MONTHLY REGISTER

OF

Naval Events.

HISTORICAL MEMOIR.

Extract from the Letter of a Correspondent, giving a more correct and full Account of the Attack on the Isle of Aix than bas yet appeared.

"At Sea, off the Isle of Oleron, July 25.

ON Monday evening, July the first, Rear Admiral Pole, in the Royal George, with three bombs, their tenders, and several small cutters, joined the squadron under Admiral Ecrkeley, off the isle of Rhe. An attack having been ordered by the Admiralty to be made on the Spanish squadron in Basque Roads, under the protection of the Isle of Aix, Admiral Pole, on Tuesday morn ing, July 2d, having sent the bombs, &c. ahead, under the orders of Captain Keats, of the Boadicea, with the St. Fiorenzo and Urania frigates, bore up with his squadron, consisting of the Royal George, Sans Pareil, Venerable, Renown, and Robust, for the Pertuis d'Antioche. The morning was thick and rainy, so that it was not till the squadron was nearly abreast of the Tour de Chasiron, on the northern point of the Isle of Oleron, that the enemy discovered it. At eleven o'clock, the squadron came to anchor in Basque Roads, in a line of battle; at which time the weather cleared up, and shewed us the enemy between four and five miles off, moored in a line ahead, extending from the Isle of Aix towards a shoal that runs nearly parallel to the Isle of Oleron, between which and the island was stationed a floating mortar battery. The Spanish squadron consisted of the San Real Carlos, 100 guns, the admiral's ship; four two deckers, one of which was of 80 guns, and a frigate, which was the nearest to the Isle of Aix, and the admiral the farthest.

"The bombs, and frigates, proceeding under the orders of Captain Keates, were judiciously anchored by that able officer within reach of the shells from the floating battery; and shortly afterwards, by the assistance of springs on their cables, opened their fire on the Spanish admiral, who finding his shot fall short of our ships, veered away his cable, and increased his distance so much, as to render all the efforts made, during three hours, to set him on fire with carcasses, ineffectual. The wind about this time dying away, and the enemy having brought forward a great many gun-boats, the admiral thought it expedient to recal our force :-a distant fire was kept up by the gun-boats until six o'clock; a full hour longer than it was possible to do us any injury. In the evening the squadron got under weigh, and stood out to sea, through the Pertuis d'Antioche, no damage having been done by the operations of the day, as it is believed, on either side. No question, Mr. Editor, can remain on the feasibility of more being done; our force was sufficient to have reduced the Spanish squadron; but even in that event it would not have been practicable to have brought them away, or even all our own ships, without reducing the Isle of Aix, which is as strong as the best engineer the French had in 1782, could render it. The interior work, or citadel, is elevated considerably, and has many guns mounted on the new manner, en barbet, by which they are worked without danger, as was shewn off Corsica; where one gun only disabled two of our line of battle ships. Had this battery been in the same state as when Lord Howe attacked it in 1757, no difficulty could have occurred. This the Admiralty seem to have been well aware of, as the admiral, by his orders, was only permitted to anchor in Basque Roads.

Fire ves els might probably have been employed with success, had they been sent in without the squadron."

“Extract of a Letter from an Officer on board bis Majesty's Ship Argo, dated Port Mabon, May 29, 1799.

"We are just returned from Algiers, where we have been to negociate with the Dey for a supply of fresh provisions for the army and navy at Minorca Capt. Bowen was so much in favour with the Dey and Regency there, that he procured the freedom of six poor fellows, British subjects, that had been confined in slavery upwards of 14 years; they are now on board, enjoying the blessings of true liberty, serving their king and country, and have requested me to get their names inserted in some of the English newspapers, that their friends, if any living, may know they are now happy, and comfortably situated. Before we came away, the Dey, as a further mark of his friendship for Capt. Bowen, requested him to accept of a rich Turkish sabre, and two fine Arabian horses:

Letters from Stockholm, dated July 12, state as follows: On account of the depredations which Swedish merchant ships have, contrary to the law of nations, suffered, and with which they are still threatened, the King of Sweden has determined to take such measures as shall in future protect the trading vessels of his kingdom, in the North Sea; and he has accordingly resolved to fit our convoys that shall accompany those vessels as far as Cape Finisterre. These convoys will begin to sail in August from Marstrand. The king has, in conjunction with the Court of Denmark, adopted measures by which the North Seas will in a short time be freed from privateers of every kind. The ministers of the respective Courts have been ordered to notify this circumstance to the Court of Great Britain, and to the French and Batavian Republics.

