1812. dismiss captain Carden, without expressing their adOct. miration of the uniform testimony which has been borne to his gallantry and good conduct throughout the action, nor lieutenant David Hope, the senior lieutenant, the other officers and company, without expressing the highest approbation of the support given by him and them to the captain, and of their courage and steadiness during the contest with an enemy of very superior force; a circumstance that, whilst it reflects high honour on them, does no less credit and honour to the discipline of his majesty's late ship Macedonian. The court also feels it a gratifying duty to express its admiration of the fidelity to their allegiance, and attachment to their king and country, which the remaining crew appear to have manifested, in resisting the various insidious and repeated temptations which the enemy held out to them, to seduce them from their duty; and which cannot fail to be duly appreciated."

Diffi

culty of giving

Of all the cases recorded in these pages, none are so difficult to render intelligible as those in which details british ships are defeated; first, because there is selin de- dom any official letter, and next, because there is never cases. any log, to refer to for particulars. It is true that, in

feated

each of the three frigate cases with America, an official letter was allowed to appear in the London Gazette; but, of all three, (including, with the letter of captain Dacres, his address to his court-martial,) the letter of captain Carden is the most barren of details. It happens, also, that the letter of commodore Decatur, and the other american accounts of this action, are equally brief and unsatisfactory. Thus limited in means, we drew up and published our first account nearly nine years ago. It now appears, for the first time, that we overrated the Macedonian's force by giving her 18 carronades, 32-pounders, instead of 16, with two long twelves; making a difference in the broadside-force of just 21 lbs. This very important oversight, and the strictures we were induced to pass upon what we supposed to be

the unskilfulness of the Macedonian's crew, have given 1812. rise to a very intemperate letter. The mistake Oct. about the guns is too trivial to notice; but we readily acknowledge, that we were wrong in supposing that the crew of the Macedonian were unpractised or inexpert gunners: we have shown, we trust pretty clearly, what it was that occasioned their powder and shot to be so wastefully employed. The very first clause in the sentence of the court-martial fortunately bears us out in our statement; and we certainly feel much indebted to captain Carden, as well for the opportunity he has afforded us of amending our former account in that important particular, as for the stimulus he has given us to seek and obtain some additional facts connected with the action between the Macedonian and United-States.

Bren

count.

We have, as will be seen, borrowed a few para- Capt. graphs relating to this action from each of our two ton contemporaries, the post-captain and the lieutenant, acThe latter, whether he intends to bestow his praise or his censure, always alludes to us, in a becoming manner, by name; but the former usually prefers the indirect and, he will excuse us for adding, american fashion, of leaving his meaning to be "guessed" by the epithet he applies. Accordingly, captain Brenton says: "It need scarcely be noticed, that captain Carden has been accused by a very incompetent judge of running down to bring his enemy to action, in a heedless and confident manner. He ran into action as his brother officers had done, and will do again, to fight his enemy and decide the day as quickly as possible: how could captain Carden have closed sooner, &c." "His conduct has therefore been most cruelly misrepresented." "A court-martial acquitted him, his officers and crew, of all blame for the loss of the ship."* If we add a very fine compliment to commodore Decatur, and an account of his death, which took place 10 or 12 years afterwards, we have nearly all that is comprised in captain Brenton's account of Brenton, vol. v. p. 60.

*

1812. the Macedonian's capture. Not a word is there to show on which tack the ships fought; when they began, or when they ended, the action, or how long it continued.

Presi

and

take

packet.

Commodore Rodgers and his two frigates and dent brig-sloop now demand our attention. The Argus Con- parted company on the same day as the Unitedgress States. On the 15th, when near the great bank of Swal- Newfoundland, the President and Congress fell in low with and captured the Jamaica homeward-bound packet Swallow, with a considerable quantity of specie on board. On the 31st, at 9 A. M., latitude 32°, longitude 30°, they fell in with the british 36-gun frigate Galatea, captain Woodley Losack, having Fall in under her charge two South-sea whalers, the Argo and Galatea Berkeley, with which she had sailed from the island and of Ascension on the 3d. At this time both parties whalers were standing on the starboard tack, the Galatea,

with

two

Take

one

whaler,

with the Berkeley in tow, to-windward. Casting off her tow, the Galatea bore down to reconnoitre ; and at 10 A. M., discovering that the two strangers were enemies, she made the signal to her convoy to make the best of their way into port. Having arrived within about four miles upon the weather beam of the President, who with the Congress, in close line astern of her, was still on the starboard tack hastening to get to-windward, the Galatea hauled up on the same tack. The two american frigates now displayed their colours, and the commodore hoisted his broad pendant. Fortunately for the Galatea, captain Losack had heard of the war three days before from the outward-bound indiaman Inglis.

