1813.
moored seven gun-boats, on board of which were placed offi
cers and men belonging to the ship. A circle of booms,
securely fastened, protected the gun-boats from being boarded,
which would enable them to maintain a flanking fire, on all
assailants of the frigate. The gun-deck guns of the latter were
housed, and the ports were shut in. Great care was taken
that no rope should be permitted to be hanging over the side
of the vessel, the stern-ladders were taken away, and even the
gangway-cleets were removed. Boarding-nettings were made
of twenty -one thread ratiin-stuff, that had been boiled in half-
made pitch, which rendered it so hard as almost to defy the
knife. To give greater strength, nail rods and small chains
were secured to the netting in lines about three feet apart. In
stead of tricing to the rigging, this netting was spread out
board, towards the yard-arms, rising about twenty-five feet
above the deck. To the outer rope or ridge-line of the netting,
were secured pieces of kentledge, that by cutting the tricing
lines when the enemy should get alongside, his boats and men
might be caught beneath. Pieces of kentiedge were also sus
pended forward, from the spritsail-yard, bowsprit, &c. &c., to
prevent boats from lying under them, while the netting was
here hoisted to the fore stay. The carronades were charged to
the muzzles with musket-balls, and depressed to the nearest
range, in order to sweep around the ship. As the frigate was
light, and unusually high out of the water, it was the opinion
of the best judges, that defended as she would certainly have
been, under the officers who were in her, she could not have
been carried without a loss of several hundred men to the ene
my, if she could have been taken by boats at all.
It would appear, notwithstanding, that the enemy was dis
posed to make the attempt. A- large force of British ships
having collected in the Roads, the admirals in command seri
ously contemplated an assault on the Constellation. Fortu
nately, Captain Stewart received notice of their intentions. A
Portuguese had been stopped by the fleet, on his way to sea,
and his ship was anchored at the upper part of the Roads, just
out of gun-shot of the frigate. On board of this vessel, the
Admiral kept a guard and a look-out, to signal the movements
above. An American passenger, on board the Portuguese,
learned from the conversation of different officers, their designs
on the Constellation, and he found means to get oh board the
frigate in order to apprise her commander of the enemy's plan,
handsomely volunteering to remain in the ship to help defend

1813.] NAVAL HISTORV. 303
her.* Of course the guard-boats were enjoined to be more
than usually vigilant, and every thing was got ready to receive
the enemy.
The night succeeding the notice was starlight, and nothing
was attempted. The next morning, the master of the Portu
guese stopped alongside of the frigate, on his way to Norfolk,
and stated that a large number of boats had collected at his
ship the previous evening, but that the expedition had been
deferred until that night, which promised to be dark and driz
zling. Accordingly the guard-boat was on the look-out, and
it fell in with a division of boats, that was supposed to contain
from 1500 to 2000 men. As soon as the enemy was seen, the
officer in the boat showed two lanterns on the off-side of his
cutter, and all hands were called in the ship. It would seem
the enemy ascertained that his approach was discovered, and
he retired.
The following night, the attempt was renewed, with the
same want of success. A few nights later, it again proved
dark and drizzling, and a third expedition came up. On this
occEision, Mr. B. J. Neale, the second lieutenant of the Con
stellation, was in the guard-boat, and he edged close in with
the enemy, who discovered him. As soon as the word of " a
stranger," was given, the people of the cutter sprang to their
oars, and pulled out of sight ; but finding he was not pursued,
Mr. Neale returned and kept compsmy with the brigade of
boats, which passed up on the inside of the flats, above the
mouth of Tanner's creek, and anchored at no great distance
below the forts. Here many of the officers landed and walked
about to keep themselves warm, the guard-boat anchoring also.
When the ebb tide made, the brigade returned, the Constella
tion's boat quitting them only when they had got below the
frigate. Shortly after, the fortifications being sufficientiy advanced,
and block ships being ready for sinking in the channel, the
Constellation was carried up again to a place of security.
About this time Captain Stewart was transferred to the com
mand of the Constitution 44, and Captain Tarbell received a
temporary appointment to the Constellation, though, the enemy
* The name of this gentleman deserves to be honourably mentioned.
It was Mr. Francis March, of the mercantile firm of J. Howard, March
&Co.^ of Madeira.

304

NAVAL HISTORY. [1S13.

always maintaining a strong force m the waters of the Chesa
peake, the ship continued to be blockaded until the peace.
The Chesapeake, lying at Boston, had less difficulty in get
ting to sea, for the enemy did not keep any force before that
port, during the first few months of the war ; most probably
under the false impression that such was the disaffection of the
eastern states, that it would virtually be annoying friends.
She sailed at the close of February, 1813, under the orders of
Captain Evans, and passing by the Canary Isles and. the Cape
de Verds, she crossed the equator, and remained for six weeks
near the line. She then made the coast of South America,
passed the spot where the Hornet sunk the Peacock, the day
after that action had occurred, and went through the West-
Indies, and along the American coast, to the port from which
she had sailed. During this long run. Captain Evans saw but
three men-of-war, a ship of the Une and a frigate, near the
Western Islands, and a sloop of war, off the Capes of Virginia.
The latter escaped in the night, after a chase of two days.
The Chesapeake captured four merchant vessels.
Captain Evans gave up the command of his ship on his re
turn, on account of ill health, and was succeeded by Captaia
James Lawrence.
By this time, the enemy had changed his policy as regards
the eastern states, and he kept a few fiigates in the vicinity of
Massachusetts Bay, with a view to intercept the AmericEun
ships of war that passed in and out. Two of these cruisers,
the Shannon 38, and Tenedos 38, had been off Boston, it was
said, in waiting for the Pliesident 44, and Congress 38 to come
out, but these ships had sailed without encountering them, and
it was by no means probable that the EngUsh seriously wished
a meeting. When it was understood, however, that the Chesa
peake was ready to sail, the Shannon, Captain Broke, appeared
alone in the offing, and as the ships were fairly matched, a
combat appeared much more probable. It is now known, that
Captain Broke, that very day,, sent in an invitation to Captain
Lawrence, to meet him in any latitude and longitude that
might be agreed on. Unfortunately, this letter was not writ
ten until about the moment the Chesapeake was getting under -
way, and the advantage of having officers and men accustomed
to act a little together, was lost. The Chesapeake's contem
plated cruise was to the northward and eastward, with a view
to intercept the store-ships and troop-ships that were steering
for the St. Lawrence. The Hornet 18, Captain Biddle, had

1813.] NAVAL HISTORY. 305
been put under the orders of Captain Lawrence, and it was
intended that the two ships should cruise in company. The
Greenland whale-fishery was the ultimate object of these
vessels. ,,
In the forenoon of June 1st, 1813, the Shannon appeared in
the bay. The Chesapeake was then lying in President Roads,
ready for sea ; though some disaffection existed among the
crew, on account of the prize-money of the last cruise, which
was still unpaid. The ship had an unusual number of merce
naries in her ; and among others, was a boatswain's mate, a
Portuguese, who was found to be particularly troublesome.
Under the extraordinary circumstances in which the vessel
was placed, it was thought prudent to temporise, and the peo
ple were addressed, and some promises were made to them,
which apparently had the effect of putting them in a better
humour. At 12, meridian, the Chesapeake lifted her anchor, and stood
out, with a pleasant breeze from the southward and westward.
As the Shannon was then in plain sight, the ship was cleared
for action, and the best appearances were assumed, although
it is known that Captain Lawrence went into this engagement
with strong reluctance, on account of the peculiar state of his
crew. He had himself only joined the vessel a few days be
fore ; her proper first lieutenant, Mr. O. A. Page, of Virginia,
an officer of experience, was ill on shore, and died soon after,
in Boston ; the acting first lieutenant, Mr. Augustus Ludlow,
of New York, though an officer of merit, was a very young
man, and was in an entirely novel situation ; and there was but
one other commissioned sea-officer in the ship, two of the mid
shipmen acting as third and fourth lieutenants, and now per
forming this duty for the first time. One, if not both of these
young gentiemen, had also just joined the ship, foUowing the
captain from the Hornet. In addition, the Chesapeake had an
unusual number of landsmen in her.
The Shannon stood off under easy saU, when Captain Law
rence fired a gun, about half-past 4, which induced her to heave
to, with her head to the southward and eastward. By this
time the wind had freshened, and at 5, the Chesapeake took in
her royals and topgallant-sails, and half an hour later, she
hauled up her courses. The two ships were now about 30
miles from the Ught, the Shannon under single-reefed topsails
and jib, and the Chesapeake under her whole topsails and jib,
coming down fast. As the Shannon was running with the
26*

306 NAVAL HISTORY. [1813.
wind a little free, there was an anxious moment on board
of her, during which it was uncertain on which side the Chesa
peake was about to close, or whether she might not be disposed
to commence the action on her quarter. But Captain. Law
rence chose to lay his enemy fairly alongside, yEtrd-arm and
yard-arm ; and he luffed, and ranged up abeam, on the Shan
non's starboard side. When the Chesapeake's foremast was
in a line with the Shannon's mizzen-mast, the latter ship dis
charged her cabin guns, and the others in succession, from aft
forward. The Chesapeake did not fire until all her guns bore,
when she delivered a very destructive broadside. For six or
eight minutes the cannonading was fierce, and the best of the
action, so far as the general effect of the fire was concerned, is
said to have been with the American frigate, though it was
much in favour of the enemy, in its particular and accidental
consequences. While passing the Shannon's broadside, the
Chesapeake had her fore-topsail tie and jib sheet shot away.
Her spanker-brails also were loosened, and the sail blew out.
These accidents occurring nearly at the same instant, they
brought the ship up into the wind, when, taking aback, she got
sternway, and feU aboard of the enemy, with her mizzen-rig-
ging foul of the Shannon's fore-chains. By some accounts, the
fluke of an anchor on board the Shannon hooked in the rigging
of the Chesapeake. Whatever may have served to keep the
ships together, it appears to be certain, that the American fri
gate lay exposed to a raking fire from the enemy, who poured
into her the contents of one or two carronades, that nearly
swept her upper deck. At the few first discharges of the Shan
non, Captain Lawrence had received a wound in the leg ; Mr.
Broom, the marine officer, Mr. Ballard, the acting fourth lieu
tenant, and the boatswain, were mortally wounded ; Mr. White,
the master, was killed ; and Mr. Ludlow, the first lieutenant,
was tvvice wounded by grape and musketry. Such was the
state of the upper deck, as the accidents mentioned, brought
the vessels in contact. When Captain Lawrence perceived
that the ships were likely to fall foul of each other, he directed
the boarders to be called ; but unfortunately, a bugleman had
been substhuted for the drummer, and this man, a negro, was
so much alarmed at the effects of the conflict, that he had
concealed himself under the stern of the launch ; when found
he was completely paralysed by fear, and was totally unable
to sound a note. Verbal orders were consequentiy s nt below,
by the cajptEun's aids, for the boarders to come on deck. At

1813.1 NAVAL HISTORY. 307
this critical moment Captain Lawrence fell with a ball through
the body.
The upper deck was now left without an officer above the
rank of a midshipman. It was the practice of the service, in
that day, to keep the arms of the boarders on the quarter-deck,
and about the masts ; and even when the boarders had been
summoned in the slow and imperfect manner that, in the con
fusion of a combat, was allowed by the voice, they- were with
out arms ; for, by this time, the enemy was in possession of
the Chesapealce's quarter-deck.
As soon as the ships were foul, Captain Broke passed for
ward in the Shannon, and, to use his own language, " seeing
that the enemy were flinching from his guns," he gave the or
der to board. Finding that all their officers had fallen, and
exposed to a rEdcing fire, without the means of returning a shot,
the men on the Chesapeake's quarter-deck had indeed left their
guns. The marines had suffered severely, and having lost
their officer, were undecided what to do, and the entire upper
deck was left virtually without any defence.
When the enemy entered the ship, from his fore-channels, it
was with great caution, and so slowly, that twenty resolute
men would have repulsed him. The boarders had not yet ap
peared from below, and meeting with no resistance, he began
to move forward. This critical moment lost the ship, for the
English, encouraged by the state of the Chesapeake's upper
deck, now rushed forward in numbers, and soon had entire
command above board. The remaining officers appeared on
deck, and endeavoured to make a rally, but it was altogether
too late, for the boatswain's mate mentioned, had removed the
gratings of the berth-deck, and had run below, followed by a
great many men.* Soon after, the Chesapeake's colours were
hauled down by the enemy, who got complete possession of the
ship, with very little resistance.
Captain Broke, in his official report of this action, observes
that after he had boarded, " the enemy fought desperately, but
in disorder." The first part of this statement is probably true,
as regards a few gallant individuals on the upper deck, but
there was no regular resistance to the boarders of the Shannon
at all. The people of the Chesapeake had not the means to
resist, neither were they collected, nor commanded in the mode
in which they had been trained to act. The enemy fired down
* As this man performed this act of treachery, he is said to have cried
out, " so much for not having paid the men their prize-money."

308 NAVAL HISTORY. [1813,
the hatches, and killed and wounded a great many men, in this
manner, but it does not appear that their fire was returned.
Although the English lost a few men when they boarded, it is
understood that the slaughter was principally on the side of the
Americans, as might be expected, after the assauk was made.*
Few naval battles have been more sanguinary than this. It
lasted altogether not more than 15 minutes, and yet both ships
were charnel-houses. The Chesapeake had 48 men killed,
and 98 wounded, a large portion of whom fell by the raking
fire of the Shannon, after the Chesapeake was taken aback,
and by the fire of the boarders. The Shannon had 23 killed
and 56 wounded, principally by the Chesapeake's broadsides.
It was impossible for ships of that size to approach so near, in
tolerably smooth water, and to fire with so much steadiness,
without committing great havoc. On board the Chesapeake
fell, or died of their wounds shortiy after the combat, Captain
Lawrence, Lieutenants Ludlow, Ballard, and Broom, (of the
marines,) Mr. White, the master, Mr. Adams, the boatswain,
and three midshipmen. All but the midshipmen, fell before the
enemy boarded. Mr. Budd second, and Mr. Cox third lieu
tenant, were wounded after the enemy had got on the Che
sapeake's decks. Several midshipmen were also wounded.
The Shannon lost her first lieutenant, and one or two inferior
officers, and Captain Broke was badly wounded ; the boatswain
lost an arm, and one midshipman was wounded, mostly after
the boarding.
As soon as the ships were clear of each other, they both
made sail for Halifax, where they soon after arrived. Captain
Lawrence died of his wounds on the 6th of June, and, with
Mr. Ludlow, was buried by the enemy with miUtary honours.
Perhaps the capture of no single ship ever produced so much
exultation on the side of the victors, or so much depression on
that of the beaten party, as that of the Chesapeake. The
American nation had faUen into the error of their enemy, and
had begun to imagine themselves invincible on the ocean, and
this without any better reason than having been successful in
* The fact that the English met with no resistance in coming on board
the Chesapeake, is fully confirmed by the official account of Captain Broke.
This officer, who appears to have behaved with great personal gallantry,
was among the first to board, and he says, " having received a sabre
wound, at the first onset, while charging a part of the enemy, who had
istWieA on their forecastle," &C.&C. The enemy came in osiern, and the
first onset occurring on the forecastle, it follows that there was no resist
ance aft.

1813.1, NAVAL HISTORY. 309
a few detached combats, and its mortification was in propor
tion to the magnitude of its delusion ; while England hailed
the success of the Shannon as a proof that its ancient renown
was about to be regained.
In America reflection soon caused the mortification in a
great measure to subside, as it was seen that the capture of
the Chesapeake was owing to a concurrence of circumstances
that was not likely again to happen. It was soon understood
that the closeness and short duration of this combat were ac
tually owing to their own officer, who brought his ship so near
that the battle was necessarily soon decided, while its succeed
ing incidents were altogether the results of the chances of war.
At the moment when the English boarded, the total loss of the
Shannon in men, is believed to have been at leEist equal to that
of the ChesapcEike ; yet the former vessel was deprived of the
services of no important officer but the boatswain, while the
Chesapeake had lost those of her captain, two of her lieuten
ants, master, marine officer, and boatswain, including every
one in any authority on the upper deck. These fortuitous
events are as unconnected with any particular merit on the
one side, as with any particular demerit on the other ; and the
feeling of the Americans gradually settled down into a senti
ment of sincere respect for the high-spirited Lawrence, and of
deep regret for his loss. When told of their defeat, and call
ed on to acknowledge that their enemy was victorious in one
of the most extraordiuEiry combats of the age, they have gen
erally given all the credit to the conquerors that they deserved ;
and while they frankly admit that the victory was remarkable,
they may be excused for believing it quite as much so for
standing alone in such a war, as for any other distinguishing
characteristic.

310 NAVAL HISTORY. [1813.

CHAPTER XXXIV.
While these different events were occurring among the fri
gates and larger sloops of war, the lighter cruisers of the navy
had not been idle. The fate of the Nautilus has been already
mentioned ; the Argus's cruises have also been alluded to ;
but nothing has been said of the Siren, Enterprise, and Vixen,
the other three little vessels, which were so distinguished in the
Tripolitan contest. The latter, Uke her sister the Nautilus, had
but a short career after the declaration of war. During the
first few months, she was on the southern coast, under the
command of Captain Gadsden, but that officer dying, she was
given to Captain Washington Reed, who went on a cruise
among the Islands. A few days out, he was fallen in with
and chased by the Southampton 32, Captain Sir James Lucas
Yeo, which ship succeeded in getting alongside of the Vixen,
after a short but severe trial of speed, and of course captured
her. Both vessels were soon after wrecked on one of the Ba
hama Islands, when, it is said, that the American crew set an
example of subordination, sobriety, and order, that produced
a strong impression on the British officers.
The Siren cruised a short time in the Gulf of Mexico with
out meeting with any thing, under Lieutenant Commandant
Joseph Bainbridge, and then came north, going into Boston.
Here Mr. Bainbridge, who had been promoted, was transferred
to the Frolic, one of the new sloops built under the late laws ;
and Mr. George Parker, who had been the first lieutenant of
the Constitution, in her action with the Java, having been pro
moted, was attached to the brig in his place. The future his
tory of this Uttle cruiser being brief, it may be given here.
She sailed from Boston in the summer of 1814, and, shortiy
after she got to sea. Captain Parker died ; when Lieutenant N.
Nicholson succeeded to the command. On the 12th of July,
the Siren fell in with the Medway 74, Captain Brine, and,
after a vigorous chase of eleven hours, during which the brig
threw her guns overboard, she was captured, and taken into
the Cape of Good Hope.
The fortune of the Enterprise was better. Her first com
mander was Mr. Johnston Blakely, who kept her on the east-

1813.] NAVAL HISTORY. 311
ern coast, where she was of great service, in driving off the
small privateers that were sent out of the adjacent EngUsh
ports. In August, she captured the Fly privateer ; and soon
after, Mr. Blakely, having risen to the rank of master and
commander, was given the command of a new sloop called
the Wasp. His successor in the Enterprise was Mr. William
Burrows. The service of the vessel, under this officer, was
not changed ; but she was still kept to watch the enemy's priva
teers, between Cape Ann and the Bay of Fundy.
The Enterprise left Portsmouth, N. H., on the 1st of Sep
tember, 1813, and steering to the eastward, was led into Port
land, in chase of a schooner, on the 3d. On the 4th, she
swept out to sea again, and pursued her course to the eastward
in quest of several privateers that were reported to be off Man-
hagan. While opening the bay, near Penguin Point, a brig
was seen getting under way, that had every appearance of be
ing a vessel of war. The character of the stranger was soon
put out of all doubt, by her setting four British ensigns, firing
several guns, which are since known to have been signals of
recall to a boat that had gone to the shore, and her making
sail to close with the Enterprise. Being satisfied that he had
an enemy and a vessel of war to deal with, Lieutenant Com
mandant Burrows hauled up, in order to clear the land.
While the two vessels were standing out, the Enterprise lead
ing, some preparations were making on board the latter that
produced uneasiness in a portion of her crew. This little brig
had a small poop-cabin on deck, and Mr. Burrows had direct
ed a long gun from forward to be brought aft, and to be riin
out of one of the windows. Owing to the rake of the stern-
frame, and to the fixtures of the cabin, this arrangement could
not be completed without cutting away some of the wood. On
observing this, the impression became general among the men
that it was the intention of their commander, who was almost
a stranger to them, to keep off, and to use the gun as a stern-
chaser. This was an unpleasant idea to the forecastle- men in
particular, who were burning with a desire to be carried along
side of the enemy. The forecastle was commanded by a young
officer of great promise, and the seamen at length urged him
to go aft and state their anxiety to engage, as well as their en
tire confidence of success. This gentleman so far complied
as to speak privately to the first lieutenant, who explained the
intention of Mr. Burrows, and fully satisfied the people.
At 3 P. M., believing himself far enough from the land, and

312 NAVAL HISTORY. [1813,
having completed his preparations. Lieutenant Commandant
Burrows shortened sail and edged away towards his enemy,
who seemed equally willing to engage. The two brigs ap
proached on contrary tacks. As they neared each other, or
at 20 minutes past 3, they kept away together ; and as they
came side by side, both delivered their fire, within pistol-shot.
The Enterprise opened with her larboard, and the enemy
with his starboard gips. The former brig drew ahead, keep
ing up an animated fire, and finding himself well forward of
the English vessel's bow, Mr. Burrows put his helm a-star
board, and sheered across his antagonist's forefoot, firing the
gun that had been run out of the cabin window once or twice
with great effect in passing. The enemy was now allowed to
come up again on the Enterprise's quarter, when the two ves
sels engaged with their opposite guns ; the American brig con
tinuing to keep weU on the enemy's bow. In this situation the
English vessel lost her main-topmast, when the Enterprise
again sheered athwart her forefoot, raked her once or twice
more with the long gun aft, which proved to be the most ser
viceable piece in the vessel, and resumed her position on the
enemy's starboard bow, maintaining an animated fire. While
lying in this favourable situation, the enemy struck.
In this hot and vigorous combat, the Enterprise was singu
larly well handled, manoeuvring on the bows of her enemy
with effect, while she was kept perfectly in command, and was
ready at any moment to meet any change of position on the
part of her antagonist. That it was the original intention, of
her commander to fight her in this novel manner, was appa
rent by the forethought he discovered in shifting the bow gun
aft. The fire of the enemy ceased about 4, though his colours
were still flying. He now hailed to say he had struck ; and
when ordered to haul down his ensign, an answer was given
that it had been nailed aloft, and could not be lowered until
the fire of the Enterprise should cease. After this awkward
explanation, the Enterprise stopped firing, and took possession.
The prize proved to be H. B. M. brig Boxer 14, Captain
Blythe, an officer of merit, who had been cut nearly in two
by an eighteen-pound shot. The loss of the Boxer in killed
has never been accurately ascertained, though it is thought to
have been relatively heavy. She had 14 men wounded. The
Enterprise had 1. man killed, and IS wounded, of whom 3
subsequently died. Among the latter, unhappily, was her gal-

1813.] NAVAL HISTORY. 313
lant commander. Although the disparity in the casualties of
this action was not so striking as in some of the previous en
gagements, that in the injuries received by the two vessels was
very great. But one eighteen-pound shot hulled the Enter
prise ; one passed through her mainmast, and another through
her foremast. She was much cut up aloft, particularly by
grape ; and a great many shot of the latter description had
struck her hull. Nearly all of the casualties were received
from grape or canister shot. On the other hand, the Boxer
had been repeatedly hulled, had no less than three eighteen-
pound shot through her foremast alone ; several of her guns
were dismounted, her topgallant-forecastle was nearly cut
away, and her sails, spars, and rigging generally, were much
torn to pieces. The water being quite smooth, neither vessel
was dismasted. The Enterprise returned to Portland on the
7th, with the Boxer, where Lieutenant Commandant Burrows,
and Captain Blythe, were both buried with the honours of war.
After the death of Mr. Burrows, LieutenEmt James Renshaw
was appointed to the command of the Enterprise, under which
officer, during the following winter, she made a cruise to the
southward, as far as the West-Indies. Here her usual good
fortune accompanied her ; for though she sailed badly, and
was three times hard chased, she always escaped. The Rat
tlesnake 16, a fast-sailing brig, bought into the service, was in
company, under the orders of Lieutenant Commandant Creigh
ton, who was the senior officer of the two vessels. Mr. Creigh
ton went on cruising ground much frequented by the enemy,
and yet fell in with no man-of-war he could engage. He was
chased by heavy ships, and, to use his own expression, " in
every instance, the good fortune of the Enterprise has been
wonderfully manifest." The Rattlesnake outsailed her consort
with so much ease, that most of the cruise she was under her
topsails. While off the coast of Florida, the Ehterprise got alongside
of the Mars 14, a British privateer, with a crew of 75 men.
When the two brigs appeared, near half the people of the
Mars took to the boats and went ashore, to escape impress
ment ; but her master, notwithstanding this reduction of his
force, ranged up under the broadside of the Enterprise, with
his tompions out and guns trained. Lieutenant Renshaw, be
ing ignorant of the strength of the crew of the Mars, fired
into her, when she struck, having had 4 men killed and
wounded. On the 25th of April, the brigs separated while
27

314 NAVALHISTORY. [1813.
chased by a frigate. The enemy pursued the Enterprise, and
for 70 hours pressed her very hard. Lieutenant Commandant
Renshaw was compelled to throw all " his guns but one over
board, and yet the enemy frequentiy came within the range of
shot. On the morning of the 27th, it was perfectly calm, and
the frigate, then at long gun-shot, began to hoist out her boats,
when a light breeze sprang up, and brought this lucky littie
brig again dead to windward. Nothing but this favourable
shift of wind saved the Enterprise from capture.
Shortly after, Mr. Creighton was promoted, and appointed
to the command of a new sloop of war just launched at Wash
ington, and Mr. Renshaw was transferred to the Rattlesnake.
The two vessels being in a southern port, the Enterprise was
sent to Charleston, where she became the guard-vessel, her
sailing being too indifferent to allow of her being sent to sea
again, in such a war. When cruising in the Rattlesnake, in
lat. 40° N., long. 33° W., Lieutenant Commandant Renshaw
was chased by a frigate, and compelled to throw overboard all
his armament but the two long guns. By this means he es
caped. June 22d, near the same spot, however, he fell in with
the Leander 50, a new ship, constructed on the most approved
modern-plan, which vessel captured him ; the Rattlesnake hav
ing been unfortunately placed between an enemy that had the
advantage of the wind, and the land. On this occasion, Lieu
tenant Commandant Renshaw kept his colours flying in a very
steady and officer-like manner, until the Leander threw her
shot into the Rattiesnake with precision and effect.

CHAPTER XXXV.
,In addition to the law of January 2d, 1813, which authorised
the construction of four ships of the line and six heavy frigates,
it will be remembered that the executive was also empowered
to cause several sloops of war to be laid down. These ships
were of the class of the Hornet and Wasp, but were a Uttle
larger than the old vessels of the same rate ; and they all
mounted 20 thirty-two-pound carronades, besides the two bow
guns. Most of them were got into the water in the course of

1813.] NAVAL HISTORY. 315
the year 1813, though their preparations were in different de
grees of forwardness. They were called the Wasp, the Frolic,
the Peacock, the Erie, the Ontario, and the Argus. As there
had been a brig in the navy of the latter name, however, with
which the reader has long been acquainted, it is now necessary
to allude to her fate.
After the return of the Argus from her cruise under Lieu
tenant Commandant Sinclair, as has been already stated, Mr.
WilUam Henry Allen, who had been the first lieutenant of the
United States 44, in her action with the Macedonian, was
appointed to command her. Lieutenant Allen first obtained
the Argus by an order from Commodore Decatur ; and there
was a moment when it was uncertain whether Captain Biddle,
or this gentleman, should go to sea in the brig, but the former
was put into the Hornet. Mr. Allen was shortly after pro
moted, when his new station was confirmed by the department.
June 18th, 1813, the Argus sailed from New York, with Mr.
Crawford, then recently appointed minister to France, on
board ; and after a passage of 23 days, she arrived safe at
I'Orient. Remaining but three days in the port, Captain Allen
proceeded on a cruise.
The Argus sailed from I'Orient about the middle of July,
and her exploits for the next few weeks, revive the recollections
of those of Captains Jones, Wickes, and Conyngham, during
the Revolution. Captain Allen kept his brig for some time in
the chops of the English Channel, then went round the Land's
End, ahd shifted his cruising ground to the Irish Channel. He
captured twenty sail of merchantmen, while passing, as it
might be, through the very centre of the enemy, most of which
were destroyed. The appearance of this vessel so near the
British coast, excited much interest in the English commercial
world, and several cruisers were immediately sent in chase of
her. It will readily be understood, that the duty on board the
Argus, was of the most harassing and fatiguing nature, the
feelings of Captain Allen inducing him to allow the masters
and passengers of the different vessels he took, to remove every
thing of value, that belonged to themselves, before he caused
the prizes to be burned. Indeed, in so honourable and chival
rous a spirit did this excellent officer conduct the peculiar war
fare in which he was engaged, that even the enemy did ample
justice to his liberality.
On the night of the 13th of August, the Argus fell in with

316 NAVAL HISTORY. [1813.
a vessel from Oporto, loaded with wine, ft has been said, and
apparently on authority entitled to credit, that a good deal of
the Uquor was broug'ht on board the brig, clandestinely^ as the
boats passed to and fro, and that many of the people, who had
been over-worked and kept from their rest, partook of the re
freshment it afforded too freely. A little before daylight the
prize was set on fire, when the Argus left her, under easy sail.
Shortiy after, a large brig of war was seen standing down upon
the American vessel, under a cloud of canvass ; and finding it
impossible to gain the wind of his enemy. Captain Allen short
ened sail to allow him to close. At 6, Ihe Argus wore, and
fired her larboard broadside, the English vessel being then
within good grape and canister range. The fire was imme
diately returned, the brigs fast drawing nearer. Within four
minutes after the commencement of the action. Captain Allen
was mortally wounded, by a round shot's carrying off a leg.
He refused to be taken below, but fainting from loss of blood,
he was carried off the deck at 8 minutes past 6. At 12 min
utes past 6, Mr. Watson, the first lieutenant, was severely
wounded in the head by a grape-shot, which stunned him, and
he was also taken below. But one lieutenant remained, Mr.
W. H. Allen, who continued to fight the brig, in a very gallant
manner, under the most discouraging circumstances. At this
juncture, the Argus was beautifully handled, an attempt of the
enemy to cross her stern, by keeping away, having been frus
trated, by the American brig's luffing into the wind, making a
half-board and throwing in a completely raking broadside her
self. But all the braces aft having been shot away, the Argus
broke round off, in filling again, when the enemy succeeded in
crossing her stern and "raking. At 25 minutes past 6, the
wheel-ropes and nearly all the running rigging being gone, the
Argus became unmanageable, and the enemy chose his position
at pleasure. At half-past 6, Mr. Watson returned to the deck,
when he found the enemy lying under the Argus's stern, pour
ing in his fire without resistance. An attempt was made to
get alongside, with a view to board, but it was found impracti
cable to move the American brig, while the enemy kept on her
quarter, or bow, throwing in a cross or raking fire with im
punity, the Argus seldom being able to bring a gun to bear.
At 47 minutes past 6, the colours were ordered to be hauled
down ; the enemy, at the same moment, falUng on board, and
taking possession over the bow.
The English brig was the Pelican 18, Captain Maples,

1813.] NAVAL HISTORY. 317
mounting 16 thirty-two-pound carronades, four long guns, and
one twelve-pound carronade. The armament of the Argus,
by crowding guns into the bridle ports, was 18 twenty-four-
pound carronades and two chase guns. The enemy was so
much heavier, that it may be doubted whether the Argus could
have captured her antagonist under any ordinary circumstances,
hut it has been usual, in the service, to impute this defeat to a
want of officers, and to the fact that the people of the Argus
were not in a fit condition to go into action. The American
vessel was particularly well officered, so far as quality was
concerned, though her batteries were necessarily left without
a proper supervision, after Mr. Watson was taken below. It
is not easy to believe that Captain Allen would have engaged
with his people under any very obvious influence from a free
use of wine, but nothing is more probable than that the crew
of the Argus should have been overworked, in the peculiar
situation in which they were placed ; and they may have been
exposed to the particular influence mentioned, without the cir
cumstance having come to the knowledge of the superior offi
cers. They have, indeed, been described as " nodding at their
guns," from excessive fatigue. One thing would seem to be
certain, that, while the brig was beautifully handled, so long
as she was at all manageable, the fire of no other American
cruiser in this war, was as little destructive as that of the
Argus.* This has been attributed to the fatigue of the crew,
and it is reasonable to suppose that the circumstance of the
two lieutenants having been so early taken from the batteries,
did not contribute to the accuracy of the fire. It oughtj more
over, to be added, that the Pelican was about a fourth larger
than her antagonist.
On the other hand, the fire of the enemy, when its length,
closeness, and want of resistance, are considered, does not ap
pear to have been remarkable. The Argus had two midship
men, and four men killed, and 17 men wounded, in an action
of three quarters of an hour. The Pelican, notwithstanding,
* It is one tradition of the service that the Argus was lost by double
shotting the carronades. It is certain that a carronade will not bear two
shot to advantage. In her first cruise, the Essex, which vessel had an
armament of carronades, took a merchant-brig, on which Captain Porter
determined to try the effect of his broadside. The frigate ranged fairly
alongside of her prize, and fired a whole broadside into her, each gun being
double-shotted. Nearly every shot struck, and but two or three, with the
exception of those from the long twelves, penetrated the brig's sides.
27*

318 NAVAL HISTORY. [1813.
was extremely well managed, and was very gallantly fought.
She lost 7 men in killed and wounded, but appears to have
suffered very little in her hull, or even aloft.
Captain Allen died of his wound in the hospital of Mill
Prison, and was buried, by the enemy with the honours of war.
Mr. Watson recovered of his hurts.
Thus the navy lost all but the Enterprise, of the five little
cruisers that had figured before Tripoli, and which had become
endeared to the service by its traditions and recollections. The
Argus alone, had been taken under circumstances that allowed
a gun to be fired.

CHAPTER XXXVI.
Shortly after the commencement of the war, a hundred
British pennants were assembled in the American seas. A
considerable force collected in the Chesapeake, a part of which
was kept to watch the Constellation, in the manner mentioned,
while the small vessels made descents on the coast, or entered
the rivers and creeks, with which those waters abound.
In the early part of June, 1813, the enemy was thought to
have had more than twenty sail of cruisers in and about the
Chesapeake, of which several were ships of the line. The flags
of two admirals were flying among them. On the 18th, three
frigates came into Hampton Roads, and one of them went up
nearly to the quarantine ground, sending her boats to destroy
some small vessels in the James. The next day the flotilla
of gun-boats descended to attack her, under the orders of Cap
tain Tarbell, then temporarily in command of the Constellation.
There were fifteen boats in all, acting in two divisions, one of
which was directed by Lieutenant Gardner, and the other by
Lieutenant Robert Henley. Officers and men were taken
from the frigate to man them, including nearly all her lieu
tenants and midshipmen. A company of riflemen volunteered
to join the seamen, and were also distributed among the boats.
The weather prevented Captain Tarbell from approaching the
enemy, until Sunday, the 20th, when it fell calm, and the guru-
boats dropped down within a good range for shot, and opened

1813.] NAVAL HISTORY. 319
on the upper frigate, about 4, A. M. At this time the two
other frigates were still lying in the Roads.
The gun-boats formed in a crescent, and a brisk cannonade
was commenced on the part of the Americans, It was some
time before the enemy returned it, the approach in the dark
and mist having taken him completely by surprise. The
flotilla began the action at anchor, but it was soon found im
possible to keep the boats steady, and most of them weighed,
and got out their sweeps, by means of which the guns were
kept bearing in the right direction. The defence of the frigate
was very feeble, and after discharging two or three broadsides,
she got under way, but the wind was too light to enable her
either to close, or to haul off. This vessel was in a very
critical situation, and owed her escape in a great measure to
her consorts ; for, after a severe cannonade of more than an
hour, one of the ships below was enabled to close, when a much
sharper contest occurred. But the wind increasing, and the
third ship drawing near. Captain Tarbell made a signal for the
flotilla to retire.
In this affair, most of the boats were conducted with spirit.
Their fire was well directed, and they treated the upper ship
quite roughly. The fire of this vessel was extremely feeble,
and it appears to have done no execution whatever. That of
the second ship, however, was very animated, and it was par
ticularly well directed. Although the loss of the Americans in
men was small, consisting of only one master's mate killed,
and two men wounded, the enemy's grape flew around them
in great numbers. One boat received a bad shot between wind
and water, and several had their sweeps shot away, or were
otherwise injured. The gun-boat commanded by Mr. Nantz,
the sailing-master, was crippled, and in danger of being cap
tured by the enemy, when, by order of Captain Tarbell, sne
was taken in tow by the boat commanded by Lieutenant W.
B. Shubrick, of the Constellation, and brought off.
The frigate first engaged was thought to be the Narcissus
32, and the vessel that came to her relief, the Junon 38, Cap
tain Saunders. This e.xperiment had the effect to convince
most of the sea-officers engaged on board the gun-boats, of the
bad qualities of that description of vessel, they having been
very generally found wanting in a sufficient degree of steadi
ness to render their fire certain, even in smooth water. The
recoils of the guns caused them to roll to a degree that rendered

320 NAVAL HISTORY. [1813,
the aim uncertain, and it has been seen that they could only
be kept in the proper positions by the aid of sweeps.
The next flood, a large force of the enemy, consisting of
fourteen sail, came into the Roads, and an attack was expected.
On the 20th, the enemy's ships weighed, and ascended with
the tide to the mouth of James river, where, in the afternoon,
they were seen making preparations to send up a large force
in boats. As so much depended on the defence of the batte
ries of Craney Island, Captain Cassin, who commanded the
naval force at Norfolk, sent three of the lieutenants of the Con
stellation, Messrs. Neale, W. Branford Shubrick, and Sanders,
on shore, with 100 seamen, to take charge of the principal
guns. This party was sustained by Lieutenant Breckenridge,
of the marines, and about 50 men of that gallant corps. Most
of the officers of the navy then at Norfolk, and who did not
belong to the frigate, were also employed in the gun-boats, or
about the island.
Early on the morning of the 22d, the enemy was discovered
landing a large force round the point of the Nansemond ; and
about 8 A. M., fhe barges of the vessels of war attempted to
land in front of Craney Island, at a point where they were safe
from the fire of the gun-boats, though exposed to that of the
seamen's battery. Mr. Neale now opened his fire, which was
directed with great coolness and precision ; and, after having
three of his boats sunk, the enemy abandoned the attempt.
The narrative of the remainder of the operations of this day,
belongs to the general history of the war, rather than to a work
of this character.
The officers, seamen, and marines of the Constellation, as
well as the other portions of the navy employed on this occa
sion, gained great credit for their steadiness, discipline, and
spirit. One of the barges sunk was said to have been a pecu
liar boat, called, from the great number of oars she rowed, the
Centipede. She was described as having been fifty feet long,
and as having contained 75 men. About 40 prisoners were
made from the boats that were sunk, though the total loss of
the enemy who were opposed to the seamen and marines, is
not known. Captain Cassin, in describing the fire of the sea
men's battery, observed that it resembled the shooting of rifle
men. There is no doubt that the enemy found it much too
cool and direct to be faced.
The government had fitted out several small vessels for the
defence of the bays and rivers, and among others were the

1813.] NAVAL HISTORY. 321
Scorpion and Asp. On the 14th, these two little cruisers got
under way from the Yeocomico, and stood out into the river,
when, at 10 A. M., a considerable force of the enemy was seen
In chase. The Scorpion, on board of which was the senior
sfficer, immediately made a signal for the Asp to act at discre
tion, and began to beat up the river. The Asp being a dull
sailer, her commander, Mr. Sigourney, thought it expedient to
re-enter the creek. He was follpwed by two brigs, whioh
anchored off the bar, and hoisted out their boats. Mr. Si
gourney now deemed it more prudent to run higher up the
Yeocomico; and as the enemy weis already pulling in, he cut
his cable and made sail. Three boats soon after attacked the
Asp, which made a very gallant defence, and handsomely
beat them off. The enemy, however, reinforced, and renewed
the attack with five boats, when Mr. Sigourney ran the Asp
on shore, and was boarded by about 50 men, who succeeded
in carrying her. She was set on fire and abandoned, but Mr.
M'Cliutock, the officer second in command, got on board her
again, Emd succeeded in e.Ktinguishing the flames. In this
affair, Mr. Sigourney was killed, dying sword in hand in de
fence of his vessel, in a manner to reflect the highest credit on
his professional training and personal gallantry. The Asp had
but two or three Ught guns, and a crew of 21 souls. Of the
latter, 10 were killed, wounded, and missing : facts that attest
the gallantry of the defence.
While these events were occurring at the south, some move
ments farther north brought a part of the enemy's force within
the waters of Long Island Sound, where, with occasional
changes of ships, it continued to the close of the war. After
ihe United States had refitted at New York, on her return
from the cruise in which she had captured the Macedonian,
Commodore Decatur prepared to sail again, with the latter
frigate in company. The Hornet being about to go to sea, at
the same time, in order to join the Chesapeake, Captain Law
rence, the three vessels got under way, and passed Hell Gate
on the 27th of May, with a view to run off tiie coast between
Montauk and Block Island. It was June the 1st before the
ships found an opportunity to pass through the Race : but they
were met near the end of the island by a greatly superior
force, and were chased into New London. Here all three of
the vessels were closely blockaded, nor was either of the fri
gates able to get to sea during the remainder of the war, though
opportunities were long and anxiously sought. In the end.

322 NAVAL HISTORY. [1814
their officers and people were transferred to other vessels. It
will give an idea of the great importance that ought to be at
tached to the means of raising blockades, when it is remem
bered that, while watching the three American vessels which
then lay in the Thames above New London, the enemy also
had it in his power to blockade the most important point on the
continent connected with the coasting trade.
About this time, also, a small brig called the Viper, which
had been put into the service under the orders of Lieutenant
John D. Henley, was taken by the Narcissus 32, under cir
cumstances that require no particular description.
In January, 1814, the Alligator, another small schooner,
commanded by Mr. Basset, a sailing-master, was lying at
anchor off the coast, abreast of Cole's Island, . and observing
an enemy's frigate and brig, just without the breakers, Mr.
Basset suspected that an attempt would be made on him in
the course of the night. Preparations to receive the enemy
were made accordingly. About half-past 7 in the evening, six
boats were discovered, under cover of the marsh grass, pulling
up with muffied oars. When near enough, they were hailed,
and a musket was fired at them. The boats now made a ge
neral discharge of musketry and grape, which the Alligator
immediately returned. The schooner then cut her cable, and
availing herself of a light breeze, she was immediately brought
under command of her helm. By this promptitude, Mr. Bas
set succeeded in beating off his assailants, notwithstanding the
schooner soon after grounded. The Alligator had 2 men
killed, and 2 wounded, while the loss of the enemy was never
known. The schooner had but 40 men on board, while the
boats are thought to have contained about 100. Of the latter,
the loss must have been severe, or they would not have abah-
doned the attack after the Alligator had grounded. The firing
continued half an hour, and the schooner was a good deal cut
up in her sails and rigging. A large cutter, that was sup
posed to have been one of the boats of the enemy on this oc
casion, was shortly after picked up on the North Edisto, much
injured by shot. The bodies of one officer and of a common
seaman were also found near by. The former had lost an
arm, besides receiving a musket-shot wound. Mr. Basset was
promoted for his gallantry.
The in-shore war at the south was distinguished by many
other Uttle exploits, resembling those already related ; one of
which, performed under the eyes of Captain Dent, who com-

1815.] NAVAL HISTORY. 323
manded at Charleston, is deserving of particular notice. Al
though it wiU be advancing the time to a period near the close
of the war, it may be related here, with a view to present to
the reader most of these isolated instances of gallantry in one
picture. In January, 1815, while Captain Dent was at the North
Edisto, he obtained ihformation that a party of officers and
men, belonging to the Hebrus, Captain Palmer, was watering
on one of the islands of the vicinity, and he directed Mr. Law
rence Kearny to proceed outside, with three barges, to cut
them off, while a party of militia endeavoured to assail them
by land. The frigate was at anchor, out of gun-shot ; but as
soon as she perceived the design of the Americans, she fired
guns, and made other signals of recall, when two of the boats
pulled towards her, and a tender, that contained a strong party,
attempted to run out also. ¦ Fortunately the wind shifted,
bringing the Hebrus to windward of the American barges,
but the tender to leeward of them. Discovering his advan
tage, Mr. Kearny determined to make a dash at the latter, re
gardless of the frigate and of the two boats that were pulling
off. The Hebrus, perceiving the danger in which her tender
was placed, now n*ade the greatest exertions to save her. Shot
were fired at her own cutters, to drive them back to the assist
ance of the tender ; and a third boat was sent from the frigate
with the same object. She also opened her fire on the Ame
rican barges with some effect, one of her shot taking off the
head of a man at Mr. Kearny's side. But this gallant officer,
disregarding every thing but his object, laid the tender aboard
in the steadiest manner, and carried her off, directly under the
guns of the frigate to which she belonged. The Hebrus's
launch was also taken, her people having hurried on board the
tender when the alarm was given. The latter had a carron
ade and six brass swivels in her, besides other arms.
Mr. Kearny took about 40 prisoners on this occasion.
The Hebrus intercepting his return, by the way he had come
out, he carried his prize to the South Edisto.
A few days later, Mr. Kearny, in the launch of the Hebrus,
with a crew of 25 men, went out and captured a tender be
longing to the Severn, having on board between SO and 40
men. Handsomer exploits of the sort were not performed in
the war.
To this list of the minor conflicts, may be added an attack
on gun-boat No. 160, commanded by Mr. Paine. This officer.

