1814. commodore answered this with, "Make more sail." Feb. Thinking his signal had been misunderstood, Captain Breton repeated it, but merely obtained a repetition of the answer to his first signal.

French

commo

deserts

his

consort

As soon as the Terpsichore had joined the Atalante, which was at about 11 h. 30 m. A. M., the two dore frigates, formed in line ahead, with the Lima ship and merchant brig on the weather bow, seemed resolved to withstand an attack. But the Majestic, by her bold approach, extinguished the last remnant of resolution in the poor commodore; and, at 11 h. 45 m., the Atalante crowded sail nearly before the wind to the south-south-east. In a minute or two the Terpsichore, hoisting french colours, followed her consort. Both french ships carried their larboard studding-sails; and the Atalante, ludicrously enough, still kept the signal flying, "Make more sail." The armed ship and merchant brig, meanwhile, had hauled up to the eastward, also under a press of canvass.

Majes

tic over

tales and

captures

Terpsi

Towards noon the wind freshened, and the Majestic gained upon the Terpsichore. At 2 h. 15 m. P. M. the latter opened a fire from her stern chaseguns. At 3 P. M., being in a good position, going at the rate of 10 knots an hour, the Majestic comchore. menced firing her bow guns with considerable effect, almost every shot striking. After a running fight, which lasted until 4 h. 49 m. P. M., the Terpsichore fired a few of her aftermost guns at the Majestic, who was then within musket-shot distance, and struck her colours, but did not shorten sail. The Majestic, in consequence, fired another shot or two; when, at 4 h. 56 m., the french frigate let all fly and brought to. The wind increasing and the prize being in a state of confusion, captain Hayes felt himself obliged to stay by her, and to suffer the other frigate, with the ship and brig, to escape. The sea, indeed, got up so very fast, that, out of 317 prisoners, 100 only could be removed; and, in effecting that, the jollyboat was stove and two of the prisoners drowned. The previous loss on

board the Terpsichore, out of a crew of 320 men 1814. and boys, amounted to three men killed and six Feb. wounded. The Majestic did not lose a man.

beha

dore.

We much regret our inability to give the name of The the senior officer of these two french frigates, the viour captain of the Atalante. We should like to hold of the up french to contempt the officer who could tamely suffer his com consort to be cannonaded by an enemy's ship for mo one hour and three quarters, when, in a very few minutes, he might have placed himself within a few yards of the attacking force. Not a single shot did he bestow, even in defence of a prize that, besides her valuable cargo, had on board 600000 dollars in specie. Captain François-Désiré Breton deserved a braver commodore; for no one surely will say, that two french 40-gun frigates (without reckoning the 20-gun ship) ought not to have attacked the Majestic? Admitting that the nature of her metal would have justified a retreat, monsieur whoever he was should at least have waited till he had ascertained whether that metal was light or heavy.

trasted

captain

The conduct of the Majestic, in unhesitatingly Conbearing down to the attack, even when the want of with colours and the haze of the weather rendered it that of doubtful whether two of the four strangers were not Hayes. american frigates, places the gallantry of captain Hayes in a conspicuous light. Even had they been the Constitution and Essex, as Captain Hayes, before the Terpsichore showed her colours, (one frigate, from her style of painting, appearing much larger than the other,) conjectured they were, so excellent a crew had the Majestic, and so well skilled were they in fighting the powerful guns which this fine ship mounted, that the result would scarcely have been doubtful: at all events, the captain and his officers, would have considered such a meeting as the most fortunate epocha of their professional lives.

On the 14th of February, off Lorient, the prize to Arrival these french frigates, the San-Juan, was recaptured of Ataby the british 38-gun frigate Menelaus, captain sir Lorient

lante at

1814. Peter Parker, the Rippon 74, captain sir Christopher Cole, in sight. On the same, or the preceding day, the Atalante succeeded in entering the port, towards which the Lima ship was steering when fallen in with, Lorient.