At about noon the President tacked, as if to get into the wake of the Galatea; who began to be apbut suf- prehensive that she should be placed between her frigate two enemies, and was only relieved when she

fer the

to

observed the Congress tack in succession. Shortly escape. afterwards the Galatea herself tacked, and did so again upon the american ships tacking towards her. The Galatea now edged away, to get upon her best

point of sailing; and just at this moment the Argo, 1812. having bore up, in the vain hope of crossing the Dec. hawse of the american frigates and escaping toleeward, was intercepted by them. After the two frigates had lain to a long time, and witnessed, with apparent unconcern, the gradual departure of the Galatea, the President filled and made sail, but in such a manner as clearly indicated, that the commodore did not like to proceed in chase of the sistership of the Belvidera, unaccompanied by his consort. The President set her topmast studding-sails, then her topgallant, and lastly her lower studding-sails, and, as soon as it became dark, took all in and hauled to the wind. The Galatea of course escaped, although, being 93 men short of complement, she could scarcely have resisted an attack by the smaller of the two american frigates.

I

of the

can fri

Smith

Con

british

From the 1st to the 30th of November the Presi- Arrival dent and Congress did not see a sail. They subse- two quently cruised between Bermuda and the Capes of ameri Virginia, and on the 31st of December anchored in gates at the harbour of Boston; having, in the course of their Boston 84 days' unsuccessful cruise, been as far to the eastward as longitude 22° west, and to the southward as latitude 17° north. Soon after the arrival of these Capt. frigates at Boston, 25 of the crew of the Congress of the went on the quarterdeck to deliver themselves up as gress Englishmen. Captain Smith, who though an English- and the man by birth, was an American by education, cunningly answered, "Very well; you shall go in the of his first cartel to Halifax, and be put on board the guardship there." The men replied, "Oh, no, we don't wish to be sent to a man of war, as we are nearly all deserters from the king's service, but we wish for our discharge to go on shore." This the american captain refused, saying, "If you are Englishmen, you shall be sent to an english man of war.' They added: "Rather than be punished for our desertion, we will remain where we are." They consequently all took the oath of allegiance to America,

seamen

crew.

of

1812. except five, who, having never been in a british ship Dec. war, departed with some prisoners which the two frigates had made in their cruise. Had those 20 men succeeded in obtaining their discharge, so as to have gone ashore and got to England in the best manner they could, it was understood that nearly 100 more on board the Congress would have immediately followed their example.

Com

mo

dore

bridge

sails

Boston

Seas.

tution

arrive

Aware of the injury that would accrue to british commerce by the presence of an enemy's squadron Bain- in the South Seas, the american government ordered commodore William Bainbridge, in the absence of from captain Hull, who wished to attend to his private for affairs, to proceed thither with the Constitution, and South the Hornet, captain James Lawrence; calling off St.-Salvador, on the coast of Brazil, for the Essex, captain Porter, who had been directed to join them Consti at that rendezvous. On the 27th of October the and Essex sailed from the Delaware; and on the 30th Hornet the Constitution and Hornet sailed from Boston. off St. Towards the latter end of December commodore Salva- Bainbridge arrived off St.-Salvador; and, not finding and the Essex at the rendezvous, sent the Hornet into the fall in port to make inquiries respecting her. On the 29th Java of December, at 2 P. M., latitude 13° 6' south, lonand her gitude 30° west, while lying to about 10 leagues off chant the coast, waiting to be joined by the Hornet, then seen approaching from the coast, the Constitution descried in the offing the british 38-gun frigate Java, captain Henry Lambert, having in tow the american merchant ship William, which she had recently captured.

dor,

mer

prize.

way in

the

Inef- A little of the previous history of the Java may fective render more intelligible the details that are to follow. which On the 17th of August, in the present year, the late french frigate Renommée,* under the name of Java, had was commissioned at Portsmouth by captain Lambeen bert, in order to carry out to Bombay the newly ned. appointed governor, lieutenant-general Hislop, and

Java

man

* See p. 37.