324 NAVAL HISTORY. [1814
who then held the rank of sailing-master, was convoying a
number of coasters from Savannah to St. Mary's, when an
expedition, consisting of a tender full pf men, and ten boats,
attacked him in St. Andrew's Sound, about 3 A. M. of the 6th
of October, 1814. After a short cannonading and a sharp
discharge of musketry, that lastedabout 20 minutes, the enemy
closed, and carried the boat by boarding. There were but 16
men fit for duty in No. 160 at the time; her entire comple
ment consisting of 30 souls. Mr. Paine was badly wounded,
as were two of his people. The enemy suffered severely, the
defence having been spirited and obstinate.
A short notice of the warfare in the Delaware properly
occurs next. This bay had no longer the importance it pos
sessed in the war of 1775. Philadelphia had now lost the,
distinction of being the coraraercial and political capital of the
country ; and in the way of shipping, several ports were fast
outstripping it. The enemy, consequently, paid much less
attention to these waters than to those of the Chesapeake, and
to other points of more interest. The length of the river, too,
added to the security of the places that lie on its banks, and
there was little apprehension of any serious descent. Still a
flotilla consisting of gun-boats and block-sloops had been equip
ped, and it was put under the orders of Lieutenant Angus, an
officer of tried spirit.
On the 29th of July, 1813, Mr. Angus had an affair with
the Junon 38, and Martin 16, in which No. 121, Mr. Shead,
was taken, after a handsome resistance.
The loss of the enemy's ships was 7 killed and 12 wounded.
No. 121 had 7 men wounded.

CHAPTER XXXVIL
In the summer of 1814, several of the new ships were put
into the water : among them were the Independence 74, the
Guerriere and Java, 44 each, and the Wasp, Frolic and Pea
cock, sloops of war. The Frolic 18, 'Captain Bainbridge, had
a short career, having been chased and captured, on the 20th
of April, 1814, by the Orpheus 36, Captain Pigot, soon after

1814] NAVAL HISTORY. 325
she got out. There was no action, the Frolic having thrown
most of her guns overboard in the chase.
The Adams 28 had been cut down to a sloop of war and
lengthened, at Washington, so as to mount 28 guns on one
deck, under the law of 1812. She succeeded in passing the
enemy's ships in Lynnhaven Bay, on the night of the 18th of
January, 1814, under the command of Captain Morris, and
made a cruise in the track of the enemy's East Indiamen ;
returning to Savannah in April. Quitting this port early in
May, she went off the coast of Ireland, when she was hard
chased, on different occasions, by heavy frigates.
The ship had now been near two months in a cold, foggy,
damp atmosphere, and the scurvy made its appearance on
board. So many men were laid up with this terrible disease,
that Captain Morris deemed it prudent to go into port. At 4
A. M. on the 17th of August, in very thick weather, the Adams
ran ashore on the Isle of Haute, but was got off by lighten
ing. It was found, however, that she made nine feet of water
in an hour, and Captain Morris succeeded in getting her into
the Penobscot, in Maine, as high up as Hampden, which is
several miles above Castine.
While the Adams lay ready to be hove out, with nothing in
her, a strong expedition of the enemy, consisting of troops and
vessels of war, entered the river, and ascended as high as
Hampden. A small force of miUtia was assembled, and a
battery was mounted with the guns of the ship, in order to pro
tect her ; but the irregular troops giving way, and leaving the
seamen and marines exposed in the rear, the first without mus
kets, nothing remained but to set the vessel on fire, and to
make a retreat. All the service connected with the ship was
performed in the most orderly and creditable manner, until a
part of the country was reached where it was found impossible
to subsist the men in a body, on account of the distance be-
tveeen the inhabitants, when the people were directed to break
up into small parties, and to make the best of their way to
Portland. It is a fact worthy of being recorded, that every
man rejoined his commander, though a fatiguing march of two
hundred miles was necessary to do so.
The ship had made many prizes during this cruise, most of
which were destroyed.
While the Adams was thus running the chances of chases
and shipwreck, the Wasp 18, Captain Blakely, sailed from
Portsmouth, N. H., on a cruise. A letter from Captain Blakely
28

326 NAVAL HISTORY. [1814
announced that he Vas in the offing, on the 1st of May, 1814,
with a fine breeze at N. W. He ran off the coast without
molestation, and soon appeared near the chops of the EngUsh
Channel, where he began to repeat the ravages caused by the
Argus. The position of the ship now exacted the utmost vigi
lance, as she was in the very track of the enemy. At a quar
ter past 4 A. M., on the 28th of June, 1814, the Wasp, then
cruising in lat. 48° 36' N., long. 11° 15' W., made two sail,
a little forward of the lee-beam. The weather was fine, the
wind light, and the, water exceedingly smooth for that sea.
After keeping away in chase, another stranger was discovered
on the weather-beam, when the ship was immediately brought
by the wind, in order to close with her, it being obviously ex
pedient for the American vessel to select the antagonist that
had the most weatherly position. At 10 the chase showed
English colours, and began to make signals. At noon her sig
nals were repeated, and she fired a gun. The Wasp did not
go to quarters until 15 minutes past 1 ; and soon after, believ
ing he could weather the chase, Captain Blakely tacked. The
stranger also tacked, and stood off, no doubt to preserve the
weather-gage. The Wasp now showed her ensign, and fired
a gun to windward. The enemy, a large man-of-war brig,
gallantly answered this defiance. The Wasp immediately set
her light canvass to close, when, at 32 minutes past 2, the en
emy tacked, and began to draw near. The American now
took in her light saUs, and tacked in her turn ; the English
vessel still maintaining her weatherly position, and making
sail to close.
At 17 minutes past 3, the enemy was on the weather-quar
ter of the Wasp, distant about sixty yards, when he fired his
shifting-gun, a twelve-pound carronade mounted on a topgal
lant, forecastle. Two minutes later he fired again ; and the
discharges were repeated until the gun had been deliberately
fired five times into the Wasp, at that short distance, and in
unusually smooth water. All this time the Wasp could not
bring a gun to bear ; and finding that the enemy drew ahead
very slowly, Captain Blakely put his helm down, and made a
half-board, firing from aft forward, as the guns bore. He now
hauled up the mainsail, and the two ships being necessarily
very near, every shot told. But the fire of the "Wasp was too
heavy to be borne, and the brig ran her aboard, on her star
board-quarter, at 40 minutes past 3, her larboard bow coming
foul. The English now made several trials to enter the Wasp,

1814] NAVAL HISTORY. 327
led by their commander in person, but were repulsed with
steadiness and without confusion. Two or three desperate
efforts were repeated, but with the same want of success, when,
at 44 minutes pEist 3, Captain Blakely gave the order in turn,
to go on board the Englishman, and in one minute the flag
of the latter was lowered. On the part of the enemy, this action
lEisted 28 minutes; on the part of the Wasp, 19 minutes, in
cluding the time employed in boarding.
The prize was his Britannic Majesty's sloop of war Rein
deer 18, Captain Manners. The Reindeer was an ordinary
thirty-two-pounder brig, but, like the Peacock, her armament,
when taken, was of twenty-four-pound carronades. She
mounted 18 guns, besides the shifting carronade, and had a
complement on board of 118 souls. Her loss was 25 killed,
and 42 wounded ; 10 of the latter dangerously. Among the
slain was Captain Manners ; and the first lieutenant and mas
ter were wounded. The Wasp had 5 men killed, and 22
wounded. Two midshipmen, both of whom subsequently died,
were among the latter. The Reindeer was literally cut to
pieces, in a line with her ports ; her upper works, boats, and
spare spars being one entire wreck. A breeze springing up
next day, her foremast fell. The Wasp was hulled six times,
and she was filled with grape. The principal, loss she sustain
ed in men, however, was in repelling the attempt to board.
Captain Blakely put a portion of his wounded prisoners on
board a neutral, and proceeded himself to I'Orient, where he
arrived on the 8th of July, with the remainder. The prize
was burned, on account of the great danger of recapture.
After a detention in port until the 27th of August, the Wasp
sailed on another cruise. Two prizes were made when a few
days out ; and on the 1st of September she cut a vessel, loaded
with, guns and military stores, out of a convoy of ten sail,
that was under the care of the Armada 74 ; but was chased
off by the enemy, in an attempt to seize another. On the
evening of the same day, while running free, four sail were
seen nearly at the same time, of which two were on the lar-
Jjoard, and two on the starboard bow. The latter being farthest
lo windward, the Wasp hauled up for the most weatherly. At
7 P. M., the chase began to make signals, with flags, lanterns,
rockets, and guns. These the Wasp disregarded, but kept stead
ily approaching. At 20 minutes past 9, she had the enemy
on her lee bow, within hail, and a gun was fired into him.
The shot was returned, when Captain Blakely put his helm

328 NAVAL HISTORY. [1814
up, and passed to leeward, under an apprehension that the en
emy might attempt to escape, for it was blowing fresh, and the
ship was running ten knots. This was easily effected, the en
emy being still in doubt as to the character of the Wasp, both
vessels hailing. As soon as she had got the desired position,
however, the American ship poured in a broadside, and a warm
engagement commenced at 29 minutes past 9. The firing was
close and severe, though the combat had the usual embarrass
ments of a night action. By 10 o'clock, notwithstanding the
darkness and the swell that was on at the time, the fire of the
enemy had ceased, and Captain Blakely hailed to ascertain if
he had surrendered. Receiving no answer, and a few guns
being fired on board the English vessel, the Wasp poured in a
fresh broadside; but at 12 minutes past 10, perceiving that the
enemy did not fire any longer, he was again hailed, with a de
mand to know if he had surrendered. The answer was in the
affirmative, and the Wasp lowered a boat to take possession.
Before the latter reached the water, however, the smoke having
blown away, another vessel was seen astern, coming up fast,
when the boat was run up, the people were again sent to the
guns, and the Wasp was brought under command, in readiness to
receive this second antagonist. At 36 minutes past 10, two
more sail were seen astern, and it became necessary to aban
don the prize.
The helm of the Wasp was now put up, and the ship ran
off dead before the wind, in order to reeve new braces, and in
the hope of drawing the nearest vessel farther from her con
sorts. This vessel continued the chase, until she got quite
near, when she hauled her wind across the stern of the Wasp,
delivered a broadside, and made stretches to rejoin the cap
tured vessel, which, by this time, was firing guns of distress.
It would have been easy for the second vessel to run alongside
of the Wasp, but the urgent situation of her consort, probably,
prevented the Mtperiment.
As the Wasp left her prize so suddenly, she had no means
of learning her name or loss. She had herself but two men
killed, and one wounded, the latter by a wad ; a circumstance
that proves the closeness of the combat. She was hulled four
times, had a good many grape in her, and was much cut up
aloft. All that Captain Blakely could state concerning his
enemy, was his impression that she was one of the largest
brigs in the British navy. The four shot that hulled the Wsisp,

1814] NAVAL HISTORY. 329
weighed each just 32 pounds. She had many hands in her
tops, and otherwise appeared to be strongly manned.
It is now known that the vessel captured by the Wasp, was
the Avon 18, Captain Arbuthnof. The brig that followed the
Wasp, and fired into her, was the Castilian 18. The Avon
was so much injured that she sunk, and it was with great
difficulty that the other vessel saved her people. By some ac
counts indeed, a few of the wounded were lost. The loss of
men on board the Avon is not accurately known, the state
ments varying from 30 to 50. The vessel was cut up in an
extraordinary manner. She is believed to have mounted 18
thirty-two-pound carronades, with the usual chase guns, and
to have had a crew of 120 men in her.
The action between the Wasp and the Avon occurred on
the 1st of September, 1814, (sea-time,) in lat. 47° 30', N.
long. 11° W. September the 12th, in lat. 38° 2', N., and
long. 14° 58', W., the former ship took the brig Three Bro
thers, and scuttled her. September 14th, in lat. 37° 22', N.,
long. 14° 33', W., she took the brig Bacchus, and scuttled her.
September the 21st, in lat. 33° 12', N., long. 14° 56' W.,she
took the brig Atalanta 8, with 19 men. As this was a valua
ble prize, Mr. Geisinger, one of the midshipmen of the Wasp,
was put on board her, and she was sent to America. The
Atalanta arrived safely at Savannah, Nov. 4th, and brought
the last direct intelUgence that was ever received from the re
gretted Blakely and the Wasp. Various accounts have been
given of the manner in which she was probably lost, but no
thing that can be deemed authentic has ever been ascertained.
An incident occurred a few years after the last direct intelli
gence was received from this gallant ship, that suddenly and
keenly revived the interest of the public in her fate, which
had begun to settle into a saddened sympathy with the friends
of those who had perished. It will be remembered that Acting
Lieutenant M'Knight, and Mr. Lyman, a master's mate, both
of the Essex, had been exchanged by Captain Hillyar, and
taken to Rio de Janeiro, in the Phoebe, with a view to make
certain affidavits necessary to the condemnation of the Ameri
can frigate. These gentlemen, after remaining some time in
Brazil, took passage in a Swedish brig bound tO-England, as
the only means of getting home. A long time passing without
any intelligence from Mr. M'Knight and his companion, in
quiries were set on foot, which terminated in ascertaining this
fact, and, subsequently, in finding the master of the Swedish
28*

330 NAVAL HISTORY. [iSW.
brig, who proved by his log-book and other documents, thEit
he had faUen in with the Wasp 18, Captaih Blakely, when
his two passengers seized the occasion to put themselves under
the flag.*
The Peacock 18, Captain Warrington, went to sea froin
New York, in March, 1814, arid proceeded to the southward,
as far as the Great Isaacs, cruising in that vicinity ahd along
the Florida shore, to Cape Carnaveral. Oh the 29l;h of April,
in lat. 27° 47', N., long. 80° 9', W., three sail were made to
windward, under convoy of a large brig of war. The mer
chantmen hauled up to E. N. E., arid the sloop of war edged
away for the American ship. The two vessels Were soon
alongside of each other, when a close action commenced. The
Peacock received two thirty-two-pound Shot in the quarter of
her fore-yard, from the first broaldside of the enemy, which
rendered the head-sails nearly useless. This injury cohipelled
the Peacock to fight running large, and prevented much ma-
* Extracts from the Journal kept on board the Swedish brig Adonis, during
a voyage from Rio de Janeiro towards Falmouth, in the year 1814.
"August 23. — Left Rio de Janeiro j Stephen Decatur M'Knight, and
James Lyman, passengers for England.
" October Oth.— In lat. 18° 35' N., long. 30° 10' W., sea account, at 8
o'clock in the morning, discovered a strange sail giving chase to us, and
fired several guns ; she gaining very fast. At half-past 10 o'clock hove
to, and was boarded by an officer dressed in an English doctor's uniform,
the vessel ^so hoisted an English ensign. The officer proceeded to ex
amine my ship's papers, &c. &c., likewise the letter-bags, and took from
one of them a letter to the victualling-office, London. Finding I had two
American officers as passengers, he imriiediately left the ship, and went
on bqard the sloop of war ; he shortly after returned, took the American
gentlemen with him, and went « second time on board the sloop. In
about half an hour, he returned again with Messrs. M'Knight and Lyman,
and they informed me that the vessel was the United States sloop of war
the Wasp, commanded by Captain Bleaky, or Blake, last from France,
where she had refitted ; had lately sunk the Reindeer, English sloop of
war, and another vessel which sunk without their being able to save a
single person, or learn the vessel's name, — that Messrs. M'Knight aiyl
Lyman had now determined to leave me, and go on board the Wasp — paid
me their passages in dollars, at 5». 9d., and having taken their luggage on
board the Wasp, they made sail to the southward. Shortly after they
had left, I found that Lieutenant M'Knight had left his writing-desk be
hind ; and I immediately made signal fbr the Wasp to return, and stood
towards her ; they, observing my signals, stood back, came alongside, and
sent their boat on board for the writing-desk ; after which they sent me a
log-line and some other presents, and made all sail in a direction for the
line ; and I have reason to suppose for the convoy that passed on Thurs
day previous."

1814] NAVAL HISTORY. 331
nceuvring, the combat being effectually decided by gunnery.
At the end of 42 minutes, the enemy struck.
The prize was H. B. M, brig Epervier 18, Captain Wales.
The Epervier was extensively injured, having received no less
than 45 shot in her hull, and had 22 men killed and wounded.
Her main-topmast was over the side, her main boom was shot
away, her foremast tottering, her bowsprit badly wounded,
standing rigging much cut, and she had five feet water in her
hold. The Peacock received very little injury ; that done the
fore-yard being the principal ; while her hull escaped almost
entirely, not a rouhd shot touching it. No person was killed,
and only two men were wounded.
The Peacock was a heavier vessel than the Epervier, while,
as usual, the disparity in the loss was infinitely greater than
that in the force. The metal was nominally the same ; but, if
the shot of the Peacock were as short of weight as those of the
Wasp are known to have been, she threw at a broadside only
twenty pounds of metal more than her antagonist. The Eper
vier mounted 18 thirty-two-pound carronades, and it would
seem had no chase guns ; her crew consisted of 128 men.
On board this vessel were found $118,000 in specie.
In one hour after the retreat from quarters was beat, the
Peacock had her fore-yard fished, and in all respects was
ready again to engage. The Epervier struck about 11 A. M.,
and by sunset she was in a condition to carry sail. It was
only by the greatest exertions, however, that she was, at first,
kept from sinking.
Mr. J. B. Nicolson, the first lieutenant of the Peacock, was
put in charge of the prize, with directions to make the best of
his way to Savannah. The southern coast was then much
infested by the enemy, and, as Captain Warrington knew that
she was liable to be brought to action at any moment, he de
termined to convoy his prize into port. On the evening of the
29th of April, or the day of the capture, the vessels made sail,
and the next afternoon they were abreast of Amelia Island,
when two frigates were discovered at the northward, and to
leewEifd. At Mr. Nicolson's request. Captain Warrington
now took all the prize crew from the Epervier but that gentle
man and sixteen officers and men, intending to send the prize
into St. Mary's, and to haul to the southward with the Pea
cock, to lead the enemy off the coast. This plan succeeded,
the Peacock getting rid of the frigate that chased her next day.
The Epervier, while subsequently running along the coast, on

332 NAVAL HISTORY. [1814
her way to Savannah, however, fell in with the other frigate,
and keeping close in, in shoal water,, the wind being light, the
enemy manned his boats, and sent them in chase. There was
a moment when the prize was in great danger of falling into the
hands of her pursuers, for the boats got quite near, in her wake.
In this critical situation, Mr. Nicolson had recourse to a stra
tagem to keep them off. He used the trumpet as if full of
men, and when the boats were the nearest, he issued an order,
in a very loud voice, to make a yaw, in order to fire a broad
side. This appearance of a readiness to engage intimidated
the enemy, who abandoned his attempt at a moment when he
might have carried the Eperyier with little or no loss. On the
1st of May the brig arrived safely at Savannah, and, on the
4th, the Peacock came in also. Mr. Nicolson's steadiness and
ingenuity were much applauded.
Shortly after, the Peacock sailed on a cruise for the enemy's
seas, the Bay of Biscay, the coast of Portugal, and among the
Islands, constantly changing her position to elude the English
squadrons. After passing over some of the best cruising
ground in the Atlantic, the ship returned to New York, at the
end of October, without having fallen in with an enemy of a
force proper for her to engage. She captured, however, 14
sail of merchantmen.
The President 44 continued to cruise under the orders of
Commodore Rodgers, and the Congress 38 under those of Cap
tain Smith, with a similar want of success, when the merits of
their commanders were considered. These two fine frigates
traversed the Northern Atlantic, in a variety of directions, in
company and singly, and yet it was never the good fortune of
either to fall in with an enemy, that could be brought to ac
tion. The latter ship even went south of the equator, and
one of her cruises extended to eight months ; but her luck did
not vary.
In one of his cruises Commodore Rodgers captured an ene
my's man-of-war schooner, called the Highflyer, drawing her
under his guns by an artifice, and this was the only English
man-of-war that he took during his command of this ship.

1814.] NAVAL HISTORY. 333

CHAPTER XXXVIII.
It would exceed the limits of a work of this nature, to entei'
into a minute relation of all the skirmishes to which the preda
tory warfare of the English, in the Chesapeake, gave rise ; but
it is due to the officers and men employed against them, to
furnish an outline of their services. On various occasions,
parties from the ships had conflicts with the detached miUtia,
or armed citizens, who were frequently successful. .Although
it is a little anticipating events, it may be mentioned here, that
in one of these skirmishes. Captain Sir Peter Parker, of the
Menelaus, was killed, and his party driven off to its ship. In
several other instances, captures were made of boats and their
crews ; the people of the country frequently displaying a cool
ness and gallantry that were worthy of trained soldiers. On
the whole, however, the vast superiority of the enemy in num
bers, and his ability to choose his time and place of attack,
gave the English the advantage, and their success was usually
in proportion.
The government had equipped a large flotilla, to protect
those waters, the command of which was given to Capt. Josh.
Barney, the officer who so much distinguished himself by the
capture of the Monk, during the war of the revolution.
The presence of Captain Barney's flotilla compelled the ene
my to be more guarded, and his small vessels became cautious
about approaching the shallow waters in calms, or in Ught
winds. On the 1st of June, this active and bold officer left
the Patuxent, with the Scorpion, two gun-boats, and several
large barges, in chase of two schooners. He was closing fast,
by means of sweeps, when a large ship was discovered to the
southward. Just at this moment the wind shifted, bringing
the enemy to windward, blowing fresh and becoming^ squally.
Signal was made for the flotilla to return to the Patuxent, as
the weather was particularly unfavourable for that description
offeree, and the ship proved to be a two-decker. On re-en
tering the river, the wind came ahead, when the gun-boats
began to sweep up under the weather shore. One of the latter
being in some danger, Captain Barney anchored with the Scor
pion and the other boats, and opened a fire, which immediately

334 NAVAL HISTORY. [1814
drove the enemy's schooners out of the river. On this occa
sion, the EngUsh pushed a barge in front which began to throw
Congreve rockets. By this essay, it was found that the rockets
could be thrown farther than shot, but that they could not be
directed with any certainty. The ship of the line anchored at
the mouth of the Patuxent ; the enemy's barges kept hovering
about it, and the American flotilla was anchored about three
miles within the river.
Between the 4th and 8th of June, the enemy was joined by
a rasee and a sloop of war, when Captain Barney removed
his flotUla up the river, to the mouth of St. Leonard's creek.
On the morning of the 8th, the British were seen coming up
the river, the wind being fair, with a ship, a brig, two schoon
ers, and fifteen barges, which induced Captain Barney to move
up the St. Leonard's about two miles, when he anchored in a
line abreast, and prepared to receive an attack. At 8 A. M.
the ship, brig, and schooners anchored at the mouth of the
creek, and the barges entered it, with the rocket-boat in ad
vance. Captain Barney now left the Scorpion and the two gun-boats
at anchor, and got his barges, 13 in number, under way, when
the enemy retreated towards their vessels outside. In the af
ternoon, the same manoeuvre was repeated, the enemy throw
ing a few rockets without effect.
On the afternoon of the 9th, the ship of the line having sent
up a party of men, the enemy entered the creek again, with
20 barges, but aft.er a sharp skirmish he retired. The object of
these demonstrations was probably to induce the Americans to
burn their vessels, or to venture out within reach of the guns
of the ships ; but the flotilla was commanded by an officer
much too experienced and steady to be forced into either mea
sure without sufficient reason. On the llth, a still more seri
ous attempt was made, with 21 barges, having the two schoon
ers in tow. Captain Barney met them again, and, after a
sharper encounter than before, drove them down upon their
larger vessels. On this occasion, the pursuit was continued,
until the rasee, which, by this time, had ascended the Patuxent,
and the brig, opened a fire on the Americans. In this affair,
the English are thought to have suffered materially, especially
one of the schooners. A shot also struck the rocket-boat.
Some small works were now thrown up on the shore, to
protect the American flotilla, and the blockade continued. In
the mean time. Captain Miller, of the marine corps, joined the

1814.] NAVAL HISTORY. 335
flotilla, and a considerable force of miUtia was collected under
Colonel Wadsworth, of the ordnance service. The enemy
had also brought a frigate, in addition to the rasee, off the
mouth of the creek. 'The largest of these vessels was be
lieved to be the Severn, and the smallest the Narcissus 32.
On the 26th, an attempt was made by the united force of the
Americans to raise the blockade. The cannonade was close,
for the species of force employed, and it lasted two hours,
when the Severn cut, and was run on a sand-bank to prevent
her sinking.* It is said that a raking shot ripped a plank from
her bow, and placed her in imminent danger. Shortly after,
in company with the Narcissus, she dropped down the river,
and went into the bay. In this handsome affair, the flotilla
lost 13 men in killed and wounded; but it effectually raised
the blockade, and induced the enemy to be more cautious.
The portion of the flotilla that was in the Patuxent, re
mained in that river until the middle of August, when tho
enemy commenced that series of movements, which terminated
in his advance upon Washington. On the 16th, Captain Bar
ney received intelligence that the British were coming up the
Patuxent in force, when he sent an express to the navy de
partment for instructions. The answer was to land the men,
and join the army that was hurriedly assembling for the de
fence of the coast, under General Winder, and, if pressed, to
burn the flotilla.
On the 21st, the news was received that the enemy had
landed a force of four or five thousand men at Benedict, and
that he was marching in the direction of the capital. Captain
Barney immediately landed 400 of his party, leaving the ves
sels in charge of Mr. Frazier, with orders to set fire to them,
if attacked, and to join the main body with as little delay as
possible. The next day this order was executed, a strong de
tachment of seamen and marines approaching the flotilla to
attack it.
On the 22d, Captain Barney joined the assemblage of armed
citizens, that was called an army, at the Wood- Yard. The
next day he marched into Washington, and took up his quar-
ters in the marine barracks.
After a good deal of uncertainty concerning the movements
of the enemy, it was understood he was marching directly os
Washington, and that it was intended to fight him at Bladenn
* By some accounts this ship was the Loire.

336 NAVAL HISTORY. [1814
burgh. The flotilla-men and marines left the Yard on the
morning of the 24th ; they arrived at the battle-ground on a
trot, and were immediately drawn up about a mile to the west
of Bladensburgh, holding the centre of General Winder's po
sition. After a short skirmish in front, where the enemy suf
fered severely ih crossing a bridge, the militia fell back, and
the British columns appeared, following the line of the public
road. Tbe entire force of the flotilla-men and marines, was
about 500 men ; and they had two eighteens, and three twelve-
pounders, ship's guns, mounted on travelling carriages. Cap
tain Barney took command of the artillery in person, while
Captain Miller had the disposition of the remainder of the two
parties, who were armed as infantry. The marines, 78 men
in all, formed a line immediately on the right of the guns,
while 370 of the seamen were drawn up a little in the rear,
and on the right flank of the marines, on ground that permit
ted them to fire over the heads of the latter. Although the
troops that were falling back did not halt. Captain Barney held
his position ; and as soon as the enemy began to throw rockets,
he opened on him with a sharp discharge of round and grape.
The column was staggered, and it immediately gave ground.
A second attempt to advance was repulsed in the same man
ner, when the enemy, who, as yet, had been able to look down
resistance by advancing steadily in column, was obliged to
make an oblique movement to his left, into some open fields,
and to display. Here he threw out a brigade of light troops,
in open order, and advanced in beautiful style upon the com
mand of Captain Barney, while the head of a strong column
was seen in reserve in a copse in its rear. Captain Miller,
with the marines, and that portion of the seamen who acted as
infantry, met the charge in the most steady and gallant man
ner, and after a short conflict, drove the British light troops
back upon their supporting column. In this conflict the Eng
lish commanding officer, in advance. Colonel Thornton, with
his second and third in rank, Lieutenant Colonel Wood, and
Major Brown, were all wounded, and left on the field. The
marines and seamen manifested the utmost steadiness, though
it was afterwards ascertained that the Ught troops brought up
in their front, amounted to about 600 men.
There can be no question, that a couple of regular reo-i-
ments would now have given the Americans the day ; but no
troops remained in line, except the party under Captain Bar
ney, and two detachments on his right, that were well posted.

1814] NAVAL HISTORY. 337
Having been so roughly handled, the enemy made no new
attempt to advance directly in front of the seamen and ma
rines, but, after forcing the troops on their right from the field,
by a demonstration in that direction, they prepared to turn the
rear of Captain Barney, in order to surround him. While
these movements were going on in front, and on the right of
the Americans, a party of Ught troops had been thrown out
on the enemy's right, and the militia having abandoned the
ground, they were also beginning to close upon the Americans
that stood. By this time. Captain Barney, Captain Miller, and
several other officers were wounded ; and victory being impos
sible, against odds so great, an order was given to commence
a retreat. The defence had been too obstinate to admit of car
rying off the guns, which were necessarily abandoned. All
the men retired, with the exception of the badly wounded ;
among the latter, however, were Captain Barney and Captain
Miller, who both fell into the enemy's hands. The, loss of the
latter in front of the seamen and marines, was near 300 men,
in killed and wounded. Of the marines, nearly one-third
were among the casualties ; and the flotilla-men suffered con
siderably, though in a smaller proportion.
The people of the flotilla, under the orders of Captain Bar
ney, and the marines, were justly applauded for their excellent
conduct on this occEision. No troops could have stood better ;
and the fire of both artillery and musketry has been described
as to the last degree severe. Captain Barney himself, and
Captain Miller, of the marine corps, in particular, gained much
additional reputation ; and their conspicuous gallantry caused
a deep and general regret, that their efforts could not have been
sustained by the rest of the army.
As the enemy took possession of Washington, a perfectly
defenceless straggling town of some eight or nine thousand
inhabitants, that evening, and a considerable force in ships
was Eiscending the Potomac, it was thought necessary to de
stroy the public property at the navy yard. At that time, a
frigate, of the first class, called the Columbia, was on the
stocks ; and the Argus 18, and Lynx 12, had not long been
launched. A small quantity of stores and ammunition had
been removed, but on the night of the 24th, fire was commu
nicated to the remainder. It is difficult to say why the ves
sels afloat were not scuttled, a measure that would have
allowed of their being raised, as it would have been impossible
for the enemy to injure ships in that state, and equally so to
29

338 NAVAL HISTORY. [1814,
remove them. Indeed the expediency of setting fire to any
thing has been questioned, since the enemy himself could not
very easily have done more. It is, however, just to remember, that
the sudden retreat of the English could not have been foreseen,
and that they had a commanding naval force in the Potomac.
The loss in vessels was not great ; the Columbia 44, on the
stocks, and the Argus 18, being the only two destroyed that
were of any value. The Lynx escaped ; and it would seem
that the enemy was in too great a hurry to do her anyinjury.
On this occasion, the Boston 28 was burned ; but the ship
had been previously condemned. The hulk of the New York
36 escaped ; but all the naval stores were consumed.
To aid in resisting these descents which were believed, at
the time, to be made by a force greatly exceeding that actually
employed, the officers and men of the navy, who were in the
vicinity, were collected on the shores of the Chesapeake.
Commodore Rodgers, with the crew of the Guerriere 44, then
nearly ready for sea, was withdrawn from Philadelphia ; Cap
tain Perry, of the Java 44, which ship was fitting at Baltimore,
and Captain Porter, with other gentlemen of the service, had
been actively employed on the banks of the Potomac, in en
deavouring to intercept the return of the British ships that had
ascended to Alexandria ; a duty that could not be effected,
however, for want of means and time. The guns at command
were altogether too light. Some fighting occurred. Several
gallant attempts with fire-ships were made, but the enemy's
movements were too rapid, to allow of the necessary prepara
tions in a country so thinly settled, and almost destitute of
military supplies. In the course of this service. Commodore
Rodgers repelled an attack on a small party of less than 50
men, that was made by the enemy in an attempt to cut off a
lighter and a fire-vessel, on which occasion, Mr. Newcomb,
Mr. Ramage, Mr. Forrest, and Mr. Stockton, of the Guerriere,
were conspicuously useful. 'These gentlemen were also active
in endeavouring to fire the enemy's ships, though unsuccessful.
Most of these officers, and all their rnen, were ordered to Balti
more, when that town was threatened.
Baltimore was a much more formida;ble place to assail than
Washington, being compact, and containing, at that time, more
than 40,000 souls. Its water defences were respectable,
though it had no other fortifications on the side of the land,
than temporary breastworks of earth. The seamen, both
of the ships of war and of the flotilla, with the marines pre-

1814.] NAVAL HISTORY. 339
sent, were all under the command of Commodore Rodgers,
who made a judicious disposition of his force.
The enemy landed early on the 12th of September, near a
place called North Point. While this was effecting, the British
frigates, sloops, and bomb-vessels, under the command of
Captain Nourse, of the Severn, proceeded up the Patapsco,
with a view to cannonade and bombard the water defences of
the town. Vice-Admiral Cochrane, and Rear-Admiral Mal
colm, were with this squadron. A brigade of seamen accom
panied the army, under Captain Crofton. With this party
Rear-Admiral Cockburn landed in person. The troops, as at
Washington, were led by Major General Ross.
After proceeding about five miles, a small advanced party
of the local militia momentarily checked the march of the
enemy, falling back, agreeably to orders, when it found itself
about to be surrounded. In the trifling skirmish that occurred
at this spot. Major General Ross was killed. A sharper en
counter took place shortly after, in which the Americans had
about 1500 men engaged. On this occasion, the militia had
24 men killed, and 129 wounded. They lost also, 1 officer
and 49 privates, prisoners. According to the accounts of the
enemy, he lost in both affairs, 290 in killed and wounded.
Shortly after the second skirmish, the English retreated to the
place of debarkation, and abandoned the enterprise. The
armed citizens of Baltimore and its vicinity, composed the force
that met the enemy on this occasion.
The attack by water was equally unsuccessful. Fort
M'Henry was bombarded for twenty -four hours, without making
any serious impression on it. A small battery in advance,
manned by officers and men of the flotilla, although much ex
posed, returned the fire to the last. In the course of the night,
a strong brigade of boats pushed into the Ferry Branch, and
would have gained the harbour, had it not been received by a
warm fire from Forts Covington and Babcock, as well as from
the barges of the flotilla. The defence was found to be too
obstinate, and the enemy retreated. Fort Covington was
manned by 80 seamen of the Guerriere, under Mr. Newcomb,
a very excellent young officer of that ship ; and Mr. Webster,
a sailing-master, with 50 men of the flotilla, was in the six-
gun battery called Babcock. The barges were under the
orders of Lieutenant Rutter, the senior officer present, in that
branch of the service. AU these gentlemen, and their several

340 NAVAL HISTORY. [1814
commands, distinguished themselves by their steadiness and
efficiency. The barges, in particular, though exposed for nearly a day
and a night to the shells and rockets of the enemy, maintained
their position with unflinching firmness, and when more closely
attacked, repelled the attempt with ease. At a most critical
moment, several vessels were sunk in the channel, which would
have completely prevented the enemy froni bringing up his
heavy ships, had he seen fit to attempt it. The duty was per
formed with coolness and expedition by Captain Spence.
This failure virtually terminated the warfare in the Chesa
peake, the enemy shortly after collecting most of his forces at
the south, with a view to make a still more serious attempt on
New Orleans. Small predatory expeditions, however, con
tinued in this quarter, to the close of the war, though they led
to no results of sufficient importance to be mentioned. This
warfare was generally beneficial to the American government ;
the excesses into which the enemy were led, whether inten
tionally or not, having the effect to disgust that portion of the
population which had been seriously averse to the conflict ;
and the administration was probably never stronger, than after
the wanton destruction of the public buildings at Washington.
About this time. Captain Barney was exchanged, and he re
sumed his former command, less thanhalf of his flotilla having
been destroyed in the Patuxent.

CHAPTER XXXIX.
The movements in the Chesapeake were made by a force
that was assembled for other and greater objects. "The prin
cipal expedition of the year was not commenced until near the
close of the season,- when Admiral Cochrane, after collecting,
in the different islands, a large number of ships of war, trans
ports, and store-vessels, suddenly appeared off the mouth of
the Mississippi. This was at the commencement of December,
1814, and left no doubt, of a design to make a formidable at
tempt on the important town of New Orleans.
The defences of the place, with the exception of some re-

1814] NAVAL HISTORY. 341
spectable fortifications that commanded the river, were of a
very trifling nature. The latter were formidable, and they
rendered it necessary to make either a descent in some of the
bayoux, by means of boats, or to destroy the works by bom
bardment. As the latter required time, which would allow the
Americans to assemble a force to resist the invasion, and was
of doubtful issue, the former project was adopted.
On the 12th of December, when the enemy's fleet first made
its appearance off the entrance of Lake Borgne, a division of
five gun-boats was in that bay, under the command of Mr.
Thomas Ap Catesby Jones, then a young sea-lieutenant. As
soon as apprised of the appearance of the enemy, Mr. Jones
reconnoitred his force, and, having ascertained its strength, he
retired higher into the bay, with a view to take a position to
command the approaches towards the town. There were se
veral small forts, either at the entrance of Lake Ponchartrain,
or at the mouth of different bayous, or creeks, that put up into
the low swampy grounds below New Orleans, and it was the
intention of Mr. Jones to anchor near one of them, at a place
called les Petites Coquilles. His vessels consisted merely of
gun-boats, No. 5, commanded by Mr. Ferris, a sailing-master,
and mounting 5 guns, with a crew of 36 men ; No. 23, Acting
Lieutenant M'Keever, 5 guns and 39 men ; No. 156, Lieu
tenant Commandant Jones, 5 guns and 41 men ; No. 162,
Acting Lieutenant Spedden, 5 guns and 35 men; and No. 163,
Mr. Ulrick, a sailing-master, 3 guns and 21 men ; making a
united force of 23 guns and 183 men. The metal varied, some
of the boats having two long heavy guns, others but one, and
all having two or three short lighter pieces. The vessels them
selves, like all gun-boats, were low, easy of entrance, slow in
their movements, and totally without quarters.
Some movements of the enemy, who appeared with a large
flotilla of barges and boats in the bay, induced Mr. Jones to
expect an attack, on the 13th, and he got under way from the
position he then held, at 3 30 P. M., to attain les Petites Coquilles,
as mentioned. A small tender, called the Seahorse, had been
despatched into the Bay of St. Louis, a short time previously, to
destroy some stores ; and about 4 o'clock the enemy sent three
boats in after her, to cut her out. The Seahorse carried one
Ught six-pounder, and had but 14 men. She was commanded
by Mr. Johnson, a sailing-master. A few discharges of grape
drove back the boats, which were soon reinforced, however, by
four more, when a spirited engagement ensued. ' This was the
29*

342 NAVAL HISTORY. [1814
commencement of actual hostilities, in the celebrated expedition
against New Orleans. Mr. Johnson having got a position,
where he was sustained by two sixes on the shore, made a
handsome resistance, and the barges retired with some loss.
A few hours later, however, the Seahorse and stores were set
on fire by the Americans themselves, as it was not possible to
prevent them from eventually falling into the hands of a force
as formidable as that brought up by the enemy. Not long
after, another tender, called the Alligator, armed with a four-
pounder, and with a crew of only 8 men, fell into the hands of
the EngUsh.
About 1 A. M. on the 14th, the flotilla, which had been en
deavouring to gain a better position, was compelled to anchor
in the west end of the passage of Malhereux Island, on account
of a failure of wind and the strength of the current. At
daylight the boats of the enemy were seen, having brought up
about three leagues to the eastward. It was a perfect calm,
and a strong ebb tide setting through the Pass, no alternative
was left Mr. Jones, but to prepare obstinately to defend, or to
abandon his vessels. He gaUantly determined on the first,
although the force that would be brought against him was
known to be overwhelming. Arrangements were accordingly
made to resist the expected attack to the utmost. It had been
the intention to form the five gun-boats with springs on their
cables, directly across the channel,, in a close line abreast, but
the force of the current deranged the plan ; Nos. 156 and 163
having been forced about a hundred yards down the Pass, and
that much in advance of the three other boats. The approach
of the enemy prevented an attempt to repair this great disad
vantage, which exposed the vessels mentioned to being' assailed
while, in a measure, unsupported by their consorts. When
the character of the resistance is considered, it appears pro
bable that this accident alone prevented a victory from having
been obtained.
The English flotilla consisted of between 40 and 50 barges
and boats, the former expressly constructed for the purposes
of the invasion, and they are said to have mounted 42 guns,
principally carronades of the caUbers of 12, 18, and 24 pounds.
The number of men embarked in these boats has been com
puted as high as 1200 by some accounts, while by others it
has been put as low as 400. The size and number of the
barges, however, render the latter account imiwobable, ten men

1814] NAVAL HISTORY. 343
to a boat being altogether too few. The truth would most
probably lie between the extremes.
At 10 39, A. M., the enemy raised his grapnels and kedges,
and forming in open order, in a line abreast, he pulled up stea
dily to the attack. When near enough to be reached by shot,
the gun-boats opened a deliberate fire on the approaching
barges, though with little effect, as they presented objects too
small to be aimed at with any accuracy. At 11 10, however,
the enemy opened a fire through his whole line, and the action
immediately became general and destructive. At 11 49, the
enemy was near enough to make an attempt to board 156,
which vessel was much exposed by her advanced position.
Three boats dashed at her, but two were sunk, and the attack
was repulsed. It was renewed by four boats, which were also
beaten off with a heavy loss. In repelling this last attack,
Mr. Jones was unfortunately shot down, when the command de
volved on Mr. Parker, a young midshipman, who defended his
vessel until he was severely wounded himself, and was over
powered by numbers. The enemy got possession of No. 156
at 12 10, and he immediately turned her guns on the other
American boats. No. 163 was next carried, sifter a very gal
lant resistance ; and No. 162 followed, but not until Mr. Sped
den was severely wounded. The twenty-four-pounder of No.
5 had been dismounted by the recoil, and the fire of the cap
tured boats having been turned on her, she was also compelled
to submit. No. 23, Mr. M'Keever, was the last vessel taken,
hauling down her flag about 12 30, when under the fire of the
captured boats, and all the enemy's remaining force. Captain
Lockyer of the Sophie commanded the English flotilla on this
occasion, assisted by Captain Montresor of the Manley, and
Captain Roberts of the Meteor.
Although the loss of this division of gun-boats was a serious
impediment to the defence of New Orleans, both the country
and the service looked upon the result of the combat as a tri
umph. On the latter, in particular, the resistance made by
Mr. Jones, and the officers and men under his orders, reflected
great honour, for it was known to have been made almost with
out hope. Circumstances compelled the assailed to fight to great
disadvantsige, and it would seem that they struggled to render
their chances more equal by a desperate but cool gallantry.
In consequence of the character of this defence, it is usually
thought, in the service, to bestow as much credit on an officer

344 NAVAL HISTORY. [1814
to have been present at the defeat of Lake Borgne, as to have
been present at a signal victory.
There is the same disagreement in the published accounts
of the loss of the British on this occasion, as in the published
accounts of their force. It was the opinion of Lieutenant
Commandant Jones, who was carried on board the enemy's
fleet, that their killed and wounded amounted to nearly 400 ;
while other prisoners, who, from not having been wounded,
had perhaps better opportunities for ascertaining facts of this na
ture, have never placed it lower than between 200 and 300 men.
By the official statement of the enemy, as published, his loss
was 94. As even this was more than half the number of the
Americans engaged, it proves the gallantry of the resistance,
but it is believed that the true account was varied for the pur
poses of effect. The American loss, though severe, was com
paratively trifling.
The command of the naval force at New Orleans had been
given to Captain Patterson, one of the young officers who had
been a prisoner at Tripoli with Captain Bainbridge. Captain
Patterson was a master commandant, and he was assisted by
many excellent officers ; but his force was merely intended to
command the river and the shallow waters in the vicinity of
the town. A ship called the Louisiana had been purchased
and armed with 16 long twenty-fours. Men were pressed in
the streets for the emergency, under a law of the state, and
the command of the vessel was given to Lieutenant C. B.
Thompson. The enemy finding himself in command of Lake Borgne,
by the capture of the gun-boats, sent up a brigade of troops,
under Major General Keane, which succeeded in entering a
bayou, and in landing but a few miles below the town. Here he
encamped, after advancing to some hard ground, on the night of
the 23d of December, with his left flank resting on the Mis
sissippi. No sooner was the position of the British known to
the Americans, than General Jackson marched against them
with all the disposable force he could assemble, making a to
tal of about 1500 men, and by a prompt and spirited night
attack he saved New Orleans. The movements of the troops
on this occasion, were preceded by Captain Patterson's drop
ping down abreast of the English bivouac, in the U. S. schooner
Carolina 14, and opening a most galling fire. The excellent
use made of this little vessel, on the 23d, as well as her con
tinuing to threaten the left flank of the enemy, materially con-

1815.] NAVAL HISTORY. 345
tributed to the general success of the campaign, there being
no question that the check received by the English in the ac
tion just mentioned, alone prevented them from marching into
New Orleans, from which town they were distant only a few
miles. It had been intended that the Louisiana should join in
this attack, but the ship could not be got ready in time.
A few days later, however, the Carolina was very critically
placed. The enemy had landed some guns, and the wind hav
ing blown fresh for some time at N., N. W., it had been found
impossible to ascend the stream against a current that was
even too strong for warping. The armament of the schooner
consisted only of twelve-pound carronades, and one long gun
of the same calibre. On the morning of the 27th, the wind
being quite light at the northward, the enemy opened upon the
Carolina with hot shot and shells, from a five-gun battery.
The cannonade was returned from the long twelve, the only
piece that could be used, but the schooner was soon set on
fire, beneath her cable tiers, and a littie after sunrise Captain
Henley was compelled to give orders to abandon her. Before
this could be effected, 7 men were killed and wounded, and the
vessel was much injured by shot. Shortly after the crew had
got on shore, the Carolina blew up. During four or five of
the most critical days of the campaign, this Uttle vessel ren
dered signal service, and the enemy have always paid a just
tribute to the spirit, judgment, and intrepidity with which she
was managed. Her behaviour on the night of the 23d, re
flected great credit on Captain Patterson, and on all under his
orders. The Louisiana was now the only vessel in the river, ahd
she covered the flank of the American lines. On board this
ship Captain Patterson repaired, after the loss of the Carolina.
On the morning of the 28th, an advance of the enemy against
the American troops, drew a fire from and upon the ship, which
was maintained for seven hours. In the course of this long
cannonade, the Louisiana threw 800 shot among the enemy,
suffering very Uttle in return.
After the destruction of the Carolina, her officers and people
volunteered to man some of the heavy guns that were mounted
on the American lines, and they had a share in all the subse
quent successes obtained on shore. Captain Patterson also erect
ed a battery on the right bank of the river, which was put up
under the orders of Captain Henley, and was of material use.
On the 8th of January the English made their grand assault,
and were defeated with dreadful slaughter. In this extraordi-

346 NAVAL HISTORY. [1815.
nary battie, the loss of the enemy was computed at from two
to three thousand men ; more than two thousand having been
kiUed and wounded. The seamen's battery on the right bank
of the river was temporarily abandoned, but the Louisiana was
of great use, and the officers and men of the service distin
guished themselves by their activity, zeal, and courage. On
this occasion Captain Henley was wounded. One gun in par
ticular, commanded by Mr. Philibert, a midshipman, was serv
ed in a manner to attract general attention. The Louisiana
continued to assist in annoying the enemy, until the night of
the 18th, when the English retreated to their boats, and em
barked, abandonihg their attempt altogether.
Captain Patterson immediately despatched several officers,
in command of expeditions, to intercept and annoy the enemy
on their retreat, though the want of a direct communication
between the river and the lakes, prevented the employment of
any vessels larger than boats, on this service. Mr. Thomas
Shields, a purser, who had previously been a sea-officer, and
who had 6 boats and 50 men under his orders,'was so fortu
nate as to capture one of the enemy's large boats, with 40 offi
cers and men of the 14th light dragoons, and 14 seamen on
board. After securing these prisoners, Mr. Shields captured
a barge and a transport schooner, and subsequently five other
boats, making in all 83 more prisoners. Some skirmishing
occurred, and Mr. Shields lost one or two of his prizes and a
few of his prisoners ; but he succeeded in bringing in with him
78 of the latter, besides destroying several boats. Mr. John
son, a sailing-master, also performed some service of the same
nature with credit, destroying a transport and capturing a party
of men.
In all the important service performed in front of New Or
leans, during this short but arduous campaign, the navy had
a full share, though its means were necessarily limited. Cap
tain Patterson, Captain Henley, Lieutenants Jones, Thompson,
M'Keever, Spedden, Cunningham, Norris, Crowley, with sev
eral sailing-masters and midshipmen, distinguished themselves
on different occasions. The service also witnessed with par
ticular satisfaction the intelUgence and spirited conduct of Mr.
Shields, an officer who had received his training in its own
school. The marine corps had its share, too, in the honour
of this glorious campaign, a small detachment of it having
acted with its usual good conduct, under the command of Ma
jor Carmick, who was wounded in the affair of the 28th of
December.

