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April.

1808. with provisions, part of a convoy lying at Flodstrand, and destined for the relief of Norway. It being an Lieut. important object to attempt getting hold of these Elliott vessels, captain Mason, on the evening of the 25th, with detached three boats from the Daphne and two from detach- the Tartarus, under the direction of lieutenant WilFlod- liam Elliott, first of the former; accompanied by Mr. strand. Hugh Stewart, master, lieutenant Richard Boger of

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Cap..

tures

12 ves

the royal marines, and midshipmen George Beazeley, James Durell, Thomas Elliott, John Moore, and George H. Ayton, belonging to the Daphne, and lieutenants Richard Gittins and William Love Patterson, and midshipmen John Septford, Charles Lutman, and Francis Andrews, belonging to the Tartarus.

The five boats, towed near the shore by the Forward, proceeded to the attack. Lieutenant sels. Elliott and his party found the vessels, consisting of seven brigs, averaging about 160 tons, three galliots of about 110 tons each, and one schooner and one sloop of about 90 tons each, all of which, except two of the brigs, were deeply laden with grain and provisions, moored close under the fort of a castle mounting 10 guns, and made fast to the shore by hawsers; but, the moment the alarm was given by some of the danish boats, the Danes abandoned their vessels and fled. No sooner, however, had the British · set foot in the vessels, than a heavy fire of round, grape, and musketry opened upon them from the castle and from another battery of three guns, as well as from the crews of the vessels assembled on the beach. Many of the shot struck the hulls and went through the sails of the vessels; but the British maintained their footing, and the five boats, along with the 10 laden vessels, cleared the harbour with so slight a loss as five wounded, including lieutenant Elliott and the Daphne's master; one of the seamen "of a punctured wound in the neck by one of the Daphne's crew, having mistaken him for a Dane."

A danish boat, with five men in her, having the temerity to persist in endeavouring to retake one of

the vessels, although repeatedly warned by lieu- 1808. tenant Elliott, the latter was obliged with his people April. to fire in self-defence. The consequence was, that Brave three of the five Danes, whose determined conduct ry of in so laudable a cause deserved a better fate, fell Danes. to rise no more. The enterprise, upon the whole, was skilfully planned and gallantly executed, and did credit to all who were engaged in it.

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On the 29th of April the british 16-gun ship- Falcon sloop Falcon, acting commander lieutenant John stroys Price, being off the island of Endelau, discovered boats nine large boats on the beach. Observing some delau. troops near them, lieutenant Price detached three boats, and succeeded in burning and destroying eight of the danish boats, the soldiers on the island making a poor attempt to defend them. At the island of Thunoe six other small-craft were destroyed by the Falcon's boats without any resistance. On the 3d of May a large man-of-war schooner attempted to escape from Arbures; but, after a long and circuitous chase by the Falcon, she was forced back into her port, where lay three other armed vessels.

boats

two

with

Samsoe

Learning from a market-boat he had taken, that Her the entrance of the harbour of Kyeholm on the сарisland of Samsoe was being strongly fortified; that ture 50 pieces of heavy cannon had already been mounted vessels on the batteries, and that vessels were expected ordfrom Callundborg with mortars for the same pur- nance, pose, lieutenant Price detached the boats of the &c. at Falcon in-shore every night, in the hope to intercept them. On the 7th the boats, which were under the command of Mr. James Ellerton, the master of the Falcon, discovered the two vessels they were seeking at anchor close under the batteries of Lundholm. The vessels were boarded and carried in an instant, under a heavy but ill-directed fire of great guns and musketry. One of the boats, which contained a 13inch mortar with all its equipment, and 400 shells, grounded in the way out; and, as she lay within

1808. range of the batteries, Mr. Ellerton found it necesApril. sary to destroy her. The other vessel, similarly laden, was brought safe out; and the whole service was performed with so trifling a loss to the British as one seaman slightly wounded with a musket-ball in the arm. One Dane, who being the artillery officer placed in charge of the mortars and mortar stores, felt it incumbent upon him to persevere in resisting after all resistance was vain, was unfortunately killed.

Lieut.

carry

patches

selfrom

On the 24th of May, at noon, the british hired cutter Lucas, Swan, of ten 12-pounder carronades, and 40 men and gdes- boys, lieutenant Mark Robinson Lucas, being off the decoys island of Bornholm, on her way to rear-admiral sir a ves- Samuel Hood with despatches from the commander under in chief, observed a cutter-rigged vessel standing the bat- from the land towards her. The Swan immediately of hove to, and hoisted a dutch jack for a pilot. This Bom decoyed the strange cutter so far from the shore that, at 2 P. M., the Swan found herself in a situation to chase with a prospect of overtaking the vessel before she could get back.

