vessels were destroyed, the British retired in some disorder, thereby encouraging the French soldiers, who had just received a reinforcement from St.-Félice, to advance upon them. Instead of directing their retreat upon the beach, where the Sparrowhawk and Minstrel lay ready to cover their embarkation, the "brave but thoughtless and unfortunate men" passed through the town down to the mole. From the walls and houses, the French opened a severe fire upon the boats crowded with men, and in a dastardly manner fired upon and killed several who had been left on the mole and were endeavouring to swim to the boats.

The result was that, out of the 600 British officers and men who had landed, two officers, 19 seamen, and 12 marines were killed, 15 officers, 42 seamen, and 32 marines wounded, and two officers, 41 seamen, and 43 marines made prisoners; total, 33 killed, 89 wounded, and 87 (including one seaman that deserted) missing; comprising a full third of the party. Among the prisoners was Captain Fane himself, who, with characteristic firmness, remained on the mole to the last in the performance of his arduous duty. Because this was a defeat, we presume, not an officer is named in the official letter, or even in the returns of loss, except the commanding officer of the landed party, and Lieutenant George Godfrey, first of the Kent.

On the 6th of April, while the British cutter Sylvia, of ten 18-pounder carronades and 44, out of a complement of 50 men and boys, commanded by Lieutenant Augustus Vere Drury, was proceeding through the Straits of Sunda, in the Indian ocean, an armed prow, of one long 6-pounder and 30 men, deceived by the cutter's insignificant appearance, swept out from under the isle of Cracatoa to attack her. The Sylvia soon drove on shore, captured, and destroyed the prow; bringing away her 6-pounder. On the 7th an armed prow, of large dimensions, carrying two 6pounders, with 30 men, approached so close to the Sylvia, that, judging it necessary to deviate from his course and destroy this pirate also, Lieutenant Drury detached a boat, with an officer and a party of volunteers, to harass the prow. The latter now endeavoured to escape, but was prevented by the brisk fire of musketry kept up by the boat; which, after killing two and wounding one of the pirates, took possession of their vessel without the slightest loss.

On the 11th a large lugger-prow, armed with three 18pounders and 72 men, weighed from under Cracatoa, and indicated an intention of trying if she could succeed in capturing the British cutter, now at an anchor. Lieutenant Drury placed on board the prize Sub-lieutenant John Christian Chesnaye and a party of volunteers, and sent her to attack the lugger. Mr. Chesnaye resolutely met the pirate, and compelled him to seek safety in flight. The intervention of a small island preventing the cutter from seeing the further progress of the action, Lieutenant Drury got under way with the Sylvia, and stood out to support his

detached party. These were on the point of boarding the pirate, when the Sylvia arrived within gun-shot. The obstinate refusal of the enemy to yield compelled the cutter to open her fire; and, from its effects, the lugger presently sank with the greater part of her crew. In this last affair, the Sylvia had one man killed and seven men wounded.

On the 26th, at daybreak, while the Sylvia was cruising off Middleburgh island upon the coast of Java, three armed brigs, accompanied by two lug-sail vessels, were discerned in the vicinity of Edam island, hastening towards Batavia. The Sylvia instantly proceeded to attack the sternmost brig: and, after a sharp contest of 20 minutes' duration, captured the Dutch national brig Echo, of eight 6-pounders and 46 men, commanded. by Lieutenant Christian Thaarup. This gallant little affair cost the Sylvia four men killed and three wounded, and the Dutch brig three killed and seven wounded.

The instant that a separation could be effected between the Sylvia and her prize, pursuit was given to the two headmost brigs. But these, aided by a favourable breeze and an intervening shoal, effected their escape to the batteries of Onroos; leaving the Sylvia to take possession of the two lug-rigged transports, mounting two long 9-pounders and defended by 60 men each, out 12 days from Sourabaya, laden with artillery equipage and valuable European goods. Considering that the Sylvia's originally small crew had been reduced by 12 men disabled by previous wounds, the whole of this business reflects the greatest credit upon Lieutenant Drury, Sub-lieutenant Chesnaye, and the few remaining officers and men on board the cutter.