1812.] NAVAL HISTORY. 347

CHAPTER XL.
We have now reached a period when it has become proper
to advert to events on the different lakes, which were the scenes
of some of the most important, as well as of the most interest
ing incidents of the war. In order to do this, it will be necessary
to return to the commencement of hostilities, for the whole of
this portion of the subject has been reserved, in order to lay it
before the reader in a continued narrative, having no immediate
connexion with the war on the ocean.
The English government had long maintained a small naval
force on the great lakes ; though much the larger portion of
Champlain being within the jurisdiction of the United States, it
had kept no cruiser on that water. On Lake Ontario, how
ever, there were several vessels, as early as the commence
ment of the century, one of which was a ship called the Earl
of Moira. When the American government caused the Oneida
16 to be buUt, that of the Canadas laid down the keel of a ship
called the Royal George, which was pierced for 22 guns,
and which was about one-half larger than the American
vessel. The Oneida was manned and equipped at the declaration of
the war, and was still under the command of Mr. Woolsey,
who had built her four years previously. The naval station
on the American side of the lake, was at Sackett's Harbour, a
beautiful and safe basin, not far frpm the commencement of
the St. Lawrence ; while that of.' the British was nearly oppo
site, at Kingston. The enemy, however^ had' greatly the ad
vantage in ports, those of the north shore of this lake being
generally the most commodious' and easy of entrance, though
probably not as numerous as those of the south. The English
also possessed a material advantage over the Americahs, in
all the warfare of this region of country, whether on the water,
or on the land, in the age and more advanced civilisation, ahd,
consequently, in the greater resources of the settlements on
their southern frontier, over those on the northern frontier of
the United States.
The great superiority of the enemy in force, notwithstanding
his known inferiority in discipline and comparative efficiency.

348 NAVAL HISTORY. [1812.
prevented Lieutenant Commandant Woolsey from inviting hos
tilities, which were permitted to come from the enemy. On
the 1 9th of July, or about a month after war was declared, five
sail were discovered from the fort at Sackett's Harbour, a few
leagues in the offing ; and shortly after, they captured a boat
belonging to the custom-house, which they sent in, with a de
mand that the Oneida should be surrendered to them, as well
as a schooner called the Lord Nelson, that had lieen captured
not long before by the brig. The Oneida now got under way,
and ran down, to windward of the enemy's squadron, to try
her sailing, and, if possible, to pass it, with a view to escape.
Finding the latter impracticable, however. Lieutenant Com
mandant Woolsey beat back into the harbour, and anchored
his brig close under a bank, where she could rake the entrance.
All the guns of her off side were landed and mounted on the
shore, presenting a force of 16 twenty-four-pound carronades _
in battery. On a height that commanded the offing, as well
as the entrance, was a small fort ; and here a long thirty-two-
pounder, that had been originally intended for the Oneida, in
her legal character of a gun-boat, was mounted ; and the
enemy still remaining outside, Mr. Woolsey repaired to the
spot, and took charge of the piece in person.
The enemy kept turning to windward, and having got
within gun-shot, he opened a slow, irregular, and ill-directed
fire on the fort, brig, and batteries. His fire was returned ;
and, after a cannonade of about two hours, the English vessels
bore up, and stood back towards Kingston. This was the
commencement of hostilities on the lakes, and it fully proved
the incompetency of the officers in charge of the enemy's force,
for the duty with which they had been entrusted. The English
vessels consisted of the Royal George 22, Prince Regent 16,
Earl of Moira 14, Duke of Gloucester, Seneca, and the Simcoe.
On the part of the Americans, no harm was done ; while the
enemy is believed to have received some trifling injuries.
It is probable that the government of Canada was itself dis
satisfied with the result of this first experiment of its naval
forces, for soon after arrangements were made to send officers
and men who belonged to the royal navy, upon the lakes. It
was apparent to both nations, that the command of the inland
waters was of great importance in carrying on the war of the
frontiers, and each of the belligerents commenced systematic
operations to obtain it. As the enemy was already much the
strongest on Ontario, it was incumbent on the American go-

1812.] NAVAL HISTORY. 349
vernment to take the first measures, and it set about them in
earnest, very shortly after the beginning of hostilities. It being
evident that the command was one of the most important that
had ever been confided to an American officer, great care was
necessary in the selection of the individual to whom this highly
responsible and arduous duty was to be entrusted. The choice
of the department fell on Captain Isaac Chauncey, then at the
head of the New York navy-yard. His orders were dated
August Slst, 1812, and on the 6th of October, he arrived at
Sackett's Harbour in person. Forty ship-carpenters left New
York in the first week of September, and more followed im
mediately. Instructions were sent to Mr. Woolsey, to pur
chase sundry small merchant vessels ; and on the 18th of Sep
tember, 100 officers and seamen left New York for Sackett's
Harbour, with guns, shot, stores, &c.
The vessels used by the Americans in the navigation of
Lake Ontario, were schooners, varying in size from 30 to 100
tons ; and the first measure of Commodore Chauncey was to
purchase a sufficient number of these craft to obtain the com
mand of the lake, until others better fitted for war could be
constructed. A selection of the most eligible was accordingly
made by Mr. Woolsey ; they were bought, armed, equipped,
manned, and put into the service, under the names of the
Hamilton, Governor Tompkins, Conquest, Growler, Julia, Pert,
&c., &c. Neither of these schooners had the construction or
the qualities requisite for a vessel of war, but they were the best
for the service contemplated that could then be found on those
waters. Without quarters, their armaments consisted princi
pally of long guns, mounted on circles, with a few of a lighter
description, that could be of no material service, except in re-
peUing boarders. The keel of a ship to mount 24 thirty-two-
pound carronades, however, was laid down in September, or
before the commanding officer reached the station.
In conjunction with the Oneida, the entire flotilla that could
be made immediately available mounted 40 guns, and it was
manned with 430 men, the marines included. As the arma
ment of the Oneida was just 16 guns, it follows that there was
an average of 4 guns each, among the six other vessels. At
this time, the enemy was said to possess on Ontario, the Royal
George 22, Earl of Moira 14, both ships; and the schooners
Prince Regent 16, Duke of Gloucester 14, Simcoe 12, and
Seneca 4 ; making a force in guns, more than double that of
the Americans, with a proportionate disparity in the number of
30

350 NAVAL HISTORY. [1812,
the men. As cruising vessels, the enemy's squadron pos
sessed an advantage in their size and construction, that greatiy
increased their superiority.
Previously to the war of 1812, there was no vessel on the
upper lakes, that properly belonged to the American marine.
A brig, called the Adams, however, had been constructed on
these waters, for the convenience of the war department,
which, under its own officers, had long found it useful in the
transportation of stores and military supplies. By the capture
of Michigan, the Adams fell into the hands of the enemy, who
changed her name to the Detroit, and took her into their ser
vice. At this time, the enemy possessed two or three other
vessels on the upper lakes, and of course, this capture, for the
moment, gave them complete command of the waters be
tween the outlet of Lake Erie and the head of Lake Mich
igan. With a view to counteract this ascendency, Lieutenant J.
D. Elliot was sent by Commodore Chauncey to the upper
lakes, about the time that the latter officer appeared at Sack
ett's Harbour, with directions to purchase any suitable vessels
that might be found, and to make preparations also for the
creation of the necessary force in that quarter. While Mr.
Elliot was thus employed, a fortunate concurrence of circum
stances, put it in the power of this officer to plan a blow at the
enemy, of which he availed himself with a spirit and prompti
tude that were highly creditable. On the morning of the 7th
of October, the Detroit came down the lake, in company with
another brig, called the Caledonia, and anchored under Fort
Erie ; and that very day intelligence was received that the
first party of seamen intended for the lake, was within a short
march of the Niagara frontier. Orders were accordingly sent
to hasten their arrival, which actually took place about noon
of the same day.
Finding that the men were without arms, Mr. EUipt applied
to Brigadier General Smythe, the off.cer in command of the
troops on that frontier, who not only furnished the necessary
means, but who permitted about fifty soldiers to volunteer to
aid in the enterprise.
Two of the large boats used in those waters, containing
about 50 men each, partly seamen and partly soldiers, were
prepared for the service, and a small boat, or two, v/ere
manned by a few citizens. The party attempted to pull out
of Buffalo Creek, early in the evening of the 7 th ; but the large

1812.] NAVAL HISTORY. 351
"""unded on the bar. Here some delay occurred, it being
.;ssary for most on board to get into the water, before
d make the boats float again. It was consequently
^r when the adventurers reached the stream.
..is the enemy lay near their own shore, the party pulled
some distance up the lake in order to get above his vessels,
before they edged away. It was past midnight when they got
near the two brigs, the Detroit lying highest up stream, and
farthest from the land. 'The boat destined to attack the Cale
donia was directed to lead, in order that both vessels might be
assaulted as nearly as possible at the same moment. This
boat was under the orders of Mr. Watts, a sailing-master, sup
ported by Captain Towson of the artillery ; while Mr. Elliott,
in person, had charge of the other boat, in which were Lieu
tenant Roach of the artillery, and Ensign Pressman of the
infantry. As the leading boat crossed the bow of the Detroit, the en
emy took the alarm, and the party of Mr. Elliott, as it ap
proached, received two volleys of musketry. Without regard
ing this, both boats pulled steadily on, that which led reaching
the Caledonia in proper time, but it would seem that one of the
grapnels missed, and she fell so far astern as to allow the en
emy to make a stout resistance. Here the decision and spirit
of Captain Towson were of material service, and the vessel
was captured. Lieutenant Roach of the army, who was ac
customed to the duty, steered the boat of Mr. Elliott, which
was laid alongside of the Detroit with great steadiness and ac
curacy, when the party went aboard of the enemy, Lieutenants
Elliott and Roach leading. The former had a narrow escape,
his hat having been struck from his head, and at the same in
stant he nearly cleft the skull of the English commander, who
discovered the greatest resolution. Being well supported, this
brig was carried with great rapidity.
In this handsome affair one man was killed, and a few were
wounded, including Mr. Cummings a midshipman, in the boat
of Mr. Elliott ; while that of Mr. Watts, owing to the circum
stance mentioned, sustained rtither more loss. Mr. Elliott re
ported the Detroit as carrying six long nines, and to have had
a crew of fifty-six souls. The Caledonia mounted but two
guns, and had a much smaller complement of men. About
thirty American prisoners were found in the former vessel, and
ten in the latter.
The Caledonia was brought successfuUy over to the Ameri-

352 NAVAL HISTORY. [1812.
can side, but the Detroit met with greater difficulty. Mr. El
liott found himself obliged to drop down the river, passing the
forts under a brisk fire, and anchoring within reach of their
guns. Here a cannonade took place, during which fruitless
efforts were made to get Unes to the American shore, in order
to warp the brig across. Finding himself assailed by the guns
of the enemy's works, as well as by some light artillery, Mr.
EUiott determined to cut, and drop out of the reach of the first,
believmg himself able to resist the last. This plan succeeded
in part, but the pilot having left the vessel, she brought up on
Squaw Island. The prisoners were now sent on shore, and
shortly after Mr. Elliott left her, with a view to obtain assist
ance. About this time the enemy boarded the prize, but were
soon driven out of her, by the artillery of Lieutenant Colonel
Scott, the Detroit being commanded equally by the guns on
both sides of the Niagara. Under such circumstances, the
vessel was effectually rendered unfit for service, and in the end,
after removing most of her stores, she was burned by the
Americans. This was the first naval success obtained by either nation,
in the warfare on the lakes, and it was deemed a fortunate
commencement for the Americans, oh waters where they might
hope to contend with their powerful foes on an equality. The
conduct of Mr. Elliott was much applauded, and Congress
voted him a sword. His promptitude and decision were of
great service, and it adds to the merit of all engaged, that the
Caledonia was thought to be a brig of a force much superior
to what she proved to be, when they left the shore. The army
had an equal share, ih the credit of this dashing little enter
prise. Captain Towson, who, in effect, commanded one of the
boats, though it was necessarily managed by a sea-officer, hav
ing particularly shown decision and conduct. The names of
Lieutenant Roach of the artillery. Ensign Pressman of the
infantry, and of several volunteers from Buffalo, were also
included in the eulogies of the commanding officer.
Not long after this successful exploit, part of the crew of'
the John Adams 28, which had been laid up at New York,
reached Buffalo, to help man the vessels government intended to
equip on Lake Erie. Mr. Angus, his senior officer, accompa
nying this party, and there being a want of lieutenants on the
other lake, Mr. EUiott now went below to join the force im
mediately under the orders of Commodore Chauncey. Before
quittmg this station, however, this officer had contracted for

1812.] NAVAL HISTORY. 353
several schooners, that lay in the Niagara, but which it was
subsequently found difficult to get into the lake on account of
the enemy's batteries.
Commodore Chauncey first appeared on the lake on the 8th
of November, with his broad pennant flying on board the Onei
da 16, Lieutenant Commandant Woolsey, and having in com
pany the Conquest, Lieutenant Elliott ; HamUton, Lieutenant
M'Pherson ; Governor Tompkins, Lieutenant Brown ; Pert,
Mr. Arundel ; Julia, Mr. Trant ; and Growler, Mr. Mix ; the
three last named officers holding the rank of saUing-masters.
The object in going out, was to intercept the return of the en
emy's vessels, most of which were known to have been to the
westward, conveying supplies to the army at Kingston. In
order to effect this purpose, the American squadron, or flotilla,
for it scarcely merited the former term, went off the False
Ducks, some small islands that lie in the track of vessels keep
ing the north shore aboard. As it approached the intended
station, a ship was made in-shore. She was soon ascertained
to be the Royal George, then much the largest vessel that had
ever been constructed on the inland waters of America. That
a ship of her force should feel it necessary to retire before the
Oneida, must be attributed to the circumstance of her not be
ing properly officered, the enemy not having yet made their
drafts from the royal navy for the service on the lakes. Com
modore Chauncey chased the Royal George into the Bay of
Quinte, and lost sight of her in the night. The next morning,
however, she was seen again, lying in the narrow passage that
leads down to Kingston. Signal was immediately made for a
general chase, which was vigorously kept up, with alternate
squalls and light airs, until the enemy was fairly driven in
under the protection of his own batteries.
Although the wind blew directly in, and made a retreat dif
ficult, Commodore Chauncey decided to follow the enemy, and
feel his means of defence, with an intention of laying the ship
aboard, should it be found practicable. Arrangements for that
purpose were accordingly made, and a little before 3 P. M.
the vessels that were up, got into their stations, and stood to
wards the mouth of the harbour. The Conquest, Lieutenant
Elliott, led in handsome style, followed by the Julia, Mr. Trant,
Pert, Mr. Arundel, and Growler, Mr. Mix, in the order named.
The Oneida brought up the rear, it being intended to give time
for the heavy guns of the schooners to open the way for a
closer attack by the brig. The Hamilton and Governor Tomp-
30*

354 NAVAL HISTORY. [1812.
kins were a considerable distance astern, having been sent to
chase,^ and did not close for some time.
At five minutes past 3, the batteries on India and Navy
Points opened on the Conquest, but their fire was not returned
until seven minutes later. In three minutes after the Conquest
commenced firing, she was joined by the other three schooners
in advance. The gun of the Pert bursted at the third dis
charge. By this accident, Mr. Arundel, her commander, was
badly, and a midshipman and three men were slightly wound
ed. The vessel was rendered, in a great degree, useless for
the remainder of the day. The Oneida, though under fire for
some time previously, did not open with her carronades on the
Royal George, until forty minutes past 3 ; but when she did
commence, the enemy was soon thrown into confusion, and at
4 P. M. he cut his cables, ran deeper into the bay, and made
fast to a wharf, directly under the protection of the muskets
of the troops. Here, a part of her people actually deserted her,
though they subsequently returned on board. Soon after, the
Governor Tompkins, Lieutenant Brown, bore up off the har
bour in a beautiful manner, and engaged, having been preceded
some time, with equal gallantry, by the Hamilton, Lieutenant
M'Pherson. The action became warm and general, and was
maintained with spirit for half an hour, the^enemy firing from
five batteries, the ship, and some moveable guns. It was now
so near night, the wind blew so directly in, and the weather
looked so threatening, that the pilots declared their unwilling
ness to be responsible any longer for the vessels ; and Commo
dore Chauncey, who found the enemy much stronger on shore
than he had been taught to believe, made the signal for the
flotilla to haul off. When an offing of about two miles had
been gained, the squadron anchored, with an intention to renew
the attack in the morning.
In this spirited affajr, which partook of the character of the
assaults on Tripoli, and which, after a due allowance is made
for the difference in the force employed, was probably inferior
to none of the cannonades on that town, for gallantry and
vigour, the Americans suffered much less than might have
been expected. The Oneida had one man killed and three
wounded, and she received some damage aloft. The other
vessels escaped even better, the audacity of the attack, as is so
often the case, producing a sort of impunity. Mr. Arundel, of
the Pert, however, who had refused to quit the deck, though

1812,] NAVAL HISTORY. 355
badly wounded, was unfortunately knocked overboard and
drowned, while the vessel was beating up to her anchorage.
The vessels shortly after returned to port, bringing in with
them two or three small prizes.
Intelligence reaching Commodore Chauncey that the Earl
of Moira was off the Ducks, he sailed on the 13th with the
Oneida, in a snow storm, to capture her ; but the enemy was
too much on the alert to be caught by surprise, and the dis
tances on the lake were too short to admit of his being easily
overtaken in chase. The Oneida saw the Royal George and
two schooners, but even these three vessels were not disposed
to engage the American brig singly. The two schooners in
company with the Royal George on this occasion, were sup
posed to be the Prince Regent and the Duke of Gloucester.
Commodore Chauncey then went off Oswego to cover some
stores expected by water. During this short cruise the Oneida
narrowly escaped shipwreck, and the ice made so fast, that at
one time, it would have been impossible to work the carronades
had there been a necessity for it. The Conquest, Tompkins,
Growler, and Hamilton, notwithstanding, continued to cruise
off Kingston, until the 17th of November. On the 19th the
Commodore attempted to go to the head of the lake, but was
driven back by a gale, during which so much ice was made
as to endanger the vessels. The Growler was dismasted.
Early in December the navigation closed for the season.
While these events were occurring on the lower lake, the
navy was not altogether unemployed on the upper waters.
Towards the close of November, it was believed that the ar
rangements were in a sufficient degree of forwardness to admit
of an attempt to drive the enemy from the batteries that lined
the opposite shore of the Niagara in order to clear the way for
the landing of a brigade of troops. To aid it in executing this
important service, the army naturally turned its eyes for pro
fessional assistance towards the body of seamen collected at
this point.
The men of the John Adams had encamped in the woods,
near the river, and finding the enemy in the practice of can
nonading across the Niagara, shortly after their arrival they
dove into the wreck of the Detroit, at night, made fast to, and
succeeded in raising four of that vessel's guns, with a large
quantity of shot. "These pieces were mounted in battery, and
a desultory cannonading was maintained, by both parties, until
the arrival of some heavy guns from the seaboard, when the

356 NAVAL HISTORY. [1819.
Americans got a force in battery, that enabled them completely
to maintain their ground against their adversaries. In this
manner, more than a month had passed, when the application
was made to Mr. Angus, for some officers and seamen to assist
in carrying and silencing the batteries opposite, in order to
favour the intended descent. The arrangements were soon
completed, and the morning of the 28th of November was
chosen for the undertaking.
The contemplated invasion having separate points in view,
the expedition was divided into two parties. One, commanded
by Captain King of the 15th infantry, was directed to ascend
the current a little, in order to reach its point of attack, while
the other was instructed to descend it, in about an equal pro
portion. The first being much the most arduous at the oars,
the seamen were wanted especially for this service. Mr.
Angus accordingly embarked in 10 boats, with 70 men, ex
clusively of officers, and accompanied by Captain King, at the
head of a detachment of 150 soldiers. With this party went
. Mr. Samuel Swartwout of New York, as a volunteer. Lieu
tenant Colonel Boerstier commanded 10 more boats, which
conveyed the detachment, about 200 strong, that was to de
scend with the current.
The division containing the seamen left the American shore
about 1 A. M. with muffled oars, and pulled deliberately,
and in beautiful order into the stream. That the enemy was
ready to meet them is certain, and it is probable he was
aware of an intention to cross that very night. Still all was
quiet on the Canada side, until the boats had passed out of the
shadows of the forest into a stronger light, when they were
met with a discharge of musketry and a fire from two field-pieces,
that were placed in front of some barracks known by the name
of the Red House. The effect of this reception was to produce
a little confusion and disorder, and some of the officers and a
good many men being killed or wounded, all the boats did not
gain the shore. Those in which efficient officers remained,
however, dashed on, in the handsomest manner, and the seamen
in them landed in an instant. A body of the enemy was
' drawn up in front of the barracks, with their left flank covered
by the two guns. As soon as the troops could be formed, the
enemy's fire was returned and a short conflict occurred. At
this juncture a small party of seamen armed with pikes and
pistols, headed by Mr. Watts, a sailing-master, and Mr. Hold
up, made a detour round the foot of the hill, and charging the

1812.] NAVAL HISTORY. 357
artillerists, took the guns in the most gallant manner, mortally
wounding and capturing Lieutenant King, who commanded
them. At the same instant the remaining seamen and the
troops charged in front, when the enemy broke and took refuge
in the barracks.
The enemy's fire was now very destructive, and it became
indispensable to dislodge him. Several spirited young mid
shipmen were with the party ; and three of them, Messrs.
Wragg, Holdup, and Dudley, with a few men, succeeded in
bursting open a window, through which they made an entrance.
This gallant little party unbarred an outer door, when Mr.
Angus and the seamen rushed in. In an instant, the straw on
which the soldiers slept was on fire, and the barracks were
immediately wrapt in flames. The enemy, a party of grena
diers, was on the upper floor, and finding it necessary to re
treat, he made a vigorous charge, and escaped by the rear of
the building. Here he rallied, and was attacked by Captain
King, who had formed outside.
The party of seamen and soldiers now got separated, in con
sequence of an order having been given to retreat, though it is
not known from what quarter it proceeded, and a portion of
both the seamen and the soldiers fell back upon the boats and
re-embarked. Mr. Angus, finding every effort useless to stop
this retreat, retired with his men. But Captain King, with a
party of the troops, still remained engaged, and with him were
a few seamen, with Messrs. Wragg, Dudley, and Holdup at
their head. These young officers fell in with the soldiers, and
a charge being ordered, the enemy again broke and fled into a
battery. He was followed, and driven from place to place,
until, entirely routed, he left Captain King in complete com
mand of all the batteries at that point.
Believing that their part of the duty was performed, the
young sea-officers who had remained, now retired to the shore,
and crossed to the ^American side, in the best manner they
could. Most of the seamen, who were not killed, got back,
by means of their professional knowledge ; but Captain King,
and several officers of the army, with 60 men, fell into the
enemy's hands, in consequence of not having the means of
retreat. The attack of Colonel Boerstier succeeded, in a great
degree, and his party was brought off.
Although this affair appears to have been very confused, the
fighting was of the most desperate character. The impression
made by the seamen with their pikes, was long remembered.

358 NAVAL HISTORY. [1812.
and their loss was equal to their gallantry. The enemy was
effectually beaten, and nothing but a misunderstanding, which
is said to have grown out of the fact that the boats which did
not come ashore at all, were supposed to have landed and then
retreated, prevented the attack from being completely success
ful. StUl, the batteries were carried, guns spiked, barracks
burned, and caissons destroyed.
Owing to the nature of the service and the great steadiness
of the enemy, who behaved extremely well, this struggle was
exceedingly sanguinary. Of twelve sea-officers engaged, eight
were wounded, two of them mortally. The entire loss of the
party was about 30 in killed and wounded, which was quite
half of all who landed, though some were hurt who did not
reach the shore. The troops behaved in the most gallant
manner also, and many of their officers were wounded. Both
Mr. Angus and Captain King, gained great credit for their
intrepidity. As none of the great lakes are safe to navigate in December,
this closed the naval warfare for the year, though both nations
prepared to turn the winter months to the best account, while
the coasts were ice-bound.

CHAPTER XLI.
Both parties employed the winter of 1812-13 in building.
In the course of the autumn, the Americans had increased
their force to eleven sail, ten of which were the smaU schoon
ers bought from the merchants, and fitted with gun-boat arma
ments, without quarters. In addition to the vessels already
named, were the Ontario, Scourge, Fair American and Asp.
Neither of the ten was fit to cruise ; and an ordinary eighteen-
gun brig ought to have been able to cope with them all, in a
good working breeze, at close quarters. At long shot, how
ever, and in smooth water, they were not without a certain
efficiency. As was proved in the end, in attacking batteries,
and in covering descents, they were found to be exceedingly
serviceable. On the 26th of November, the new ship was launched at

1812.] NAVAL HISTORY. 359
Sackett's Harbour, and was called the Madison. She was
pierced for 24 guns, and her metal was composed of thirty-
two-pound carronades, rendering her a little superior to the
Royal George. Nine weeks before this ship was put into the
water, her timber was growing in the forest. This unusual
expedition, under so many unfavourable circumstances, is to
be ascribed to the excellent dispositions of the commanding
officer, and to the clear head, and extraordinary resources of
Mr. Henry Eckford, the builder employed, whose professional
qualities proved to be of the highest order.
On the other hand, the enemy laid the keel of a ship a little
larger than the Madison, which would have effectually secured
the command df the lake, notwithstanding the launching of the
latter, as their small vessels were altogether superior to those
of the Americans ; and the Royal George was perhaps strong
enough to engage two brigs of the force of the Oneida. It
became necessary, therefore, to lay down a new ship at Sack
ett's Harbour, and for this purpose a fresh gang of shipwrights
went up in February.
About this time, the enemy made choice of Captain Sir James
Lucas Yeo, to command on the American lakes.
In the meantime, preparations were made for constructing a
force on Lake Erie, two brigs having been laid down at
Presque Isle, (now Erie,) during the month of March.
Fresh parties of seamen began to arrive at Kingston in
March, where the new ship was fast getting ready.
On the 6th of April Mr. Eckford put into the water, on the
American side, a beautiful little pilot-boat schooner, that was
intended for a look-out and despatch vessel. She was armed
with merely one long brass nine on a pivot, and was called the
Lady of the Lake. Two days later, the keel of the new ship
was laid. She was considerably larger than the Madison.
About the middle of the month, the lake was considered
safe to navigate, and on the 19th, the squadron was reported
ready for active service. On the 22d, accordingly, General
Dearborn caused a body of 1700 men to be embarked, and on
the 24th, owing to the impatience of the army, which suffered
much by being crowded into small vessels, an attempt was
made to get out. The commodore, however, agreeably to his
own expectations, was obUged to return, it blowing a gale.
These few days had a very injurious effect on the health of
both branches of the service, as there was not sufficient room
for the men to remain below, and on deck they were exposed

360 NAVAL HISTORY. [1813.
to the inclemency of the season. The Madison alone, a mere
sloop of war, had 600 souls in her, including her own people.
On the 25th, however, the squadron, consisting of the Madi
son, Lieutenant Commandant Elliott, Commodore Chauncey ;
Oneida, Lieutenant Commandant Woolsey ; Fair American,
Lieutenant Chauncey ; Hamilton, Lieutenant M'Pherson ; Go
vernor Tompkins, Lieutenant Brown ; Conquest, Mr. Mallaby ;
Asp, Lieutenant Smith ; Pert, Lieutenant Adams ; Julia, Mr.
Trant; Growler, Mr. Mix; Ontario, Mr. Stevens; Scourge,
Mr. Osgood ; Lady of the Lake, Mr. Flinn ; and Raven, trans
port, got out, and it arrived off York, on the morning of the
26th, without loss of any sort. All the vessels ran in and an
chored about a mile from the shore, to the southward and west
ward of the principal fort.
Great steadiness and promptitude were displayed in effecting
a landing. The wind was blowing fresh from the eastward,
but the boats were hoisted out, manned, and received the
troops, with so much order, that in two hours from the com
mencement of the disembarkation, the whole brigade was on
shore, under the command of Brigadier General Pike. The
wind drove the boats to leeward of the place that had been
selected for the landing, which was a clear field, to a point
where the Indians and sharp-shooters of the enemy had a co
ver ; but the advance party was thrown ashore with great gal
lantry, and it soon cleared the bank and thickets, with a loss
of about 40 men. This movement was covered by a rapid
discharge of grape from the vessels. As soon as a sufficient
number of troops had got ashore, they were formed by General
Pike in person, who moved on to the assault. The small ves
sels now beat up, under a brisk fire from the fort and batteries,
until they had got within six hundred yards of the principal
work, when they opened with effect on the enemy, and contri
buted largely to the success of the day. The commodore
directed the movements in person, pulling in in his gig, and
encouraging his officers by the coolness with which he moved
about, under the enemy's fire. There never was a disem
barkation more successfully, or more spiritedly made, consi
dering the state of the weather, and the Umited means of the
- assailants. In effecting this service, the squadron had two
midshipmen slain, and 15 men killed and wounded, mostly
while employed in the boats. After sustaining some loss by
an explosion that killed Brigadier General Pike, the troops so
far carried the place, that it capitulated. It remained in peace-

1813.] NAVALHISTORY. 361
able possession of the Americans until the 1st of May, when
it was evacuated to proceed on other duty.
The capture of "York was attended with many important
results, that fully established the wisdom of the enterprise.
Although the Prince Regent, the third vessel of the enemy,
escaped, by having sailed on the 24th for Kingston, the Duke
of Gloucester, which had been undergoing repairs, fell into
the hands of the Americans. A vessel of twenty guns, that
was nearly finished, was burnt, and a large amount of naval
and military stores was also destroyed. A very considerable
quantity of the latter, however, was saved, shipped, and sent
to Sackett's Harbour. Many boats that had been built for the
transportation of troops were also taken. In the entire man
agement of this handsome exploit, the different vessels appear
to have been well conducted, and they contributed largely to
the complete success which crowned the enterprise.
Although the brigade re-embarked on the 1st of May, the
squadron was detained at York until the 8th, by a heavy ad
verse gale of wind. The men were kept much on deck for
more than a week, and the exposure produced many cases of
fever, in both branches of the service. More than a hundred
of the sailors were reported ill, and the brigade, which had
lost 269 men in the attack, the wounded included, was now
reduced by disease to about 1000 effectives. As soon as the
weather permitted, the commanding naval and army officers
crossed in the Lady of the Lake, and selected a place for an
encampment about four miles to the eastward of Fort Niagara,
when the vessels immediately followed and the troops disem
barked. As soon as released from this great incumbrance on his
movements. Commodore Chauncey sailed for the Harbour,
with a view to obtain supplies, and to bring up reinforcements
for the army. A few of the schooners remained near the
head of the lake, but the greater part of the squadron went
below, where it arrived on the llth. The small vessels were
now employed in conveying stores and troops to the division
under General Dearborn, which was reinforcing fast by arri
vals from different directions.
On the 15th of this month the enemy had advanced so far
with his new ship, which was called the Wolfe, as to have got
in her lower masts, and expedition became necessary, an ac
tion for the command of the lake being expected, as soon as
this vessel was ready to come out. On the 16th, 100 men
31

362 NAVAL HISTORY. [1813.
were sent to the upper lakes, where Captain Perry, then a
young master and commander, had been ordered to assume
the command, some months previously. On the 22d, the Ma
dison, with the commodore's pennant. stUl flying in her, em
barked 350 troops, and sailed for the camp to the eastward of
the mouth of the Niagara, where she arrived and disembarked
the men on the 25th. The Fair American, Lieutenant Chaun
cey, and Pert, Acting Lieutenant Adams, were immediately
ordered down to watch the movements of the enemy at King
ston, and preparations were made, without delay, for a descent
on Fort George. On the 26th Commodore Chauncey recon
noitred the enemy's coast, and his position ; and that night he
sounded his shore, in person, laying buoys for the government
of the movements of the small vessels, which it was intended
to send close in. The weather being more favourable, the
Madison, Oneida, and Lady of the Lake, which could be of
no use in the meditated attack, on account of their armaments,
received on board all the heavy artillery of the army, and as
many troops as they could carry, while the rest of the soldiers
embarked in boats.
At 3 A. M., on the 27th of May, the signal was made to
weigh, and the army having previously embarked, at 4 the
squadron stood towards the Niagara. As the vessels ap
proached the point of disembarkation, the wind so far failed,
as to compel the small vessels to employ their sweeps. The
Growler, Mr. Mix, and Julia, Mr. Trant, swept into the mouth
of the river, and opened on a battery near the lighthouse.
The Ontario, Mr. Stevens, anchored more to the northward to
cross their fire. The Hamilton, Lieutenant M'Pherson, the
Asp, Lieutenant Smith, and the Scourge, Mr. Osgood, were di
rected to stand close in, to cover the landing, to scour the
woods, or any point where the enemy might show himself,
with grape-shot ; while the Governor Tompkins, Lieutenant
Brown, and Conquest, Lieutenant Pettigrew, were sent farther
to the westward to attack a battery that mounted one heavy
gun. Captain Perry had come down from the upper lake on the
evening of the 25th, and on this occasion was the sea-officer
second in rank, present. Commodore Chauncey confided to
him the duty of attending to the disembarkation of the troops.
The marines of the squadron were embodied with the regiment
of Colonel Macomb, and 400 seamen held in reserve, to land,

1813.] NAVAL HISTORY. 363
if necessary, under the immediate orders of the commodore in
person. When all was ready, the schooners swept into their stations,
in the handsomest manner, opening their fire with effect. The
boats that contained the advance party, under Colonel Scott,
were soon in motion, taking a direction towards the battery near
Two Mile Creek, against which the Governor Tompkins and
Conquest had been ordered to proceed. The admirable man
ner in which the first of these two little vessels was conducted,
drew the applause of all who witnessed it, on Mr. Brown and
his people. This officer swept into his station, under fire, in
the steadiest manner, anchored, furled his sails, cleared his
decks, and prepared to engage, with as much coolness and
method, as if coming-to in a friendly port. He then opened
with his long gun, with a precision that, in about ten minutes,
literally drove the enemy from the battery, leaving the place to
his dead. The boats dashed in, under Captain Perry, and
Colonel Scott effected a landing with the steadiness and gal
lantry for which that officer is so distinguished. The enemy
had concccded a strong party in a ravine, and he advanced to
repel tbe boats ; but the grape and the canister of the schooners,
and the steady conduct of the troops, soon drove him back.
The moment the command of Colonel Scott got ashore, the suc
cess of the day was assured. He was sustained by the re
mainder of the brigade to which he belonged, then commanded
by Brigadier General Boyd, and after a short but sharp con
flict, the enemy weis driven from the field. The landing was
made about 9 A. M., and by 12 M. the town and fort were in
quiet possession of the Americans, the British blowing up and
evacuating the latter, and retreating towards Queenston.
In this handsome affair, in which the duty of the vessels was
performed with coolness and method, the navy had but one man
killed and two wounded. So spirited, indeed, was the manner
in which the whole duty was conducted, that the assailants
generally suffered much less than the assailed, a circumstance
that is, in a great measure, to be ascribed to the good conduct
of the covering vessels. General Dearborn reported his loss,
on this occasion, at only 17 killed and 45 wounded, while he
puts that of the enemy at 90 killed, and 160 wounded, most of
whom were regular troops. One hundred prisoners were also
made. Both the commanding general, and the commanding sea-
officer, spoke in the highest terms of the conduct of the naval

364 NAVAL HISTORY. [1813.
force employed in the descent on Fort George. General Dear
born admitted the extent of his obligations to Commodore
Chauncey for the excellent dispositions he had made for land
ing the troops, always a service of delicacy and hazard, and
his judicious arrangements for silencing the batteries, under
the fire of which it was necessary to approach the shore. The
trifling amount of the loss, is the best evidence how much these
thanks were merited. Commodore Chauncey himself com
mended all under his orders, though he. felt it due to their es
pecial services, particularly to mention Captain Perry, and
Lieutenant M'Pherson. Lieutenant Brown, of the Governor
Tompkins, was signally distinguished, though his name, from
some accident, was omitted in the despatches.
The occupation of Fort George brought with it an evacuation
by the British of the whole Niagara frontier. Lieutenant
Colonel Preston took possession of Fort Erie on the evening of
the 28th, and the entire river, for the moment, was left at the
command of the Americans. By this success, the squadron
obtained the temporary use of another port. Commodore Chaun
cey running into the Niagara and anchoring, on the afternoon
of the 27th. Captain Perry was immediately despatched above
the falls, with a small party of seamen, to carry up five vessels
that had been purchased, or captured, and which it had not
been practicable, hitherto, to get past the enemy's batteries.
This duty was performed during the first days of June, though
not without infinite labour, as it was found necessary to track
the different vessels by the aid of oxen, every inch of the way,
against the strong current of the Niagara, a party of soldiers
lending their assistance. By the close of the month, that zea
lous officer had got them all across the lake to Presque Isle,
where the two brigs, laid down early in the spring, were
launched in the course of May, though their equipment pro
ceeded very slowly, from the state of the roads and a want of
men.

