1813. river. Previously to giving up the chase, the Hornet discovered a brig of war, with english colours flying, at anchor without the bar. This was the brig-sloop Espiègle, of sixteen 32-pounder carronades and two sixes, captain John Taylor, refitting her rigging. Falls in At 3 h. 30 m. P. M., while beating round Caroband bank to get at the Espiègle, the Hornet discovered gages, a sail on her weather quarter bearing down for her. with, en and sinks Peacock. This was the british brig-sloop Peacock, of sixteen 24-pounder carronades and two sixes, captain William Peake; who had only sailed from the Espiègle's anchorage the same day at 10 A. M. At 4 h. 20 m. P. M. the Peacock hoisted her colours; and at 5h. 10 m., having kept close to the wind to weather the Peacock, the Hornet tacked for that purpose and hoisted her colours. At 5 h. 25 m., in passing each other on opposite tacks, within half pistol-shot, the ship and brig exchanged broadsides. After this, the Peacock wore to renew the action on the other tack; when the Hornet, quickly bearing up, received the Peacock's starboard broadside; then, at about 5 h. 35 m., ran the latter close on board on the starhoists board quarter. In this position, the Hornet poured of dis- in so heavy and well-directed a fire, that at 5 h. 50 m., tress. having had her commander killed, and being with Peacock signal six feet water in the hold and cut to pieces in hull and masts, the Peacock hoisted from her fore rigging an ensign, union down, as a signal of distress. Shortly afterwards her mainmast went by the board. Both the Hornet and Peacock were immediately anchored; and every attempt was made to save the both latter, by throwing her guns overboard, by pumping and bailing her, and stopping such shot-holes as board. could be got at; but all would not do, and in a very Sinks, with part of crews on few minutes after she had anchored, the Peacock went down in five and a half fathoms' water, with 13 of her men, four of whom afterwards got to the fore top and escaped, as well as three men belonging to the Hornet. An american lieutenant and midshipman, and the remainder of the Hornet's men on board the Peacock, with difficulty saved themselves by jumping, as the brig went down, into a boat which was 1813. lying on her booms. Four of the Peacock's seamen Feb. had just before taken to her stern boat; in which, notwithstanding it was much damaged by shot, they arrived in safety at Demerara. &c. on Of her 110 men and 12 boys, the Peacock lost, Loss, about the middle of the action, her young and gallant each commander and four seamen killed, her master, one side. midshipman, the carpenter, captain's clerk, and 29 seamen and marines wounded; three of the latter mortally, but the greater part slightly. The principal damages of the Hornet are represented to have been one shot through the foremast, and her bowsprit slightly wounded by another: her loss, out of a crew of 163 men and two boys, the Americans state at one seaman killed, and two slightly wounded; also one mortally, and another severely burnt by the explosion of a cartridge. net's com and The Hornet had three lieutenants, a lieutenant Horof marines, and a great show of full grown young esta midshipmen; and her men were all of the usual class blished of "american" seamen. Her established comple- plement was 170, but she had on board, as was frequently ment the case in american ships of war, three supernume- size. raries. On the other hand, eight men were absent in a prize. This reduced the Hornet's crew to 165; among whom we will suppose, although none were discoverable, there were three boys. The Hornet, it will be observed, mounted one gun more of a side than the Wasp, and the latter was 434 tons: the former, therefore, could not well have been less than 460 or 470 tons. COMPARATIVE FORCE OF THE COMBATANTS. མ ། ་ 10 297 162 460 This is what the Americans, now for the first time pretending to believe, that "24-pounders are as 1813. good as 32s," call an equal match; or rather, as a Feb. brass swivel or two were stuck upon the capstan, or somewhere about the quarterdeck, of the Peacock, marks by way of ornament, these and the boat-carronade action. were reckoned in, and the Hornet was declared to have gained a victory over a superior british force. Re on the cock's tive state. If, in their encounter of british frigates, the Americans were so lucky as to meet them with crippled masts, deteriorated powder, unskilful gunners, or worthless crews, they were not less fortunate in the brigs they fell in with. There was the Frolic, with her main yard gone and topmasts sprung; and here is the Peacock, with 24 instead of 32 pounder carronades, the establishment of her class, and with a crew that, owing to the nature of their employment ever since the brig had been commissioned, in August, 1807, must have almost forgotten that they Pea- belonged to a man of war. The Peacock had long ineffec- been the admiration of her numerous visitors, for the tasteful arrangement of her deck, and had obtained, in