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Born

and

her.

En- At 4 P. M. the Swan got within gun-shot; when gages the strange cutter opened her fire. The battery of sinks Bornholm also commenced firing at the Swan, then about a mile from the beach. Attempting now to get a long gun in her stern to bear upon her pursuer, the strange cutter was caught in the wind. This accident enabled the Swan to get within musketshot; and, after an action of 20 minutes, her antagonist blew up and sank. As the Swan now lay nearly becalmed under the land, and as the batteries were still firing, and several boats approaching from the shore, lieutenant Lucas was under the necessity of quitting the wreck without saving the life of a single individual of the crew. The danish cutter appeared to be a vessel of about 120 tons, mounted eight or 10 guns, and was apparently full of men. Neither the Swan nor a man on board of her sustained the slightest injury.

sir

Saumarez on

In transmitting to the secretary of the admiralty 1808. the letter of lieutenant Lucas detailing this action, May. sir James Saumarez begins by stating, that the lieu- opitenant was the bearer of despatches from himself to sir nion of Samuel Hood; and yet the vice-admiral concludes James his letter thus: "Great praise is due to lieutenant Lucas for his spirited attack of a vessel of superior the force under the protection of the enemy's batteries." subject Here then, upon an important point of service, is an opinion at complete variance with that which, it is pretended, would have been expressed by admiral Cornwallis, had the Eolus, when bearing her despatches, such as they were, pursued and engaged the Didon. Much as we have reason to be satisfied, as regards both weight and number, with the private opinions, which the complaints against us, for dragging into the light that hitherto concealed case, have elicited, the few words just quoted from the letter of sir James Saumarez, in reference to an exactly similar case, are all that we are at liberty to publish.

sails

On the 10th of May the british 18-pounder 32- Tartar gun frigate Tartar, captain George Edmund Byron from Bettesworth, sailed from Leith roads, to cruise off Leith, North Bergen and endeavour to intercept a frigate stated to be lying in that harbour. This was the dutch frigate Guelderland, captain Pool, of 36-guns, 12 and 6 pounders; which, with a convoy of three or four ships in charge, had sailed from the Texel on the 8th of March, bound to Batavia, but, having sprung a leak, had since put into Bergen to get it stopped.

off the

way.

On the 12th the Tartar arrived off the coast of Arrives Norway, but, on account of a very thick fog, could coast of not stand in until the 15th. On that day the frigate Normade the islands to the westward of Bergen; and, on hoisting dutch colours, was boarded by some Norwegians, who came off in two boats; and, informed the officers, that the Guelderland, with her small

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May.

1808. convoy, had sailed for the East Indies eight days before. By the aid of these men as pilots, the Tartar steered through a most intricate and rocky passage, until she arrived within five or six miles of Bergen, when the Norwegians refused to take the ship any further.

Capt.
Bettes-

in his

to

Bergen

It being captain Bettesworth's intention, now that worth the frigate had escaped him, to proceed off the town, goes and bring away the shipping in the harbour, among boats which were three privateers, the Tartar anchored in the straits; and in the evening captain Bettesworth, accompanied by his first and third lieutenants, Herbert Caiger and Thomas Sykes, and Mr. John Jervis White the master, went up to the town in the frigate's boats. An indiaman lying under the battery would now probably have been cut out, had not the guard-boat, which was without her, fallen in with and fired upon the launch commanded by lieutenant Sykes. The launch's crew returned the fire, and, after wounding all the men in the guard-boat severely, took her. This proceeding alarmed the town's people, who, sounding their bugles, flew to the batteries. board. Finding that the shipping was protected by a chain, captain Bettesworth, with all his boats except the launch left to watch the enemy's motions, pulled back to the frigate.

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on

Tartar at

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to

the

The Tartar now got under way, with the intention of cannonading the town and batteries. Owing, however, to the intricacy of the passage and the reach lightness of the wind, the ship, although with a town. strong current in her favour, had only been able to reach half the distance, when, lying quite becalmed in Is at- a narrow rocky strait without any anchorage, she was tacked attacked by an armed schooner and five gun-boats, boats. each of the latter carrying two long 24-pounders, along with a detachment of troops. Having taken their station under a rocky point within half gun-shot of the Tartar, who by the set of the current kept gradually nearing them, these vessels maintained, with

by gun

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