1813.] NAVAL HISTORY. 365

CHAPTER XLII.
While these important movements were in the course of
execution near the western end of the lake, others of equal
magnitude were attempted near its eastern. The descent on
Fort George took place on the 27th of May, and almost at the
same moment, Sir George Prevost, the British Commander-in-
chief and Commodore Sir J. L. Yeo, meditated a coup de main
against Sackett's Harbour, in revenge for the blow they had
received at York. By destroying the new ship. Commodore
Yeo would most probably secure a superiority on the lake for
the remainder of the season, the Americans having no cruis
ing vessel but the Madison, fit to lie against the Wolfe or
Royal George,
On the morning of the 28th of May, the Wolfe, Royal
George, Moira, Prince Regent, Simcoe, and Seneca, with two
gun-boats, and a strong brigade of barges and flat-bottomed
boats, appeared off Sackett's Harbour, When about two
leagues from the shore, a considerable party of troops was
placed in the boats, and the whole squadron bore up, with a
view to land ; but their attention was diverted by the appear
ance to the westward of a brigade containing nineteen boats,
which were transporting troops to the Harbour. The enemy
immediately sent his own barges in pursuit, and succeeded in
driving twelve boats on shore, and in capturing them, though
not until they had been abandoned by the Americans. The
remaining seven got into the Harbour. Hoping to intercept
another party, the enemy now hauled to the westward, and
sent his boats ahead to lie in wait, and the intention to disem
bark that afternoon was abandoned.
As the day dawned, on the morning of the 29th, a strong
division of barges, filled with troops, and covered by the two
gun-boats, was seen advancing upon Horse Island, a peninsula
at a short distance from the village of Sackett's Harbour. A
body of about 800 men effected a landing, accompanied by
Sir George Prevost in person, and an irregular and desultory,
but spirited engagement took place. At first, the enemy drove
all before him, and he advanced quite near the town, but being
31*

366 NAVAL HISTORY. [1813.
met by a detachment of regulars, he was driven back with
loss, and compelled to abandon his enterprise.
In this affair, had the enemy's vessels done as good service
as the American vessels performed near the Niagara, the result
might have been different ; but, though -some of them swept up
pretty near the shore, they were of no assistance to the troops.
Unfortunately false information was given to the sea-officer in
charge of the store-houses, and he set fire to them, by which
mistake, not only most of the stores taken at York, but many
that had come from the sea-board, were consumed. But for
this accident, the enemy would have had no consolation for
his defeat.
Information reached Commodore Chauncey on the 30th of
May, that the enemy was out, and he immediately got under
way from the Niagara, looked into 'York, then ran off King
ston, but falling in with nothing, he crossed to the Harbour,
where he anchored ; being satisfied that the English squadron
had returned to port.
Every exertion was now made to get the new ship afloat.
Commodore Chauncey rightly thinking he should not be justi
fied in venturing an action with his present force. Although
he had fourteen sail of vessels, which mounted altogether 82
guns, only two had quarters, or were at all suited to close ac
tion. As both the Madison and Oneida had been constructed
for a very Ught draught of water, neither was weatherly,
though the former acquitted herself respectably ; but the latter
was dull on all tacks, and what might not have been expected
from her construction, particularly so before the wind. The
schooners were borne down with metal, and could be of no
great service except at long shot. On the other hand, all the
enemy's vessels had quarters, most of them drew more water,
relatively, and held a better wind than the Americans, and as
a whole they were believed to mount about the same number
of guns. In the way of metal the English large ships were
decidedly superior to the two largest American vessels, mount
ing several sixty-eight-pound carronades among their other
guns. The keel of the new ship had been laid on the 9th of April,
and she was got into the water June 12th. This ship was a
large corvette, and was pierced for 26 guns, long twenty-fours,
and she mounted two more on circles ; one on a topgallant
forecastle, and the other . on the poop. The day before the
launch. Captain Sinclair arrived and was appointed to this ves-

1813.] NAVAL HISTORY. 367
sel, which was called the General Pike. Lieutenant Tren
chard, who arrived at the same time, received the command
of the Madison.
Although the Pike was so near completion, there were nei
ther officers nor men for her, on the station ; and the canvass
intended for her sails had been principally burned during the
late attack on the Harbour. At this time, moreover, while the
service pressed, only 120 men had been sent on lake Erie,
Commodore Chauncey having entertained hopes of being able
to reinforce that station from below, after defeating the enemy.
Lake Champlain had attracted but little of the attention of
either of the belligerents until this summer, as it did not come
in the Une of the military operations of the day. Some small
vessels, however, had been fitted out, on each side of the fron
tier ; and on the 3d of June, Lieutenant Sidney Smith, who
then commanded on the lake, ventured down into the narrow
part of that water, with two armed sloops called the Eagle and
the Growler, where he was completely exposed to the fire of
musketry from a body of troops on the land. It appears that
the Eagle sunk, her seams having opened by the discharges
of her guns, and the Growler was compelled to strike, the
¦wind being fresh at south, rendering a retreat impossible. On
this occasion, near a hundred prisoners were made by the
enemy, a considerable portion of whom were volunteers from
the army.
After this loss, the government turned its attention towards
the construction of a naval force on that lake, but its move
ments were slow, the state of the warfare not appearing to
require much exertion in that quarter. After the capture of
Mr. Smith, however. Lieutenant Thomas M'Donough, an offi
cer who had distinguished himself as the associate of Decatur,
in his chivalrous exploits before Tripoli, was detached for this
service, and appointed to the command of the lake. Shortly
ifter, Mr. M'Donough was raised to the rank of a master and
commander ; but so few men were attached to this station, that
ivhen this gallant officer first reached it, and even for some
time afterwards, he actually worked with his own hands, strap-
Ding blocks, and performing other similar duties, in order to
Jrepare some small vessels for service. An inroad made by
he enemy, about this time, a Uttle quickened the efforts of the
government, however; for on the 1st of August, Captain Ever-
ird, of the British navy, at the head of a force consisting of
he two captured sloops, three gun-boats, and several batteaux,

368 NAVAL HISTORY. [1813.
made an incursion as far as Plattsburgh, where he destroyed
a considerable amount of stores. He also captured several
small trading vessels before he returned. As Captain M'Do
nough had no force equal to resisting such inroads, exertions
were made to equip one that should prevent their repetition ;
for, in consequence of the territorial division of this lake, its
warfare, on the part of the Americans, was principally de
fensive. In the mean time, the efforts on Ontario continued. Early
in June, the British squadron went up the lake, most probably
to. carry troops, quitting port in the night; but Commodore
Chauncey very properly decided that the important interests
confided to his discretion required that he should not follow it,
until his squadron was reinforced by the accession of the
Pike, to get which vessel ready, every possible exertion was
making. On the 14th of June, the Lady of the Lake, Lieutenant W.
Chauncey, left the harbour to cruise off Presque Isle, to inter
cept the stores of the enemy ; and on the 16th, she captured
the schooner Lady Murray, loaded with provisions, shot, and
fixed ammunition. This vessel was in charge of an ensign
and 15 men, the prisoners amounting, in all, to twenty-one.
Mr. Chauncey carried his prize into the harbour on the 18th,
passing quite near the enemy's squadron. The prisoners
reported the launch of a new brig at Kingston.
About this time, the enemy's squadron, consisting of the
Wolfe, Royal George, Moira, Melville, Berresford, Sidney
Smith, and one or two gun-boats, appeared off Oswego. Pre
parations were made to disembark a party of troops, but the
weather becoming threatening. Sir James Yeo was induced to
defer the descent, and stood to the westward. He then went
off the Genesee, where some provisions were seized and car
ried away, and a descent was made at Great Sodus, with a
simUar object, but which failed, though several buildings were
burned, and some flour was captured. Shortly before, he had
appeared off the coast, to the westward of Niagara, seizing
some boats belonging to the army, loaded with stores. Two
vessels, similarly employed, were also captured.
On the 2Sd of June, 14 of the guns, and a quantity of the
rigging for the Pike, reached the harbour"; and the next day.
Commodore Chauncey advised the government to commence
building a fast-saUing schooner. This recommendation was
followed, ahd the keel of a vessel that was subsequently called

1813.] NAVAL HISTORY. 369
the Sylph, was soon after laid, her size being determined by
the nature of the materials necessary for her equipment, which
were principally on the spot.
It was the last of June before the people began to arrive for
the Pike ; the first draft, consisting of only 35 men, reaching
the harbour on the 29th of that month. These were followed,
on the 1st of July, by 94 more, from Boston. It was thought,
by the assistance of the army, that the ship might be got out,
with the aid of these men. In estimating the embarrassments
of the lake service, in general, the reluctance of the sailors
to serve on those inland waters should not be overlooked.
The stations were known to be sickly, the service was exceed
ingly arduous, several winter months were to be passed, under
a rigorous climate, in harbours that had none of the ordinary
attractions of a seaport, "and the chances for prize-money were
too insignificant to enter into the account. At this period in
the history of the navy, the men were entered for particular
ships, and not for the general service, as at present ; and it
would have been nearly impossible to procure able seamen for
this unpopular duty, had not the means been found to induce
parts of crews to follow their officers from the Atlantic coast,
as volunteers. A considerable party had been sent from the
Constitution, to Lake Ontario, after her return from the coast
of Brazil ; and the arrival of a portion of the crew of the John
Adams, on Lake Erie, has already been mentioned. On the
8th of July, Captain Crane arrived from the same ship ; and
two days later, he was followed by all the officers and men of
that vessel, for which a new crew had been enlisted. This
timely reinforcement was assigned, in a body, to the Madison,
that ship being nearly of the size and force of the vessel from
which they came.
On the afternoon of the 1st of July, however, or previously
to this important accession to his force, a deserter came in and
reported that Sir James Yeo had left Kingston the previous
night, in 20 large boats, with a body of 800 or 1000 men, with
which he had crossed and landed in Chaumont Bay, about
seven miles from the Harbour. Here he had encamped in the
woods, concealing his boats with the branches of trees, with an
intention to make an attack on the American squadron. In the
course of the approaching night. Preparations were accord
ingly made to receive the expected assault, but the enemy did
not appear. On the following morning. Commodore Chauncey
went out with the vessels that were ready, and examined the

370 NAVAL HISTORY. [1813.
shore, but the enemy could not be found. At sunset he re
turned, and moored the vessels in readiness for the attack.
Still no enemy appeared. That night and the succeeding day,
five more deserters came in, all corroborating each other's ac
count, by which it would seem that the expedition was aban
doned on the night of the 1st, in consequence of the desertion
of the man who had first come in. At this time, the Pike had
16 of her guns mounted ; and there is little doubt that Com
modore Yeo would have been defeated, had he persisted in his
original intention. By July 3d, the remainder of her arma
ment had reached the Harbour.
On the 21st of July, the Madison, Captain Crane, went off
Kingston, communicating with the commodore by signal, who
remained at anchor in the Pike, which ship was getting ready
as fast as possible. The same evening the latter went out, ac
companied by the squadron, running over to the north shore,
-and then steered to the westward. The winds were light, and
the vessels did not arrive off the mouth of the Niagara, until
the 27th. Here a small body of troops was embarked under
Colonel Scott, and the squadron proceeded to the head of the
lake, with a -view to make a descent at Burlington Bay. After
landing the troops and marines, and reconnoitring. Colonel
Scott believed the enemy to be too strong, and too well posted,
for the force under his command ; and on the SOth, the ves
sels weighed and ran down to York. Here Colonel Scott
landed without opposition, and got possession of the place.
A considerable quantity of provisions, particularly flour, was
seized, five pieces of cannon were found, some shot and pow
der were brought off, and 1 1 boats, buUt to transport troops,
were destroyed. Some barracks, and other public build
ings, were burned. The troops re-embarked on the 1st of
August, and on the 3d they were disembarked again, in the
Niagara. At daylight, on the morning of the 7th, while at anchor off
the mouth of the Niagara, the enemy's squadron, consisting
of two ships, two brigs, and two large schooners, were seen to
the northwest, and to windward, distant about six miles. The
American vessels immediately weighed, and endeavoured to
obtain the weather-gage, the construction of a large portion of
the force rendering this advantage important in a general action.
At this time. Commodore Chauncey had present, the Pike,
Madison, Oneida, Hamilton, Scourge, Ontario, Fair American,
Governor Tompkins, Conquest, Julia, Growler, Asp, and Pert,

1813.] NAVAL HISTORY. 371
or thirteen sail. The size of the lake, which a*t first view might
seem to render it difficult to avoid a combat, was in truth in
favour of such a design ; the distances being so small, that the
retiring party, under ordinary circumstances, would have it in
his power to gain a harbour, before its enemy could close.
Both commanders, it is now understood, acted under very rigid
instructions, it being known that the fortune of the northern
war, in a great measure, depended on the command of this
lake, and neither party was disposed to incur any undue risks
of losing the chance to obtain it.
On the present occasion, however. Commodore Chauncey
was anxious to bring the enemy to battle, feeling a sufficient
confidence in bis officers and men to believe they would render
his mixed and greatly divided force sufficiently available. The
principal advantage of the enemy was in the identity of charac
ter that belonged to his squadron, which enabled him to keep
it in compact order, and to give it concentrated and simultane,-
ous evolutions, while the movements of the best of the Ameri
can vessels, were necessarily controlled by those of their
worst. In short, the manceuvring of the American squadron,
throughout this entire summer, furnishes an illustration of that
. nautical principle to which there has elsewhere been an allu
sion, in an attempt to point out the vast importance of pre
serving an equality in the properties of ships. Indeed the Pike
and Madison alone could compete with vessels of ordinary
qualities, the Oneida proving to be so duU, that the Pike was
frequently compelled to take her in tow.
At 9 A. M. the Pike, having got abreast of the Wolfe, the
leading vessel of the enemy, hoisted her ensign, and fired a few
guns to try the rahge of her shot. Finding that the latter fell
short, she wore and hauled to the wind on the other tack, the
sternmost of the small schooners being then six miles distant.
The enemy wore in succession, also, and got upon the same
tack as the American squadron, but ascertaining that the lead
ing vessels of the latter would weather upon him, he soon
tacked, and hauled off to the northward. As soon as the rear
of the American line was far enough ahead to fetch his wake,
signal was made to the squadron to tack once more, and to
crowd sail in chase. The wind now gradually fell, and about
sunset it was calm, the schooners using their sweeps to close.
As night approached, the signal of recall was made, in order
to collect the squadron, there being an apprehension that some
of the small vessels might be cut off.

372 NAVAL HISTORY. [1813.
In the night the wind came from the westward, and it blew
in squalls. All the vessels were at quarters, carrying sail to
gain the wind of the enemy, with a view to engage him in the
morning. Not long after midnight, a rushing sound was
heard ; and several of the vessels felt more or less of a squall ;
but the strength of the gust passed astern. Soon after, it was
ascertained that the Hamilton, Lieutenant Winter, and Scourge,
Mr. Osgood, had disappeared. The Pike now spoke the Go
vernor 'Tompkins, which informed the commodore that the mis
sing schooners had capsized in the squall, and that the whole
of their officers and men, with the exception of sixteen of the
latter, had been drowned. It is supposed, as all the crews
were at quarters, and the guns were loose, that when the gust
struck the vessels, their heavy pieces, which worked on slides,
with all the shot on deck, went to leeward, and helped to carry
the two schooners over. This accident showed how unsuited
these vessels were to the service on which they were employed,
those lost having been two of the very best in the squadron,
mounting between them 19 guns.
The American squadron now hove-to, and soon after day
light the enemy set studding-sails and stood down upon it, ap
parently with an intention to engage. When a little more
than a league distant, however, he brought by the wind, and
the signal was made from the Pike to ware and to bring-to on
the same tack. After waiting some time for the English ships
to come down. Commodore Chauncey edged away for the land,
hoping, by getting the breeze which, at that season, usually
came off the southern shore, in the afternoon, to obtain the
weather-gage. It fell calm, however, and the schooners were
ordered to sweep up towards the enemy, and to bring him to
action. While the latter were attempting to execute this order,
the wind came out light at the eastward, when the Pike took
the Oneida in tow, and stood down towards the enemy. The
van of the schooners had got within two miles of the English
squadron, when the breeze suddenly shifted to the westward,
giving the latter the advantage of the wind. Sir James Yeo
now bore up, in the expectation of cutting off the American
small vessels, before the ships could cover them ; but the
former, by freely using their sweeps, soon got into their sta
tions again, when the enemy hauled by the wind and hove-to.
It now became squally, and the people having been at quar
ters nearly two days and nights, and the enemy, who was
evidently indisposed to engage, unless on his own terms, pes.

1813.] NAVAL HISTORY. 373
sessing a great advantage in such weather, as the late accident
sufficiently proved, Commodore Chauncey ran in, and anchored
at the mouth of the Niagara. It blew heavy in squalls
throughout the night, but the enemy being in sight to the north
ward, at dayUght, the squadron weighed and stood out after
him. Throughout the whole of this day, and of the succeeding
night, under a succession of squalls, light airs, and calms, and
constant changes in the direction of the winds, the American
vessels were endeavouring to cloise with the enemy, without
success. At daylight, however, on the morning of the 1-Oth,
Commodore Chauncey, having taken the precaution to get
under the north shore, found himself to windward, with the
enemy bearing S. W. The Pike now took the Asp, and the
Madison the Fair American in tow, and the whole squadron
kept away, with every prospect of forcing the English to en
gage. About noon, and before the squadrons were within
gun-shot of each other, the wind shifted to W. S. W., giving
the enemy the weather-gage. Throughout the day, there was
a series of unsuccessful manoeuvres to close and to gain the
wind, but, about 5 P. M., the enemy was becalmed under the
south shore, and the American squadron got a breeze from
N. N. W., nearing him fast. At 6, being then distant about
four miles, the line of battle was formed, though the wind had
become very light. The vessels continued to close until' 7,
when a fresh breeze came out at S. W., placing the enemy
once more to windward. After some manoeuvring, the two
squadrons were standing to the northward, with their larboard
tacks aboard, under easy canvass, the enemy astern and to
windward. It being now pretty certain that with vessels of
qualities so unequal, he could not get the wind of the English,
while the latter were disposed to avoid it. Commodore Chaun
cey adopted an order of battle that was singularly well adapted
to draw them down, and which was admirable for its advan
tages and ingenuity. The American squadron formed in two
lines, one to windward of the other. The weather line con
sisted altogether of the smallest of the schooners, having in it,
in the order in which they are named, from the van to the
rear, the Julia, Growler, Pert, Asp, Ontario, and Fair Ameri
can. The line to leeward contained, in the same order, the
Pike, Oneida, Madison, Governor Tompkins, and Conquest.
It was hoped that Sir James Yeo would close with the weather
line in the course of the night, and, with a view to bring him
down, the Julia, Growler, Pert, and Asp were directed, after
32

374 NAVAL HISTORY. [1813.
engaging as long as was prudent, to edge away, and to pass
through the intervals left between the leading vessels of the
line to leeward, forming again under their protection, while
the Ontario and Fair American were directed to run into the
leeward line, and form astern of the Conquest.
At half-past 10 P. M. the enemy tacked and stood after the
American squadron, keeping to windward of the weather line.
At 11, the Fair American, the sternmost of the schooners in
this line, began to fire ; and the enemy continuing to draw
ahead, in about fifteen minutes the action became general be
tween him and the weather line. At half-past 11 all the
schooners engaged bore up, according to orders, with the ex
ception of the two in the van, which tacked in the hope of
gaining the wind of the English ships, instead of waring, or
bearing up. This unfortunate departure from the order of
battle, entirely changed the state of things ; Sir James Yeo,
instead of following the schooners down, as had been expected,
keeping his wind with a view to cut off the two that had sepa
rated. Commodore Chauncey now filled, and kept away two
points, in the hope of drawing the enemy from the vessels to
windward, but the Engli.sh exchanged a few shots with the Pike
in passing, and continued in pursuit of the two schooners. The
American squadron immediately tacked, and endeavoured to
close, with the double view of covering their consorts, and of
engaging. As the chase was to windward, it was impossible to
protect the vessels that had separated, the English ships easily
getting them under their guns, when the former struck, of course.
The vessels captured were the Growler, Lieutenant Deacon ;
and the Julia, Mr. Trant. They siistained a small loss before
they surrendered, having, in some measure, repaired the fault
they had committed, by the handsdme manner in which they
held on to the last. It was the opinion of Commodore Chaun
cey, that these schooners were lost through excess of zeal in
their commanders, who thought that a general action was
about to take place, and that by gaining the wind, they might
be of more service, than if stationed to leeward. The result
showed the necessity of complete concert in naval evolutions,
and the virtue of implicit obedience.
Each of the vessels taken by the enemy, carried two guns,
and had a crew of about 40 souls. Some damage was done
to the sails and rigging of the enemy, by the fire of the
schooners ; but the American squadron, the Julia and Growler
excepted, received no injury worth mentioning. The Growler

1813] NAVAL HISTORY. 375
had a man killed, lost her bowsprit, and was a good deal
damaged before she struck.
The Pike, after carrying sEiil hard for some time, finding
that she was separating from the rest of the squadron, and that
there was no hope of saving the two schooners, rejoined the
other vessels, and formed the line again. At daylight, the
enemy was seen a long way to windward, it blowing fresh.
The small vessels beginning to labour excessively, it became
necessary to send two of the dullest of them into the Niagara
for security.
The gale continuing, the commodore now determined to run
for the Genesee, with the rest of the vessels ; but the wind in
creasing, and the Madison and Oneida not having a day's pro
visions on board, he stood for the Harbour, where he did not
arrive until the 13th, the wind faiUng before he got in.

CHAPTER XLIII.
Without waiting for his new vessel. Commodore Chaun
cey took in provisions for five weeks, and sailed on another
cruise the very day of his arrival. On the 16th, the squadron
was off the Niagara, and the same day the enemy was made,
being eight sail in all. Some manoeuvring to obtain the wind
followed, but it coming on to blow, the vessels ran into the mouth
of the Genesee, and anchored. This was another of the evil con
sequences of having vessels like the small schooners in the
squadron, a sea little heavier than common causing them to
labour to a degree that rendered it unsafe to keep the lake. The
wind, however, freshened so much as to compel the whole
squadron to weigh and bear up, forcing them down the' lake
under easy canvass. The enemy, it would seem, was also
driven to leeward, for he was seen at anchor under the False
Ducks, as those islands came in sight. The Fair American
and Asp having been sent into the Niagara on duty, the ves
sels present in the American squadron, on this occasion, were
the Pike, Madison, Oneida, Tompkins, Conquest, Ontario, Pert,
and Lady of the Lake ; the latter having no armament fit for
a general engagement. It was now expected that the enemy

376 NAVAL HISTORY. [1813.
would be willing to engage, and the vessels were cleared for
action. The wind again shifted, however, bringing the Eng
lish squadron to windward ; but by carrying sail hard, the
American vessels were weathering on the enemy when the
latter ran behind the islands, and was believed to have stood
into Kingston. The gale increasing, and the schooners being
actually in danger of foundering. Commodore Chauncey bore
up for the Harbour, where he arrived on the 19th of the
month. The new vessel had been launched on the 18th, and she
was immediately rigged and named the Sylph. Her arma
ment was peculiar, for, in that comparative wilderness, the
materials that could be had were frequently taken, in the place
of those that were desired. Four long thirty -twos were mount
ed on circles between her masts, and six sixes were placed in
broadside. As this vessel was expected to be weatherly, it
was hoped these heavy guns might cut away some of the ene
my's spars, and bring on a general action. It is due to the
extraordinary capacity of the builder, to say that this schooner
was put into the water in twenty-one working days after her
keel had been laid.
A promotion had been made previously, and the new com
missions were now found at the Harbour. Lieutenant Com
mandant Woolsey was transferred to the Sylph, with his new
rank ; Lieutenant Thomas Brown, the officer who had so much
distinguished himself at the landing before Fort George, suc
ceeding him in the Oneida.
On the 28th of August, Commodore Chauncey sailed again,
with the Pike, Madison, Sylph, Oneida, Tompkins, Conquest,
Ontario, Pert, and Lady of the Lake. The enemy was not
seen until the 7th of September, when the squadron lying at
anchor in, and off, the Niagara, his ships were made out at
daylight, close in and to leeward. The signal to weigh was
instantly shown, and the Pike, Madison, and Sylph, each tak
ing a pchooner in tow, sail was made in chase. The enemy
bore up to the northward, and for six days the American
squadron followed the English, endeavouring to bring it to
action, without success. On the llth of September, the ene
my was becalmed off the Genesee, when the American vessels
got a breeze and ran within gun-shot, before the English
squadron took the wind. A running fight, that lasted more
than three hours, was the result ; but the enemy escaped in
consequence of his better saUing, it being out of the power of

1813.] NAVAL HISTORY. 377
the -American commander to close with more than two of his
vessels, the Sylph being totally unfitted for that species of com
bat. As the Pike succeeded in getting several broadsides at
the enemy, he did not escape without being a good deal cut
up, having, according to his own report, an officer and ten
men killed and wounded. The Pike was hulled a few times,
and other trifling injuries were received, though no person was
hurt. Previously to this affair. Commodore Chauncey had
been joined by the Fair American and Asp. On the 12th, Sir
James Yeo ran into Amherst Bay, where the Americans were
unable to follow him, on account of their ignorance of the
shoals. It was supposed that the English Commodore declined
engaging on this occasion, in consequence of the smoothness
of the water, it being his policy to bring his enemy to action
in blowing weather, when the American schooners would be
nearly useless.
Commodore Chauncey remained off the Ducks until the
17th, when the English squadron succeeded in getting into
Kingston, after which he went into port for despatches and
supplies. The next day, however, he came out again, and on
the 19th, the enemy was seen in the vicinity of the Ducks.
No notice was now taken of him, but the squadron stood up
the lake, in the hope that the English would follow, and also
with a view of bringing down a brigade of troops, a division
of the army being about to concentrate at Sackett's Harbour,
preparatory to descending the St. Lawrence with a view to
attack Kingston or Montreal.
In a day or two, the squadron got off the Niagara, and an
chored. On the 26th of September, information was received
that Sir James Yeo was at "York, with, all his squadron. The
Lady of the Lake was sent across to ascertain the fact, on the
morning of the 27th, and returning the same evening with a
confirmation of the report, the squadron instantly got under
way. Owing to the wind, the darkness of the night, and the
bad sailing of so many of the vessels, the squadron was not got
into line, until 8 A. M., on the morning of the 28th, when the
Pike, Madison, and Sylph, each took a schooner in tow, as
usual, and sail was made for the north shore.
The English squadron was soon discovered under canvass,
in York Bay, and the American vessels immediately edged
away for it. Fortunately, the Americans had the weather-
gage, the wind being at the eastward, blowing a good breeze.
As soon as the enemv perceived the American ships approach-
32*

378 NAVAL HISTORY. [1813,
ing, he tacked and stretched out into the lake, ui order to get
room to manoeuvre ; Commodore Chauncey forming his luie,
and steering directly for his centre. When the American
squadron was about a league distant, the English ships made
all sail, on a wind, to the southward. The former now wore
in succession, to get on the same tack with the enemy ; and as
soon as this object was effected, it began to edge away again
in order to close.
The enemy had now no alternative between putting up his
helm, and running off before the wind, thus satisfactorUy de
monstrating which party sought, and which avoided a general
action, or in allowing the Americans to commence the engage
ment. Notwithstanding the wariness with which Sir James
Yeo had hitherto manoeuvred to prevent a decisive combat, he
had always maintained the pretension of seeking a conffict,
probably with a view to encourage the colonies ; and a retreat,
at this moment, would have been too unequivocally a flight to
admit of palliation. The American squadron was a good deal
extended, in consequence of the great difference in the sailing
of its vessels, the Pike being considerably ahead of most of her
consorts. As the signal was flying for close action, the Go
vernor Tompkins had passed several ofAhe larger vessels, and
was next astern of the commodore, while the Madison, which
had one of the heaviest of the schooners in tow, was prevented
from getting as near as was desirable. The Oneida, too, now
showed her worst qualities, no exertions of her gallant com
mander. Lieutenant Commandant Brown, being able to urge
her into the conflict. In this state of things. Sir James Yeo,
perceiving that his two sternmost vessels were in danger, and
that there was some little chance of cutting off the rear of the
American line, determined to tack, and to hazard an engage
ment. At ten minutes past meridian, accordingly, the English ships
began to tack in succession, while the Pike made a yaw to lee
ward, edging away rapidly, to get nearer to the enemy's-centre.
As soon as the two or three leading vessels of the enemy,
among which were the Wolfe and Royal George, got round,
they opened on the Pike, which ship received their fire for se
veral minutes without returning it. When near enough, she
opened in her turn. The Pike, on this occasion, was not only
beautifully handled, but her fire was probably as severe as ever
came out of the broadside of a ship of her force. For twenty
minutes she lay opposed to all the heaviest vessels of the ene-

1813,1 NAVAL HISTORY. 379
my, receiving little or no support from any of her own squad
ron, with the exception of the Asp, the -schooner she had in
tow, and the Governor Tompkins. The latter vessel, com
manded for the occasion by Lieutenant W. C. B. Finch,* of
the Madison, was handled with a gallantry that reflected high
credit on that young officer, steadily keeping the station into
which she had been so spiritedly carried, and maintaining a
warm fire untU crippled by the enemy, and unavoidably left
astern. When the smoke blew away, during a pause in this
sharp combat, it was found that the Wolfe had lost her main
and mizzen topmasts and her main-yard, besides receiving
other injuries. Cut up so seriously, she put away dead before
the wind, crowding all the canvass she could carry on her for
ward spars. At this moment, the Royal George luffed up in
noble style, across her stern, to cover the English commodore,
who ran off to leeward, passing through his own line, in order
to effect his retreat.
When the English squadron bore up, the American vessels
followed, maintaining a heavy fire with as many of their circle
and chase guns as could reach the enemy. It was now found
that the armament of the Sylph was not suited to service, the
guns between her masts being so crowded as not to allow of
their being used with freedom, or rapidity, more especially
when in chase. This circumstance, notwithstanding her size
and saUing, rendered her of little more use than one of the
smaller schooners.
After pursumg the enemy about two hours, during which
time the squadron had run nearly up to the head of the lake,
where the former had a post at Burlington Bay, and finding
that the English ships outsaUed most of his vessels. Commo
dore Chauncey made the signal to haul off with a view to stand
in for the Niagara. As the enemy was effectually beaten, and
there is scarcely a doubt, would have been destroyed, had he
been pressed, this order has been much criticised, as uncalled
for, and unfortunate. The motives which influenced the Ame
rican commander, however, were marked by that discretion
and thoughtfulness, which are among the highest attributes of
an officer, and which distinguished his whole career, while en
trusted with the arduous and responsible service over which
he presided during the war.
The wind was increasing, and it shortly after came on to
* Now Captain W. C. Bolton.

380 NAVAL HISTORY. [1813,
blow an easterly gale, and an action, under such circumstances,
would probably have caused both squadrons to be thrown
ashore, there being nothin.g but a roadstead, under Bur
lington heights, which the wind that then blew swept, . As the
enemy was known to have a considerable land force at this
point, all who were driven ashore, would necessarily have fallen
into his hands ; and had he succeeded in getting off one or two
of the smaller vessels, he would effectually have obtained the
command of the lake. By going into the Niagara, on the
other hand, the American squadron was in a position to inter
cept the retreat of the enemy, who was in a cul de sac ; and
after waiting for more moderate weather, he might be attacked
even at anchor, should it be deemed expedient, under much
more favourable circumstances. In addition to these reasons,
which were weighty, and worthy of a commander of reflection
and judgment, the Pike had received a shot or two beneath her
water line, which required that her pumps should be kept going,
a toil, that united to the labour of an action, would have finally
exhausted the strength of the ship's company. The enemy
had batteries to command the anchorage, too ; and no doubt he
would have established more, had the Americans gone in.
In the action of the 28th of September, the Pike suffered a
good deal, both in her hull and aloft, bearing the weight of the
enemy's fire for most of the time. Her main-top-gallant-mast
was shot away early in the engagement, and her bowsprit,
foremast, and mainmast were all wounded. Her rigging and
sails were much cut up, and she had been repeatedly hulled ;
two or three times below the water line, as already stated.
Five of her men, only, were killed and wounded by shot.
While bearing up in chase, however, the starboard bow gun
bursted, by which accident twenty-two men were either slain,
or seriously injured. The topgallant forecastle was torn up by
this explosion, rendering its circle gun useless during the re
mainder of the day. Four of the other guns also cracked in
the muzzles, producing great distrust about using them. The
Madison received some slight injuries, and the Oneida had her
main-topmast badly wounded. But no person was hurt in
either of these vessels. The Governor Tompkins lost her fore
mast. On the part of the enemy, the Wolfe and Royal George
suffered most ; and it is believed that the former vessel sus
tained a very heavy loss in men. It is also understood, that
one, if not two, of the enemy's smallest vessels struck ; but the

1813.] NAVAL HISTORY. 381
Pike declining- to take possession, in the eagerness to close
with the Wolfe, they eventually escaped.
On the 2d, the wind coming round light to tbe westward, and
the last transport having been sent down the lake with troops,
the squadron weighed, and stretched out to look for the ene
my. At 10 A. M. he was seen standing down, under stud
ding saUs. The instant the American vessels were made,
however, the enemy came by the wind and carried sail to keep
off. During the remainder of this day, the English ships
gained on the American, and at daylight on the 3d they were
seen at anchor, close in under an island between Twelve and
Twenty Mile Creeks. It blew quite heavily in gusts through
out the day, both squadrons turning to windward, the enemy
being nearly up with the head of the lake at sunset. The
night proved dark Emd squally, with a good deal of rain, and
every precaution was taken to prevent the enemy from getting
past, as he was now caught, as it might be, in a net.
The next morning the weather was thick, and nothing could
be seen of the English squadron. It faUing calm at noon, the
Lady of the Lake was ordered to the westward, to sweep up
to ascertain the position of the enemy, or whether he had not
anchored again in Burlmgton Bay. At 9 P. M. that schooner
returned, and reported that the English squadron was not to
be seen, only two gun- boats being visible. As a discreet and
experienced officer had been sent on this service. Commodore
Chauncey immediately inferred that the enemy had got past
him, during the darkness of the preceding night, and that he
had gone down the lake, either to cut off the American tran
sports, or to get into Kingston. SaU was immediately made
to run off the Ducks, with a view to intercept Sir James Yeo,
or any prizes he might have taken. It is now known that the
officers of the Lady of the Lake were deceived, the British
fleet actually lying at anchor so close under the heights that
their hulls and spars were confounded with objects on the
shore ; the gentleman sent to ascertain the fact being too eager
to report the supposed escape of the enemy, to go near enough
in to make certain of the truth.
That night and the succeeding day the American squadron
made a great run, the wind blowing heavily from the N. W.
At 3 P. M., on the 5th, seven saU were seen ahead, near the
False Ducks, and no doubts were entertained that they were
the British squadron. All sail was carried to close, but at 4
the chases were made out to be schooners and sloops. Signals

382 NAVAL HISTORY. [1813.
were now shown for the Sylph and Lady of the Lake to cast
off their tows, and to chase to the N. E. This induced the
strangers to separate, when the Pike cast off the Governor
Tompkins, and past ahead also. The strangers now set fire
to one of their vessels, the other six crowding sail to escape.
At sunset, when opposite the Real Ducks, the British vessels
the Confiance, Hamilton, and Mary, struck to the-Pike. The
Sylph soon after joined, bringing down with her another prize,
the Drummond cutter, and early next morning the same schoon
er brought out of the Ducks the Lady Gore. The Enterprise,
the seventh vessel, escaped.
The prizes were gun-vessels, carrying from one to three
guns each, and were employed as transports ; a part of one of
the German regiments in the British service being on board at
the time. The whole number of prisoners made amounted to
264, including officers. Among the latter were a lieutenant
and two master's mates of the British Royal Navy, and four
masters of the provincial marine. Ten officers of the army
were also taken. The Confiance and Hamilton, two of the
prizes, were the schooners Growler and Julia, taken on the
night of the 8th of August, which, the enemy had rightiy
judged, would prove an incumbrance rather than an accession
to their squadron, and had declined receiving them in it. This
circumstance, of itself, sufficiently proves the equivocal advan
tage enjoyed by the possession of these craft, which formed so
conspicuous a part of Commodore Chauncey's force on paper,
the enemy being unwilling to injure the manoeuvring of his
vessels by using them.
Early in November, Commodore Chauncey was lying at the
outlet of the St. Lawrence, below the east end of Long Island,
when Sir James Yeo came out with his ships, and anchored
within two leagues of him, the squadrons being separated by
a chain of small islands. There was but one passage by
which this chain could be passed, and the Americans sent
boats to sound it, intending to lighten and go through, when
the enemy lifted his anchors and returned to port. On the
llth, the army having gone down the river, the American
squadron went into the Harbour.
Two days later. Commodore Chauncey, who had now an al
most undisturbed possession of the lake, went to the Genesee,
where, on the 16th of the month, betook on board 1100 men,
belonging to the army of Genefal Harrison. A severe gale
came on, by which the vessels were separated, some being

1812-13.] NAVAL HISTORY. 383
driven as far west as the head of the lake. The transports,
into which most of the small schooners were now converted,
having been finally despatched, the commodore went off Kings
ton again, to occupy the enemy, and to cover the passage of
the troops. All the transports had arrived on the 21st but the
Julia, which did not get in until a few days later. The Fair
American had gone ashore near the Niagara, during the gale,
but was got off, and reached the Harbour on the 27th. By
this time, the navigation of the lake was virtually closed, and
it being too late to attempt any naval operations, while the duty
of transporting the troops and stores had been successfully per
formed, preparations were made to lay the vessels up for the
winter.

CHAPTER XLIV.
In the course of the winter of 1812-13, Captain O. H. Perry,
then a young msister and commander at the head of the flotilla
of gun-boats, at Newport, Rhode Island, finding no immediate
prospect of getting to sea in a sloop of war, volunteered for the
lake service. Captain Perry brought on with him a number
of officers, and a few men, and Commodore Chauncey gladly
availed himself of the presence of an officer of his rank, known
spirit, and zeal, to send him on the upper lakes, in command,
where he arrived in the cpurse of the winter. From this time,
until the navigation opened. Captain Perry was actively em
ployed, under all the embarrassments of his frontier position,
in organising and creating a force, with which he might con
tend with the enemy for the mastery of those important waters.
Two large brigs, to mount 20 guns each, were laid down at
Presque Isle, and a few gun-vessels, or schooners, were also
commenced. The spring passed in procuring guns, shot, and
other supplies ; and, as circumstances allowed, a draft of men
would arrive from below, to aid in equipping the different ves
sels. As soon as the squadron of Commodore Chauncey ap
peared off the mouth of Niagara, Captain Perry, with some of
his officers, went to join it, and the former was efficientiy em
ployed in superintending the disembarkation of the troops, as

384 NAVAL HISTORY. [1813.
has been already related. The fall of Fort George produced
that of Fort Erie, when the whole of the Niagara frontier came
under the control of the American army.
Captain Perry now repaired to his own command, and with
infinite labour, he succeeded in getting the vessels that had so
long been detained in the Niagara, by the enemy's batteries,
out of the river. This important service was effected by the
12th of June, and preparations were immediately commenced
for appearing on the lake. These vessels consisted of the brig
Caledonia, (a prize,) and the schooners Catherine, Ohio, and
Amelia ; with the sloop Contractor. The Catherine was named
the Somers, the AmeUa the Tigress, and the Contractor the
Trippe. At this time, the enemy had a cruising force under
the orders of Captain Finnis, which consisted of the Queen
Charlotte, a ship of between three and four hundred tons, and
mounting 17 guns ; the Lady Prevost, a fine warlike schooner,
of about two hundred tons, that mounted 13 guns ; the brig
Hunter, a vessel a little smaller, of 10 guns, and three or four
lighter cruisers. He was also building, at Maiden, a ship of
near five hundred tons measurement, that was to mount 19
guns, and which was subsequently called the Detroit.
It was near the middle of June before Captain Perry was ready
to sail from the outlet of Lake Erie, for Presque Isle. There
being no intention to engage the enemy, and little dread of
meeting him in so short a run, as she came in sight of her
port each vessel made the best, of her way. The enemy had
chosen this moment to look into Presque Isle, and both squad
rons were in view from the shore, at the same time, though,
fortunately for the Americans, the English did not get a sight
of them, until they were too near the land to be intercepted.
As the last vessel got in, the enemy hove in sight, in the offing.
The two brigs laid down in the winter, under the directions
of Commodore Chauncey, had been launched towards the close
of May, and were now in a state of forwardness. They were
called the Lawrence and the Niagara. The schooners also
were in the water, and Captain Perry, having all his vessels in
one port, employed himself in getting them ready for service,
as fast as possible. Still various stores were wanting. There
was a great deficiency of men, particularly of seamen, and
Captain Perry, and Mr. D. Turner, were, as yet, the only
commissioned sea-officers on the lake. The latter, moreover,
was quite young in years, as well as in rank.
Presque Isle, or, as the place is now called, Erie, weis a

1813.] NAVAL HISTORY. 385
good and spacious harbour ; but it had a bar on which there
was less than seven feet of water. This bar, which had hith
erto answered the purposes of a fortification, now offered a
serious obstruction to getting the brigs on the lake. It lay
about half a mile outside, and offered great advantages to the
enemy for attacking the Americans while employed in pass
ing it. So sensible was Captain Perry of this disadvantage,
that he adopted the utmost secresy in order to conceal his
intentions, for it was known that the enemy had spies closely
watching his movements.
Captain Barclay had lately superseded Captain Finnis in the
command of the English force, and for near a week he had been
blockading the American vessels, evidently with an intention
to prevent their getting out, it being known that this bar could
be crossed only in smooth water. On Friday, the 2d of Au
gust, he suddenly disappeared in the northern board.
The next day but one was Sunday, and the officers were
ashore seeking the customary relaxation. Without any ap
pearances of unusual preparation. Captain Perry privately
gave the order to repair on board the respective vessels and to
drop down to the bar. This command was immediately
obeyed ; and at about 2 P. M., the Lawrence had been towed
to the point where the deepest water was to be found. Her
guns were whipped out, loaded and shotted as they were, and
landed on the beach ; two large scows, prepared for the pur
pose, were hauled alongside, and the work of- lifting the brig
proceeded as fast as possible. Pieces of massive timber had
been run through the forward and after ports, and when the
scows were sunk to the water's edge, the ends of the timbers
were blocked up, supported by these floating foundations. The
plugs were now put in the scows, and the water was pumped
out of them. By this process, the brig was lifted quite two
feet, though, when she was got on the bar, it was found that
she still drew too much water. It became necessary, in con
sequence, to come-up every thing, to sink the scows anew,
and to block up the timbers afresh. This duty occupied the
night. The schooners had crossed the bar, and were moored out
side, and preparations were hurriedly made to receive an
attack. About 8 A. "M., the enemy re-appeared. At this time,
the Lawrence was just passing the > bar. A distant, short, and
harmless cannonade ensued, though it had the effect to keep
the enemy from running in. As soon as the Lawrence was
33

386 NAVAL HISTORY. [1813.
in deep water, her guns were hoisted in, manned as fast as
mounted, and the brig's ' broadside was sprung to bear on the
English squadron. Fortunately, the Niagara crossed on the
first trial ; and before night, all the vessels were as ready for
service, as circumstances would then allow. The enemy re
mained with his topsails to the mast half an hour, sullenly
reconnoitring ; he then filled, and went up the lake under a
press of canvass.
This occurred on the 4th of August, and on the 5th, Captain
Perry sailed in quest of the enemy, having received on board
a number of soldiers and volunteers. He ran off Long Point,
and sweeping the Canada shore for some distance, returned to
Erie on the 8th. Taking in some supplies, he was about to
proceed up the lake again, when intelligence arrived that a
party sent from below, under Lieutenant Elliott, was at Cat
taraugus, on its way to join the squadron. A vessel was im
mediately sent for this acceptable reinforcement. Shortly after
its arrival, the commissions that had been made out some time
previously, were received from below. By these changes, Mr.
Elliott became a master and commander, and Messrs. Holdup,
Packett, Yarnall, Edwards, and Conklin, were raised to the
rank of lieutenants. Most of these gentlemen, however, had
been Eicting for some months.
The American squadron now consisted of the Lawrence 20,
Captain Perry ; Niagara 20, Captain Elliott ; Caledonia 3, Mr.
M'Grath, a purser; Ariel 4, Lieutenant Packett; Trippe 1,
Lieutenant Smith ; Tigress 1, Lieutenant Conklin ; Somers 2,
Mr. Alney ; Scorpion 2, Mr. Champlin ; Ohio 1, Mr. Dobbins ;
and Porcupine 1, Mr. Senatt. On the 18th of August, this force
sailed from Erie, and off Sandusky, a few days later, it chased,
and was near capturing one of the enemy's schooners.
The squadron cruised for several days, near the entrance
of the strait, when Captain Perry was taken ill with the fever
peculiar to these waters, and shortly after the vessels went into
Put-in Bay, a harbour, among some islands that lay at no
great distance.
Here a few changes occurred, Mr. Smith going to the
Niagara, and Mr. Holdup to the Trippe ; Mr. M'Grath went
also to the Niagara, and Mr. Turner took command of the
Caledonia. The Ohio was sent down the lake on duty.
While in port, on this occasion, Captain Perry contemplated
an attack on the enemy's vessels, by means of boats ; and

1813.] NAVAL HISTORY. 387
orders were issued, accordingly, to drill the people with muf
fled oars.
The squadron was still lying at Put-in Bay on the morning
of the 10th of September, when, at daylight, the enemy's ships
were discovered at the N. W. from the mast-head of the Law
rence. A signal was immediately made for all the vessels to
get under way. The wind was light at S. W., and there was
no mode of obtaining the weather-gage of the enemy, a very
important measure with the peculiar armament of the largest
of the American vessels, but by beating round some small
islands that lay in the way. It being thought there was not
sufficient time for this, though the boats were got ahead to tow,
a signal was about to be made for the vessels to ware, and to
pass to leeward of the islands, with an intention of giving the
enemy this great advantage, when the wind shifted to S. E.
By this change the American squadron was enabled to pass in
the desired direction, and to gain the wind. When he per
ceived the American vessels clearing the land, or about 10
A. M., the enemy hove-to, in a line, with his ships' heads to
the southward and westward. At this time the two squadrons
were about three leagues asunder, the breeze being still at S.
E., and sufficient to work with. After standing down, until
about a league from the English, where a better view was got
of the manner in which the enemy had formed his line, the
leading vessels of his own squadron being within hail. Captain
Perry communicated a new order of attack. It had been ex
pected that the Queen Charlotte, the second of the English
vessels, in regard to force, would be at the head of their line,
and the Niagara had been destined to lead in, andto lie against
her. Captain Perry having reserved for himself a commander's
privUege of engaging the principal vessel of the opposing
squadron ; but, it now appearing that the Emticipated arrange
ment had not been made, the plan was promptly altered.
Captain Barclay had formed his line with the Chippeway, Mr.
Campbell, armed with one gun on a pivot, in the van ; the
Detroit, his own vessel, next ; and the Hunter, Lieutenant
Bignall ; Queen Charlotte, Captain Finnis ; Lady Prevost,
Lieutenant Commandant Buchan ; and Little Belt astern, in
the order named. To oppose this line, the Ariel, of four long
twelves, was stationed in the van, and the Scorpion, of one
long and one short gun on circles, next her. The Lawrence,
Captain Perry, came next ; the two schooners just mentioned
keeping on her weather bow, having no quarters. The Cale-