consequence, the name of the yacht. The breechings of the carronades were lined with white canvass, the shot-lockers shifted from their usual places, and nothing could exceed in brilliancy the polish upon the traversing bars and elevating screws. If carronades, in general, as mounted in the british service, are liable to turn in-board or upset, what must have been the state of the Peacock's carronades after the first broadside? A single discharge from them, in exercise, would have betrayed the very defective state of their fastenings; and the feelings of Englishmen might then have found some relief in the skill, as well as gallantry, evinced in the Peacock's Excel defence. The firing of the Hornet was admirable, lent and proved that her men, to the credit of captain ry of Lawrence and his officers, had been well taught what use to make of their guns at the same time, it must be admitted, that the Peacock, Frolic, and all the brigs of their class were mere shells; especially, when compared with such a ship as the Hornet, gunne Hornet. whose scantling was nearly as stout as that of a british 12-pounder frigate. 1813. Feb. of capt. state spect ty of The wreck of the Peacock was visible for a long Disaptime after the action, and bore from Point Spirit, proval which is about six miles to the eastward of the Law entrance to Demerara river, north-east by east dis- rence's tant six leagues; making the distance between the ment Espiègle and Peacock, during the action, nearly 24 re miles. This confirms the statement of lieutenant ing the Frederick Augustus Wright, the late senior lieu- vicini tenant of the Peacock, that the Espiègle "was not the Esvisible from the look-outs stationed at the Peacock's piègle. mast-heads for some time previous to the commencement of the action, and gives rather an awkward appearance to captain Lawrence's statement, that the Espiègle lay about six miles in-shore of him, and "could plainly see the whole of the action." If another confirmation were wanted, it is to be found in the log of the Espiègle; by which it appears that, although pieces of wreck passed her on the morning of the 25th, captain Taylor did not know that an action had taken place, until informed, the same afternoon, by the governor of Demerara, of the Peacock's destruction. state of latter. It was fortunate, perhaps, for the character of the Bad british navy, that the disordered state of her rigging disciprevented the Espiègle from sailing out to engage pline of the ship, which, at noon on the day of action, she plainly saw, and continued to see for nearly an hour, until the Hornet tacked and stood to the south-east; as, at the court-martial subsequently held upon him, captain Taylor was found guilty of having " neglected to exercise the ship's company at the great guns." It seemed hard, however, to punish the Espiègle's commander for a piece of neglect, which prevailed over two thirds of the british navy; and to which the admiralty, by their sparing allowance of powder and shot for practice at the guns, were in some degree instrumental. Capt. ton's re ingPea force. 1813. Much good as, we flatter ourselves, we have done to the cause of truth, by analyzing the american Bren- accounts of their naval actions with the English, the inattention of a contemporary may throw some error doubt upon the accuracy of our statement respecting spect the relative force of the parties in the case that has cock's just been detailed. Captain Brenton, with a particularity not common with him, states that "the force of the Peacock was sixteen, 32-pound carronades and two long sixes."* Admitting that neither our former work on the subject published nine years ago, nor the first edition of the present work, and into which, we know, our contemporary has occasionally dipped, was deemed of sufficient authority, what has captain Brenton to say to lieutenant Wright's letter, published in all the London papers? Nay, what objection has he to offer to the official statement of captain Lawrence himself, "She (the Peacock) mounted sixteen 24-pound carronades and two long nines ?" Its pro bable The counter statement of our contemporary, it is effect true, may have little weight in this country; but not in Ame- so in the United States, not so among a people whom rica. we are, and long have been, labouring so hard to convince of the inutility, even in a profit-and-loss point of view, of telling a falsehood. There the high rank and presumed practical experience of the author, and his long list of kings, princes, princesses, dukes, and officers of the navy, for subscribers, will produce their full effect: the Americans will be convinced that, in the hurry of the moment, captain Lawrence made a mistake respecting the force of his prize, By the by, captain Brenton is not the only british officer, who has given the Peacock 32-pounder carronades: a post-captain, who, about 18 months ago, volunteered to correct the mista tements of a very captivating writer, both for and against the Ame * Brenton, vol. v. p. 111. |