accomplish this service. When I detail my good fortune, your Excellency will be astonished. ISAAC BROCK, Major General. To His Ex. Lieut. Gen. Sir GEO. PREVOST. CAPTURE OF THE SLOOP OF WAR ALERT. Copy of a letter received at the Navy Department, from Captain Porter, of the United States Frigate Essex, of 32 Guns. At Sea, August 17, 1812. SIR, I have the honor to inform you that upon the 13th, his B. M. sloop of war Alert, Captain T. L. P. Laugharne, ran down on our weather quarter, gave three cheers and commenced an action, (if so trifling a skirmish deserves the name,) and after eight minutes' firing, struck her colours with 7 feet water in her hold, much cut to pieces, and 3 men wounded. I need not inform that the officers and crew of the Essex, behaved as I trust all Americans will in such cases, and it is only to be 'regretted that so much zeal and activity could not have been displayed on an occasion that would have done them more honor; the Essex has not received the slightest injury. The Alert was out for the purpose of taking the Hornet! I have the honor, &c, D. PORTER. CAPTURE OF THE GUERRIER. United States Frigate Constitution. off Boston Light, August 30th. 1812. SIR, I have the honor to inform you, that on the 19th inst. at 2 P. M. being in lat. 41, 42, and long. 55, 48, with the Constitution under my command, a sail was discovered from the mast head, bearing E. by S. or S. S. E. but at such a distance we could not tell what she was; all sail was made in chase, and soon found we come up with her; at 3, P. M. could plainly see that she was a ship, on the starboard tack, under easy sail, close on a wind; at half past 3, P. M. made her out to be a frigate; continued the chase until we were within about 3 miles, when I ordered the light sails taken in, the courses hauled up, and the ship cleared for action; at this time the chase had backed her main-top-sail waiting for us to come down. As soon as the Constitution was ready for action, I bore down with an intention to bring her to close action immediately; but on our coming within gun shot, she gave us a broadside and filled away, and wore, and giving us a broadside on the other tack, but without effect; her shot fell short. She continued wearing and manoeuvring for about three quarters of an hour, to get a raking position, but finding she could not, she bore up and ran under her topsails and jib with the wind on the quarter. I immediately made sail to bring the ship up with her, and at 5 minutes before 6 P. M. being along side within half pistol shot, we commenced a heavy fire from all our guns, double shotted with round and grape, and so well di rected were they, and so warmly kept up, that in 15 minutes her mizen mast went by the board, and her main yard in the slings, and the hull rigging and sails very much torn to pieces; the fire was kept up with equal warmth for 15 minutes longer, when her main mast went, taking with it every spar except the bowsprit; on seeing this we ceased firing, so that in thirty minutes, after we got fairly along side the enemy, she surrendered, and had not a spar standing, and her hull below and above water so shattered, that a few more broadsides must have carried her down. After informing you that so fine a ship as the Guerrier, commanded by an able and experienced officer, had been totally dismasted, and otherwise cut to pieces, so as to make her not worth towing into port, in the short space of thirty minutes, you can have no doubt of the gallantry and good conduct of the officers and ship's company, I have the honor to command; it only remains therefore for me to assure you that they all fought with great bravery; and it gives me great plea sure to say, that from the smallest boy in the ship, to the oldest seaman, not a look of fear was seen; they all went into action giving three cheers, and requesting to be laid close along side the enemy. Enclosed I have the honor to send you a list of the killed and wounded on board the Constitution, and a report of the damages she has sustained, also a list of killed and wounded on board the enemy, with his quarter bill. I have the honor, &c. ISAAC HULL. Return of killed and wounded on board the United States Frigate Constitution, Isaac Hull, Esq. Captain, in the action with his B. M. S. Guerrier, Jas. R. Dacres, Esq. Capt. on the 19th Aug, 1812. Killed-Lieut. W. S. Brush, and 6 seamen, Total killed and wounded, 7 17 14 List of the killed and wounded on board the Guerrier. Note.-The following Challenge was written on the face of the John Adam's register, a few days previous to the above action ;"The Guerrier, 44 guns, 300 men, will be happy to see the President, Commodore Rodgers, outside the Hook, or any other large Frigate, to have a sociable tete-a-tete.” 