388 NAVAL HISTORY. [1813.
dohia, Lieutenant Turner, was the next astern, and the
Niagara, Captain Elliot, was placed next to the "Caledonia.
These vessels were all up at the time, but the other light craft
were more or less distant, each endeavouring to gel into her
berth. The order of battle for the remaining vessels, directed
the Tigress to fall in astern of the Niagara, the Somers next,
and then the Porcupine and Trippe, in the order named.
By this time the wind had got to be very Ught, but the lead
ing vessels were all in their stations, and the remainder Vvere
endeavouring to get iri as fast as possible. The English ves
sels presented a very gallant array, and their appearance was
beautiful and imposing. Their line was compact, with the
heads of the vessels still to the southward and westward ; their
ensigns were just opening to the air ; their vessels were freshly
painted, and their canvass was new and perfect. The Ameri
can line was more straggling. The order of battle required
them to form within half a cable's length of each other, but the
schooners astern could not close with the vessels ahead, which
Sailed faster, and had more light canvass, untU some consider
able time had elapsed.
A few minutes before twelve, the Detroit threw a twenty-
four-pound shot at the Lawrence, then on her weather quarter,
distant between one and two miles. Captain Perry now passed
an order by trumpet, through the vessels astern, for the line to
close to the prescribed order ; and soon after, the Scorpion was
hailed, and directed to begin with her long gun. At this mo
ment, the American vessels in line were edging down upon the
English, those in front being necessarily nearer to the enemy
than those more astern, with the exception of the Ariel and
Scorpion, which two schooners had been ordered to keep well
to windward of the Lawrence. As the Detroit had an arma
ment of iong guns. Captain Barclay manifested his judgment
in commencing the action in this manner ; and in a short time,
the firing between that ship, the Lawrence, and the two
schooners at the head of the American line, got to be very
animated. The Lawrence now showed a signal for the
squadron to close, each vessel in her station, as previously
designated. A few minutes later the vessels astern began to
fire, and the action became general but distant. The Law
rence, however, appeared to be the principal aim of the enemy,
and before the firing had lasted any material time, the Detroit,
Hunter, and Queen Charlotte, were directing most of their
efforts against her. The American brig endeavoured to close,

1813.] NAVAL HISTORY. 389
and did succeed in getting within reach of canister, though
not without suffering materially, as she fanned down upon the
enemy. At this time, the support of the two schooners ahead,
which were well commanded and fought, was of the greatest
moment to her ; for the vessels astern, though in the line, could
be of little use n diverting the fire, on account of their positions
and the distance. After the firing had lasted some time, the
Niagara hailed the Caledonia, and directed the latter to make
room for the former to pass ahead. Mr. Turner put his helm
up in the most dashing manner, and continued to near the
enemy, until he was closer to his line, perhaps, than the com
manding vessel ; keeping up as warm a fire as his small arma
ment would allow. The Niagara now became the vessel next
Eistern of the Lawrence.
The cannonade had the usual effect of deadening the wind,
and for two hours there was very Uttle air. During all this
time, the weight of the enemy's fire was directed against the
Lawrence ; the Queen Charlotte having filled, passed the Hun
ter, and closed with the Detroit, where she kept up a destruc
tive cannonading on this devoted vessel. These united attacks
dismantled the American brig, besides producing great slaugh
ter on board her. At the end of two hours and a half, agree
ably to the report of Captain Perry, the enemy having filled,
and the wind increasing, the two squadrons drew slowly ahead,
the Lawrence necessarily falling astern and partially out of the
combat. At this moment the Niagara passed to the southward
and westward, a short distance to windward of the Lawrence,
steering for the head of the enemy's line, and the Caledonia
followed to leeward.
The vessels astern had not been idle, but, by dint of sweep
ing and sailing, they had all got within reach of their guns,
and had been gradually closing, though not in the prescribed
order. The rear of the line would seem to have inclined down
towards the enemy, bringing the Trippe, Lieutenant Holdup,
so near the Caledonia, that the latter sent a boat to her for a
supply of cartridges.
Captain Perry, finding himself in a vessel that had been
rendered nearly useless by the injuries she had received, and
which was dropping out of the combat, got into his boat, and
pulled after the Niagara, on board of which vessel he arrived
at about half-past 2. Soon after, the colours of the Lawrence
were hauled down, that vessel bein^ literally a wreck.
After a short consultation between Captains Perry and
33*

390 NAVAL HISTORY. [1813.
EUiott, the latter volunteered to take the boat of the former,
and to proceed and bring the small vessels astern, which were
already briskly engaged, into stUl closer action. This propo
sal being accepted. Captain Elliott pulled down the line, passing
within hail of all the small vessels astern, directing them to
close within half pistol-shot of the enemy, and to throw in
grape and canister, as soon as they could get the desired posi
tions. He then repaired on board the Somers, and took charge
of that schooner in person.
When the enemy saw the colours of the Lawrence come
down, he confidentiy believed that he had gained the day.
His men appeared over the bulwarks of the different vessels
and gave three cheers. For a few minutes, indeed, there ap
pears to have been, as if by common consent, nearly a general
cessation in the firing, during which both parties were pre
paring for a desperate and final effort. The wind had fresh
ened, and the position of the Niagara, which brig was now
abeam of the leading EngUsh vessel, was commanding ; while
the gun-vessels astern, in consequence of the increasing breeze,
were enabled to close very fast.
At 45 minutes past 2, or when time had been given to the
gun-vessels to receive the order mentioned, Captain Perry
showed the signal from the Niagara, for close action, and im
mediately bore up, under his foresail, topsails, and topgallant-
sail. As the American vessels hoisted their answering flags,
this order was received with three cheers, and it was obeyed
with alacrity and spirit. The enemy had attempted to ware
round, to get fresh broadsides to bear, in doing which his line
got into confusion, and the two ships for a short time, were
foul of each other, while the Lady Prevost had so far shifted
her berth, as to be both to the westward and to the leeward of
the Detroit. At this critical moment, the Niagara came
steadily down, within half pistol-shot of the enemy, standing
between the Chippeway and Lady Prevost, on one side, and
the Detroit, Queen Charlotte, and Hunter, on the other. In
passing, she poured in her broadsides, starboard and larboard,
ranged ahead of the ships, luffed athwart their bows, and con
tinued delivering a close and deadly fire. The shrieks from
the Detroit, proclaimed that the tide of battle had turned. At
the same moment, the gun-vessels and Caledonia were throw
ing in close discharges of grape and canister astern. A con
flict so fearfully close, and so deadly, was necessarily short.
Iri fifteen or twenty minutes after the Niagara bore up, a hail

1813.] NAVAL HISTORY. 391
was passed among the small vessels, to say that the enemy
had struck, Emd an officer of the Queen Charlotte appeared on
the taffrEul df that ship, waving a white handkerchief, bent to
a boarding-pike. As soon as the smoke cleared away, the two squadrons were
found partly intermingled. The Niagara lay to leeward of
the Detroit, Queen Charlotte, and Hunter ; and the Caledonia,
with one or two of the gun-vessels, was between the latter and
the Lady Prevost. On board the Niagara, the signal for close
action was still abroad, whUe the small vessels were sternly
wearing their answering flags. The Little Belt and Chippe
way were endeavouring to escape to leeward, but they were
shortly after brought-to by the Scorpion and Trippe ; while
the Lawrence was lying astern and to windward, with the
American colours Eigain flying. The battle had commenced
about noon, and it terminated at 3, with the exception of a few
shots fired at the two vessels that attempted to escape, which
were not overtaken until an hour later.
In this decisive action, so far as their people were concern
ed, the two squadrons suffered in nearly an equal degree, the
manner in which the Lawrence was cut up, being almost with
out an example in naval warfare. It is understood that when
Captain Perry left her, she had but one gun on her starboard
side, or that on which she was engaged, which could be used,
and that gallant officer is said to have aided in firing it in per
son the last time it was discharged. Of her crew, 22 were
killed, and 61 were wounded, most of the latter severely.
When Captain Perry left her, taking with him his own brother
and six of his people, there remained on board but 14 sound
men. The Niagara had 2 killed, and 25 wounded, or about
one-fourth of all at quarters. This was the official report ;
but, according to the statement of her surgeon, her loss was
5 killed, and 27 wounded. The other vessels suffered rela
tively less. The Caledonia, Lieutenant Turner, though car
ried into the hottest of the action, and entirely without quar-
ters, had 3 men wounded ; the Trippe, Lieutenant Holdup,
which, for some time, was quite as closely engaged, and was
equally without quarters, had 2 men wounded ; the Somers,
Mr. Almy, the same ; the Ariel, Lieutenant" Packett, had 1
man killed, and 3 wounded ; the Scorpion, Mr. Champlin, had
2 kUled, one of whom was a midshipman ; the Tigress, Lieu
tenant Conklin, and Porcupine, Mr. Senatt, had no one hurt.
The total loss of the .squadron was 27 killed, and 96 wound-

392 NAVAL HISTORY. [1813,
ed, or altogether 123 men ; of whom 12 were quarter-deck
officers. More than a hundred men were unfit for duty, among
the different vessels, previously to the action, cholera morbus and
dysentery prevailing in the squadron. Captain Perry himself
Was labouring under debility, from a recent attack of the lake
fever, and could hardly be said to be in a proper condition for
service, when he met the enemy ; a circumstance that greatly
enhances the estimate of his personal exertions on this memo
rable occasion. Among the Americans slain, were Lieutenant
Brooks, the commanding marine officer, and Messrs. Laub and
Clark, midshipmen ; and amongthe wounded, Messrs. Yarnall
and Forrest,- the first and second Ueutenants of the Lawrence,
Mr. Taylor, her master, Mr. Hambleton, her purser, and
Messrs. Swartwout and Claxton, two of her midshipmen. Mr.
Edwards, second lieutenant of the Niagara, and Mr. Cum
mings, one of her midshipmen, were also wounded.
For two hours the weight of the enemy's fire had been
thrown into the Lawrence; and the water being perfectiy
smooth, his long guns had committed great havoc, before the
carronades of the American vessels could be made available.
For much of this period, it is believed that the efforts of the
enemy were little diverted, except by the fire of the two lead
ing schooners, a gun of one of which (the Ariel) had early
bursted, the two long guns of the large brigs, and the two long
guns of the Caledonia. Although the enemy undoubtedly suf
fered by this fire, it was not directed at a single object, as was
the case with that of the English, who appeared to think that
by destroying the American commanding vessel they would
conquer. It is true that carronades were used on both sides,
at an earlier stage of the action than that mentioned, but there
is good reason for thinking that they did but little execution
for the first hour. When they did tell, the Lawrence, the ves
sel nearest to the enemy, if the Caledonia be excepted, neces
sarily became their object, and, by this time, the efficiency of
her own battery was much lessened. As a consequence of
these peculiar circumstances, her starboad bulwarks were near
ly -beaten in; and even her larboard were greatiy injured,
many of the enemy's heavy shot passing through both sides ;
while every gun was finally disabled in the batteries fought.
Although much has been justiy said of the manner in which
the Bon Homme Richard and the Essex were injured, neither
of those ships suffered, relatively, in a degree proportioned to
the Lawrence. Distinguished as were the two former vessels,

1813.] NAVAL HISTORY. 393
for the indomitable resolution with which they withstood the
destructive fire directed against them, it did not surpass that
mEmifested on board the latter ; and it ought to be mentioned,
that throughout the whole of this trying day, her people, who
had been so short a time acting together, manifested a steadi
ness and a discipline worthy of veterans.
Although the Niagara suffered in a much less degree, 27
men killed and wounded, in a ship's company that mustered
littie more than 100 souls at quarters, under ordinary circum
stances, would be thought a large proportion. Neither the
Niagara nor any of the smaller vessels were injured in an
unusual msmner in their hulls, spars, and sails, the enemy hav
ing expended so much of his efforts against the Lawrence, and
being so soon silenced when that brig and the gun-vessels got
their raking positions, at the close of the conffict.
The injuries sustained by the English were more divided,
but were necessarily great. According to the official report
of Captaia Barclay, his vessels lost 41 killed, and 94 wound
ed, making a total of 135, including twelve officers, the pre
cise number lost by the Americans. No report has been pub
lished, in which the loss of the respective vessels was given ;
but the Detroit had her first lieutenant killed, and her com
mander. Captain Barclay, with her purser, wounded. Captain
Finnis, of the Queen Charlotte, was also slain, and her first
lieutenant was wounded. The commanding officer and first
lieutenant of the Lady Prevost were among the wounded, as
were the commanding officers of the Hunter and Chippeway.
All the vessels were a good deal injured in their sails and hulls ;
the Queen Charlotte suffering most in proportion. Both the
Detroit and Queen Charlotte rolled the masts out of them, at
anchor at Put-in Bay, in a gale of wind, two days afler the
action. It is not easy to make a just comparison between the forces
of the hostile squadrons on this occasion. In certain situations
the Americans would have been materially superior, while in
others the enemy might possess the advantage in perhaps an
equal degree. In the circumstances under which the action
was actually fought, the peculiar advantages and disadvantages
were nearly equalized, the lightness of the wind peventing
either of the two largest of the American vessels from profit-
mg by its peculiar mode of efficiency, until quite near the
close of the engagement, and particularly favouring the arma
ment of the Detroit ; while the smoothness of the water ren-

39'4 NAVAL HISTORY. [1813.
dered the light vessels of the Americans very destructive as
soon as they could be got within a proper range. 'The De
troit has been represented on good authority, to have been both
a heavier and stronger ship, than either of the American brigs,
and the Queen Charlotte proved to be a much finer vessel than
had been expected ; while the Lady Prevost was found to be
a large, warlike schooner. It was, perhaps, unfortunate for
the enemy, that the armaments of the two last were not avail
able under the circumstances 'which rendered the Detroit so
efficient, as it destroyed the unity of his efforts. In short, the
battle, for near half its duration, appears to have been fought,
so far as efficiency was concerned, by the long guns of the
two squadrons. This was particularly favourable to the De
troit and to the American gun-vessels ; while the latter fought
under the advantages of smooth water, and the disadvantages
of having no quarters. The sides of the Detroit, which were
unusually stout, were filled with shot that did not penetrate.
In the number of men at quarters, there could have been no
great disparity in the two squadrons. Mr. Yarnall, the first
lieutenant of the Lawrence, testified before a court of inquiry,
in 1815, that the brig to which he belonged had but " 131 men
and boys, of every description" on board her, and that of these
but 103 were fit for duty in the action, "rhe Niagara was
nearly in the same state. A part of the crews of all the ves
sels belonged to the militia. Indeed, without a large propor
tion of volunteers from the army, the battle could not have
been fought. The British were no better off, having a con
siderable proportion of soldiers on board their vessels, though
men of that description were probably as efficient in smooth
water, and under the actual circumstances, as ordinary sailors.
Captain Perry, in his report of the action, eulogised the con
duct of his second in command, Captain Elliott ; that of Mr.
Turner, who commanded the Caledonia ; and that of the officers
of his own vessel. He also commended the officers of the
Niagara, Mr. Packett of the Ariel, and Mr. Champlin of the
Scorpion. It is now believed that the omission of the names
of the commanders of the gun-vessels astern, was accidental.
It would seem that these vessels, in general, were conducted
with great gallantry, Towards the close of the action, indeed,
the Caledonia, and some of the gun-vessels, would appear to
have been handled with a boldness, considering their total
want of quarters, bordering on temerity. They are known to
have been within hail of the enemy, at the moment he struck,
and to have been hailed by him. The grape and canister

1813.] NAVAL HISTORY. 395
thrown by the Niagara and the schooners, during the last ten
minutes of the battle, and which missed the enemy, rattled
through the. spars of the friendly vessels, as they lay opposite
to each other, raking the English ahead and astern.
Captain Perry was criticised, at the time, for the manner in
which he had brought his squadron into action, it being thought
he should have waited until his line was more compactly
formed, and his small vessels could have closed. It has been
said, that " an officer seldom went into action worse, or got
out of it better." Truth is too often made the sacrifice of
antithesis. The mode of attack appears to have been deemed
by the enemy judicious, an opinion that speaks in its favour.
The lightness of the wind, in edging down, was the only cir
cumstance that was particularly adverse to the American ves
sels, but its total failure could not have been foreseen. The
shortness of the distances on the lake rendered escape so easy,
when an pfficer was disposed to avoid a battle, that no com
mander, who desired an action, would have been pardonable
for permitting a delay on such a plea. The line of battle was
highly judicious, the manner in which the Lawrence was sup
ported by the Ariel and Scorpion being simple and ingenious.
By steering for the head of the enemy's line, the latter was
prevented from gaining the wind by tacking, and when Captain
Elliott imitated this manoeuvre in the Niagara, the American
squadron had a very commanding position, of which Captain
Perry promptly availed himself In a word, the American
commander appears to have laid his plan with skill and judg
ment, and, in all in which it was frustrated, it would seem to
have been the effect of accident. There has never been but
one opinion of the manner in which he redeemed his error,
even admitting that a fault was made at the outset ; the united
movements of the Niagara and of the small vessels, at the
close of the action, having been as judicious as they were gal
lant and decisive. The personal deportment of Captain Perry,
throughout the day, was worthy of all praise. He did not
quit his own vessel when she became useless, to retire from
the battle, but to gain it ; an end that was fully obtained, and
an effort which resulted in a triumph.
The British vessels appear to have been gallantly fought, and
were surrendered only when the battle was .hopelessly lost.
The fall of their different commanders was materially against
them, though it is not probable the day could have been reco
vered after the Niagara gained the head of their line and the

396 NAVAL HISTORY. [1813-14
gun-vessels had closed. If the enemy made an error, it was
in not tacking when he attempted to ware, but it is quite pro
bable that the condition of his vessels did not admit of the
former manoeuvre. There was an instant when the enemy be
lieved himself the conqueror, and a few minutes even, when
the Americans doubted ; but the latter never despaired ; a mo
ment sufficed to change their feelings, teaching the successful
the fickleness of fortune, and admonishing the depressed of the
virtue of perseverance.
For his conduct in this battle. Captain Perry received a gold
medal from Congress. Captain Elliott also received a gold
medal. Rewards were bestowed on the officers and men
generally, and the nation has long considered this action one
of its proudest achievements on the water.
On the 23d of October, the squadron transported the army
of General Harrison to Buffalo; and on the 25th, Captain Perry
resigned the command of the upper lakes to Captain Elliott,
repairing himself to the sea-board. November 29th, this gal
lant and successful officer received the commission of a cap
tain, which was dated on the day of the victory, and soon after
he was appointed to the command of the Java 44, a new fri
gate, then fitting for sea at Baltimore.

CHAPTER XLV.
In February, 1814, three vessels were laid down at the Har
bour, a frigate of 50 guns, and two large brigs, pierced for 22
guns each. As the EngUsh were known to be building extensive
ly, the timber was also got out for a second frigate. Early in
March many deserters came in, who agreed in stating that
the largest of the enemy's new ships, which had been laid
down the previous autumn, was caulked and decked, and that
she was pierced for 60 guns. A third ship was also said to
be in preparation. In consequence of this intelligence, the size
of the first American frigate was materially increased. March
26th, the important information was obtained that the enemy
had actually laid down a two-decked vessel of unusual dimen
sions. Thus did those inland waters, on which, until quite

1814.] NAVAL HISTORY. 397
lately, nothmg had ever floated larger than a sloop of war, bid
fEiir to witness the evolutions of fleets 1
On the 7th of April one of the new brigs was launched. She
was called the Jefferson. Still the guns which had left New
York two months previously, had not even reached Albany.
The other brig was launched on the 10th, and was called the
Jones. Not a man or gun, however, had yet arrived. April
the 1 1th, the enemy was ascertained to be in the stream, with
all his vessels of the previous year; and on the 14th, he put
his two frigates into the water. The Lady of the Lake was
sent out to watch the motions of the English, as soon as the
state of the ice permitted.
April 25th, while rowing guard. Lieutenant Dudley detected
three boats in the offing, and immediately fired into them.
The strangers did not return the fire, but pulled swiftly away.
Obtaining a reinforcement, Mr. Dudley gave chase, but could
not again fall in with the suspicious party. The next day
there was a close search, and at the spot where the strangers
received the fire of the guard-boat, six barrels of gunpowder
were found in the lake, slung in such a manner, that one man
might carry two at a time, across his shoulders. They had
fuse-holes, and were, no doubt, intended to blow up the frigate.
On the 2d of May, the American frigate was launched.
She was called the Superior. Another of less size, was im
mediately laid down on her blocks. The guns began to arrive
at the Harbour about the beginning of May, though the heavi
est were still working their way through the imperfect naviga
tion of the Mohawk and Wood Creek, towards Oswego. On
the 4th, the Lady of the Lake, Lieutenant Gregory, saw six
saU of the enemy coming out of Kingston, about dusk, steering
towards Amherst Bay ; and on the 5th, the latter appeared off
Oswego, with seven sail. The greatest exertions were now
made to get the Pike, Madison, Jefferson, Sylph, and Oneida,
ready to follow him ; these being all the vessels that had their
armaments, the small schooners being pretty generally aban
doned EIS cruisers, and converted into transports. But a report
was received from Captain Woolsey, then on duty at Oswego,
that one of the new frigates was certainly in the enemy's
squadron ; and Mr. Gregory brought in information that he had
seen the other off the Ducks the same day : when Commodore
Chauncey abandoned the intention to go out, the great superi
ority of the English putting a battle out of the question.
34

398 NAVAL HISTORY. [1813.
The active cruising force under Sir James Yeo, consisted
of the Prince Regent 58, Captain O'Conner, the flag-ship,
armed with heavy long guns, sixty-eight and thirty-two-pound
carronades, and containing near 500 men ; the Princess Char
lotte 42, Captain Mulcaster, having guns nearly or quite as
heavy, and between 300 and 400 men ; the Montreal, (late
Wolfe,) Captain Downie ; the Niagara, (late Royal George,)
Captain Popham ; the Charwell, (late Moira,) Lieutenant
Dobbs ; Magnet, (late Sidney Smith ;) the Star, (late Melville,)
Captain Clover ; and the Netley, (late Beresford,) Lieutenant
Owen. It was evident that nothing less than unusually heavy
frigates could lie against the largest of these vessels.
Captain Woolsey had been sent to Oswego, to transport the
heavy guns, cables, &c., of the two new frigates, most of which
had reached the falls, twelve miles above that town, where they
were kept for the sake of security, untU the schooners could be
loaded, and despatched singly. The Growler was in the river
with that object, when Sir James Yeo appeared in the offing.
He was about to make a descent, with a body of troops, on the
5th, but the weather induced him to defer the enterprise. On
this occasion, there was some firing, and the enemy abandoned
an empty boat or two. The succeeding day, however, every
thing being favourable, the original design was resumed.
At the moment when Sir James Yeo appeared, a battalion
of the light artillery, consisting of 290 effectives, under Lieu
tenant Colonel Mitchell, was at Fort Oswego, and but a few
militia had been called in, the adjacent country being little
more than a wilderness. It would trespass on another branch
of the subject, minutely to relate the affair that followed. Lieu
tenant General Drummond landed, and carried the place after
a sharp resistance ; the Americans having too small a force to
repel him.
The enemy remained two days at Oswego, when they raised
the Growler, and carried her off; this making the third time
that vessel had been taken during the last year. But few
stores were found in the village, the orders of Commodore
Chauncey having required that they should be kept at the falls,
until vessels were ready to receive them.
Sir James Yeo now returned to Kingston, landed the troops,
and on the 19th, he came out and chased the Lady of the Lake
into the Harbour, off which place he appeared with four ships
and three brigs, blockading the port, for the first and only time
during the war. At this moment, many of the stores, and

1814.] NAVAL HISTORY. 399
some of the lighter guns, were coming in by land, though the
heavy guns and cables still remained in the Oswego river.
About the middle of May, reinforcements of officers and men
began to arrive from the seaboard. The Macedonian had been
laid up in the Thames, and Mr. Rodgers, her first lieutenant,
came in with her crew, between the llth and the 21st. Cap
tain Elliott rejoined the station on the 12th, and Captain
Trenchard on the 15th. The Erie, a new sloop of war, then
blockaded at Baltimore, had also been laid up, and her com
mander, Captain Ridgely, with his people, arrrived some time
before, and were put on board the Jefferson.
Notwithstandmg all the exertions tiiat had been made in
building, the ships were useless without guns and cables, and
most of those intended for the two frigates, had yet to be trans
ported to the Harbour by water, their weight and the state of
the roads rendering other means too costly and difficult. Cap
tain Woolsey, who was still entrusted with this duty, caused
reports to be circulated that the heavy articles were to be sent
back to the Oneida lake; and when time had been aUowed for
the enemy to receive this false information, he ran the guns
over the falls, and at sunset, on the 28th of May, he reached
Oswego with 19 boats loaded with 21 long thirty-two-pounders,
18 twenty-four pounders, 3 forty-two-pound carronades, and
10 cables. The look-outs having reported the coast clear, the
brigade of boats rowed out of the river, at dusk, and after pass
ing a dark and ramy night at the oars, reached the mouth of
Big Salmon River, at sunrise on the 29th, one boat having
unaccountably disappeared.
Captain Woolsey was accompanied by a detachment of 130
riflemen, under Major Appling, and at the Big Salmon he also
met a party of Oneida Indians, which had been directed to fol
low on the shore. The brigade now proceeded, entered the
Big Sandy Creek, and ascended about two miles to its place of
destination ; the blockade rendering it necessary to convey the
supplies by land the remainder of the distance.
At this time, the EngUsh squadron lay at anchor, a few
mOes from the Harbour, and the missing boat had gone ahead,
in the professed hope of making the whole distance by water.
Seeing the English ships, either by mistake or treachery it
pulled directly for them, under a belief, real or pretended, that
they were Americans. It is thought, however, that the people
in the boat were deceived.
From the prisoners. Sir Jennes Yeo learned the situation of

400 NAVAL HISTORY. [1814.
the remainder of the brigade. He had gun-boats on the sta
tion, and Captain Popham of the Montreal, was put into one,
and Captain SpUsbury into another having three cutters and a
gig in company. After cruising without success, separately,
the two parties joined, and having ascertained that the brigade
had entered Sandy Creek, they followed on the SOth, with the
•expectation of capturing it. Major Appling, being apprised of
the approach of the enemy, placed his riflemen, supported by
the Indians, in ambush, about half a mile below the place
where Captain Woolsey was discharging the stores. The ene
my had a party of marines on board, under two lieutenants of
that corps. These, in conjunction with a body of seamen,
were landed, and the gun-boats approached, throwing grape and
canister into the bushes, with a view to feel their way. Ma
jor Appling permitted the enemy to get quite near, when he
threw in a close discharge of the rifle. The resistance was
trifling, and in ten minutes the whole of the English demanded
quarter. The enemy had a midshipman and 13 seamen and
marines killed, and 2 Ueutenants of marines, with 26 common
men wounded. In addition to the wounded, there was a suffi
cient number of prisoners made to raise his total loss to 186.
All the boats were taken, the three gun-vessels carrying 68,
24, 18 and 12 pound carronades. Among the prisoners were
Captains Popham and Spilsbury, 4 sea-lieutenants, and 2 mid
shipmen. Although there was a considerable force a short
distance above, without the range of the rifle, the commahd of
Major Appling, which effected this handsome exploit, was
scarcely equal to the enemy in numbers, and yet he had but a
single man wounded. This little success was the effect of a
surprise and an ambush.
Most of the Superior's gunS having now arrived, the enemy
raised the blockade on the 6th of June. Two days later the
last of the guns actually reached Sackett's Harbour. The fri
gate which had been laid down on the blocks of the Superior,
was launched on the llth of June, having been put into the
water in 34 working days, from the time her keel was laid.
She was called the Mohawk. Still the squadron was 500 men
short of its complements, though the crew of the Congress 38,
which was undergoing extensive repairs, at Portsmouth, N.
H., had been ordered to this service. About the middle of the
month, the latter began to arrive. The enemy also continued
to reinforce both his army and his marine, 200 boats at a time
having been observed passing up the St. Lawrence.

1814] NAVAL HISTORY. 401
About the middle of the month. Commodore Chauncey sent
Acting Lieutenant Gregory, with three gigs, into the St. Law
rence, where the enemy had a line of gun-boats, to cover the
passage of his supplies and reinforcements, with directions to
surprise some of his boats loaded with stores, and, if possible,
to destroy them. For this purpose Mr. Gregory lay in am
bush on one of the islands, but was discovered by the look-outs
of the enemy, who immediately despatched a gun-boat in chase.
Instead of retiring Jiefore this force, Mr. Gregory determined
to become the Etssauant, and he dEished at the gun-boat, car
rying her without the loss of a man. This vessel had an
eighteen-pound carronade, and a crew of 18 men. While pro
ceeding up the river wii;h his prize, Mr. Gregory was chased
by a much larger boat, mounting 2 guns, and pulling a great
number of oars, which compelled him to scuttle and abandon
her. On this occasion Mr. Gregory was accompanied by
Messrs. Vaughan and Dixon, two gallant mariners of the lake,
and he brought in nearly as many prisoners as he had men.
Ten days later, Mr. Gregory wEts sent with two gigs, ac
companied as before by Messrs. Vaughan and Dixon, to Ni
cholas Island, near Presque Isle, where the enemy had a
cruiser, intended to mount 14 guns, nearly ready to launch,
and to endeavour to destroy her. This duty, after running
much risk, and suffering greatiy from hunger, was effectually
performed by the party, which was absent near a week. The
day after his return from this expedition, Mr. Gregory received
the commission of a lieutenant, which had been conferred on
him for the handsome manner in which he had captured the
gun-boat. On the afternoon of the Slst of July, Commodore Chauncey,
who had been very ill, was carried on board the Superior, and
the American squadron sailed. Its force consisted of the Su
perior 62, Lieutenant Elton, Commodore Chauncey ; Mohawk
42, Captain Jones ; Pike 28, Captain Crane ; Madison 24,
Captain Trenchard ; Jefferson 22, Captain Ridgely ; Jones 22,
Captain Woolsey ; Sylph 14, Captain Elliott ; Oneida 14, Lieu
tenant Commandant Brown, and the Lady of the Lake, look
out vessel. There is no question that this force, which, with
the exception of the Oneida, was composed of efficient vessels,
was superior to that of the English, who were striving to regain
the ascendency, by constructing, as fast as possible, the two-
decker already mentioned.
Commodore Chauncey, whose health rapidly improved in
34*

402 NAVAL HIS'TORY. [1814
the pure air of the lake, appeared off the Niagara, now by the
vicissitudes of war again in the possession of the English, on
the 5th of August. As the American vessels approached, thej^
intercepted one of the English brigs, which was convoying
troops from York to Niagara, and she was chased ashore about
two leagues to the westward of Fort George.
Commodore Chauncey left the Jefferson, Sylph, and Oneida
to watch two brigs of the enemy, who were then lying in the
Niaga.ra, and went off Kingston, where hp»arrived on the 9th.
One of the English ships was in the offing, and was chased
into port by the American squadron. The next day, the Jones,
Captain Woolsey, was sent to cruise between Oswego and the
Harbour ; and the Conquest, Lieutenant Reid, one of the best
of the schooners, which had been kept armed for any Ught ser
vice that might offer, was employed on the same duty, the
enemy having intercepted some flour that was passing, by
means of boats.
From this time, until the month of October, Commodore
Chauncey continued a close blockade of Sir James Yeo, in
Kingston, having undisputed command of the entire lake.
With a view to tempt the English to come out, he kept only
four vessels in the offing, and as the enemy had an equal
number, it was thought the provocation might induce him to'
risk a battle. Some guns were also sent ashore, with a view
fo bring the vessels as near as possible to an equality. The
American ships were the Superior 58,* Mohawk 42, Pike 28,
and Madison 24 ; the British, the Prince Regent 58, Princess
Charlotte 42, Wolfe 25, and Niagara 24. 'There was also a
large schooner at Kingston, and several gun-boats and smaller
vessels. It is probable that there was a trifling superiority on
the part of the Americans, notwithstanding ; for in a conflict
between vessels of so much force, the smaller craft could be
of no great moment ; but it was such a superiority as the enemy
ha'd long been accustomed to disregard ; and the result showed
that the American marine commanded his respect to a degree
which rendered the minutest calculations of force necessary.
On the 20th of^ugust, the blockading ships were driven off
by a gale; and on regaining their station on the 25th, the
enemy could not be seen in port. Lieutenant Gregory, with
Mr. Hart, a midshipman, was immediately sent in, in a gig, to
reconnoitre. While on this duty, Mr. Gregory landed to set
* Four guns having been landed

1814] NAVAL HISTORY. 403
fire to a raft of picket-timber that he accidentally passed. This
deviation from the direct route, brought the gig so near in-shore,
that two barges of the enemy, carrying 30 men, were enabled
to head it, as it doubled a point. A chase, and a sharp fire of
musketry ensued, Mr. Gregory persevering in his attempt to
escape, until Mr. Hart was killed, and five men out of eight
were wounded, when this enterprising officer was obliged to
surrender. On the llth of September, the wind came from the north
ward, when Commodore Chauncey stood in towards Kingston,
and brought-to, just without the drop of the shot from the bat
teries ; and the ships hoisted their ensigns, as a challenge for
the enemy to come out. The English sprung their broadsides
to bear, set their colours, but did not accept the defiance. It
was now seen that the two-decker was launched, and she was
ascertained to be very large. After remaining close in, for a
considerable time, the American ships filled and gained an
offing. The next day it came on to blow, and the squadron was
compelled to make an offing. The gale lasted untU the 15th,
when the Lady of the Lake joined, to say that General Izard
had reached the Harbour. The ships now went in, for the
first time, since the 2d of August, having kept the lake 45
days; much of the time under canvass. On the 16th, the
look-out vessel was sent to order in the different brigs.
The division of General Izard was landed at the mouth of
the Genesee, on the 22d. As soon as this duty was performed,
Commodore Chauncey went off Kingston again, where he ap
peared on the 28th. Two of the enemy's ships were coming
out under a press of sail, but were driven back. The 29th,
the wind being fair, the squadron looked into Kingston again,
and the Lady was sent close in, when it was found that the
large ship, which had been called the St. Lawrence, was com
pletely rigged, but had no saUs bent. As this vessel was
pierced for 112 guns, and was intended for metal in propor
tion, she was more than equal to meeting the whole American
force. On the 5th of October, the Sylph looked in again, and
found her sails bent and topgallant-yards crossed, when Com
modore Chauncey ran over to the Harbour, where he anchored
on the 7th, and prepared to receive an attack.
Sir James Yeo saUed in the St. Lawrence, with four other
ships, two brigs, and a schooner, on the 15th of October, and
he continued in Command of the lake for the remainder of the

404 NAVAL HISTORY. [1814
season. He is said to have had more than 1100 men in his
flag-ship ; and it was understood that the enemy had become
so wary, that a captain was stationed on each deck. Other
duty probably occupied him, for no attempt was made on the
Harbour, nor did the enemy even blockade it ; the necessities
of the Niagara frontier calling his attention in that quarter.
At the end of the month of November, the navigation closed.

CHAPTER XLVI.
In the autumn of 1814, the enemy contemplated an inva
sion of the northern and least populous counties of New York,
with a large force, following the route laid down for General
Burgoyne, in his unfortunate expedition of 1777. It was most
probably intended to occupy a portion of the northern frontier,
with the expectation of turning the circumstance to account
in the pending negotiations, the English commissioners soon
after advancing a claim to drive the Americans back from
their ancient boundaries, with a view to leave Great Britain
the entire possession of the lakes. In such an expedition, the
command of Champlain became of great importance, as it
flanked the march of the invading army for more than a hun
dred miles, and offered so many facilities for forwarding sup
plies, as well as for annoyance and defence. Until this sea
son, neither nation had a force of any moment on that water,
but the Americans had built a ship and a schooner, during the
winter and spring ; and when it was found that the enemy
was preparing for a serious effort, the keel of a brig was laid.
Many galleys, or gun-boats, were also constructed.
The American squadron lay in Otter Creek, at the com
mencement of the season ; and near the middle of May, as
the vessels then launched were about to quit port, the enemy
appeared off the mouth of the creek, with a force consisting
of the Linnet brig, and eight or ten galleys, under the orders
of Captain Bring, with a view to fill the channel. For this
purpose two sloops loaded with stones were in company. A
small work had been thrown up at the mouth of the creek
some time previously, by Captain Thornton of the artillery,

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1814.] NAVAL HISTORY. 405
and Lieutenant Cassin was despatched with a party of sea
men, to aid that officer in defending the pass. After a can
nonading of some duration, the enemy retired without effecting
his object, and the vessels got out. In this affair, no one was
hurt on the side of the Americans, although shells were thrown
from one of the galleys.
On the other hand, the English were not idle. In addition
to the small vessels they had possessed the previous year, they
had built the brig just mentioned, or the Linnet, and as soon
as the last American vessel was in frame, they laid the keel
of a ship. By constructing the latter, a great advantage was
secured, care being taken, as a matter of course, to make her
of a size sufficient to be certain of possessing the greatest
force. The American brig, which was called the Eagle, was
launched about the middle of August ; and the EngUsh ship,
which was named the Confiance, on the 25th of the same
month. As the English army was already collecting on the
frontier, the utmost exertions were made by both sides, and
each appeared on the lake as he got ready. Captain M'Do
nough, who still commanded the American force, was enabled
to get out a few days before his adversary ; and cruising being
almost out of the question on this long and narrow body of
water, he advanced as far as Plattsburg, the point selected for
the defence, and anchored, the 3d of September, on the flank
of the troops which occupied the entrenchments at that place.
About this time. Sir George Prevost, the English commander-
in-chief, advanced against Plattsburg, then held by Brigadier
General Macomb at the head of only 1500 effectives, with a
force that probably amounted to 12,000 men. A good deal
of skirmishing ensued ; and from the 7th to the llth, the ene
my was employed in bringing up his battering train, stores,
and reinforcements. Captain Downie, late of the Montreal,
on Lake Ontario, had been sent by Sir James Yeo, to com
mand on this lake.
On the 6th, Captain M'Donough ordered the gaUeys to the
head of the bay, to annoy the English army, and a cannon
ading occurred which lasted two hours. The wind coming on
to blow a gale that menaced the galleys with shipwreck, Mr.
Duncan, a midshipman of the Saratoga, was sent in a gig to
order them to retire. It is supposed that the appearance of the
boat induced the enemy to think that Captain M'Donough him
self had joined his galleys ; for he concentrated a fire on the
galley Mr. Duncan was in, and that young officer received a

406 NAVAL HISTORY. [1814.
severe wound, by which he lost the use of his arm. After
wards one of the galleys drifted in, under the guns of the
enemy, and she also sustained some loss, but was eventually
brought off.
Captain M'Donough had chosen an anchorage a little to the
south of the outiet of the Saranac. His vessels lay in a line
parallel to the coast, extending north and south, and distant
from the western shore near two miles. The last vessel at the
southward was so near the shoal, as to prevent the English
from passing that end of the line, while all the ships lay so far
out towards Cumberiand Head, as to bring the enemy within
reach of carronades, should he enter the bay on that side.
The Eagle, Captain Henley, lay at the northern extremity of
the American line, and what might, during the battle, have
been called its head, the wind being at the northward and
eastward ; the Saratoga, Captain M'Donough's own vessel,
was second ; the Ticonderoga, Lieutenant Commandant Cassin,
third ; and the Preble, Lieutenant Charles Budd, last. The
Preble lay a little farther south than the pitch of Cumberland
Head. The first of these vessels just mentioned was a brig of
20 guns, and 150 men, all told; the second a ship of 26 guns,
and 212 men ; the third a schooner of 17 guns and 110 men ;
the last a sloop, or cutter, of 7 guns and 30 men. The metal
of all these vessels, as well as those of the enemy, was unusu
ally heavy, there being no swell in the lake to render it dan
gerous. The Saratoga mounted 8 long twenty-fours, 6 forty-
two, and 12 thirty-two-pound carronades; the Eagle, 8 long
eighteens, and 12 thirty-two-pound carronades ; the Ticonder
oga, 4 long eighteens, 8 long twelves, and 4 thirty -two-pound
carronades, and one eighteen-pound columbiad ; the Preble, 7
long nines. In addition to these four vessels, the Americans
had 10 gaUeys, or gun-boats, six large and four sn^all. Each
of the former mounted a long twenty-four, and an eighteen
pound columbiad ; each of the latter one long twelve. The
galleys, on an average, had about 35 men each. The total
force of the Americans present consisted, consequentiy, of 14
vessels, mounting 86 guns, and containing about 850 men, in
cluding officers and a small detachment of soldiers, who did
duty as marines, none of the corps having been sent on Lake
Champlain. To complete his order of battie. Captain M'Do
nough directed two of the galleys to keep in-shore of the Eagle,
and a little to windward of her, to sustain the head of the line ;
one or two more to lie opposite to the interval between the

1814] NAVAL HISTORY. 407
Eagle and Saratoga ; a few opposite to the interval between the
Saratoga and Ticonderoga ; and two or three opposite the in
terval between the Ticonderoga and Preble.
The Americans were, consequently, formed in two lines,
distant from each other about 40 yards ; the large vessels at
anchor, and the galleys under their sweeps.
'The force of the enemy was materially greater than that of the
Americans. His largest vessel, the Confiance, commanded by
Captain Downie in person, had the gun-deck of a heavy fri
gate, mounting on it an armament similar to that of the Con
stitution or United States, or 30 long twenty- fours. She had
no spar-deck, but there was a spacious top-gallant forecastle,
and a poop that came no farther forward than the mizzen-mast.
On the first were a long twenty-four on a circle, and 4 heavy
carronades ; and on the last 2 heavy carronades, making an
armament of 37 guns in all. Her complement of men is sup
posed to have been considerably more than 300. The next
vessel of the enemy was the Linnet, Captain Pring, a brig of
16 long twelves, with a crew of from 80 to 100 men. There
were two sloops, the Chubb, Lieutenant M'Ghee, and the Finch,
Lieutenant Hicks, the former carrying 10 eighteen-pound car
ronades, and 1 long six, and the latter 6 eighteen-pound car
ronades, 1 eighteen-pound columbiad, and 4 long sixes. Each
of these sloops had about 40 men. To these four vessels were
- added a force in galleys, or gun-boats, which Sir George Pre-
.^^ost, in his published accounts, states at twelve in number, and
Captain M'Donough at thirteen. These vessels were similarly
constructed to the American galleys, eight mounting two, and
the remainder but one gun each. Thus the whole force of
Captain Downie consisted of sixteen or seventeen vessels, as
the case may have been, mounting in all, 95 or 96 guns, and
carrying about 1000 men.
On the 3d of September, the British gun-boats sailed from
Isle aux Noix, under the orders of Captain Pring, to cover the
left flank of their army. On the 4th that officer took posses
sion of Isle au Motte, where he constructed a battery, and
landed some supplies for the troops. On the 8th, the four
larger vessels arrived under Captain Downie, but remained at
anchor until the llth, waiting to receive some necessaries.
At daylight, on the morning just mentioned, the whole force
weighed, and moved forward in a body.
'The guard-boat of the Americans pulled in shortiy after the
sun had risen, and announced the approach of the enemy. As

408 NAVAL HISTORY. [1814.
the wind was fair, a good working breeze at the northward
and eastward. Captain M'Donough ordered the vessels cleared,
and preparations made to fight at anchor. Eight bells were
striking in the American squadron, as the upper sails of the
EngUsh vessels were seen passing along the land, in the main
lake, on their way to double Cumberland Head. The enemy
had the wind rather on his larboard quarter. The Finch led,
succeeded by the Confiance, Linnet, and Chubb ; while the gun
boats, all of which, as well as those of the Americans, had two
latine saUs, followed without much order, keeping just clear of
the shore.
The first vessel that came round the IJead was a sloop,
which is said to have carried a company of amateurs, and
which took no part in the engagement. She kept well to lee
ward, stood down towards Crab Island, and was soon un
observed. The Finch came next, and soon after the other
large vessels of the enemy opened from behind the land, and
hauled up to the wind in a line abreast, lying-to until their
galleys could join. The latter passed to leeward, and formed
in the same manner as their consorts. The two squadrons
were now in plain view of each other, distant about a league.
As soon as the gun-boats were in their stations, and the dif
ferent commanders had received their orders, the English
filled, with their starboard taclcs aboard, and headed in towards
the American vessels, in a line abreast, the Chubb to wind
ward, and the Finch to leeward, most of the gun-boats, how
ever, being to leeward of the latter. The movements of the
Finch had been a little singular ever since she led round the
Head, for she is said not to have hove-to, but to have run off,
half-way to Crab Island with the wind abeam, then to have
tacked and got into her station, after the other vessels had
filled. This movement was probably intended to reconnoitre,
or to menace the rear of the Americans. The enemy was now
standing in, close-hauled, the Chubb looking well to windward
of the Eagle, the vessel that lay at the head of the American
line, the Linnet laying her course for the bows of the same
brig, the Confiance intending to fetch far enough ahead of the
Saratoga to lay that ship athwart hawse, and the Finch, with
the gun-boats, standing for the Ticonderoga and Preble.
As a matter of course, the Americans were anchored with
springs. But not content with this customary arrangement,
Captain M'Donough had laid a kedge broad off on each bow
of the Saratoga, and brought their hawsers in, upon the two

1814.] NAVAL HISTORY. 409
quarters, letting them hang in bights, under water. This
timely precaution gained the victory.
As the enemy filled, the American vessels sprung their
broadsides to bear, and a few minutes were passed in the so
lemn and silent expectation, that, in a disciplined ship, precedes
a battle. Suddenly the Eagle discharged, in quick succession,
her four long eighteens. In clearing the decks of the Sara
toga, some hen-coops were thrown overboard, and the poultry
had been permitted to run at large. Startled by the reports
of the guns, a young cock flew upon a gun-slide, clapped his
wings and crowed. At this animating sound, the men spon
taneously gave three cheers. This little occurrence relieved
the usual breathing time between preparation and the combat,
and it had a powerful influence on the known tendencies of the
seamen. Still Captain M'Donough did not give the order to
commence, although the enemy's galleys now opened ; for it
was apparent that the fire of the Eagle, which vessel continued
to engage, was useless. As soon, however, as it was seen
that her shot told, Captain M'Donough, himself, sighted a long
twenty-four, and the gun was fired. "This shot is said to have
struck the Confiance near the outer hawse-hole, and to have
passed the length of her deck, kiUing and wounding several
men, and carrying away the wheel. It was a signal for all
the American long guns to open, and it was soon seen that the
English commanding ship, in particular, was suffering heavily.
Still the enemy advanced, and in the most gallant manner,
confident if he could get the desired position, that the great
weight of the Confiance would at once decide the fate of the
day. But he had miscalculated his own powers of endurance.
The anchors of the Confiance were hanging by the stoppers,
in readiness to be let go, and the larboard bower was soon cut
away, as well as a spare anchor in the larboard fore-chains.
In short, after bearing the fire of the American vessels as long
as possible, and the wind beginning to baffle. Captain Downie
found himself reduced to the necessity of anchoring while still
at the distance of about a quarter of a mile from the American
line. The helm was put a-port, the ship shot into the wind,
and a kedge was let go, while the vessel took a sheer, and
brought up with her starboard bower. In doing the latter,
however, the kedge was fouled and became of no use. In
coming-to, the halyards were let run, and the ship hauled up
her courses. At this time the Linnet and Chubb were still
standing in, farther to windward ; and the former, as her guns
35

410 NAVAL HISTORY. [1814'
bore, fired a broadside at the Saratoga. The Linnet soon after
anchored, somewhat nearer than the Confiance, getting a very
favourable position forward of the Eagle's beam. The Chubb
kept under way, intending, if possible, to rake the American
line. The Finch got abreast of the Ticonderoga, under her
sweeps, supported by the gun-boats.
The English vessels came to in very handsome style, nor
did the Confiance fire a single gun until secured ; although the
American line was now engaged with all its force. As soon
as CaptEiin Downie had performed this duty, in a seaman-like
manner, his ship appeared a sheet of fire, discharging all her
guns at nearly the same instant, pointed principally at the Sa
ratoga. The effect of this broadside was terrible in the little
ship that received it. After the crash had subsided. Captain
M'Donough saw that near half his crew was on the deck, for
many had been knocked down who sustained no real injuries.
It is supposed, however, that about 40 men, or near one-fifth
of her complement, were killed and wounded on board the
Saratoga, by this single discharge. The hatches had been
fastened down, as usual, but the bodies so cumbered the deck,
that it was found necessary to remove the fastenings and to
pass them below. The effect continued but a moment, when
the ship resumed her fire as gallantly as ever. Among the
slain, was Mr. Peter Gamble, the first lieutenant. By this
early loss, but one officer of that rank, Acting Lieutenant La-
vallette, was left in the Saratoga. Shortly after. Captain
Downie, the English commanding officer, fell also.
On the part of the principal vessels, the battle now became
a steady, animated, but as guns were injured, a gradually de
creasing cannonade. Still the character of the battle was
relieved by several little incidents that merit notice. The
Chubb, while manoeuvring near the head of the American line,
received a broadside from the Eagle that crippled her, and she
drifted down between the opposing vessels, until near the Sa
ratoga, which ship fired a shot into her, and she immediately
struck. Mr. Platt, one of the Saratoga's midshipmen, was
sent with a boat to take possession. This young officer threw
the prize a line, and towed her down astern of the Saratoga,
and in-shore, anchoring her near the mouth of the Saranac.
This little success occurred within a quarter of an hour after
the enemy had anchored, and was considered a favourable
omen, though all well knew that on the Confiance alone de
pended the fate of the day. The Chubb had suffered ma-

1814] NAVAL HISTORY. 411
terially, nearly half of her people having been killed and
wounded. About an hour later, the Finch was also driven out of her
berth, by the Ticonderoga ; and being crippled, she drifted
down upon Crab Island Shoal, where, receiving a shot or two
from the gun mounted in the battery, phe struck, and was
taken possession of by the invalids belonging to the hospital.
At this end of the line, the British galleys early made several
desperate efforts to close ; and soon after the Finch had drifted
away, they forced the Preble out of the American line, that
vessel cutting her cable, and shifting her anchorage to a sta
tion considerably in-shore, where she was of no more service
throughout the day. The rear of the American line was cer
tainly its weakest point ; and having compeUed the little Preble
to retreat, the enemy's galleys were emboldened to renew their
efforts against the vessel ahead of her, which was the Ticon
deroga. This schooner was better able to resist them, and she
was very nobly fought. Her spirited commander, Lieutenant
Commandant Cassin, walked the taffrail, where he could watch
the movements of the enemy's galleys, amidst showers of can
ister and grape, directing discharges of bags of musket-balls,
and other light missiles, effectually keeping the British at bay.
Several times the English galleys, of which many were very
gallantly fought, closed quite near, with an intent to board ;
but the great steadiness on board the Ticonderoga beat them
back, and completely covered the rear of the line for the re
mainder of the day. So desperate were some of the assaults,
notwithstanding, that the galleys have been described as seve
ral times getting nearly within a boat-hook's length of the
schooner, and their people as rising from the sweeps in readi
ness to spring.
While these reverses and successes were occurring in the
rear of the two lines, the Americans were suffering heavily at
the other extremity. The Linnet had got a very commanding
position, and she was admirably fought ; while the Eagle,
which received all her fire, Emd part of that of the Confiance,
having lost her springs, found herself so situated, as not to be
able to bring her guns fairly to bear on either of the enemy's
vessels. Captain Henley had run his topsaU-yards, with the
sails stopped, to the mast-heads, previously to engaging, and
he now cut his cable, sheeted home his topsails, cast the brig,
and running down, anchored by the stern, between the Sara
toga and 'Ticonderoga, necessarily a little in-shore of both.