On the royal review of the Yeomanry Cavalry, and Volunteer Infantry of the county of Kent, at the seat of Lord Romney, on the first of August, a transparency was exhibited at the Mitre Coffee House, Maidstone, opposite the Town Hall, representing The Goddess of the Sea, riding upon the waves, and pointing to her fleets at a distance under sail: her left hand supported a shield with this inscription:

And long may our Navy, Old England protect,
Its laws, constitution, and king.

Admiral Sir Alan Gardner, in consequence of ill health, which has since considerably increased, struck his flag on the first of August, and went to Bath. The anxiety of mind which this gallant officer experienced from the precarious state of some of Lord Nelson's prizes, particularly that of the Conquerant, Captain George Clarke, during their passage from Lisbon, has been assigned as the cause of Admiral Gardner's indisposition,

August 8. Sir Edward Berry paid a visit to Guildhall, where he was met by several of the Aldermen and the West India Dock Committee, and conducted into the great Council Chamber.-Mr. Chamberlain of London immediately waited upon him with the Vote of the Common Council, emblazoned in gold letters; and having made a very appropriate speech, upon the great services which he had performed for his king and country, at the glorious battle of the Nile, said that the City of London, desirous of celebrating the magnanimity of one of its citizens, had directed him, in his official capacity, to desire his ae ceptance of the freedom in a box of gold.

Sir Edward received the present with great politeness, and then proceeded to the office of the Chamberlain to have his name enrolled.

The following is a list of the FRENCH and SPANISH Fleets which sailed from Cadiz on the 21st ult. for Brest, and entered that harbour on the 13th.

Five frigates, 3 corvettes, 1 brig, 2 luggers, 2 schooners, and 1 cutter.

The following Proclamations were published by the French and Spanish Admirals, previous to their leaving Carthagena:

"LIBERTY. EQUALITY.

"In the name of the French Republic.

"In the Road of Carthagena, on board the Admiral's Ship the Ocean, dated the 24th June, in the 7th Year of the French Republic, Eustace Bruix commanding the French Naval Forces.

"Frenchmen and Republicans,

"At last, united with our faithful Allies, we approach a period in which we shall punish England, and relieve all Europe from its tyranny. Although I have no doubt, my brave friends, of the sentiments which you have professed, I feel myself bound to call upon you to give proofs of their sincerity by every means in your power. Recollect that it is for the interest of your country, and for your own honour, to give to a nation whom we esteem the highest opinion of us. That word alone is sufficient for Frenchmen. Do not, above all, forget that you are come among a just and generous people, and our most faithful ally-respect their customs, their usages, their religion; in a word let every thing be sacred to us. Think the least departure from that which I am now prescribing to you will be a crime in the eyes of the Republic, and it will be my duty to punish it. But, on the contrary, I am convinced that you will give me an opportunity of praising your conduct, and that will be the greatest recompence I can receive.

SPANISH PROCLAMATION.

"E. BRUIX."

A great interest commands the junction of the naval forces of the King, my master, with those of the French Republic. This natural, this happy alliance, is the only curb which can restrain the plan which England has always formed of tyrannizing over the seas. There is no reason to apprehend that

our fleets will not shew themselves in a manner worthy of the two Great Nations. The principle of a good alliance is fraternity and reciprocal esteem, and they are implanted in the hearts of Spaniards and Frenchmen, as has appeared on many occasions, particularly in the war from 1779 to 1783. It cannot, therefore, be necessary for me to recommend good order to you. Nevertheless, for the purpose of greater security, I exhort all the crews to preserve discipline. My confidence in the worthy admirals who command under me, in the captains and officers, and in the discipline and valour of the soldiers and sailors, promises me the most happy success to the two fleets. (Signed) "MASSAREDQ."

"On board the Conception, in Carthagena Roads,

June 24, 1799."

The Court of Spain, by permitting its Navy to enter the port of Brest, may bid adieu to having any further command over it during the present war.Nothing can be a more convincing proof of the weakness of the court, and the perfidy of its ministers, than this base surrender of its power to an ally who is more feared than trusted.

Journal of the Proceedings of bis Majesty's Fleet under the Command of Lord Keith, in Pursuit of the Combined Fleets.

"On the 23d of June Earl St. Vincent found himself obliged, from his bad state of health, to resign the command of the fleet to Lord Keith.

"On the 26th of July the fleet anchored in Tetuan Bay, the wind being W. S. W. to W. N. W. With the first spirt of wind from the eastward we weighed, but on the 28th and 29th were becalmed at the back of Gibraltar. The Queen Charlotte, by much exertion of towing, and by some favourable flaws of wind, got into Gibraltar.