Com

mo

dore

On the 5th of December, 1813, the american frigate President, commodore Rodgers, sailed from Rod- Providence, Rhode-Island, upon her third cruise ; but chased not unseen, for the british frigate Orpheus, captain by two Hugh Pigot, obtained a distant view of her, and frigates hastened with the information to her consort, the

gers

french

His

at New

74-gun ship Albion, captain John Ferris Devonshire. On the 25th, in latitude 19° north, longitude 35° west, the President fell in with, chased, and on making them out to be frigates, and concluding them to be british, ran from, the two french 40-gun frigates Nymphe and Méduse, from Brest upon a cruise since the latter end of November. Had these ships really been british, the President would have had a narrow escape, the headmost frigate having thrown several shot over her. By altering her course in the night, the american frigate at last got clear, and, steering to the south-west, cruised to-windward of Barbadoes until the 16th of January. The commodore then ran off Cayenne; thence off Surinam, Berbice, and Demerara, and between the islands of Tobago and Grenada; thence across the Carribean sea, along the south-east side of Porto-Rico, through the Mona-Passage, and down the north side of Jamaica.

66

Striking soundings off St.-Augustine, the Prearrival sident, on the 11th of February, passed CharlesYork. town; and, on arriving off the Delaware, fell in with, in a fog, "a large vessel, apparently a man of war." This ship disappearing," the President stood on to the northward. "From the Delaware,' says the commodore, in his letter to the secretary of the american navy, "I saw nothing, until I made Sandy-Hook, when I again fell in with another of the enemy's squadrons; and, by some unaccount

able cause, was permitted to enter the bay, although 1814. in the presence of a decidedly superior force, after Feb. having been obliged to remain outside, seven hours and a half, waiting for the tide."

ous ac

rencon

tre

british

The "decidedly superior force" is thus explained A curiin a letter from one of the President's officers: count "After passing the light, saw several sail, one large of his sail to-windward; backed our main topsail, and cleared ship for action. The strange sail came with a down within gun-shot, and hauled her wind on the "74" starboard tack. We continued with our main topsail to the mast three hours, and, seeing no probability of the 74-gun ship's bearing down to engage the President, gave her a shot to-windward, and hoisted our colours; when she bore up for us, reluctantly. When within half gun-shot, backed her main topsail. At this moment, all hands were called to muster aft, and the commodore said a few, but impressive words, though it was unnecessary; for, what other stimulant could true Americans want, than fighting gloriously in the sight of their native shore, where hundreds were assembled to witness the engagement. Wore ship to engage; but, at this moment, the cutter being discovered coming back, backed again to take in the pilot, the british 74 (strange as it must appear) making sail to the southward and eastward. Orders were given to haul aboard the fore and main tacks, to run in; there being then in sight from our deck a frigate and gun-brig. The commander of the 74 had it in his power, for five hours, to bring us at any moment to an engagement, our main topsail to the mast during that time."*

named

as the

"It was," adds the american writer who was so Plantafortunate as to be favoured with a copy of this genet genuine american epistle, " afterwards ascertained, that the ship, which declined the battle with the ship. President, was the Plantagenet 74, captain Lloyd. The reason given by captain Lloyd for avoiding an

* Naval Monument, &c. p. 235.

1814. engagement was, that his crew were in a state of Feb. mutiny." Another american historian says: "Captain Lloyd, after returning to England, accounted for his conduct by alleging a mutiny in his ship, and had several of his sailors tried and executed on that charge."* We are here forcibly reminded of the old Munchausen story, where one man declares that he drove a nail through the moon, and his companion, determined both to back and to outdo him, swears he clinched it.

To captain Lloyd's regret, even had the Constitution been in company with the President, the Plantagenet, (whose crew was one of the finest and best disposed in the service,) at noon on the 18th of February, the day on which this "strange" event happened, was in latitude 25° 27′ north, longitude 43° 45′ west, steering east-south-east, or towards Proved Carlisle bay, Barbadoes. No: it was the british Loire 38-gun frigate Loire, captain Thomas Brown, that frigate. lay off the Hook. At 9 h. 40 m. A. M. the Loire first

to be

Her

badly

man

state.

descried the President in the north-north-west, and, with the wind from the west-south-west, made all sail in chase; but at 10 h. 30 m., making out the President to be what she was, the Loire shortened sail and hauled to the wind. The fact is that, out of her complement of 352 men and boys, the Loire had 75 of her ned best men, including of course several officers and petty officers, absent in prizes; and, of the remaining 277, nearly 20 were boys, and about 40 too sick to attend their quarters: consequently, the effective crew of the Loire did not exceed 220 men. Had the Loire been fully manned, we may readily infer what course captain Brown would have pursued; and, as his complement was ample, and he had been particular in exercising his men at the guns, if the President, contrary to what her movements indicated, had waited to engage, commodore Rodgers, in all probability, would have found the conquest of a british

* Sketches of the War, &c. p. 240.