412 NAVAL HISTORY. [1814
Here he opened afresh, and with better effect, on the Confiance
and galleys, using his larboard guns. But this movement left
the Saratoga exposed to nearly the whole fire of the Linnet,
which brig now sprung her broadside in a manner to rake the
American ship on her bows.
Shortly after this important change had occurred at the
head of the lines, the fire of the two ships began materially to
lessen, as gun after gun became disabled ; the Saratoga, in
particular, having had all her long pieces rendered useless by
shot, while most of the carronades were dismounted, either in
the same manner, or in consequence of a disposition in the
men to overcharge them. At length but a single carronade
remained in the starboard batteries, and on firing it, the navel-
bolt broke, the gun flew off the carriage, and it actually fell
down the main hatch. By this accident, the American com
manding vessel was left in the middle of the battle, without a
single available gun. Nothing remained, but to make an im
mediate attempt to wind the ship.
The stream anchor suspended astern, was let go according
ly. The men then clapped on the hawser that led to the star
board quarter, and brought the ship's stern up over the kedge ;
but here she hung, there not being sufficient wind, or current,
to force her bows round. A line had been bent to a bight in
the stream cable, with a view to help wind the ship, and she
now rode by the kedge and this line, with her stern under the
raking broadside of the Linnet, which brig kept up a steady
and well-directed fire. The larboard batteries having been
manned and got ready. Captain M'Donough ordered all the
men from the guns, where they were uselessly suffering, telling
them to go forward. By rowsing on the line, the ship was at
length got so far round, that the aftermost gun would bear on the
Confiance, when it was instantiy manned, and begEm to play.
The next gun was used in the- same manner, but it was soon
apparent that the ship could be got no farther round, for she
was now nearly end-on to the wind. - At this critical moment,
Mr. Brum, the master, bethought him of the hawser that had
led to the larboard quarter. It was got forward under the
bows, and passed aft to the starboard quarter, when the ship's
stern was immediately sprung to the westward, so as to bring
all her larboard guns to bear on the English ship, with fatal
effect. As soon as the preparations were made to wind the Sara
toga, the Confiance attempted to perform the same evolution.

1814.] NAVAL HISTORY. 413
Her springs were hauled on, but they merely forced the ship
ahead, and having borne the fresh broadside of the Americans,
until she had scarcely a gun with which to return the fire, and
faUing in alt her efforts to get round, about two hours and a
quarter after the commencement of the action, her command
ing officer lowered his flag. By hauling again upon the star
board hawser, the Saratoga's broadside was immediately sprung
to bear on the Linnet, which brig struck about fifteen minutes
after her consort. The enemy's galleys had been driven back,
nearly or quite half a mile, and they lay irregularly scattered,
and setting to leeward, keeping up a desultory firing. As soon
as they found that the large vessels had submitted, they ceased
the combat, and lowered their colours. . At this proud moment,
it is believed, on authority entitled to the highest respect, there,
was not a single English ensign, out of sixteen or seventeen,
that had so lately been flying, left abroad in the bay !
In this long and bloody conflict, the Saratoga had 28 men
killed, and 29 wounded, or more than a fourth of all on board
her; the Eagle 13 killed, and 20 wounded, which was sus
taining a loss in nearly an equal proportion ; the Ticonderoga
6 killed, and 6 wounded ; the Preble 2 killed ; while on board
the 10 galleys, only 3 were killed, and 3 wounded. The
Saratoga was hulled fifty-five times, principally by twenty-
four-pound shot ; and the Eagle, thirty-nine times.
According to the report of Captain Pring, of the Linnet,
dated on the 12th of September, the Confiance lost 41 killed,
and 40 wounded. It was admitted, however, that no good
opportunity had then existed to ascertain the casualties. At a
later day, the English themselves enumerated her wounded at
83. This would make the total loss of that ship 124 ; but
even this number is supposed to be materially short of the truth.
The Linnet is reported to have had 10 killed, and 14 wounded.
This loss is also believed to be considerably below the fact.
The Chubb had 6 killed, and 10 wounded. The Finch was
reported by the enemy, to have had but 2 men wounded. No
American official report of the casualties in the English vessels
has been published ; but by an estimate made on the best data
that could be found, the Linnet was thought to have lost 50
men, and the two smaller vessels taken, about 30 between
them. No account whatever has been published of the casual
ties on board the English galleys, though the slaughter in them
is believed to have been very heavy.
As soon as the Linnet struck, a lieutenant was sent to take
35*

414 NAVAL HISTORY. [1814
possession of the Confiance. Bad as was the situation of the
Saratoga, that of this prize was much worse. She had been
hulled 105 times ; had probably near, if not quite, half her
people kUled and wounded ; and this formidable floating bat
tery was reduced to helpless impotency.
As the boarding officer was passing along the deck of the
prize, he accidentally ran against a lock-string, and fired one
of the Confiance's starboard guns. Up to this moment, the
English galleys had been slowly drifting to leeward, with their
colours down, apparently waiting to be taken possession of;
but at the discharge of this gun, which may have been under
stood as a signal, one or two of them began to move slowly
off, and soon after the others followed, pulling but a very few
sweeps. It is not known that one of them hoisted her ensign.
Captain M'Donough made a signal for the- American galleys
to follow, but it was discovered that their men were wanted
at the pumps of some of the larger vessels, to keep them from
sinking, the water being found over the berth-deck of the Lin
net; and the signal was revoked. As there was not a mast
that would bear any canvass among all the larger vessels, the
English galleys escaped, though they went off. slowly and ir
regularly, as if distrusting their own liberty.
Captain M'Donough applauded the conduct of all the offi
cers of the Saratoga. Mr. Gamble died at his post, fighting
bravely ; Mr. Lavallette, the only lieutenant left, displayed the
cool discretion that marks the character of this highly respect
able and firm officer ; and Mr. Brum, the master, who was en
trusted with the important duty of winding the ship, never lost
his self-possession for an instant. Captain Henley praised the
conduct of his officers, as did Lieutenant Commandant Cassin.
The galleys behaved very unequally ; but the Borer, Mr. Con
over ;* Netley, Mr. Breese ;'\ one under the orders of Mr.
Robins, a master, and one or two more, were considered to
have been very gallantly handled.
There was a common feeling of admiration at the manner
in which the Ticonderoga, Lieutenant Commandant Cassin,
defended the rear of the line, and at the noble conduct of all
on board her.
The Saratoga was twice on fire by hot shot thrown from
the Confiance, her spanker having been nearly consumed. No
battery from the American shore, with the exception of the
* Now Commander Conover. t Now Capt. Breese.

1814.] NAVALHISTORY. 415
gun or two fired at the Finch from Crab Island, took any part
in the naval encounter ; nor could any, without endangering
the -American vessels equally with the enemy. Indeed the
distance renders it questionable whether shot would have
reached with effect, as Captain M'Donough had anchored far
off the land, in order to compel the enemy to come within
range of his short guns.
The Americans found a furnace on board the Confiance,
with eight or ten heated shot in it, though the fact is not stated
with any view to attribute it to the enemy as a fault. It was
an advantage that he possessed, most probably, in consequence
of the presence of a party of artillerists.
Captain M'Donough, who was already very favourably
known to the service for his personal intrepidity, obtained a
vast accession of reputation by the results of this day. His
dispositions for receiving the attacks, were highly judicious and
seaman-like. By the manner in which he anchored his ves
sels, with the shoal so near the rear of his line as to cover
that extremity, and the land of Cumberland Head so near his
broadside as necessarUy to bring the enemy within reach of
his short guns, he made all his force completely available.
The English were not near enough, perhaps, to give to carron
ades then- full effect ; but this disadvantage was unavoidable,
the assailing party having, of course, a choice in the distance.
All that could be obtained, under the circumstances, appears
to have been secured, and the result proved the wisdom of the
actual arrangement. The personal deportment" of Captain
M'Donough in this engagement, like that of Captain Perry
in the battle of Lake Erie, was the subject of general admira
tion in his littie squadron. His coolness was undisturbed
throughout all the trying scenes on board his own ship, and
although lying against a vessel of double the force, and nearly
double the tonnage of the Saratoga, he met and resisted her
attack with a constancy that seemed to set defeat at defiance.
The winding of the Saratoga, under such circumstances, ex
posed as she was to the raking broadsides of the Confiance
and Linnet, especially the latter, was a bold, seaman-like, and
masterly measure, that required unusual decision and fortitude
to imagine and execute. Most men would have believed that,
without a single gun on the side engaged, a fourth of their peo
ple cut down, and their ship a wreck, enough injury had been
received to justify submission ; but Captain M'Donough found

416 NAVAL HISTORY. [1814
the means to secure a victory in the desperate condition of his
own vessel.
The deportment of Lieutenant Commandant Cassin* was
also the subject of general applause in the American squadron.
Although many of the American officers were wounded, only
two that belonged to the quarterdeck were killed. These were
Mr. Gamble, the first lieutenant of the Saratoga, and Mr. Stans-
bury, the first lieutenant of the Ticonderoga.f Mr. Smith,:]: a
very valuable officer, and the first lieutenant of the Eagle, re
ceived a severe wound, but returned to his quarters during the
action. On the part of the enemy, besides Captain Downie,
several officers were killed, and three or four were wounded.
Captain M'Donough, besides the usual medal from Congress,
and various compliments and gifts from different states and
* Now Commodore Cassin.
t The manner in which Mr. Gamble met his death, has been mention.
ed. Mr. Stansbury suddenly disappeared from the bulwarks forward,
while superintending some duty with the springs. Two days afler the
action, his body rose to the surface of the water, near the vessel to which
he had belonged, and it was found that it had been cut in two by a round
shot. Both these gentlemen showed great coolness and spirit, until they
fell. Many officers were knocked down in the engagement, without having
blood drawn. At one moment, there was a cry in the Saratoga that Cap
tain M'Donough, or as he was usually called, the commodore, was killed.
He was thrown on his face, on the quarter deck, nearly if not quite sense
less, and it was two or three minutes before he came to his recollection.
He pointed a favourite gun most of the action, and while standing in the
middle of the deck bending his body to sight it, a shot had cut in' two the
spanker-boom, letting the spar fall on his back, a blow that might easily
have proved iktal. A few minutes after this accident, the cry that the
commodore was killed was heard again. This time, Captain M'Donough
was lying on the ofF-side of the deck, between two of the guns, covered
with blood, and again nearly senseless. A shot had driven the head of
the captain of his favourite gun in upon him, and knocked him into the
scuppers. Mr. Brum the master, a venerable old seaman, while winding
the ship, had a large splinter driven so near his body, as actually to strip
off his clothes. For a minute he was thought to be dead, but, on gaining
his feet, he made an apron of his pocket handkerchief, and coolly went to
work again with the springs ! A few months later this veteran died, as ia
thought of the injury. Mr. Lavallette had a shot-box, on which he was
standing, knocked from under his feet, and he too, was once knocked
down by the head of a seaman. He also received a severe splinter wound,
though not reported. In short, very few escaped altogether ; and in this
desperate fight, it appears to have been agreed on both sides, to call no man
wounded who could keep out of the hospital. Many who were not in
cluded among the wounded, feel the effects of their hurts to this day. It
is said, that scarcely an individual escaped on board of either the Confiance
or Saratoga, without some injury.
t Now Captain Smith.

1814] NAVAL HISTORY. 417
towns, was promoted for his services. Captain Henley also
received a medal. The legislature of Vermont presented the
former with a small estate on Cumberland Head, which over
looked the scene of his triumph. The officers and crews met
with the customary acknowledgments, and the country ge
nerally placed the victory by the side of that of Lake Erie. In
the navy, which is better qualified to enter into just estimates
of force, and all the other circumstances that enhance the me
rits of nautical exploits, the battle of Plattsburg Bay is justiy
ranked among the very highest of its claims to glory.
The consequences of this victory were immediate and im
portant. During the action, Sir George Prevost had skir
mished sharply in front of the American works, and was busy
in making demonstrations for a more serious attack. As soon,
however, as the fate of the British squadron was ascertained,
he made a precipitate and unmiUtary retreat, abandoning much
of his heavy artillery, stores, and suppUes, and from that mo
ment to the end of the war, the northern frontier was cleared
of the enemy.

CHAPTER XLVII.
After the success of Captain Perry on Lake Erie, the En
glish made no serious effort to recover the ascendency on the
upper waters. During the winter of 1813-14, they are be
lieved to have contemplated an attempt against a portion of the
American vessels, wlilch were lying in Put-in Bay, but the en
terprise was abandoned. When Commodore Sinclair hoisted
his pennant, as commander on this station, an expedition sailed
against Michllimackinac, which was repulsed. He made some
captures of vessels belonging to the Northwest Company, blew
up a block-house In the Nautauwassauga, and compelled the
enemy to destroy a schooner, called the Nancy, commanded
by Lieutenant Worsley.
While these movements were in the course of occurrence on
Lakes Superior and Huron, several of the small vessels were
kept at the foot of Lake Erie, to co-operate with the army then
besieged in the fort of the same name. On the night of the

418 NAVAL HISTORY. [1814.
12th of August, the Somers, Ohio, and Porcupine, all of which
were under Lieutenant Conklin, were anchored just at the out
let of the lake, to cover the left flank of the American works.
The enemy brought up a party of seamen from below, with a
view to cut them off, and about midnight he made an attack,
under Captain Dobbs, in si.xor eight boats, most of which were
large batteaux. The Ohio and Somers were surprised, the
last being captured without any resistance, but the Porcupine
taking the alarm, easily effected her escape. The enemy
drifted down the rapids with their two prizes, and secured them
below. In this sudden and handsome affair, the Americans had 1
man killed and 10 wounded. The enemy lost about the same
number, by the resistance on board the Ohio, among whom
was Lieutenant Radcliffe, of the Netiey, slain. The Porcu
pine had no part in the action. This surprise was the result
of excess of confidence, it being thought that the enemy had
no force on Lake Erie with which to make such an attack.
The manner in which the men and boats were brought up from
Lake Ontario, for this purpose, and the neatness with which
the enterprise was executed, reflected great credit on the
enemy. Nor was this the only successful attempt of the same nature,
made by the English on the upper lakes, during this season.
Lieutenant Worsley, the officer who commanded the schooner
destroyed by Commodore Sinclair, had escaped with all his
men, and obtaining a party of soldiers from Michilimackinac,
and a strong body of Indians, he planned a surprise upon the
Tigress and Scorpion, two schooners that had been left in
Lake Huron after the repulse on the post just mentioned. The
Tigress mounted a twenty-four, had a crew of 28 men, officers
included, and was commanded by Mr. Champlin. She was
lying at St. Joseph's, on the night of the 3d of September,
when Mr. Worsley made his attack in five large boats, one of
which mounted a six, and another a three-pounder, accompa
nied by nineteen canoes, containing more than 200 men. The
night was so dark that the enemy got very near before they
were discovered, but Mr. Champlin* and his officers made a
very gallant resistance. The schoooner was not captured
until all her officers had been shot down. The guns of the
enemy were transferred to the Tigress, and while she still con-
*Now Commander Champlin.

1814] NAVAL HISTORY. 419
tinned in her berth, the evening of the next day, the Scorpion,
Lieutenant Turner, which had tieen cruising, came in and an
chored about five miles from her. Neither vessel had sig
nals, and there was no attempt to communicate that night.
The next morning, at daylight, the Tigress was seen standing
down towards the Scorpion, with American colours flying, and
there not being the slightest apparent motive to suspect her
change of character, she was permittted to come alongside,
when she fired all her guns, ran the Scorpion aboard, and
carried her without difficulty. This surprise was wholly
attributed to the want of signals, and Mr. Turner was honour
ably acquitted for the loss of his vessels. In carrying the
Tigress, the enemy had a lieutenant and 2 men killed, and 7
men wounded. On board the Tigress 3 men were killed, and
all the officers and 3 seamen were wounded. The Scorpion,
being surprised, made but a trifling resistance.
These little captures, which were very creditable to the
enterprise of the enemy, terminated the war on the upper lakes,
the vessels being shortly after laid up. During the winter of
1814-15 both belligerents were building, the enemy having
laid down a second two-decker at Kingston, while the Ameri
cans prepared to build two at the Harbour. Mr. Eckford
engaged to put into the water two ships, to carry 102 guns
each, within sixty days from the time he commenced, the tim
ber then standing in the forest. The order was given, and
the work commenced in January. The news that a treaty of
peace had been signed, was received when the work on one of
these vessels, called the New Orleans, had been commenced
but twenty-nine days. She was then nearly planked in, and
it was thought would have been in the water in twenty-seven
days more. The second vessel was but little behind her, and
there is no doubt that Commodore Chauncey would have taken
the lake, as soon as the navigation opened, with a force con
sisting of 2 sail of the line, 2 frigates, 2 corvettes, 4 brigs, and
as many small craft as the service could possibly have required.
As the enemy had received the frames of one or two frigates
from England, and had already begun to set them up, it is
probable that a frigate would have been added to this force,
by building her of the timber found too small for the heavier
ships. 'The peace put a stop to the strife in ship-building, and ter
minated the war on the lakes. In this inland contest, while
the enemy had been active, bold, and full of resources, impar-

420 NAVAL HISTORY. [1814.
tial judges must award the palm to the Americans. On the
upper lakes and on Champlain, the English had sought gene
ral actions, and decisive victories placed the republic in nearly
undisputed command of those waters. The important results
that had been expected, fully rewarded this success. On Lake
Ontario, the English pursued a different policy, cautiously
avoiding any conflict that might prove final, unless under cir
cumstances that would ensure victory.
On Lake Champlain the enemy captured in the course of
the war, the Eagle and Growler, by means of their army.
These two vessels were subsequently retaken, under the names
of the Chubb and the Finch, and the whole English force was
defeated. On Lake Erie, the success of the enemy was limited
to the surprise of the four schooners mentioned in this chapter ;
while they lost equally by surprise, the Detroit and Caledonia,
their whole squadron in action, and a schooner on Lake Huron
blown up. On Lake Ontario, the success of the enemy was
limited to the capture of the Julia and Growler, in the affair
of the 10th of August, and the re-capture of the latter vessel
at Oswego. On no other occasion, with the exception of the
gig of Mr. Gregory, and one boat carrying a gun and two
cables, did any man, or thing, belonging to the navy fall info
his hands. He made one exceedingly impotent attack on the
Harbour, (previously to the arrival of Commodore Yeo,) was
beaten in a subsequent attempt on the same place, succeeded
in taking Oswego, and committed some ravages at Sodus, and
at the mouth of the Genesee. For a few days he also co-ope
rated with his army. On the part of the Americans, a spirited
attack was made on Kingston in 1812 ; York was twice cap
tured in 1813, as was Fort George once; a brig was brought
off from York, and a vessel of 20 guns burned at the same
place ; another of 14 guns at Presque Isle; a third was driven
ashore, and blown up, to the westward of Niagara ; six gun-
vessels and three gun-boats, and many smaller craft were cap
tured ; and, at different times, two captains, many other offi
cers, and several hundred seamen and marines were taken.
Kingston was often long and closely blockaded, and, with short
and few exceptions, the Americans had the command of the
lake. The greater agO'Of the English frontier, as a Settled
country, gave the enemy material advantages, of which he
fully availed himself.
No officer of the American navy ever filled a station of the
responsibility and importance of that which Commodore Chaun-

1814] NAVAL HISTORY. 421
cey occupied ; and it may be justly questioned if any officer
could have acquitted himself better, of the high trust that had
been reposed in him. He commanded the profound respect of
the vigilant, bold, and skilful commander to whom he was
opposed, and to the last, retained the entire confidence of his
own government.

CHAPTER XLVIII.
When Commodore Bainbridge gave up the command of the
Constitution -44, in 1813, that ship was found to be so decayed
as to require extensive repairs. Her crew was principally sent
upon the lakes, a new one entered, and the command of her
was given to Captain Charles Stewart. The ship, however,
was not able to get to sea until the winter of 1814, when she
made a cruise to the southward, passing down the coast, and
running through the West Indies, on her way home, where she
fell in with La Pique 36, which ship made her escape by go
ing through the Mona passage in the night. Previously to her
return the Constitution captured the Pictou 14, a man-of-war
schooner of the enemy. Reaching the American coast, she
was chased into Marblehead by two English frigates, the Ju
non and Tenedos. Shortly after she went to Boston. In this
cruise, the Constitution made a few prizes, in addition to the
schooner. On the 17th of December, the Constitution again left Bos
ton, and ran off Bermuda ; thence to the vicinity of Madeira,
and into the Bay of Biscay. After this, she cruised some time
in sight of the Rock of Lisbon, making two prizes, one of
which was destroyed, and the other sent in. While in the vi
cinity of Lisbon, she made a large ship and gave chase, but
before her courses were raised, one of the prizes just mention
ed, was fallen in with, and while securing it, the strange sail
disappeared. This vessel is understood to have been the Eli
zabeth 74, which, on her arrival at Lisbon, hearing that the
Constitution was off the coast, immediately came out in pur
suit of her ; but Captain Stewart had stood to the southward
and westward, in quest of an enemy said to be in that direction.
36

422 NAVAL HISTORY. [1815.
On the morning of the 20th of February, the wind blowing
a light Levanter, finding nothing where he was. Captain Stew
art ordered the helm put up, and the ship ran off southwest,
varying her position, in that direction, fifty or sixty miles. At
1 P. M., a stranger was seen on the larboard bow, when the
ship hauled up two or three points, and made sail in chase.
In about twenty minutes the stranger was made out to be a
ship ; and half an hour later, a second vessel was seen farther
to leeward, which at two was also ascertained to be a ship.
The Constitution kept standing on, all three vessels on bow
lines, until four, when the nearest of the strangers made a
signal to the ship to leeward, and shortly after he kept away
and ran down towards his consort, then about three leagues
under his lee. The Constitution immediately squared away,
and set her studding-sails, alow and aloft. No doubt was now
entertained of the strangers being enemies ; the nearest ship
having the appearance of a small frigate, and the vessel to '
leeward that of a large sloop of war. The first was carrying
studding-sails on both sides, while the last was running off
under short canvass, to allow her consort to close. Captain
Stewart believed it was their intention to keep away, on their
best mode of sailing, until night, in the hope of escaping; and
he crowded every thing that would draw, with a view to get
the nearest vessel under his guns. About half-past four, the
spar proving defective, the main royal-mast was carried away,
and the chase gained. A few guns were now fired, but find
ing that the shot fell short, the attempt to cripple the stranger
was abandoned.
Perceiving, at half-past five, that it was impossible to pre
vent the enemy from effecting a junction, the Constitution,
then a little more than a league distant from the farthest ship,
cleared for action. Ten minutes later, the two chases passed
within hail of each other, came by the wind with their heads
to the northward, hauled up their courses, and were evidently
clearing to engage. In a few minutes both ships suddenly
made sail, close by the wind, in order to weather upon the
American frigate, but perceiving that the latter was closing too
fast, they again hauled up their courses, and formed on the
wind, the smallest ship ahead.
At 6 P. M., the Constitution had the enemy completely un
der her guns, and she showed her ensign. The strangers an
swered this defiance, by setting English colours, and five min
utes later, the American ship ranged up abeam of the stern-

1815.] NAVAL HISTORY. 423
most vessel, at the distance of a cable's length, passing ahead
with her sails lifting, until the three ships formed nearly an
equilateral triangle, the Constitution to windward. In this
masterly position the action commenced, the three vessels keep
ing up a hot and unceasing fire for about a quarter of an hour,
when that of the enemy sensibly slackened. 'The sea being
covered with an immense cloud of smoke, and it being now
moonlight. Captain Stewart ordered the cannonading to cease.
In three minutes the smoke had blown away, when the lead
ing ship of the enemy was seen under the lee-beam of the
Constitution, while the sternmost was luffing, as if she intend
ed to tack and cross her wake. Giving a broadside to the
ship abreast of her, the i^merican frigate threw her main and
mizzen-topsails with topgallant-sails set, flat aback, shook all
forward, let fly her jib-sheet, and backed swiftly astern, com
pelling the enemy to fill again to avoid being raked. The
leading ship now attempted to tack, to cross the Constitution's
fore-foot, when the latter filled, boarded her fore-tack, shot
ahead, forced her antagonist to ware under a raking broadside,
and to run off to leeward to escape from the weight of her
fire. The Constitution perceiving that the largest ship was war
ing also, wore on her keel, and crossing her stern, raked her
with effect, though the enemy came by the wind immediately,
and delivered his larboard broadside ; but as the Constitution
ranged up close on his weather quarter, he struck. Mr. Hoff
man, the second lieutenant of the Constitution, was immedi
ately sent to take possession ; the prize proving to be the Brit
ish ship Cyane 24, Captain Falcon.
In the mean time, the ship that had run to leeward had been
forced out of the combat by the crippled condition of her run
ning rigging, and to avoid the weight of the Constitution's fire.
She was ignorant of the fate of the Cyane, but at the end of
about an hour, having repaired damages, she hauled up, and
met the Constitution coming down in quest of her. It was
near nine before the two ships crossed each other on opposite
tacks, the Constitution to windward, and exchanged broad
sides. The EngUsh ship finding her antagonist too heavy,
immediately bore up, in doing which she got a raking dis
charge, when the Constitution boarded fore-tack and made sail,
keeping up a most effective chasing fire, from her two bow
guns, nearly every shot of which told. The two ships were
so near each other, that the ripping of the enemy's planks was

424 NAVAL HISTORY. [1815.
heard on hoard the American frigate. The former was una
ble to support this long, ahd at 10 P. M. he came by the wind,
fired a gun to leeward, and lowered his ensign. Mr. W. B.
Shubrick, the third lieutenant, was sent on board to take pos
session, when it was found that the prize was the Levant 18,
the Honourable Captain Douglas.
During this cruise, the Constitution mounted 52 guns ; and
she had a complement of about 470 men, all told ; a few of
whom were absent in a prize. The Cyane was a frigate-built
ship, that properly rated 24 guns, though she appeared as only
a 20 in Steele's Ust, mounting 22 thirty-two-pound carronades
on her gun-deck, and 10 eighteen-pound carronades, with two
chase guns, on her quarterdeck and forecastle ; making 34 in
all. The Levant was a new ship, rating 18, and mounting 18
thirty -two-pound carronades, a shifting eighteen on her topgal
lant forecastle, and two chase guns ; or 21 in all. There were
found in the Cyane, 168 prisoners, of whom 26 were wounded.
The precise number slain on board her is not known ; Captain
Stewart, probably judging from an examination of the muster-
book, computing it at 12, whUe the accounts given by the Eng
lish publications differ, some putting the killed at only 4 and
others at 6. It was probably between the two estimates. Her
regular crew was about 185, all told ; and there is no reason
to believe that it was not nearly, if not absolutely full. Cap
tain Stewart supposes it to have been 180 in the action, which
was probably about the truth. The Levant's regular comple
ment is said to have been 1 30, all tpld ; but it appears by a
statement published in Barbadoes, where some of her officers
shortiy after went, that there were a good many supernumera
ries in the two vessels, who were going to the Western Islands,
to bring away a ship that was building there. Captain Stew
art supposes the Levant to have had 156 men in the action,
of whom he believed 23 to have been killed, and 16 wounded.
The first estimate may have been too high, though the truth
can probably never be known. It is believed that no English
official account of this action has ever been published, but the
Barbadoes statement makes the joint loss of the two ships, 10
killed, and 28 wounded ; other English accounts raise it as
high as 41 in all. Ifmay have been a little less than the esti
mate of Captain Stewart, (although his account of the wounded
must have been accurate,) but was probably considerably more
than that of the English statements. The Constitution had 3
killed, and 12 wounded, or she sustained a total loss of 15

1815.] NAVAL HISTORY. 425
men. By 1 A.M., of the 2Ist, she was ready for another
action. Although it was more than three hours and a half,
from the time this combat commenced, before the Levant
struck, the actual fighting did not occupy three-quarters of an
hour. For a night action, the execution on both sides was
unusual, the enemy firing much better than common. The
Constitution was hulled oftener in this engagement, than in
both her previous battles, though she suffered less in her crew,
than in the combat with the Java. She had not an officer
hurt. The manner in which Captain Stewart handled his ship, on
this occasion, excited much admiration among nautical men,
it being an unusual thing for a single vessel to engage two
enemies, and escape being raked. So far from this occurring
to the Constitution, however, she actually raked both her op
ponents, and the manner in which she backed and filled in the
smoke, forcing her two antagonists down to leeward, when
they were endeavouring to cross her stern or fore-foot, is among
the most brUliant manoeuvring in naval annals.
It is due to a gallant enemy to say, that Captain Douglas
commanded the respect of the Americans, by his intrepid per
severance in standing by his consort. Although the attempt
might not have succeeded, the time necessalrily lost in securing
the Cyane, gave him an opportunity to endeavour to escape,
that he nobly refused to improve.
Captain Stewart proceeded with his two prizes to Port Praya,
where he arrived on the 10th of March. Here a vessel was
engaged as a cartel, and more than a hundred of the prisoners
were landed with a view to help fit her for sea. Saturday,
March llth, 1815, a little after meridian, while the cutter was
absent to bring the cartel under the stern of the frigate, the
sea was covered with a heavy fog, near the water, and there
was a good deal of haze above, but in the latter, the sails of a
large ship were visible. She was on a wind, looking in-shore,
and evidentiy stretching towards the roads. The first lieu
tenant, Mr. Shubrick, reported the circumstance to Captain
Stewart. This officer believing that the strange sail would
prove to be an English frigate or an Indiaman, directed the
lieutenant to return on deck, call all hands, and get ready to
go out and attack her. As soon as this order was given, the
officer took a new look at the stranger, when he discovered
the canvass of two other ships rising above the bank of fog,
in the same direction. These vessels were evidentiy heavy
36*

426 NAVAL HISTORY. [1815.
men-of-war, and Captain Stewart was immediately apprised of
the fresh discovery. That prompt and decided officer did not
hesitate an instant concerning the course he ought to take.
Well knowing that the English would disregard the neutrality
of any port that had not sufficient force to resist them, or
which did not belong to a nation they were obliged to respect,
he immediately made a signal for the prizes to follow, and or
dered the Constitution's cable to be cut. In 10 minutes after
this order was issued, and in 1 4 after the first ship had been
seen, the American frigate was standing out of the roads,
under her three topsails.
The cool and officer-like manner in which saU was made
and the ship cast, on this occasion, has been much extolled,
not an instant having been lost by hurry or confusion. The
prizes followed with promptitude. The northeast trades were
blowing, and the three vessels passed out to sea about gun-shot
to windward of the hostile squadron, just clearing East Point.
As the Constitution cleared the land, she crossed topgallant-
yards, boarded her tacks, and set all the light sails that would
draw. The English prisoners on shore, took possession of a
battery, and fired at her as she went out. As soon as the
American ships had gained the weather beam of the enemy,
the latter tacked, and the six vessels stood off to the south
ward and eastward, carrying every thing that would draw, and
going about ten knots.
The fog still lay so thick upon the water as to conceal the
hulls of the strangers, but they were supposed to be two line-
of-battle ships, and a large frigate, the vessel most astern and
to leeward, being the commodore. The frigate weathered on
all the American ships, gaining on the Levant and Cyane, but
falling astern of the Constitution ; while the two larger vessels,
on the latter's lee quarter, held way with her. As soon as
clear of the land, the Constitution cut adrift two of her boats,
the enemy pressing her too hard to allow of their being hoisted
in. The Cyane was gradually dropping astern and to leeward,
rendering it certain, if she stood on, that the most weatherly
of the enemy's vessels would soon he alongside of her ; and
at 10 minutes past one, Captain Stewart made a signal for her
to tack. This order was obeyed by Mr. Hoffman, the prize-
master.; and it was now expected that one of the enemy's
ships would go about, and follow him ; a hope that was disap
pointed. The Cyane finding that she was not pursued, stood
on until she was lost in the fog, when Mr. Hoffman tacked

1815.] NAVAL HISTORY. 427
again, anticipating that the enemy might chase him to leeward.
This prudent officer improved his advantage, by keeping to
windward long enough to allow the enemy to get ahead, should
they pursue him, when he squared away for America, arriving
safely at New York on the 10th of April following.
The three ships of the enemy continued to chase the Con
stitution and Levant. As the vessels left the land the fog less
ened, though it stiU lay so dense on the immediate surface of
the ocean, eis to leave Captain Stewart in doubt as to the force
of his pursuers. The English officers on board the Constitu
tion affirmed that the vessel that was getting into her wake
was the Acasta 40, Captain Kerr, a twenty-four-pounder ship,
and it was thought that the three were a squadron that was
cruising for the President, Peacock, and Hornet, consisting of
the Leander 50, Sir George Collier, Newcastle 50, Lord George
Stuart, and the Acasta ; the ships that they subsequently proved
to be. The Newcastle was the vessel on the lee-quarter of the
Constitution, and by half-past two the fog had got so low, that
her officers were seen standing on the hammock-cloths, though
the line of her ports was not visible. She now began to fire
by divisions, and some opinion could be formed of her arma
ment, by the flashes of her guns, through the fog. Her shot
struck the water within a hundred yards of the American ship,
but did not rise again. By 3 P. M., the Levant had fallen so
far astern, that she was in the very danger from which the
Cyape had so lately been extricated, and Captain Stewart
made her signal to tack also. Mr. Ballard immediately com
pUed, and 7 minutes later the three EngUsh ships tacked, by
signal, and chased the prize, leaving the Constitution standing
on in a different direction, and going at the rate of eleven knots.
Mr. Ballard finding the enemy bent on following the Levant,
with the Acasta already to windward of his wake, ran back
into Port Praya, and anchored, at 4 o'clock, within 150 yards
of the shore, under a strong battery. The enemy's ships had
commenced firing, as soon as it was seen that the Levant
would gain the anchorage, and all three now opened on the
prize. After bearing the fire for a considerable time, the
colours of the Levant were haujed down. No one was hurt
in the prize, Mr. Ballard causing his men to lie on the deck, as
soon as the ship was anchored. The EngUsh prisoners in the
battery, also fired at the Levant.
Sir George Collier was much criticised for the course he
pursued on this occasion. It was certainly a mistake to call

428 NAVAL HISTORY. [1815.
off more than one ship to chase the Levant, though the position
of the Leander in the fog, so far to leeward and astern, did hot
give the senior officer the best opportunities for observing the
course of events. There was certainly every prospect of the
Acasta's bringing the Constitution to action in the course of
the night, though the other vessels might have been left so far
astern, as still to render the result doubtful.
Whatever may be thought of the management of the enemy,
there can be bui one opinion as to that of Captain Stewart. The
promptitude with which he decided on his course, the judgment
with which he ordered the prizes to vary their courses, and
the steadiness with which the Constitution was commanded,
aided in elevating a professional reputation that was already
very high.
This terminated the exploits of the gallant Constitution, or
Old Ironsides, as she was affectionately called in the navy ;
Captain Stewart, after landing his prisoners at Maranham, and
learning at Porto Rico, that peace had been made, carried
her into New York, about the middle of May. In the course
of two years and nine months, this ship had been in three ac
tions, had been twice critically chased, and had captured five
vessels of war, two of which were frigates, and a third frigate-
built. In all her service, as well before Tripoli, as in this war,
her good fortune was remarkable. She never was dismasted,
never got ashore, or scarcely ever suffered any of the usual
accidents of the sea. Though so often in battle, no very seri
ous slaughter ever took place on board her. One of her com
manders was wounded, and four of her lieutenants had been
killed ; two on her own decks, and two in the Intrepid ; but, on
the whole, her entire career had been that of what is usually
called a " lucky ship." Her fortune, however, may perhaps
be explained in the simple fact, that she had always been well
commanded. In her two last cruises she had probably pos
sessed as fine a crew as ever manned a frigate. They were
principally New England men, and it has been said of them,
that they were almost qualified to fight the ship without her
officers.