"In the morning of the 30th, at two o'clock, the wind came to the eastward. The Queen Charlotte instantly weighed, and the whole fleet passed the Gut in the course of the day.

"We heard nothing of the combined fleets until we came off Cape Finisterre, where, on the 8th of August, we boarded a Danish brig, who informed us she had passed through the combined fleet on the 6th.

"On the 9th we were joined by his Majesty's ship Stag, who had seen them nearly about Cape Ortegal, on Sunday the 4th, standing with a fresh breeze to the N. E. This information banished every idea of our being able to overtake the enemy.

"On the roth, we sent off dispatches to England.

On the 12th, we sounded in 10 fathoms, Ushant bearing at noon, E. by N. eighty miles. "On the 14th Sir Edward Pellew was detached to look into Brest. "When i ord St. Vincent quitted the fleet, and returned to Mahon, leaving Lord Keith off Rosia Bay, the Spanish fleet were in Carthagena. Some thousands of troops were assembled at Majorca, and we every day expected to hear that Minorca was attacked. Lord St. Vincent immediately dispatched three different vessels to Lord Keith, and all three joined him off Cape Dell Mell, within six hours of each other. That same morning Lord Keith had received good intelligence respecting the French fleet being at anchor in Vado Bay, from a brig that had been in the Bay the preceding evening; but as Minorca was threatened, his Lordship was obliged to bear up, and stand for Mahon. The French finding the coast thus cleared for them, ran for Carthagena, and joined the Spaniards. When Minorca was judged to be safe, we stood away for the eastward again, not knowing of the junction formed in Carthagena, and meanwhile the Combined Fleets made a run through the

Gut.

"No human foresight could prevent this unfortunate junction. The enemy had infinitely the advantage of us in point of intelligence. So expeditious and correct indeed was their informatson, that their fleet knew exactly where we were, if any of our ships ever appeared off their coast, by means of their telegraphs, and we had only the observations made by our own ships to trust to." Lord Keith, after every endeavour of six weeks to fall in with the enemy, which was attended with much fatigue and anxiety of mind to the whole fleet,

had the mortification to reach Erest but a few hours after the entry of the enemy into that harbour. His Lordship afterwards sailed for Torbay, and anchored on the 17th with the following ships:

Queen Charlotte

Prince

Dragon

Montague

Repulse
Formidable

Terrible

Marlborough

Defiance

Bellona

Gibraltar

London

Neptune

Warrior

Superb

Ville de Paris

Impetueux
Glory

Pompée

Namur

Captain
'Canada

Edgar
Barfleur

St. George

And several frigates.

EARL ST. VINCENT.

Aug. 18. This gallant Officer landed in the Dock yard at Portsmouth this day, and went to the house of Sir Peter Parker, where his Lordship was waited on by the mayor, aldermen, and burgesses. On this occasion he was addressed by the Reverend George Cuthbert, our very worthy chief magistrate, as follows:

MY LORD,

Impressed with the most grateful sense of the high services ren dered to our country by the glorious victory obtained by the fleet under your command over that of the enemy, on the 14th of February 1797, the mayor and aldermen of this borough elected and appointed your Lordship a burgess of this ancient corporation. They now take the earliest opportunity to shew their high esteem and regard, by congratu lating you on your safe return, sincerely wishing your lordship may be speedily restored to health, that your country may again be benefited by fresh victories obtained by the fleet entrusted to your Lordship's command."

To which his Lordship was pleased to return the following answer:

I am very happy on this occasion to repeat the sense I entertain of the great honour done me by the mayor and aldermen of the borough of Portsmouth, in electing and appointing me a burgess of their ancient Corporation, and in assuring them, that I shall be ready on all occasions to promote the interest of the borough. I return you many thanks for your congratulations on my return to England, and kind wishes for the speedy recovery of my health, which, if it please God to restore, the remainder of my life will be devoted to the service of my King and Country."

Earl St. Vincent has now been absent six years, and in that period no commander ever acquired more naval glory.

We understand that the petition of the Russia merchants in England, for leave to import the produce of Russia into this kingdom in neutral vessels, has been granted for a limited time. The reason for this application is said to be, that Captain Popham was gone to Russia, with powers to engage all the British ships he possibly could, for the purpose of bringing from Russia the troops in the pay of England; it was therefore thought proper to grant the petition, fearing there might not be English ships sufficient in the Baltic to bring the hemp, flax, deals, &c. that is requisite for the consumption of this country.

An experiment has lately been made on board the Vengeance, lying at Spithead, of an invention for the filtration of water. The machiné occupies no greater space than a common filtering stone, and gave a gallon of pure water in two minutes, or 720 gallons in 24 hours,