麻米粉 ATTACK ON FORT HARRISON. Letter from Z. Taylor, commanding Fort Harrison, (In. Territory,) to General Harrison. Dated, Fort Harrison September 10th, 1812. SIR, On Thursday evening, the 3d inst. after retreat beating, four guns were heard to fire in the direction where two young men (citizens who resided here,) were making hay, about 400 yards distant from the fort; I was immediately impressed with an idea that they were killed by the Indians, as the Miamies or Waes had that day informed me, that the Prophet's party would soon be here, for the purpose of commencing hostilities; and that they had been directed to leave this place, which they were about to do. I did not think it prudent to send out at that late hour of the night to see what become of them; and their not coming in, convinced me that I was right in my conjecture; I waited until 8 o'clock next morning, when I sent out a corporal, with a small party, to find them, if it could be done without running too much risque of being drawn into an ambuscade; he soon sent back to inform me that he had found them both killed, and wished to know my further orders; I sent the cart and oxen, and had them brought in and buried; they had been each shot with two balls, scalped and cut in the most shocking manner. Late in the evening of the 4th inst. Joseph Lenar, and between 30 and 40 Indians, arrived from Prophet's town with a white flag, among whom were about 10 women, and the men were composed of chiefs of the different tribes that compose the Prophet's party. A Shawone man, that spoke good English, informed me that old Lenar intended to speak to me next morning, and try to get something to eat ; at retreat beating, I examined the men's arms, and found them all in good order, and completed their cartridges to 16 rounds per man-as I had not been able to mount a guard of more than 6 privates and two non-commissioned officers, for some time past, and sometimes part of them every other day, from the unhealthiness of the company, I had not conceived my force adequate to the defence of this post, should it be vigourously attacked, for some time past; as I had just recovered from a very severe attack of the fever, I was not able to be up much through the night-after taptoo, I cautioned the guards to be vigilant, and ordered one of the noncommissioned officers, (as the centinels could not see every part of the garrison,) to walk around the inside, during the whole night, to prevent the Indians taking any advantage of us, provided they had any intention of attacking us. About eleven o'clock I was awakened by the firing of the centinels; I sprang up, ran out and ordered the men to their posts, when my orderly serjeant, who had charge of the block-house, called out that the Indians had fired the lower block-house, which contained the property of the contractor, which was deposited in the lower part, the upper having been assigned to a corporal and 10 privates, as an alarm post; the guns had began to fire pretty smartly from both sides-I directed the buckets to be got ready, and water brought from the well, and the fire extinguished immediately, as it was hardly perceivable at that time; but from debility, or some other cause, the men were very slow in executing my orders, the word appeared to throw them all into confusion; and by the time they had got the water, and broke open the door, the fire had communicated to a quantity of whiskey; and in spite of every exertion we could make use of, in less than a moment, it ascended to the roof, and baffled every effort we could make to extinguish it. As that block-house adjoined the barracks that make part of the fortifications, most of the men immediately gave themselves up for lost, and I had the greatest difficulty in getting any of my orders executed, and sir, from the raging of the fire, the yelling and howling of several hundred Indians, the cries of 9 women and children who had taken shelter in the fort, and the desponding of so many of the men, (which was worse than all,) I can assure you, that my feelings were unpleasant, indeed there were not more than 10 or 15 men able to do a great deal, the others being either sick or convalescent, and to add to our misfortunes, two of the stoutest men of the fort, and that I had every confidence in, jumped the picket and left us. But my presence of mind did not for a moment forsake me; I saw by throwing off part of the roof that joined the block-house that was on fire, and keeping the end perfectly wet, the whole row of buildings might be saved, and leave only an entrance of 18 or 20 feet for the Indians to enter after the house was consumed; and that |