1814] NAVAL HISTORY. 429

CHAPTER XLIX.
When Commodore Rodgers left the President, in the summer
of 1814, to take command of t"he Guerriere, Commodore De
catur wEis transferred to the former ship ; the United States
and Macedonian, then blockaded in the 'Thames, having been
laid up, and the Hornet, Captain Biddle, left to protect them.
This service was particularly irksome to an officer of the spirit
of the last-named gentleman ; and persevering in his applica
tions to be released from it, he finally received an order to join
Commodore Decatur at New York, where the President had
been some time detained to make part of the defence of the
port, while the enemy was committing his depredations on the
coast, during the mild weather. No sooner did Captain Biddle
receive this welcome command, than he took the first favour
able occasion to pass out, leaving the blockading squadron
to the eastward, and ran down to New York. This was in
the month of November, 1814, and Commodore Decatur had
now a force consisting of the President 44, his own ship. Pea
cock 18, Captaia Warrington, Hornet 18, Captaia Biddle, and
Tom Bowline store-vessel. His destination was the East
Indies, where it was thought great havoc might be made with
the valuable trade of the English.
Owing to different causes, but principally to the wish of the
government to keep a force at New York to resist the depre
dations of the enemy. Commodore Decatur did not get to sea
until the middle of January, 1815. The President dropped
down to Sandy Hook- alone, leaving the other vessels lying at
Staten Island, and on the night of the 14th, she made an at
tempt to cross the bar. In consequence of the darkness, the
pilots missed the channel and the ship struck ; beating heavily
on the sands, for an hour and a half. About 10 o'clock the
tide had risen to its height, and she was forced into deep water.
Although the vessel had received considerable injury, it was
impossible to return, and a strong blockading force being in
the offing, it became necessary to carry sail to get off the coast
before morning. It had blown a gale the previous day, and
Commodore Decatur, rightly judging that the enemy had been
driven to leeward, decided to run along the land to the north-

430 NAVAL HISTORY. [1815.
ward and eastward, as the best means of avoiding a greatly
superior force. This determination was judicious, and, had
not the detention occurred on the bar, it would have been com
pletely successful. After running off in a northeastern direc
tion for about 5 hours, the course of the ship was altered to S.
E. by E. Two hours later, a strange sail was discovered
ahead, within gun-shot, ahd two others being soon after seen,
the President hauled up and passed to the northward of them
all. At daylight, four ships were seen in chase, one on each
quarter and two astern. The nearest vessel Was believed to
be the Majectic rasee, which fired a broadside or two, in the
.hope of crippling the American frigate as she passed, but
without effect. It is now known, that the enemy had been
driven down to the southward by the gale, and that he was just
returning to his station, when this unlucky encounter occurred.
The chase continued throughout the forenoon, the wind
becoming lighter and baffling. The rasee was dropped mate
rially, but the next nearest ship, the Endymion, 40, a twenty-
four-pounder frigate, had closed, and as the President was
very deep, being filled with stores for a long cruise. Commo
dore Decatur commenced lightening her. Unfortunately the
commander, all the lieutenants, and the master were strangers,
in one sense, to the ship ; most of them never having been at
sea in her at all, and neither in any responsible situation. The
duty of lightening a ship in chase, is one of the most delicate
operations in seamanship, and it ought never to be attempted
except by those perfectly acquainted with her lines, trim, and
stowage. Half-a-dozen more water-casks emptied at one end
of the vessel than at the other may injure her sailing ; and the
utmost care is to be observed lest the indiscretion of inferiors
in the hold, defeat the calculations of the commainder on deck.
On the other hand. Commodore Decatur decided to undertake
this delicate operation under the most favourable circumstances
that a want of familiarity with his ship would allow, as the
wind was getting to be light, and was nearly aft.
It is not certain, however, that the saiUng of the President
was injured by the process of lightening, for she is supposed
to have suffered materially while on the bar, and the enemy ob
tained a material advantage by a change in the wind. While
it was still light with the American ship, the British, about 3
P. M., were bringing down with them a fresh breeze. Soon
after, the Endymion, the nearest vessel, having got within
reach of shot, opened with her bow guns, the President return-

^815-] NAVAL HISTORY. 431
ing the fire with her stern-chasers. The object of each, was
to cripple the spars of the other. It is said, that on this occa
sion, the shot of the American ship were observed to be thrown
with a momentum so unusually small, as to have since excited
a distrust of the quality of her powder. It is even added, that
many of these shot were distinctly seen, when clear of the
smoke, until they struck.
By 5 P. M., the Endymion had got so far on the starboard,
or lee quarter of the President, that no gun of the latter would
bear on her without altering the course. The fire of the Eng
lish ship now became exceedingly annoying, for she was ma
terially within point-blank range, and every shot cut away
something aloft. Still it was borne, in the hope that she would
range up alongside, and give the President an opportunity of
laying her aboard. Finding, however, that the enemy warily
kept his position by yawing, in the hope of gradually crippling
the American ship, Commodore Decatur decided on a course
that singularly partook of the daring chivalry of his character.
It was now evident that the sailing of the President was
much impaired by some cause or other ; either by injuries re
ceived on the bar, or by the manner in which she had been
lightened, and escape by flight had become nearly hopeless.
Commodore Decatur, therefore, decided to make an effort to
exchange ships, by carrying the Endymion, hand to hand,
and to go off in the prize, abandoning his own vessel to the
enemy. With this object in view, he determined to keep away,
lay the enemy aboard if possible, and put every thing on the
success of the e.xperiment. The plan was communicated to
the people, who received it cheerfully, and just at dusk, the
helm of the President was put up, bringing the wind over the
taffrail, the ship heading south. But she was so closely
watched, that the Endymion kept away at the same moment,
and the two ships soon came abeam of each other, when both
delivered their broadsides. All the President's attempts to
close, were defeated, for the vessels were about a quarter of a
mile apart, and as she hauled nearer to the enemy, the latter
sheered away from her. Without a superiority in sailing, it
was impossible for Commodore Decatur to get any nearer, and
he was now reduced to the necessity of attempting to get rid
of the Endymion by dismantling her. The two frigates, con
sequently continued running off dead before tbe wind, keeping
up a heavy cannonade for two hours and a half, when the
enemy's vessel was so far injured that she fell astern, most of

432 NAVAL HISTORY. [1815.
her sails hEiving been cut from the yards. The President, p[
this moment, was under her royal studding-sails, and there is
no doubt, by choosing her position, she might easily have com
pelled her adversary to strike ; but, by this time, though the
night was dark, the vessels astern were in sight, and she was
obliged to resume her original course to avoid them. In doing
this, the President hauled up under the broadside of her late
antagonist, without receiving any fire to injure her.
It was now half-past eight, and the President continued to
run off southeast, repairing damages, but it was found impossi
ble to prevent the other vessels of the enemy from closing.
At 11 P. M., the Pomona 38 got on the weather bow of the
American ship, and poured in a broadside ; and as the Tenedos,
of the same force, was fast closing on the quarter, and the
Majestic was within gun-shot astern, further resistance was
useless. Commodore Decatur had ordered his people below,
when he saw the two last frigates closing, but finding that his
signal of submission was not at first understood, the Pomona
continuing to fire, an order had been given for them to return
to their guns, just as the enemy ceased. The Majestic coming
up before the removal of Commodore Decatur, that gentleman
delivered his sword to her captain, who was the senior English
officer present.
In this long and close cannonade, agreeably to the official
reports, the President lost 24 men killed, and 56 wounded.
she was a good deal injured in her hull, and most of her im
portant spars were badly damaged. By one of those chances
which decide the fortunes of men, among the slain were the
first, fourth, and fifth lieutenants.
The Endymion had 11 killed, and 14 wounded, according
to the published reports. As it is known that an order was
given to aim at the rigging and spars of this ship, with a view
to cripple her, it is probable this statement was accurate. It is
believed, however, on respectable authority, that a great many
shot hulled the Endymion, which did not penetrate ; a fact
which, coupled with other observations made during the day,
has induced the distrust of the quality of the President's powder.
Owing to one, or to both, the circumstances named, the Eng
lish ship lost but about a third as many-men as the American,
though a considerable number of the President's people were
killed and wounded by the unresisted fire of the Pomona, hav
ing been ordered back to the guns before the latter ceased.
The President was carried to Bermuda, and both she and

^815] NAVAL HISTORY. 433
the Endymion were dismasted in a gale, before reachuKr port
The latter also threw overboard her upper-deck guns. °Com'
modore Decatur was shortiy after paroled, and he' and all
his surviving officers and men, were subsequentiy acquitted,
with honour, for the loss of the ship.
The commanders of the Peacock, Hornet, and Tom Bowline
brig, ignorant of the capture of the President, followed her to
sea, about the 22d, taking advantage of a strong northwester,
to pass the bar by daylight. The enemy was seen lying-to at
the southward and" eastward, but was disregarded. A few days
out the Hornet parted company in chase of a neutral, when all
three vessels made the best of their way to the island of Tristan
d'Acunha, the place _ of rendezvous appointed by Commodore
Decatur. The Peacock and Tom Bowline arrived about the
middle of iMarch, but bad weather coming on, they were driven
off the land. On the morning of the 23d of the same month,
the Hornet ca.me in, with the wind fresh at S. S. W., and was
about to anchor, having let go her topsail-sheets to clew up,
when the men aloft discovered a sail to wmdward. The
stranger was standing to the westward, and was soon shut in
by the land. Captain Biddle immediately sheeted home his
topsails again, and made a stretch to windward and towards
the chase, which was shortly after seen running down before
the wind. There being little doubt as to the character of the
stranger, the Hornet hove-to, waiting for him to come down,
and when he had got near enough to render it prudent, the
main-topsail was filled, and the ship was kept yawing, occa
sionally waring, both to allow him to close and to prevent his
giving a raking fire.
At 1 40 P. M., the stranger having got within musket-shot,
came by the wmd, set English colours and fired a gun. On
this challenge, the Hornet luffed up, showed her ensign, and
returned a broadside. For 15 minutes both vessels kept up a
sharp cannonade, that of the American ship, in particular, be
ing very animated and destructive, the enemy gradually drift
ing nearer, when the latter, finding it impossible to stand the
Hornet's fire, put his helm up and ran down directly on the
starboard broadside of the latter, to lay her aboard. The
enemy's bowsprit came in between the main and mizzen rig
ging of the Hornet, affording a perfectly good opportunity to
attempt effecting his purpose, but, though his first lieutenant
made a gallant effort to lead on his men, the latter could not
be mduced to follow. Captain Biddle had called away boarders
37

434 NAVAL HISTORY. [1815.
to repel boarders, and his people now manifested a strong wish
to go into the English vessel, but perceiving his great advan
tage at the guns, that intrepid officer, who had been so free to
adopt this expedient, when it was his duty to lead in his own
person, judiciously refused his permission.
The vessels lay in this position but a minute or two, the
American raking, when the sea lifted the Hornet ahead, carry
ing away her mizzen rigging, davits, and spanker-boom, the
enemy swinging round and hanging on the larboard quarter.
At this moment. Captain Biddle sent the master forward to set
the foresail, with a view to part the vessels, when an officer on
board the English ship called out that she surrendered. The
positions prevented any other firing than that of small-arms ;
this was ordered to cease, and Captain Biddle sprang upon the
taffrail to inquire if the enemy submitted. While putting this
question, he was within thirty feet of the forecastle of the Eng
lish vessel, and two marines on board discharged their mus
kets at him. The ball of one just missed the chin and passing
through the skin of the neck, inflicted a severe, but fortunately
not a dangerous wound. This incident drew a discharge of
muskets from the Hornet, which killed the two marines ; the
American ship forged ahead at that instant, and the enemy
lost his bowsprit and foremast as the vessels separated.
The Hornet now wore round, bringing a fresh broadside to
bear, and was about to throw in a raking fire, when twenty
men appeared at the side and on the forecastle of the enemy,
raising their hands for quarter, and eagerly calling out that
they had struck. The excitement on board the American ship,
however, was so great, in consequence of the manner in which
their gallant captain had received his wound, that it was with
the utmost difficulty Captain Biddle and his officers could pre
vent the people from pouring in another broadside.
The prize was H. B. Mgjesty's brig the Penguin 18, mount
ing 19 carriage guns; viz., 16 thirty -two-pound carronades,
two chase guns, and a shifting carronade on the topgallant
forecastle. She was a vessel of the Hornet's class, size, and
metal, and is represented as having had a spare port forward,
by means of which she could fight ten guns in broadside.* Her
* On an accurate computation of the real (not nominal) metal of the
two vessels, the Hornet would appear to have thrown, at a broadside, about
nine pounds more shot than the Penguin ; the latter not using her spare
port. As respects the crews, the American ship had some ten or fifteen
the most men at quarters. In tonnage the vessels were very nearly equal.

1815.] NAVAL HISTORY. 435
complement of men was 132, of whom 12 had been put on
board her for the express purpose of engaging a very heavy
American privateer called the Young Wasp, a fact that is
known by a letter found in her, from the Admiral at the Cape
of Good Hope, to which station the Penguin belonged. Cap
tain Biddle stated the loss of his prize at 14 killed and 28
wounded. As respects the latter, there could be no mistake,
though it was the opinion of the officer in charge of the English
vessel, that more men had been slain. Some time previously
to this capture, the enemy had ceased to publish the official
accounts of his nautical defeats, but a letter purporting to be
the one written on this occasion, has found its way before the
world, in which the English loss is stated at only 10 killed and
28 wounded. The Penguin was completely riddled with the
Hornet's shot, lost her foremast and bowsprit, and her main
mast was too much injured to be secured. Among her slain
was her commander. Captain Dickenson, and the boatswain ;
and among the wounded a lieutenant, two midshipmen, and the
purser. The Hornet had but 1 man killed, and 10 wounded. Among
the latter, in addition to Captain Biddle, was the first lieutenant,
Mr. Conner,* a young officer of high promise, whose life was
considered in great danger for some time. Not a round shot
touched the Hornet's hull, nor did her spars receive any ma
terial injury, though she was a good deal cut up in her rigging
and sails.
The combat between the Hornet and the Penguin was one
of the most creditable to the character of tbe American marine
that occurred in the course of the war. The vessels were very
fairly matched, and when it is remembered that an English
flag-officer had sent the Penguin on especial service against a
ship believed to be materially heavier than the vessel she ac
tually encountered, it is fair to presume she was thought to be,
in every respect, an efficient cruiser. Yet, with the advantage
of the wind, this ship was taken in 22 minutes, including the
time lost whUe she hung on the Hornet's quarter, and while
the latter was waring. The neatness and despatch with >vhich
the American sloop did her work, the coolness with which she
met the attempt to board, and the accuracy of her fire and
handling, are all proofs of her having been a disciplined man-
of-war, and of the high condition of that service in which she

* Now Captain Conner

436 NAVAL HISTORY. [1815.
was one of the favourites. It is by such exploits that the
character of a marine is most eff'ectually proved.
A few hours after the action, a strange and suspiciously look
ing sail heaving in sight, a cable was taken from the Penguin,
and the Hornet towed her some distance off the land. After
thoroughly examining the prize, and getting out of her all the
stores and provisions that were wanted, before daylight, on the
morning of the 25th, Captain Biddle scuttled her. The Hornet
then stood in towards the island to look for the strange sail,
which was found to be the Peacock, having the Tom Bowline
in company. An arrangement was how made, by which the
latter was converted into a cartel, and was sent into St. Salva
dor with the prisoners.
As soon as he was released from this encumbrance, and
from the great drain on his supplies, Captain Biddle was ready
to continue his cruise. This spirited officer did not consider
the capture of a vessel of the same class as his own, a reason
of itself for returning to port ; but, it having been ascertained,
by means of the Macedonian, a brig which sailed with the
President, that the latter ship was probably captured. Captain
Warrington determined to proceed on the original cruise, with
the remaining vessels. They sailed, accordingly, on the ISth
of April, having remained at the island the time directed in the
instructions of Commodore Decatur.
While making the best of their way towards the Indian seas,
on the morning of the 27th of April, the two ships then being
in lat. 38'^ SO' S., long. 33° E., the Peacock made the signal
of a stranger to the southward and eastward. Both the sloopte
of war made sail in chase. Though the wind was light, before
evening it was found that the stranger was materially nearer. It
now fell calm, and the chase was in sight in the morning. The
wind coming out at N. W., the ships ran down before it, with
studding-sails on both sides, the stranger hauling up, appa
rently, to look at them. The Peacock was the fastest vessel,
and being two leagues ahead at half past 2, P. M., she was ob
served to manifest some caution about approaching the stranger,
when the Hornet took in her starboard light sails, and hauled
up for her consort. It was now thought, on board the latter
ship, that the stranger was a large Indiaman, and that the
Peacock was merely waiting for the Hornet to come up, in
order to attack her. But an hour later Captain Warrington
made a signal that the vessel in sight was a line-of-battle ship,
and an enemy. The Hornet immediately hauled close upon

1815.] NAVAL HISTORY. 437
the wind, the stranger then on her lee quarter, distant not quite
two leagues, the Peacock passing ahead and soon getting clear
of him.
It was now seen that the English ship saUed very fast, and
was unusually weatheriy. The Hornet being more particu
larly in danger, about 9 P. M., Captain Biddle felt it necessary
to begin to lighten, his vessel being crowded with stores taken
from the Penguin. Twelve tons of kentledge, a quantity of
shot, some heavy spars, and the sheet-anchor and cable, were
thrown overboard. By 2 A. M., the enemy had drawn for
ward of the lee-beam, when the Hornet tacked to the westward,
the enemy immediately following. At daylight on the 29th,
the English ship was on the lee quarter of the American, and
within gun-shot. At 7 o'clock she had English colours set with
a rear-admiral's flag flying, and she commenced firing. The
shot passing over the Hornet, the launch was cut up and gotten
rid of, the other anchors and cables, more shot, as many heavy
articles as could be come at, and six of the guns were also
thrown overboard. By 9 o'clock, the enemy had dropped so
far astern that he ceased firing, the concussion produced by
his guns having deadened the wind.
By 11 A. M., however, it was found that the enemy was
again closing, when the Hornet threw overboard all the re
maining guns but one, the boats, most of her shot, all the
spare spars, and as many other articles off deck and from be
low, as could be got at. She also cut up her topgallant fore
castle, and threw the pieces into the ocean. At meridian, the
enemy had got within a mile, and he began again to fire, his
shot flying far beyond the ship. Fortunately but three struck
her. One passed through her jib, another plunged on her
deck, glancing and lodging forward, and a third also hulled
her. Still Captain Biddle held on, determined not to give up
his ship while there was a ray of hope, for it was seen that
the enemy was dropped while firing. About 2 P. M. the
breeze freshened, and got more to the westward. Previously
to this, the wind, by backing to the southeast, had greatiy
favoured the chase, but it now brought the Hornet more to
windward, and she began to get brisk way on her. At sunset
the stranger was more than a league astern, and the ship was
running nine knots throughout the night, the wind blowing in
squalls. The enemy was seen at intervals, carrying sail in
chase, but at daylight he was nearly hull down astern. At
half-past 9 A. M., he took in his studding-sails, reefed his top-
37*

438 NAVAL .HISTORY. [1815-
sailg and hauled off to the eastward ; and two hovers Ja-fpr, hjs
upper §ails had dipped. The Hornet had npw no anchor,
cable, nor boat, and but one gun, and she made the best pf hqr
way to St. Salvador, for the relief pf thp \younded.. Here
Captain Biddle heard of the peace, whei^ he saiie4 for Ngw
York, which port he reached pn fjie 30th of Jtily.
The vessel that chased the Hornet vvas the Cornwallis 74,
bearing the flag of an officer proceeding to thp East Indie?.
The Peacock cpntinued her cruise, and on the 30th of June,
in the Straits of Sunda, she fell in with the East India Com
pany's cruiser, I^autilus 14, Captain Boyce. In consequencp
of Captain Warrington's having no knowledge pf the peace,
broadsides were exchanged, when the Nautilus ptriick. This
unfortunate mistake occurred a few days after the period set
for the termination of hostilities, and having Eiscertained that a
treaty of peace h^-d been ratified in Msirch, Captain Warring
ton gave up the NsiutUus the next day. The latter vessel had
6 killed and 8 wounded, but no person was hurt on board the
Peacock, which ship immediately returned home.
The combat between the Hornet and Penguin was the last
regular action of the war, and the rencontre between the Pea
cock and Nautilus, the last instance of hostilities between the
belligerents. When the Peacock got in, every cruiser that
had been out against the English had returned to port.
The burning of the frigate Columbia, at Washington, and
the blockade of the Java in the Chesapeake, had induced the
government, in the autumn of 1814, to purchase or build two
squadrons of small vessels, one of which was to be commsmded
by Captain Porter, and the other by Captain Perry. The
former succeeded in buying five brigantines, or schopners, and
he was about to sail with them, when the news of peace reached
the country. The vessels, which forrned one of these flying
squadrons, were the Firefly, Spark, Torch, Spitfire, and Flam
beau. The first destination of this force was the "West Indies,
and it was understood that it was to -sail with orders to burn,
sink, and destroy, without attempting, except in very extra
ordinary cases, to get any thing in.
Captain Perry was less successful in finding suitable vessels,
and three stout brigs, called the Boxer, Saranac, and Chippewa,
were laid down, though built with green timber. Another,
called the Escape, was purchased and named the Prometheus ;
but it would seem that a fifth vegsel had not been found when
peace was proclaimed.

1815.] NAVAL HISTORY. 439
Thus terminated the war of 1812, so far as it was connected
with the American marine. The navy came out of this stru".
gle with a vast increase of reputation. The brUliant style m
which the ships had been carried into action, the steadiness
and rapidity with which they had been handled, and the fatal
accuracy of their fire, on nearly every occasion, produced a
new era in naval warfare. Most of the frigate actions had been
as soon decided as circumstances would at all allow, and in
no instance was it found necessary to keep up the fire of a
sloop of war an hour, when singly engaged. Most of the
combats of the latter, indeed, were decided in about half that
time. The execution done in these short conflicts was often
equal to that made by the largest vessels of Europe, in general
actions ; and in some of them, the slain and wounded comprised
a very large proportion of the crews.
It is not easy to say in which nation this unlooked-for result
created the most surprise ; America or England. In the first
it produced a confidence in itself that had been greatly wanted,
but which, in the end, perhaps, degenerated to a feeling of self-
esteem and security that was not without danger, or entirely with
out exaggeration. The last was induced to alter its mode of
rating, adopting one by no means as free from the imputation of a
want of consistency as that which it abandoned, and it altogether
changed its estimate of the force of single ships, as well as of the
armaments of frigates. The ablest and bravest captains of the
English fleet were ready to admit that a new power was about
to appear on the ocean, and that it was not improbable the battle
for the mastery of the seas would have to be fought over again.
In short, while some of the ignorant, presuming, and boastful
were disposed to find excuses for the unexpected nautical re
verses which Great Britain had met with in this short war, the
sagacious and reflecting saw in them matter for serious appre
hension and alarm. They knew that the former triumphs of
their admirals had not so much grown out of an unusual abiUty
to manoeuvre fleets, as in the national aptitude to manage sin
gle ships ; and they saw the proofs of the same aptitude, in the
conduct of the Americans during this struggle, improved on
by a skill in gunnery, that had never before been so uniformly
manifested in naval warfare. In a word, it may be questioned
if all the great victories of the last European conflicts caused
more exultation among the uninstructed of that nation, than
the defeats of this gave rise to misgivings and apprehensions
among those who were able to appreciate causes and to antici

440 NAVAL HISTORY. [1815.
pate consequences in a matter so purely professional as the
construction, powers, .and handling of ships. Many false
modes of accounting for the novel character that had been
given to naval battles was resorted to. Among other reasons,
it was affirmed that the American vessels of war sailed with
crews of picked seamen. It is not known that a single vessel
left tljie country, the case of the Constitution on her two last
cruises excepted, with a crew that could be deemed extraordi
nary. No American man-of-war ever sailed with a comple
ment composed of nothing but able seamen ; and some of the
hardest fought batties that occurred during this war, were
fought by ships' companies that were materially worse than
common. The people of the vessels on Lake Champlain, in
particular, were of a quality much inferior to those usually
found in ships of war. Neither were the officers, in general,
old or very experienced. The navy itself had existed but
fourteen years, when the war commenced ; and some of the
commanders began their professional careers, several years
after the first appointments had been made. Perhaps one half
of the lieutenants, in the service at the peace of 1815, had gone
on board ship, for the first time, within six years from the
declaration of the war, and very many of them within three
or four. So far from the midshipmen having been masters
and mates of merchantmen, as was reported at the time, they
were generally youths that first quitted the ease and comforts
of the paternal home, when they appeared on the quarter-deck
of a man-of-war.
That the tone and discipline of the service were high, is
true ; but it must be ascribed to moral, and not to physical
causes ; to that aptitude in the American character for the sea,
which has been so constantly manifested from the day the first
pinnace sailed along the coast on the trading voyages of the
seventeenth century, down to the present moment.

1815.] NAY AL HISTORY. ^41

CHAPTER L.
Ageeeably to the policy of the Barbary powers, the Dey of
Algiers no sooner found the republican cruisers excluded from
the Mediterranean, by the English war, than be began to com
mit his depredations on the little American commerce that re
mained in or near that sea. During the late conflict, there
was littie leisure, and no great motive, to attend to this new
enemy, but peace was no sooner made with England, than
Congress, on the 2d of March, 1815, passed an Act authoriz
ing hostiUties against Algiers. This was at a moment when
extensive preparations had been making to continue the more
serious contest, and, as several thousand mariners were at once
withdrawn from the lakes, the government was enabled to
strike an early and important blow at its new enemy. Crews
were thrown into the Guerriere, Macedonian and Congress
frigates, the light squadrons mentioned in the last chapter fur
nished several efficient vessels for such service, and various
sloops were already prepared to go to sea. A force consisting
of the Guerriere 44, Capt. Lewis ; the Constellation 38, Capt.
Gordon; the Macedonian 38, Capt. Jones; the Ontario 18,
Capt. Elliott; Epervier 18, Capt. Downes; Firefly 12, Lt.
Com. Rodgers; Spark 12, Lt. Com. Gamble; Flambeau 12,
Lt. Com. Nicolson ; Torch 12, Lt. Com. Chauncey, and Spit
fire 12, Lt. Com. Dallas, assembled in the port of New York
in the course of the spring. May the 21st, this squadron sailed
for the Mediterranean, under the orders of Commodore Decatur,
whose pennant was flying in the Guerriere.
The Torch, Spitfire and Firefly separated in a gale, on the
26th of May, the Firefly being obliged to return in conse
quence of springing her masts. The Ontario also lost the
squadron on the Slst. Commodore Decatur reached Tangiers
on the 15th of June, and had some communications with the
consul. From this gentleman he learned that the Algerine
Admiral Hammida, had been off the port the previous day, in
a frigate, and that he had sailed again on his way to Cartha
gena, in company with a heavy brig. The squadron enteied
the Straits immediately, called the Ontario, Spitfire and Torch
out of Gibraltar by signal, in passing, and shaped its course

442 NAVAL HISTORY. [1815.
for Cape de Gatt. On the 17th of June, it fell in with the
Algerine frigate Mishouri 46, Rais Hammida, when the Con
stellation, Capt. Gordon, the leading vessel, succeeded in bring
ing her to action. In a few minutes the Guerriere, Capt. Lewis,
bearing the Commodore's pennant, passed between the two
vessels, and poured in a broadside. Unfortunately one of the
twenty-fours burst, at this discharge, blew up the spar deck, and
killed and wounded from 30 to 45 men. The effect of her
broadside, notwithstanding, was to drive the enemy from his
guns, a few musketmen alone continuing the action on the
part of the Algerines. The Ontario pressing the Mishouri on
her quarter, the Macedonian coming up on her beam, and the
small vessels closing also, there was no possibility of escape,
and the ehemy struck. The Algerine Admiral was amongthe
slain. Com. Decatur reported this affair as a running fight of 25
minutes, in which the enemy had 30 men killed, besides a
great many wounded. The prisoners amounted to 406. No
vessel sustained any loss but the Guerriere, on board of which
ship 4 men were wounded by musket-balls, in addition to those
who suffered by the explosion.
Two days later, or on the 19th of June, the squadron chased
an enemy's brig of 22 guns, and 180 men, into shoal water,
off Cape Palos. The Epervier, Spark, Torch and Spitfire
were ordered in to destroy her, and they compelled her to
strike after a short resistance. No less than 23 dead were
found on board this vessel, and 80 prisoners were received from
her, though many of her people escaped to the shore. It was
thought that many of those who had left the prize, perished by
the fire of the assaUants, and it was known that one boat was
sunk. No injury was sustained by the Americans, nor was
either of the vessels injured. The brig was called the Estedio.
Commodore Decatur sent his prizes into Carthagena, and
proceeded to Algiers with most of his vessels, where he arrived
on the 28th. Here the Dey was offered the choice of war or
peace, and he wisely accepted the latter. A treaty was con
cluded June SOth, or just 40 days after the American squadron
left New York. This treaty is memorable from the circum
stance that it was made on the terms of reciprocity acknow
ledged among civilised nations. By this treaty, tribute was
for ever abolished, as between the United States and Algiers ;
there was a mutual delivery of prisoners ; a restitution of pro
perty taken from American citizens was made; nor were

1815.] NAVAL HISTORY. 443
slaves to be made, in the event of any future war. In other
respects, this arrangement was acceptable to the republic and
humiliating to the regency.
'There can be no doubt that the Dey was induced to sign
this treaty thus promptly, on account of the critical condition
of the remainder of his fleet; portions of which were expected
houriy off the place. An attempt had been made to procure
a suspension of hostilities, pending the negotiation ; but to this
proposition, the American commissioners, Com. Decatur and
Mr. \^'illiam Shaler, absolutely declined acceding. A sloop
of war did actually heave in sight before the. treaty was receiv
ed, signed by the Dey ; and had she appeared an hour sooner,
she would have been captured. The Dey asked, as a personal
favour, to have the frigate and brig restored, and to this the
Commissioners consented, though they refused to allow an arti
cle to that effect to be inserted in the treaty.
After dictating terms to the Dey of Algiers, in the manner
mentioned, Commodore Decatur transferred Captain Downes
of the Epervier to his own ship, gave the command of the
former lo the Guerriere's first lieutenant, Mr. John Templar
Shubrick, and ordered the latter home with the treaty. The
Epervier left the squadron a few days after the prisoners were
released, and passed the Straits about the 10th of July. It is
said that she was seen early in August, and that a tremendous
gale -succeeded on the following day ; but nothing certain is
known of her fate. Twenty-si.x years have elapsed, and no
occurrence has transpired to throw any light on the nature
of the disaster. Like the Saratoga, I'Insurgente, the Pickering,
the Wasp, and gun-boat No. 7, this unfortunate vessel has dis
appeared, leaving behind her no traces of the manner in which
she was lost.*

* There were several passengers on board the Epervier, some of whom
had been prisoners in Algiers. Among others were Captain Lewis, late
of the Guerriere, and Mr. Benedict J. Neale, late first lieutenant of the
Constellation. These gentlemen had married sisters, a short time before
the squadron left home, and having seen the war at an end, were return
ing to their brides, with the feelings of men who had the consciousness
of having temporarily sacrificed the best affections to duty. Of course
they were lost in the vessel.
Mr. John Templar Shubrick was a son of Col. Richard Shubrick of
South Carolina, who had served with credit in the war of tlie revolution,
and was allied by blood to the Draytons, Hamiltons, Haynes', and other
patriotic and distinguished families of that State. Mr. Shubrick had
been singularly fortunate in seeing service. He was on board the Con-

444 NAVAL HISTORY. [1815.
Peace was no sooner signed with Algiers, than Commodore
Decatur proceeded first to Tunis and then to Tripoli, with
reclamations on those governments, for injuries done American
commerce, during the late EngUsh war. In both instances
redress was obtained in the promptest manner. Commodore
Decatur says, in one of his official letters, in reference to these
demands, — " During the progress of our negotiations with the
States of Barbary, now brought to a conclusion, there has ap
peared a disposition, on the part of each of them, to grant as
far as we were disposed to demand." No better illustration
can be given of the change that had been effected by the ser
vices of the Navy, within twelve or fifteen years, than is to be
found in this simple but memorable declaration. The facts
fully warranted it; and from the summer of 1815, dates the
fall of. a system of piratical depredations that had rendered the
high seas in that quarter of the world insecure for several cen
turies, and which existed a disgrace to European civilization.
As the prompt submission of the Dey of Algiers could not
be foreseen, vessels were constantly quitting the United States
for the Mediterranean, as they got ready, in order to reinforce
the squadron, in anticipation of an attack upon the town.
Among others, the Independence 74 sailed, under the orders
of Commodore Bainbridge, who was to assume the chief com
mand, on arriving out. This was the first two-decked ship
that ever went to sea under the American flag. She arrived
too late for active service ; but collecting several ships, Com-
stitution in her actions with the Guerriere and Java. He was then trans
ferred to the Hornet, and acted as her first lieutenant when she took the
Peacock. He sailed in the-President, Commodore Decatur, as her second
lieutenant, but became first in the action, Mr. Babbit having been killed
at the first broadside of the Endymion. He then went to the Guerriere,
as first, and was near being destroyed by the bursting of tho gun, in the
action with the Algerine, a large piece of the metal actually hitting his
hat. After all his escapes, Mr. Shubrick perished in the manner men
tioned. He was an oflncer of not only high promise, but of high per
formance, his conduct on every occasion eliciting praise from his supe
riors. He had not long been married when he was lost, leaving an only
son. Four brothers of this family have served in the navy with reputa
tion. The second in years, is Commodore Wm. Branford Shubrick, late
of the West-India squadron, and now commanding at Norfolk; Captain
Edward Shubrickj is the third ; and Commander Irvine Shubrick is the
youngest The son of Mr. John Templar Shubrick, is also a lieutenant
in the navy.
On board the Epervier also perished Lieutenant Yarnall, who had been
first in the Lawrence, in her bloody conflict on Lake Erie.

1815.] NAVAL HISTORY. 445
modore Bainbridge made a great impression on the different
Barbary powers, by showing this fresh force off their ports
just after Commodere Decatur had left them. In this manner
a squadron' was soon assembled, that greatly exceeded in
numbers and guns, any force that the republic had then
sent to sea. It is believed that -the following vessels ap
peared in the Mediterranean at, or quite near, the same time,
viz : —
Independence ... 74  Com. Bainbridge.
Guerriere  44  Capt. Downes, Com. Decatur.'
United States ... 44  Capt. Shaw.
Constellation ... 38  Capt. Gordon.
Congress  38  Capt. Morris.
Macedonian  38  Capt. Jones.
Ontario  18  Capt. Elliott.
Erie  18 .... Capt. Ridgely.
Epervier  18  Lt. Com. Shubrick.
Boxer  16  Lt. Com. Porter.
Saranac  16  Lt. Com. Elton.
Chippewa  16  Lt. Com. Reid.
Spark  12  Lt. Com. Gamble.
Enterprise  12 .... Lt. Com. Kearny.
Firefly  12  Lt. Com. Rodgers.
Spitfire  12  Lt. Com. Dallas.
Torch  12  Lt. Com. Chauncey.
Flambeau  12  Lt. Com. Nicolson.
Lynx  12  Lt. Com. Storer.
The Java 44, Captain Perry, appeared a little later. Com
modore Decatur returned home with the Guerriere and one or
two other vessels, as soon as the service was completed ; and
Commodore Bainbridge arrived at Newport in November, with
thirteen vessels of the squadron, viz : one ship of the line, two
frigates, seven brigs, and three schooners. This is the largest
American force that ever crossed the Atlantic in company.
Commodore Shaw was left in command, in the Mediterra
nean, with the United States 44, Constellation 38, Ontario 18,
and Erie 18. The Java 44, joined him shortly after.
Thus terminated the last Barbary war, the impression left
by which promises to be lasting, and which may be said, in
deed, to have changed the policy of Europe, as regards those
States, which had so long existed as nuisances to all legal
38

446 NAVAL HISTORY. [1841.
navigation, and exceptions to the laws that regulated inter
course between civilized nations.
The misunderstanding in the Mediterranean being arranged,
the country had no longer any pressing service for its marine.
Nevertheless, it now offered the singular spectacle of a country
increasing its naval armaments, in a time of profound peace.
The views of the government would seem to have enlarged
with the late events, and the necessity of keeping afloat a force
sufficient to protect a navigation that extended to the remotest
corners of the earth, was now generally admitted. The foreign
Nations were no longer limited to the Mediterranean, but ships
from this time forward were periodically sent to the Pacific
and the coast of Brazil. Not long after, the. East and West
Indies, and the coast of Africa attracted notice ; and for many
years, squadrons have been employed in the Mediterranean,
on the coast of BrazU, in the West Indies, and in the East
Indies, the latter, however, regularly proceeding round the
world, touching at all such points as the public interests have
required. It is worthy of remark that all the active cruisers
have been employed on this foreign service, leaving the home
coast, with few and transient exceptions, quite without protec
tion. A recent law (1841) has remedied this signEd defect in
the nautical policy of the country, and henceforth, it is to be
hoped, the nation will possess an active home squadron.
Attention was paid, soon after the peace of 1815, to the
regular increase of the navy, and a great improvement has been
made in the construction of dry docks. The following two-
decked ships have been put into the water, and all of them
have been used on foreign stations, viz :
Independence  74
Washington  74
Franklin  74
Columbus  80
North Carolina  80
Delaware  80
Ohio.....  80
Most of these ships have been found to be good vessels of
their class, and two or three of them quite superior to ordinary
ships of the line. They have never been tried in squadron,
an experiment that is necessary to a just appreciation of their
respective qualities. It remains yet to assemble the first
American fleet. A strong force of thig character is indispen-

l^^l'] NAVAL HISTORY. 447
sable to forming a perfect and efficient marine, since in war
great results can only be obtained by an exhibition of crreat
power. °
One three-decker, the Pennsylvania 120, has been launched.
Several ships of the line and frigates are also on the stocks.
The navy has also been increased, within the last twenty-
five years, by the addition of many heavy frigates and sloops
of war: aUhough still far from having reached the point
necessary to a complete defence of the nation, it is probably,
to-day, a hundred-fold stronger than it was at the declaration
of war in 1812. Timber and other materials have been col
lected in considerable quantities, for the construction of new
ships on an emergency ; and there is little doubt that another
contest would develope the nautical resources of the nation to
an extent never anticipated by the last generation.
As the ships of the navy are constantly changing, a list
would be of little permanent use. The officers form the essen
tial feature of the service, and of these there are now, between —
60 and 70 Captains,
90 and 100 Commanders,
350 and 400 Lieutenants, &c. &c.
Unfortunately, Congress has not yet established any higher
grade than that first named, thereby neglecting the calls of
justice, and the lofty considerations which are inseparable from
the incentives connected with professional rank, as well as one
of the most certain means of maintaining discipline. All mili
tary experience shows that rank and authority are correla
tives ; and all nautical practice has gone to prove that fleets
are never thoroughly efficient, until animated and controlled
by the feeling connected with a perfect submission to orders.
There is no longer any question concerning the expediency
of the republic's maintaining a powerful marine. Experience
has shown there is no security without one, and the gallant
service, whose exploits have here been recorded, has got to be
so necessary to, and so general a favourite with, the nation,
that it scarcely exceeds the bounds of truth to say that their
existence is inseparable. THE END.

CATALOGUE

VALUABLE
SCHOOL BOOKS,

THE ATTENTION OF PERSONS INTERESTED IN THE CAUSE OF
EDUCATION IS RESPECTFULLY SOLICITED.

PUBLISHED BT
THOMAS, COWPERTHWAIT & CO.,
253 MARKET STREET.
PHILADELPHIA;
AND FOR SALE BY THE FRINOIPAL BOOKSELLERS
IN THE UNITED STATES.

MITCHELL'S
AMERICAN SYSTEM
OF
STANDARD SCHOOL GEOGRAPHY,
IN A SERIES:
Adapted to the progressively developiJig Capacities of Youth,
PUBLISHED EY
THOMAS, COWPERTHWAIT & CO., PHILADA.
AND FOR SALE BV THE BOOKSELLERS GENERALLY.

ADVERTISEMENT.
To secure to thia scries the character assumed in the title, the author has been
aware, in presenting it for the consideration of the American people, that the geo
graphical works coraposiag it should possess all the requisites necessary to such
character; and, therefore, solicits a deliberate and critical examination of every
feature that should constitute the requisites of standard quality, some of which
are the following : —
GEOGRAPHICAL ACCURACY.— That no time be lost by unlearning errors.
or evil arise from retaining them.
ARRANGEMENT.— Adapted to the average capacities of youtli in the vari
ous stages of advancement \ and also to effect an easy transition from one volume
to another.
CORRESPONDENCE BETWEEN THE TEXT AND THE ATLAS.—
By which the mind is relieved from the embarrassment of searching afler facts in
one not contained in the other, or uf reconciling disagreements between them.
MECHANICAL EXCELLENCE AND BEAUTY.— That a distinct im
pression be made upon the mind of each fact presented, and the taste cultivated
at tho same timo that knowledge is communicated.
QUALITY OF MATERIALS AND BINDING.— Upon which depend du
rability, apd consequent cheapness.
PERIODICAL REVISION OF EVERY FIVE YEARS.— After the work
shall have been adapted to the census of 1840, the revision will be rigidly executed,
noting all new facts and changes, in such manner as that the old and new editions
can be used in the same classes without embarrassment, thereby preventing all the
evils incident to a change of books, and saving large sums of money, now lost, in
consequence of the old editions being rendered worthless by their discrepancy with
the new, and by which we shall be enabled to keep pace with the progress of the
science throughout the world.
A part of the before-named series ia now before the public, viz ; the PRIMARY
SCHOOL GEOGRAPHY, the SCHOOL GEOGRAPHY AND ATLAS, the
ATLAS OF OUTLINE MAPS, and the GEOGRAPHICAL READER, 2

[ 3]
Of the SCHOOL GEOGRAPHY AND ATLAS, the publishers have received
so numerous and unqualifi«d testimonials from all parts of the Union where they
have been presented and examined, as to leave no room fur doubt, that their first
anticipations of furnishing aseriea of geographical works of such intrmsic merit
as to become the standaid text-books in tho science of geography, will be fully
lealized. The ATLAS OF OUTLINE MAPS, whether consid'ered as an accompani
ment to facilitute tiio progresa of tho pupil, as an agreeable variation in the rou
tine of studies, or as an easy introduction to the useful art of map-drawing, has,
in all instances, met with the same decided approval.
The GEOGRAPHICAL READER ia designed not only aa a reading book for
schools, where it can be introduced by substituting it tor other books without ad
ditional coat, and present the double advantage of communicating, at the same
time, the art of reading and an enlarged knowledge of geography, but also for
instruction in families, as well as for perusal by thoee who are desirous of obtain
ing information by private study. Though hut recently published, it has alreddy
received the decided approval of many intelligent teachers and other gentlemen,
whose opinions are deservedly of high authority.
The HIGH SCHOOL GEOGRAPHY, and THE KEY TO THE STUDY
OF THE MAPS COMPRISING MITCHELL'S SCHOOL GEOGRAPHY,
yet in the press, will be judged of by their merits, both as separate works and as
links in the series, when presented for consideration. They will be published with
as little delay as a careful preparation of al) parts of tho books will permit.
That teachers and all others iutereated in the cause of general education, who
would be pleased to examine these works with reference to their fitness for the
place claimed for them, may fully understand the plan, a prospectus of each is
hereto subjoined, in the order in which they will stand in the series.

MitclieWs Primary School Geography.
This Uttle work ia intended as a first geography for children, and is prepared for
the use of those who have begun to spell and read, with some dogree of facility.
The author has endeavoured, accordingly, to render it as eaay of comprehension,
and ad intereatine lo the youthful pupil, as its limits will permit.
The Primary Geography contains 176 pages, about 120 engravings, and fourteen
maps. These are executed from original designs, by the best artists, in their
respective branches, in the United States.
Pictorial illustrations, well deaigned, and especially adapted to the work they
accompany, are auxiliaries .so essential, that without them a geography for young
persons would possess but little value. Many of the moat important facts of the
science of geography may be impressed on the luind by viaible images more forci
bly than by any other means.
The introduction of moral and religious sentiments into books intended for the
instruction of young persons, is calculated to improve the heart, end lend addi
tional strength to parental admonition. Accordingly, throughout the work, when
ever the subject permitted, such reflections and observations have been made as
are calculated to show the superiority of enlightened institutions, the excellence of
the Christian religion, and the advantages of correct moral principles, as may
readily be comprehended hy the juvenile learner.

[ 4]

MitcheWs ^School Geography and Atlas,
Thia work has been published upwards of a year, nnd haa been already liberally
encouraged and circulated in various parts of the United States. The extent to
which il has been introduced into Ihe most respei'tahle seminaries, and the strong
and decided testimonials in its favour received from eminent teachers and gentle
men of the highest respeclability for talent and discrimination, justify the publish
ers in presenting it as a treatise of undoubted merit.
The Geography contains 33ti pages, and is illustrated by mote than 300 engrav
ings: these are all from new designs, and are executed in a style greatly superior
to what is usually seen in works of this description ; many of the engravings elu
cidate important facts aiated in the text, and others embrace a number of striking
objects in nature and art : these interest the scholar, excite a spirit of inquiry, and
relieve the mind from that dull uniformity, so justly complained of by those who
study school geographies deficient in tliis respect.
The work is divided into sections of such extent ns are considered sufficient for
one lesson: these are gradually enlarged from the beginning to the end of the
book, so as to keep pace with the increasing capacity uf the pupil. The descrip
tion of tho definitions, so essential to a clear understanding of the science of geo
graphy, will be found, perhaps, aa simple and easy of comprehension as can well
be obtained. It is arranged chiefiy in the method of question and answer, yet pre
senting, it is believed, sufficient scope to exercise the mental faculties of the pupil.
The Atlas contains eighteen maps, which are all engraved from original draw
ings, and are executed in the clear and distinct manner fur which Mr. Mitchell's
maps are distinguiahed. The care bestowed upon all parts of the engraving, the
ease with which every name on the maps may be read, the location of remarkable
events connected with the history of our own and other countries, with the inser
tion of the lines of rail-roads and canals, and the distances from one conlirient !o
another, are all regarded as essential improvements.
The geographical and statistical tables appended to the Atlas contain a great
amount of interesting information, compriaing a view of the extent and popula
tion of all the countries represented on the maps, together with (he heights uf
mountains, lengths of rivers, and statistics of the United States, the latter embrac
ing liais of univeraities, colleges, and other institutions, canals, rail-roads, &c.
'JMiese tables may be considered as forriiing an aggregate of the whole work, and
give it a character of perfection, without which it would be doficjent in complete
ness and finish.

MitcheWs Atlas of Outline Maps,
(an ACCOMPANIMENT TO MITCHELL's SCHOOL ATLAS.)
This Atlas corresponds with seven of the principal and most useful maps accom
panying the School Geography. On these Ihe nnmea of places are entirely omitted,
leaving nothing but the natural features of the countries they illustrate, and the
chief political boundaries or divisions.
It is well known that no method so well fixes in the mind of tho learner the form
and relative position of countries, islands, &c., as drawing maps. To draw them
entirely is a work of time, and what comparatively but few scholars ever attain
the art of doing well ; but the exercise of completing the Outline Maps from thp
finished Atlas puasessea all the advantages to be derived from map-drawing, wlUi
a great saving of time.