We

The Sylvia was one of the 12 cutters built at Bermuda in the year 1805, of the pencil cedar, and measured only 111 tons. little expected, certainly, to find one of this small class of vessel cruising and distinguishing herself in the seas of Java. On the 2d of May Lieutenant Drury, as he well deserved, was promoted to the rank of commander; but Sub-lieutenant Chesnaye, although spoken off in the highest terms by his commander, does not appear to have been rewarded with the rank of a full lieutenant until nearly three years afterwards.

We last year left at Port Louis, in the Isle of France, the French 40-gun frigates Vénus, Commodore Jacques-Felix-Emmanuel Hamelin, Bellone, Captain_Victor-Guy Duperré, and Manche, Captain François-Désiré Breton.* The late Portuguese frigate Minerva, or Minerve as now named, had since been fitted out, and the command of her given to the Bellone's late first-lieutenant, Pierre-François-Henry-Etienne Bouvet; a very active young officer, and who on the 1st of February was promoted to the rank of capitaine de frégate. There could have been no difficulty in manning this fine frigate, as the Canonnière and

* See p. 293.

Sémillante, on their departure for Europe as merchant ships, had left behind the principal part of their crews. There was also, we regret to have to state, another source whence the French at the Isle of France derived a supply both of sailors and soldiers, but chiefly the latter. When any prisoners were brought in, every art was made use of to inveigle them into the French service. As the bulk of the prisoners consisted of detachments of soldiers taken out of the Indiamen, and as the majority of those were Irish Catholics, an assurance that France had not yet abandoned her intention of conquering Ireland and restoring the Catholic religion, was generally found a successful expedient; especially when coupled with threats of the most rigid confinement in case of refusal. Other deserters, no doubt, had not the excuse of the poor Hibernian to make. Nor were soldiers on this occasion the only traitors: between 20 and 30 of the late Laurel's crew entered with the enemy whom they had so resolutely fought.

On the 14th of March, taking advantage of the absence of the British blockading squadron from the station on account of the hurricane season, Captain Duperré, with the Bellone and Minerve frigates, and the recaptured ship-corvette Victor, now commanded by Captain Nicolas Morice, the same officer, with a step in his rank, who had commanded her when captured as the Jéna by the British frigate Modeste in October, 1808, sailed from Port-Louis on a cruise in the bay of Bengal. On the 1st of June, having taken and sent in two prizes, and there being no prospect of making any more this season, Commodore Duperré steered for the bay of St.-Augustin, island of Madagascar, to repair his ships and refresh his crews. Having accomplished this object, the French commodore, in the latter end of the month, again sailed, and stood leisurely up the Mosambique channel, until he came in sight of the island of Mayotta, when an occurrence happened, which proved that his cruising ground had been well chosen.

On the 3d of July, at 6 A. M., or just as the day dawned, the island of Mayotta bearing east half north distant about 12 leagues, the three British outward-bound Indiamen Ceylon, Captain and senior officer Henry Meriton, Windham, Captain John Stewart, and Astell, Captain Robert Hay, steering their course to the northward, with a fresh breeze from the southsouth-east, discovered about nine miles off in the north-northeast, under a press of sail, close hauled on the larboard tack, the Bellone, Minerve, and Victor. At 6 h. 30 m. A. M., agreeably to a signal from the commodore, the three Indiamen hauled their wind upon the larboard tack, under double-reefed topsails, courses, jib, and spanker. At 7 h. 30 m. A. M. the Ceylon made the private signal to the three strangers, then passing on the opposite tack at the distance of about four miles. No answer being returned, the British ships cleared for action. At 9 h. 30 m. A. M., in consequence of the Astell making a signal that she was over pressed, the Ceylon and Windham shortened sail.