[•5 ]
MitcheWs Geographical Reader^ for Schools and
FamiUes.
This work contains 600 pages, and comprises a general description of the vari
ous divisions of the earth, with their several empires, kingdoms and slates, pre
ceded by a cumpendioua history of the progress of geographical acience.
The design of the work is indicated by the title. It may be read in classes by
those who are using Mitchell's School Geography, or by pupils fartVer advanced
in their studies. This book will be found equally convenient to heads of families
who wish to teach their children, or to adults who have passed their period of
tuiiion. The arrangement of countries is the same as in the " School Geography," the
descriptive details are extended in proportion to its enlarged dimensions, and will
be found to give a lively and interesting picture of the world, according to its con
dition at the present day.
The Reader is also arranged to correspond with " Mitchell's School Atlaa," so
that those who already have the latter will be in possession of a suitable accom
paniment to the former ; and individuals who are not may obtain it at a cost much
below the price charged tor Atlases compiled to illustrate treatises of equal extent
with Ihe Geographical Header.
An important and, perhaps, paramount feature of the Reader is, that its intro
duction into schools can be effected without additional cost, by dispensing with
other reading books. This will bring it within the means of the humblest pupils,
and enable our whole population to acquire an accurate knowledge of tho science.

A Key to the Study of the Maps comprising MitcheWs
School Atlas.
The Key to the study of Maps comprises a series of lessons arranged to corre
spond in every respect with Mitchell's School Atlas. The work forms an easy in
troduction to the study of Maps— the foundation of all exact geographical know
ledge, and has been prepared as the most proper preliminary study for beginners in
geography. Mitchell's High School Geography and Atlas.
The HiKh School Geography will conlain about 600 pages, and will comprise a
complete system of mathematical, physical, political, slatisUcal, aod descriptive
modern geography, together with a compendium of ancient geography and the
whole will be illustrated by views, representations of remarkable natural objects,
illustrations of costumes, architecture, races of men, animals, &c. The whole of
the engravings will be executed by the first artists in the country.
The Atlas to accompany the above will contain not less than thirty maps, con-
strucled particularly fur the work, and designed to correspond with and illus rate
it in the ,«08t precise manner. Tbe maps will be engraved in the neat and distinct
slyle for which those of "Mitchell's School Atlas" are distinguished ; they wil
contain, however, in some respects, a greater amount of detail, and such additional
particulars as the higher and more advanced grade of tuition for which they are
intended may demand.

CATALOGUE

OF

SCHOOL BOOKS.

FROST'S UNITED STATES.

HISTORY OF THE UNITED STATES; for the
use of Schools and Academies. By John Fiiost. Illustrated
with 40 engravings.
The design of the author in this, his larger history, has been to furnish a
text-book full and complete enough fur the use of colleges, acaderaieSf and
the higher seminaries. It begins with the discovery of the New World, aoJ
presenting the series of events in a clear and connected narrative, rejecting
whatever was considered irrelevant or unimportant, and dwelling chiefly on
those striking features of the subject which give it vividness and character ;
the history is brought down to the present day. " Although," says the author
in hia preface, " the considerable period embraced, the multitude of characters
and events delineated, and the extent of the field in which thsy figure, have
rendered the preservation of historical unity no easy taak, he has laboured to
give the work such a degree of compactness as would enable the student Ua
perceive the relation of all its parts, and to grasp the whole without any very
difficult exercise of comprehension."
The numerous testimonials to the merit of this work, and ita popularity
evinced quite unequivocally by the sale of ten thousand copies withm a few
months after its first publication, afford a strong presumption that Ihe author
has succeeded in his ptu'pose of making it a first-rate school history.
The following notices and recommendations of Frost's History, are selected
from an immense number which have been sent to the publisher.

RCC03VIiyXENDATIONS.

Mr. Biddle,
Dear Sir,— I am glad to see that the "History of the United Statesi" which
you announced some time since, has made ils appearance. The extensive
research which has of late years been carried on upon the subject of American
history, and the careful investigation of original sources of intelligence, by
Individuals eminently qualified for the task, have furnished valuable mate-
6

[7]
rials from which lo enlarge and to correct the hiatorical records of our coun
try. It was time to have these advantages transferred to works designed for
the purpose of education. I was happy, therefore, to observe by your an-
liouocenienl, that a book on this plan waa to be prepared. I have since been
gratitied with the perusal of the volume ; and I take pleasure ih saying that
It appears to me in every respect well executed. It avoids the fault with
which mosl compilations are chargeable— that of merely sketching a general
outline of events, loo brief and abstract to gain the attention of the student.
It is Tree, at the same time, from injudicious prolixity and detail.
The style is clear, concise, and spirited; free on the one hand from the
ambitious and rhetorical character, and on Ihe other, from the negligence
and inaccuracy into which most of our popular compends have fallen.
As a history of the United Statea, it is, in my opinion, more full and more
exact than any of the same size, and in all other respects preferable, as a
book intended to aid the business of instruction. WILLIAM RUSSELL,
Editor of the American Journal of Education,Jir3t series.
Philadelphia, Oct. 1836. New York, January 11, 1837.
We fully concur in the sentiments above expressed.
G. J. HOPPER, JOSEPH CHAMBERLAIN,
RUFUS LOCKWOOD, MYRON BEARDSLEY,
ROYAL MANN. WILLIAM H. WYCKOFF,
JOHN OAKLEY, THEODORE W. PORTER,
HENRY SWORDS, C. C. JENNINGS.
GEORGE INGRAM, ROBERT J. FURNEY,
JOHN C. TREAD'WELL, AARON RAND,
JOSEPH M'KEEN, EDMUND D. BARRY, D.D., Princi-
F. S. WORTH, pal of a Classical Academy.
WILLIAM FORREST, SAMUEL GARDNER,
F. A. STREETER, D. STEVENS,
JAMES LAWSON, SAMUEL BROWN,
DAVID SCHOYEE, JOSEPH M. ELY,
SOLOMON JENNER, P. PERRINE,
C. WM. NICHOLS. SAMUEL RICHARDS.
JOSEPH MOONE'^,
From S. Jones, A.M., Philadelphia, comer of Seventh and Carpenter streets
A History of the United States for the use of schools, such as the present-
has long been greatly needed— something to correspond in its general charac
ter with the admirable histories of Goldsmith, which have been received with
so much favour. I have examined the volume prepared by Mr. Frost, and
"although the considerable period embraced, the multitude of characters and
events delineated, and the extent of the field in which they figure," have
called for the exercise of great judgment in the selection, as well as in the
arrangement of his materials , yel this difficult task has been accomplished
with a success which is highly creditable to the author. The great industry
and fidelity with which it has been composed are very apparent ; and the
" List of Authorities," al the end, evinces that he has availed himself of the
best sources of information. It gives me pleasure to commend Ihis History
of the United States, as being better suited to the valuable purpose for which
it was designed, than any other which has hitherto come under my noiirB.
February, 1837. =. JONES.
Mr. E. C. Biddle, . .. , . ,. , v ,
Your"Frost's United Stales" is, in my judgment, by far the best school book
in the department of history that we have. It ought to supersede, in respect
to more advanced pupils, any other lext-book extant on this subject. 1 can
only wish thai it may be placed within the reach of those for whom il is in-
leaded, inasmuch as the work needs to be known merely, in order to bo gene
rally adopted. CHARLES HENRY ALDEN.

[8J
Columbia Academy, Philad., Nov. 15, 1836.
Mb. Edwasd C. Biddle, .
Dear Sir,—\ am so well pleased wilh "Frost's History of the United
Slates," and ils merits as a school book, thai I have organized a class who
are now engaged in studying il. Kespeclfully yours, &c. J. H. BROWN.
We fully concur in the opinions expressed above.

JOHN COLLINS,
MATTHIAS NUGENT,
RICHARD O'R. LOVETT,
S. H. REEVES,
JAiVIES UKOWELL,
I'HOMAS COLLINS,
R. M'CUNNEY,
THOMAS H. WILSON, _
DAVID SMITH,
BARTRAM KAIGHN,
M. SEMPLE,
B. Vt, BL.\CKW005,
WILUAM M'NAIR,
E. W. HUBBARD,
WILLIAM LEWIS,
E. NEVILLE,
JOHN ALLEN,
WILLJAM MANN,
JAMES E. SL.ACK,
L. W. BURNETT,
CHARLES MEAD,
THOMAS M'ADAM,
WILLIAM ALEXANDER, A.M.
JOSEPH RAPP, No. 41 Sansom
street.
JOHN PURLZ,

AUGUSTINE LUDINGTON,
SAMUEL CLENDENIN,
ARCHIBALD MITCHELL,
THOMAS T. AZPELL,
T. G. POTTS,
J. B. WALKER,
H. LONGSTRETH, A.M., Classical
Teacher, Friends' Academy.
D. R. ASHTON,
WILLIAM MARRIOTT, Principal
of Philadelphia Select Academy,
corner of Fiflh and Arch streets.
RIAL LAKE,
E. FOUSE, N. E. corner of Race and
Si-vth slreeis.
WILLIAM A. GARRIGUES, Mathe
matical Teacher.
I. 1. HITCHCOCK,
THOMAS BALDWIN,
T. SEVERN,
JOHN SIMMONS,
JOHN EVANS,
JOHN STOCKDALE,
Rev. SAML. W. CRAWFORD, A.M.
Principal of the Academical DepU
of the University of Pennsylvania.

I haveBxamined "Frost's History of the United States," just published, and
cheerfully recommend it to the attention of teachers as a very superior work
of the kind. In style, a most important point in works of this character, it ia
decidedly superior to some of the mosl popular historical compends now used
in our schools and academies.
Baltimore, March 16, 1837. R. CONNOLLY.
Dear Sir,—\ have long felt the want of a good History of the United States,
and was pleased to have the opportunity of perusing t rosi's. 1 am so much
pleased wilh its elegance of language, neat arrano;ement, copious questions,
and style of getting up, that I shall at once introduce it into my actiool, and
use my influence lo give h a wide circulation.
Baltimore, March 16, 1837. E. B. HARNEY.

We fully concur in the above.
EDWARD S. EBBS,
MICHAEL POWER,
ANDREW DINSMORE,
JAMES WILKISON,
N. M. KNAPP,
DAVID KING,
JOHN R. GARBOE,
JOSEPH WALKER.
JAMES E. SEARLY,
THOMSON RANDOLPH,
CHARLES H. ROBERTSON,

CHARLES F. BANSEMOS,
ROBERT O'NEILL,
JOHN HARVIE,
E. YEATES REESE,
PmLIP WALSH,
JOHN KIRBY, A.M.
BENJAMIN G. FRY,
S. M. ROSZEL,
JOSEPH H. CLARKE,
JOHN KEELY,
PARDON DAVIS.

[9 j

— « « „ J^aitimore. March, 1837.
Mr. E. C. Biddle,
Sir,— I have examined wilh some attention "A History of the United
Slates, by John Frost," published by you. I am so much pleased wilh its
happy arrangement, correct slyle, and careful investigation imo the inci
dents of our history, that 1 shall inlroduce it into my school, aa early as prac-
licaLle, and I think its merits need only be known, to recommend it to every
school in the country. I am, respectfully, &c. A. A. DOWSON.
By the jMliteness of the puolisher, Mr. E. C. Biddle, of Philadelphia, we
have received, through hia aeent, a copy of Frost's "History of the United
Slates ;'" and having e.xamined it. are infinitely pleased wilh the work. The
compiler has departed sufficienily from the path of common historians, to
render his work truly entertaining, without overlooking any important histo
rical fact. The chronological aail statistical tables are full, the subject mat
ter well arranged, and ii seems adapted in every important respect for use
in schools and academies. KNAPP & WILLS.
Gay Street S&niinary, March 20, 1837.
BaZtiinore Fenwle Classical School.
Mr. Biddle,
Sir,— As far as I have examined "The History of the United States," which
you put into my hands for that purpose, it receives my decided approbation ;
aud HI corroboration of this, 1 snail introduce it immediately, as a texl-book,
into my Gchool. A. B. CLEAVELAND, A.M., M.D., Schoolmaster.
Baliimore, March 16, IS37.
Frojji Stephen S. Roszel, A.M., Principal of " Spring Seminary, ^^ Baltimore.
Hr. E. C. Biddlb,
Sir,— A superficial examination of " Frost's United Slates" is quite Huffi-
cieni to convince any impartial and enlightened mind of ita genernl excel
lence, and especially of its admirable adaptation to the purposes oi scholas
tic siuily. The simplicity ot its arrangement, the perspicuity of its delinea-
tioiia, and the elegance of its style, combine to recommend its adoption in
all our literary institutions, and to secure in its favour the cheerful plaudits
of universal approbation. Respectfully, ^-.^-yt^i

Philadelphia, March 24, 1838.
This is to certify, that "Frost's History of the United States" has been
adopted as a class-book by the Controllers of the Public Schools of the First
School District of Pennsylvania, and is in general use in the public schools
ia Ihe city and county of Philadelphia. ^ ^^^^ SMITH,
Secretary of the Board of Contrullert,

Frost's History or the United States has been reprinted in
LoKDON as the first of a series of national histories written by-
natives of the respective countries to which they relate. This is a
compliment not often paid to American school books by British pub
lishers.

[10]
FROST'S
HISTORY FOR COMMON SCHOOLS.

HISTORY OF THE UNITED SFATES FOR
THE USE OF COMMON SCHOOLS. By John Frost,
author of " History of the United States for the use of Schools
and Academies," "The American Speaker," &c.
This work is condent^ed from the author's larger History of the United
States for the Use of Schools and Academies. In reducing the quantity of
matter to such a compass, as will place the volume within the reach of the
eommon schools, no pains have been spared to preserve all thai is essential
to a clear and comprehensive history of the country. No event of importance,
noticed in ihe larger history, ia passed over iu ihis, aiUhough many of the
minor deiails are considerably condensed ; and some circumstances and ob-
servaiionii having a comparatively unimporiani bearing on the main story,
are entirely omittt-d.
The author's design, in accomplishing the condensationof his former work,
has been to furnish the common schools of the country with a history, in a
cheap and f.nnvenient form, which would be complete and suflicient for the
purposes of sound instruction, not only in the plan and arrangement, but lu
the amount of solid infonnation which il should comprise. How far he may
have succeeded in this atiempi it remains for the friends of popular education
to determine.

REOOmiVIENDATIONS.
The followm? are selected from a large number of recommendations of the
above work which have been received by the publishers. It has been adopted
by the Controllers of the Public Schools of the City and County of Philadelphia,
and by sther committees of public schools in various parts of the country.
fVom the Rev. C. H. Alden, Principal of the Philadelphia High School for
Girta.
"Frost's History of the United States" Is a text-book in my school, and is
justly a favourite. I have often regretled that an edition, in a smaller
volume, with numerous illustratiTe engravings, waa not furnished fur ihe use
of our junior classes and common schools. I am glad, therefore, to see what
I thought a desideratum, and in a style, and at a price bo well adapted to the
purposes intended. This volume, I fipd, is abridged from the larger volume
very judiciously, and can be recommended very confidently to general use.
There is no history of our country, in my opinion, at all comparable with it aa
a common school book. CHARLES HENRY ALDEN
Philadelphia, Oc/. 23, 1837%'
I judge " Frost's History of the United States" lo be a most excellent epitome
of American history. Many interesting and important facts relative to Am**-
rican affairs, in other works of the kind omitted, are therein judiciously intro-

duced. The simplicity and elpgance of the Btylo cannot fail lo please evfiry
attentive reader. The appendix, containing tlie cmisiiiuiion of our beloved
land, as also a useful chronological table, will render the work doubly
valuable. WI\I. ALEXANDER.
October 19, 1837. Teacher of Languages, Philadelphia.
Philwhlphia, Nov. 16, IS37.
I have just got through with an examination of "Frnsl's Hisiory of the
United Slates for Common Schools." I have, for a long Uuie, felt the need
of a history of our country that should embrace all the muai importaiitevenUs,
and, al the same time, present a style and arrangement ailraclive to the
common reader. My wishes were fully met upon^receivins a copy of the
'arger work, by ihe same author. Thia work ought lo be placed in every
library as well as in every school.
This smaller work, which appears lo be condensed froin the larger one,
contains all the important facts and retains the same easy slyle thai charac
terized the book from which it was abridged. I feel safe in recommending
it to others, and shall introduce it into my seminary as an inlniduciion lo the
lai^e work, so soon as I can dispense with other works now in use.
Yours, &c. H. BILL Union Hall.
Mr. E. C. Biddle :
Dear Sir,— I have to acknowledge the favour of copies of " Frost's United
States for the use of Common Schools," and of "The American Speaker" by
the same gentleman. As you have my opinion of the book from which the
first of these works is condensed, it Is not necessary to say much of the present
volume. The author, it seems to me, has furnished a book belter suited to a
large class of pupils than his former work ; and while it is complete and suf
ficient for the purposes of sound instruction, not only in ihe plan and arrange
ment, but in »he amount of solid information which ii comprises, can be af
forded at one-half the price of the larger volume. I am making use of both
of these " Histories," with entire satisfaction. " The Speaker" contains a
great variety of pieces, selected, with much care and judgment from our most
successful oratora, and is well adapted to promote the object of the compiler.
The Principles of Elocution, by Mr. Ewing, which are prefixed lo the collec
tion, and the number of exercises marked with inflections, give this work
claims over all other books of the kind 1 have examined, and will, doubt
less, secure for it a ready introduction to our colleges and academies. The
work has been precured by a number of my pupils, and I unhesitatingly
comooendit. Yours, &o. g. JONES,
!fo IT South Seventh street, Philadelphia.

Philadelpliia, March 24, 1838.
This is to certify, that " Frost's History of the United States"
nas been adopted as a class-book by tho Controllers of the PubUc
Schools of the First School District of Pennsylvania, and is in
general use in the pubUc schools in the city and county of Phila
delphia R. PENN SMITII,
Secretary of Board of Contretkrs.

[12J

FROST'S AMERICAN SPEAKER.

THE AMERICAN SPEAKER; comprising a com
prehensive Treatise on Elocution, and an extensive Selection of
Specimens of American and Foreign Eloquence, Embellished
with engraved Portraits of distinguished American Orators, on
steel. By J. Frost, author of History of the United States.
The design of this work is to furnish a correct and satisfactory treatise on
the Principles of Elocution in a small space; and a very rich and copious
collection of specimens of Deliberative, Forensic, Academic, and Popular
Eloquence, filling up the greater portion of the volume, ll has met wilh a
very rapid sale, six thousand copies having been called for within a few
weeks after its first appearance. The estimation in which il is held by intel
ligent teachers will appear by the following:

RECOmiVIENDATIONS.
From William Russell, Esq., Teacher of Elocution, first Editor of the
Journal (^Education.
Dear SfeV,— The " American Speaker," edited by Mr, Frost, iSj I think, one
of the best volumes for practical exercises in elocution, that inslructera or
Biudents can find. The rules and principles laid down in the introductory part
of the book, comprise whatever is most useful in Walker's system, as abridged
by Mr. Ewing of Edinburgh. The compends of Mr. Ewing were preferred
to all others, by the late Dr. Poner of Andover, whose crilical knowledge and
pure taste in relation to the an of elocution are so extensively appreciated.
The numerous rules on the manner of reading the series— so termed by
elocutionists— may be diflTerently viewed by inslructera, according to the ex
tent to which they follow Walker's authority. But there can be no diversity
of opinion as lo the utility of the ether parts of the work, and, particularly,
the many pieces in which the inflections of the voice are marked throughout
by appropriate accents. Respectfully, yours.
Mil. E. C. Biddle, Philadelphia. WM. RUSSELL.
Ma. Biddle :
I consider "Frost's American Speaker" to be the best compilation of the kind
that has ever met ray eye. The principles of elocution therein laid down are
excellent, and well calculated lo promote eloquence in every youthful Ame
rican freeman. The extracts arc of a high order, and, in general, breathe the
spirit of liberty and independence. Giving you my best wishes for the suc
cess of the work, I remain, very respectfully, yours,
WnXUM ALEXANDER.
I have carefully examined " The American Speaker, by John Frost," and
feel no hesitation in saying that I am highly pleased with the work. The
rules and examples elucidating the principles of elocution, cannot fail to
secure the advancement of the student in the difficult science of Oratory. I
have already introduced it into my school.— Wilh respect to Mr. J. Frost's
"Abridgment of .the History of the United States," I consider it extremely
well calculated to give younger pupils a sufficient knowledge of the histwy
of their own country. - MICHAEL POWER.
Baltimore, January 2, 1838, Principal qf Asbury College

[13]

PINNOCK'S ENGLAND.

I'INNOCK'S IMPROVED EDITION OF DR.
GOLDSMITH'S HISTORY OF ENGLAND, from the inva
sion of Julius Cffisar to the death of George II., with a con
tinuation to tlie year 1838 : with questions for examination at
the end of each section ; besides a variety of valuable information
added throughout the work, consisting of Tables of Contempo
rary Sovereigns and Eminent Persons, copious Explanatoi-y
Notes, Remarks on the Politics, Manners, and Literature of the
Age, and an Outline of the Constitution. Illustrated with 30
Engravings on Wood. Fifteenth American, corrected and re
vised from the twenty-fourth English edition.

RECOMIVIENDATIOKS.
Mes_sks. Kev & BiDntE, Philadelphia, Oct. 20, 18M.
Gentlemen,— 'Qq pleased to accept my thanlrg for tne favour you have done
me in sending a cony of your neat and attractive edition of Pinnock's Gold
smith's England. It appears to me to have beeii^edulously prepared for the
purpose which it professes to subserve — that of a convenient manual for
schools and academies. By the questions and tabular views at the ends-of
the several chapters, the scholar will be able to test his own acquisitions, and
to embrace at a glance an important collection of facts, in regard to the his
tory and biography of the period of which he has been reading. These land
marks for the memory serve to raise a host of reminiscences, ail interesting to
the diligent and inquiring student. With my wishes for the success of the
work, accept the assurances of the high respect with which I subscribe my
self. Your obedient servant,
WALTER K. JOHNSON,
Professor of Mechanics and Natural Philosophy
in the Franklin Institute.
From S. Jones, A.M., Principal ^ the Classical and MaUiematical Jhstitute,
Philadelphia.
I have attentively examined Pinnock's improved edition of Dr. Goldsmith's
History of England, published by Messrs. Key & Biddle, of this cily, and am
impressed with ita excellence. I have no hesitation in expressing my full
approbation of the work, with my belief that it will receive a liberal patron
age from an enlightened conmiunity. S. JONES.
IKft Month, 1834.
I consider Pinnock's edition of Goldsmith's History of England as the best
edition of that work which has yet been published for the use of schools. The
tables of contemporary sovereigns and eminent persons, at the end of each
chapter, afford the means of many useful remarks and comparisons with the
history of other nations. With these views, I cheerfully recommend it m a
book well adapted to school purposes. JOHN M. KEAGY.
Friends' Academy, Philadelphia.

[14]

We fully concur in the opinion as
SETH SMITH,
J. H. BLACK,
THOMAS COLLiNS,
JAMES CROWELL,
J. B. WALKER,
S. C. WALKER,
T. H. WILSON,
J. MADEIRA,
WILLIAM MANN,
W. MARRIOTT,
C. B. TREGO,
URIAH KITCHEN,
THOMAS EUSTACE,
JOHN HASLA.M,
W. CURRAN,
J. STOCKDALE,
S. H. REEVES,
J. HAYMER, '
W. B. ROSE,
CHiiRLES MEAD,
BENJAMIN MAYO,
Rev. S. M. GAYLEY, Wil-
minrfton, Del.
E. FOUSE, -
J. E. SLACK,
JOSEPH R. EASTEURN,
A. STEVENSON,

expressed above.
WILLIAM A. GARRIGUES,
M. SOULE,
Rev. CHARLES HENRY ALDEN
JOHN EUSTACE,
BENJAMIN C. TUCKER,
HUGH MORROW,
WILLIAM i\l'NAlk,
E. H. HUBBARD,
R. LAKE,
JOHN WEBB,
JOHN ORD,
SAMUEL CLENDENIN,
D. R. ASHTON,
J. O'CONNOR, Secretary to the Plil
ladelpliia Association of Teacliers.
JOSEPH WARREN,
THOMAS CONRAD,
THOMAS M'ADAM,
Rev. SAMUEL W. CRAWFORD
A.M., Principal of Academical DepL
ol University of Pennsylvania.
M. L. HUKLBUT,
R. W. CUSHMA.N,
AUGUSTINE LUDINGTON,
JOHN ERHARDT,
OLIVER A. SHAW,
A. D. CLEVELAND.

We fully concur in the op
SAMUEL JONES,
O. W. TREAD WELL,
E. BENNETT,
E. R. HARNEY,
ROBERT O'NEILL,
N. SPELMAN,
S. W. ROSZELL,
SAMUEL HUBBELL,
H. O. WATTS,
0. F. BANSEMER,
D. E. REESE,
S. A. CLARKE,
JOHN FINLEY, A.M.

Baltimore, Dec. 1834
nion above expressed.
WILLIAM HAMILTON,
JOSEPH WALKER,
JAMES SHANLEY,
DAVID RING,
ROBERT WALKER,
D. W. B. M'CLELAN,
S. A. DAVIS,
JAMES F. GOULD,
JOSEPH H, CLARKE,
FRANCIS WATERS,
JOHN MAGEE,
MICHAEL POWER.

Recommendations to the same general effect have been received from th«
following gentlemen : —
SIMEON HART, Jr., Farmington, Conn.
Ebv. D. R. AUSTIN, Principal of Monmouth Academy, Monson, Mass.
T. L. WRIGHT, A.M., Principal of East Hartford Classical and English
School. Rbv. N. W. FISKE, A.M., Professor Amherst College, Mass.
E. S. SNELL, ¦ " " -
Rev. S. NOR!
W. H. SCRAM,
New York.
JAIVIES F. GOULD, Principal of Classical School. Baltimore.
A. B. MYERS, Principal of Whitehall Academy, New York.
HORACE WEBSTER, Professor 'Geneva CoUege^ New York.
W. C. FOWLER, Professor Middlebury College, Vermont.
B. S. NOBLE, Bridgeport, Conn.
Rev. S. B. HOWE, late President of Dickinson College.
B. F. JOSLIN, Professor Union College, New York.

. vv. rinn-fi, H.ivt., rroiessor amnersi t;oiiege, iviass.
INELL, A.M., Professor Amherst College, Mass.
, NOR'TH, Professor of Languages. Hamilton College, New York
SCRAM, A.M., Principal of Classical and English Academy, Troy,

[15 1

PINNOCK'S GREECE.

PINNOCK'S IMPROVED EDITION OF DR
GOLDSMITH'S HISTORY OF GREECE. Revised, cor
rected, and very considerably enlarged, by the addition of several
new chapters and numerous useful notes ; with questions for
examination, at the end of each section. Revised from the
twelfth London edition. With 30 engravings, by iVtherton.

RECOMBSENDATIONS.
Prom Mr. N. Dodge, Teacher, South Eighth street.
The edition of " Pinnock's History of Greece" ou the basis of Goldsmith's, is,
in my estimation, a work of superior merit. Tiie introductory cliaptprs are
especially valuable. The body of the work is greatly improved ; and llie
a?ntiuuation, though brief, supplies a want greatly felt by every reader al tvie
conclusion of the original work of Dr. Goldsmith. I shall inlroduce it into
my seminary as the best text-tiook on the subject.
' ' N. DODGE.
We fully concur in the opinions above expressed.
THOMAS H. WILSON, AUGUSTINE LUDINGTON,
WM. ALEXANDER, A.M. Kev. SAMUEL W. CRAWFORD
JOHN SIMMONS, A.M., Principal of the Acadl. Dept,
WILLIAM M'NAIR, ofthe University of Pennsylvania.
EDWARD H. HUBBARD, THOMAS M'ADAM,
EZEKIEL FOUSE. THOMAS T. AZPELL,
Rev. wm. MANN, A.M. A. MITCHELL,
J. MADEIRA, H. MORROW
J. E. SLJiCK D. R. ASHTON,
L. W. BURlteT, BENJAMIN 0. TUCKER,
.lOHN HASLAM, ES. LEVY,
THOMAS EUSTACE, WILLIAM ROBERTA
JOHN EUSTACE, SAMUEL J. W1LI.EY,
WILLIAM MARRIOTT, THOMAS BALDWIN,
RIAL LAICE, U. KITCHEN,
THOMAS COLLINS, M%L;,^ffi,'y'?^5St-,ri-=
MATTHIAS NUGENT, SHEPHERD A. REEVES,
SAMUEL CLENDENIN, EDMUND NEVILLE,
JAMffiS CROWELli ' NICHOLAS DONNEtLY,
WILLIAM B. KOsi WILLIAM A. GARRIGUtS.

[16]

PINNOCK'S ROME.

PINNOCK'S IMPROVED EDITION OF DU
GOLDSMITH'S HISTORY OF ROME. To which is pre
fixed an Introduction to the Study of Roman History, and a great
variety of information throughout the work on the Manners,
Institutions, and Antiquities of the Romans ; with questions for
examination, at tlie end of each section. Revised from the
twelfth London edition, with additions and improvements.
With 30 engravings, by Atherton.

RECOIffll«ENDATIONS.
Having examined Pinnock's improved edition of Dr. Goldsmith's History
r.f Rome, 1 unhesitatingly say, that the style and elPL'ance of the language,
the arraugemenl of the chapietB, and the questions for examination, fenner
It, iu iny estimation, a most valuable scliool hook : — 1 tlierofore most cheerfully
recommend it lo teachers, and do confidently trust that it will find an exten
sive introduction into the schools of our country.
Baltimore, September 23, 1835. JAMES F. GOULD.

We fully concur in the above
S. P. SKINNER,
C. H. ROBERTSON,
ROBERT WALKER,
WILLIAM HAMILTON
DAVID RING.
JAMES E. SEARLEY,
SAiVlUEL ROSZEL,
E. YEATES REESE,
N. SPELMAN,
B. WALSH,
PARDON DAVIS.
SAMUEL HUBBELL,
O. W. TREADWELL,

recommendation. A. DINSMORE,
JAMES WILKESON,
JOSEPH H. CLARKE,
S. A. CLARKE,
JOSEPH WALKER,
JAMES SHANLEY,
E. RHODES HARNEY,
ROBERT O'NEILL,
MICHAEL POWER,
JOHN PRENTISS,
EDWARD S. EBBS,
MICHAEL TONER.

From Samuel Jones, A.M,, Principal of the _ Classical and Mathematical
Institute, Philadelphia.
A writer of so honourable a popularity as Dr. Goldsmith, for all the graces
of an elegant, polished, and pure slyle and whose histories have been so long
and so exlensivelv useful to youth, certainly needs no encomium. It may be
added, however, Kir the information of those teachers who are not acquainted
with the improvements of Piiinock, that he has been for some time eminent
in England for valuable additions to school books. Of the editionof Rome, by
Messrs. Key & B'ddleof this city, it is believed that it will be found superior,
in the manner of " getting up," to any yet published in thia country ; while
its attractive appearance and mechanical execution lead me not only lo hope.

[in
I'Ut contidently expect, that they will receive a liberal return for their invests
menl. Philad eipliia, September 13, 1815. SAMUEL JONES.
F^-om J. M. Keagy, M.D., Prim;ipal qf Pi-i ends' Academy, Philadelphia.
Pinnock's edition of "Goldsmith's Rome" has several very useful addi
tions ; the one an introduction, containing an abridged view of Roman
Geography and Antiquities, and the other a very appropriate extension of
Roman hisiory lo ilie subjugation of the empire by tlie Northern Barbarians.
This improved edition of "Goldsmith's Rome" will, no doubt Attain its
place in our schools as one of the best abridgments of the history of that
mleresting people. JOIiN M. KEAGY.
We fully concur in the above.
THOMAS BALDWIN, F. M. LUBBREN,
D. MAGENIS, Teacher of Eio- SHEPHERD A. REEVES,
cution. JOHN HASLAM,
WILLIAM A. GARRIGUES. E. FOUSE,
CHARLES HENRY ALDEN, OLIVER A. SHAW,
W. MARRIOTT, M. L. HURLBERT,
THOMAS CONARD, RIAL LAKE,
URIAH KITCHEN, BENJAMIN MAYO,
SETH SMITH, WILLIAM M'NAIR,
J. D. GRISCOM, C. K. FROST,
AUGUSTINE LUDINGTON, SAMUEL CLENDENIN,
CHARLES B. TREGO, THOMAS COLLINS,
THOMAS EUSTACE, J. O'CONNOR,
J. H. BROWN, JOHN STOCKDALE,'
JOHN STEEL, D. R. ASHTON,
T. G. POTTS, BENJ.'i.MIN C. TUCKER,
JOSEPH P. ENGLES, JAMES CROWELL,
WILLIAM iMANN, RICHARD M'CUNNEY,
L. W. BURNET. J. E. SLACK,
HUGH MORROW. CHARLES MEAD,
JOSEPH EUSTACE, E. H. HUBBARD,
M. A. CRITTENDEN, Princi- V. VJILUE,
pal of a Young Ladies' Semi- EDWARD POOLE.
nary, Philadelphia.
Recommendations to the same effect have been received from th» folIowiBK
gentlemen: SIMEON HART, Jr., Farmington, Conn.
T. L. WRIGHT. East Hartford, Conn.
Kev. N. W. FISKE, Professor Amherst College, Mass.
D. R. AUSTIN, A.M.. Principal of Monson Academy.
Rev. S. NORTH. Professor Hamilton CoUege, New York.
HORACE WEBSTER, Professor Geneva College, New York.
B. G. NOBLE, Brideeport, Conn.
Kev. S. B. HOWE, Tate President of Dickinson CollKe.
B F. JOSLIN, M.D., Professor Union College, New York.
G. B. GIJINDINNING, Troy, New York.
J. P. BRACE, Principal of Hartford Female Academy.
C. H. C.\LHOUN, A.M., Tutor William's CoUege.
GEORGE HALE, A.M., Tutor William's College.
J. H LATHROP, A.M., Professor Hamilton College, New York.
A. N. SKINNER, New Haven, Conn. . .,...,, _
D D WHEDON, Professor Wesleyan University, Middleton, tonn.

[16 J
GUY ON ASTRONOMY,
AND KEITH ON THE GLOBES

GUY'S ELEMENTS OF ASTRONOMY, AND
AN ABRIDGEMENT OF KEITH'S NEW TREATISE
ON THE GLOBES. Thirteenth American edition, with
additions and improvements, and an explanation of the astro
nomical part of the Atperican Almanac. Illustrated with
eighteen plates, drawn and engraved on steel, in the best man
ner.

RECOKtmiENDATlGNS. Philadelphia, December, 1834.
A volume containing Guy's popular treatise of Astronomy, and Keith on
the Globes, having been submitted to us for examination, and carefully ex
amined, we can without any hesitation recommend it lo the notice and patron
age of parents and teachers. The work on Astronomy is clear, intelligible, and
suited to the comprehension of young persons. It comprises a great amount
of information, and is well illustrated with steel engravings. Keith on the
Globes has long been recognised as a standard school book. The present
edition, comprised in the same volume with the Astronomy, is improved by
the omission of much extraneous matter, and the reduction of size and price.
On the whole, we know of no school book which comprises so much in so
little space as the new edition of Guy and Keith.
THOMAS EUSTACE, W. B. ROSE,
JOHN HASLAM, CHARLES MEAD,
W. CURRAN, BENJAMIN MAYO,
SAMUEL CLENDENIN, H. MORROW,
SHEPHERD A. REEVES, J. H. BLACK,
JOHN STOCKDALE, S. C. WALKER,
J. B. WALKER, THOMAS COLLINS,
J. E. SLACK, WM. MANN,
JOSEPH R. EASTBURN, RIAL LAKE,
WILLIAM M'NAIR, W. MARRIOTT,
H. O. WATTS, C. B. TREGO,
J. O'CONNOR, Secretary to the JOHN ERHARDT,
Philadelphia Asaociation of R. W. CUSHMAN,
Teachers. THOIMAS M'ADAM.
B. N. LEWIS, Kev. SAMUEL W. CRAWFORD,
Rev. CHAS. H. ALDEN, A.M., Principal of the Acadl. -«pl.
' BENJAMIN C. TUCKER, of the University of Pennsylvania.
J. H. BROWN, -iHi O. A. SHAW,
JOHN ORD, AUGUSTINE LUDINGTON,
SETH SMITH, M. SOULE,
WILLIAM ROBERTS, WILLIAM A. GARRIGUES,
T. H. WILSON, M. L. HURLBERT
'¦ JOSEPH WARREN, S. JONES,

[19 1

_. . „ . , Balttmoi-t, Die. 1834. 1
We fully concur in the cpinion above expressed.
E. BENNETT, JAMES SHANLEY,
C. P. BANiSEMAR, DAVID RING,
E. R. HARNEY, ROBERT WALKER,
ROBERT O'NEILL, D. W. B. M'CLELaS,
N. SPELMAN, S. A. DAVIS.
S. W. ROSZELL, JAMES F. GOULD,
SAMUEL HUBBELL, JOSEPH H. CLARKE, A.M
D. E. REESE, FRANCIS WATERS,
S. A. CLAKKE, JOHN MAGEE,
JOSEPH WALKER, MICHAEL POWER,
O. W, TREADWELL, C. D. CLEVELAND.
Rev. S. M. GAYLEY, Wil
mington, Del. Willbraham, Oct. 27, 1834.
We have used Guy's Astronomy, and Keith on the Globes, as a text-book,
during the past year; it is in all respects such an one as was wanted, and we
have no disposition to exchange it for any other with which we are ac
quainted. WM. G. MITCHELL,
Liecturer on the Natural Sciences and Astronomy,
in Wesleyan Academy, Mass.
New York, Dec, 1834.
We fully concur in the opinion above expressed.
BERNARD THORNTON, W. M. SOMERVILLE,
HORACE COVELL, NORTON THAYER,
P. PERRINE, THOMAS GILDERSLIEVE,
J. B. KIDDER, MELANCTHON HOYT,
SOLOMON JENNER, THOMAS V. FOWLER,
JOSEPH M'KEEN, JOSEPH BAILE,
C. CARTER, SAMUEL GARDNER,
LEONARD HAZELTINE, WILLUM FORREST,
JOSEPH CHAMBERLAIN, C. W. NICHOLS,
W. R. ADDINGTON, THOMAS M'KEE,
HENRY SWORDS, ADN. HEGEMAN,
J. M. ELY, G. VALE.
Recommendations of the same tenor have been received from the foUowing
gentlemen: Rev. D. R. AUSTIN, A.M., Principal of Mon.son Academy, Mass.
T. L. WRIGHT, Principal of East Hartford Classical and English SchooL
S. HART, Principal of Farmington Academy, Conn.
0. D. WESTBR00K,D.D., New Brunswick, New Jersey.
W. H. SCRAM, Principal of Classical Academy, Troy, New York. . .
E. H. BURRITT, Author of the Geography of the Heavens, New Britain,
WM. C. FOWXER, Professor of Chemistry in Middlebury College, Ver
mont. B. S. NOBLE, Bridgeport, Conn.  ^ , , , „
Rev, C. H. ALbENi\.M.,Principal of Philadelphia High School for Young
Rev.' S. B. HOWE, late President of Dickinson College. ,_ . ,
Rev. Da. WESTBROOK, Principal of Female Seminary and Rector ol
Rutgers' College Grammar School.
Dr B F. JOSLIN, Professor Union College, New York.
GEORGE B. GLENDINING, Principal of Young Ladies Academy, Iroy,
M. CATLIN, A.M., Professor of Mathematics in Hamilton College, New
York.

[20]

BRIDGE'S ALGEBRA.

A TREATISE ON THE ELEMENTS OF AL
GEBRA. By Rev. B. Bridge, D.D., F.R.S., Fellow of St.
Peter's CoUege, Cambridge, and late Professor of Mathematics
in the East India College, Herts. Revised and corrected from
the eighth London edition.
In this work the hitherto abstract and difficult science of Algebra is sim
plified and illusirated so as to be attainable by the younger class oi learners,
and by those who have not the aid of a teacher. It is already introduced into
i.he tfniversily of Pennsylvania, at Philadelphia; aud the WeslKrn Uni
versity al Pittsburg. It is also the text-book of Guminere's School al Burling
ton, and Friends' College at Haverforrl, and of a great number of the best
schools throughout the United Slates. It is equally adapted to common
schools and colleges.

RECOIMKEENDATIOKS. PhUadelphia, March 7, 1833.
Bridge's Al^brais the text-book in the school under my care; and I am
teller pleased with it than with any which 1 have heretofore used. The
author IS very clear in his explanations, and systematic in his arrangemi?ni,
and has succeeded in rendering a comparatively abstruse branch of science,
an agreeable and interesting exercise both to pupil and teacher. JOHN FROST.
We fully concur in the opinion above expressed.
CHARLES HENRY ALDEN, JOSEPH WARREN
J. O'CONNOR, Secretary to the SAMUEL CLENDENIN,
Philadelphia Association of S. H. REEVES.
Teachers. University of Pennsylvania, March 30, 1833.
GewWemen,— In compliancte with your request that I would give you my
spinion respecting your edition of Bridge's Algebra^'I beg leave to sav, irtai
Ihe wdrk appears to be well adapted lo the insiruction ofstudents. The ar
rangement of the several parts of the science is judicious, and the examples
are numerous and well selected.

Yours, respectfully, ROBE

;ert adrain.
We fully concur in the opinion of Bridge's Algebra as expresaed by Dr.
Adrain. J. HAYMER, B. N. LEWIS,
HUGH MORROW, JOHN STOCKDALE,
WILLIAM M'NAIR, W. B. ROSE,
OLIVER A. SHAW, BENJAMIN MAYO,
SETH_^MITH, J. H. BLACK,
SAMUEL E. JONES, THOMAS M'ADAM,
iJJ©, M. KEAGY, JOHN ERHARDT,

[21]
c. b. treg6^ r." w ctshma&°''''"'°'^'™'''*-
ib&N^nl'sS, ^!rel.'- ""¦ '^^^^^^ ^"'"'"^'"¦'
W. CURRAN, Baltimore, December, 1834.
We fully concur ia the opinion above expressed.
E. BENNETT, O. W. TREADVSTELL,
E. R. HARNEY, JOSEPH WALKER,
ROBERT O'NEILL, DAVID RING,
N. SPELMAN, ROBERT WALKER,
S. W. ROSZELL, D. W. M'CLELAN,
SAMUEL HUBBELL, S. A. DAVIS,
II. O. WATTS, JOSEPH H. CLARKE, A.M.
C. F. BANSEMER, FRANCIS WATERS,
D. E. REESE, JOHN MAGEE,
S. A. CLARKE, iVnCHAEL POWER.
Messrs. Kev & Buidle : November 22, 1834.
Gentlemen,— I have been highly gratified by an examination of " Bridge's
Algebra," published by you ; and think it well entitled to general introduc
tion in our schools. I shall give it a preference in my academy to any work
I have seen. Respectfully, yours, S. H. BROWN,
Principal^ an English and Mathematical Academy
No, 52 Cherry street, Philadelphia.
New York, December, 1834.
We fully concur in the opinion above expressed.
P. PERRINE, NORTON THAYER,
I. B. KIDDER, ;„ THOMAS GILDERSLIEVE,
SOLOMON JENNER, MELANCTHON HOYT,
JOSEPH M'KEEN, THOMAS V. FOWLER,
C. CARTER, JOSEPH BAILE,
LEONARD HAZELTINE, SAMUEL GARDNER,
W. R. ADDINGTON, C. W. NICHOLS,
HENRY SWORDS, THOJMAS M'KEE.
W. M. SOMERVHiLE,
The gentlemen named below have also sent the publishers strong recom
mendations of Bridge's Algebra;
PROFESSOR E. A. ANDREWS, Mount Vernon Institute, Boston.
Rbv. 0. DEWEY, Professor Berkshire Gymnasium, Mass.
N. S. DODGE. Principal of Young Ladies' Seminary, Pittsfleld, Mass.
M. CATLIN, Professor of Mathematics, Hamilton College, New York.
GEORGE HALE, A.M., Tutor William's College, Mass.
B. G. NOBLE. Bridgeport, Conn.
Rev. D. R. AUSTIN, Principal of Monson Academy, Mass.
E. H. BURRITT, Author of the Geography of the Heavens, New Britain
' A. B. IMYERS, Principal of WhitehaU Academy, New York.
THEODORE STRONG, Professor of Mathematics m Rutgers' Collego,
Rev.^S.^^IORTH, A.m., Professor Hamilton CoUege, New York.

[22]
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Frost's American Speaker. — The American Speaker, com
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Clark's Caesar. — The Notes and Interpretations translated and
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Forney's Syllabaire Francais ; or, French Spelling
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Guy on Astronomy, and Keith on the Globes.
Bridge's Algebra.

L23]
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Parley's AMERICA, ElIROPii, ASIA, AFRICA, ROME,
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The Child's History of the United States.— By Charles
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[24]

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.,.-.%' ^

iiiviriisiiiassai