Captain Meriton now telegraphed his two companions: "As we cannot get away, I think we had better go under easy sail, and bring them to action before dark." The Astell answered, "Certainly." The Windham replied: "If we make all sail and get into smooth water under the land, we can engage to more advantage." At 10 A. M. the three Indiamen, on account of the increasing power of the breeze, hove to and took in the third reef of their topsails; and even then the ships lay over so much, and the sea ran so high, that they could not keep open their lowerdeck lee ports. At 11 h. 30 m. the Minerve tacked in the wake of the Indiamen and at the distance of about six miles from them; and shortly afterwards the Bellone, about four miles upon the lee beam, and the Victor about the same distance upon the weather quarter, also tacked. Perceiving the Minerve coming up astern very fast, Captain Meriton telegraphed; "Form the line abreast, to bear on ships together, Ceylon in the centre." Accordingly the Windham, Ceylon, and Astell, formed a close line in the order named, and awaited the coming up of the enemy; the two nearest ships of which, the Victor and Minerve, were fast approaching on the weather or starboard quarter.

At 2 h. 15 m. P. M. the Minerve, having arrived abreast of the British centre, and as well as the Victor who was ahead of her, hoisted French colours, fired one shot at the Windham, and then her whole larboard broadside into the Ceylon. The latter was at this time so close astern of her consort as almost to touch her; but the Astell was considerably to leeward and astern of the Ceylon. The corvette opening her fire, the action became general between the Minerve and Victor on one side, and the Windham, Ceylon, and Astell on the other. The Ceylon, however, from her situation directly a-beam of the frigate, certainly bore the brunt of the engagement. In a little while, finding the fire of the British too heavy for her, the corvette bore up and passed to leeward of the Astell. At 3 h. 40 m. P. M. Captain Hay of the latter ship was severely wounded, and the command of the Astell devolved upon Mr. William Hawkey, the chief

mate.

At 4 P. M. the Minerve shot ahead, and then bore down as if with the intention of boarding the Windham. This being a mode of attack to which the Indiamen, from the number of troops they had on board, were not much averse, the Windham, made sail for the purpose of striking the French frigate on the larboard quarter, and the Ceylon and Astell closed their consort to co-operate with her in the manoeuvre. But the Windham, having had her sails and rigging greatly damaged, did not possess way enough to accomplish the object, and the Minerve passed athwart her hawse at the distance of only a few yards. In the mean time all three Indiamen, by means of their troops, had maintained upon the Minerve an incessant and well-directed fire of musketry. Just as the latter got out of gun-shot, the

Astell hauled sharp up, and, passing astern of the Windham, became the headmost and weathermost ship. At 4 h. 30 m. P. M., having passed obliquely down the British line, the Minerve wore, with the intention of cutting off the Windham, who was now the sternmost and leewardmost ship. No sooner, however, had the Minerve hauled to the wind on the starboard tack, than her main and mizen topmasts came down close to the caps.

A respite was thus afforded to the three Indiamen; but it was not of long duration, for at 6 P. M. the Bellone, followed by the Victor, commenced a heavy and destructive fire on the Windham. Passing on, the Bellone took up a position on the lee beam of the Ceylon, as the commodore's ship; directing her foremost guns at the Astell. Meanwhile the Victor kept up a smart, but, on account of the distance she maintained, not very effective, fire on the lee quarter of the Windham. At 6 h. 30 m. P. M., while endeavouring to close the French frigate, in order to give full effect to his musketry, Captain Meriton received a severe grapeshot wound in the neck; and the command of the Ceylon, in consequence, devolved upon the chief mate, Mr. Thomas Widlock Oldham; who, in a minute or two afterwards, being himself severely wounded, was obliged to leave the deck in charge of the second mate, Mr. Tristram Fenning. At about 7 P. M., having had her masts, rigging, and sails badly wounded and cut, all her upperdeck, and five of her lowerdeck, guns disabled, and her hull so badly struck, that she made three feet water an hour; and having also sustained a serious loss in killed and wounded, the Ceylon bore up and ceased firing, passing astern of the Bellone; who was still engaging the Windham, at this time close abreast of the Astell to leeward, and consequently sheltering the latter from the fire of the frigate. The Windham, it appears, hailed the Astell repeatedly, proposing a joint attempt to board the Bellone; but, not understanding, we suppose, the purport of the hail, the Astell put out her lights and made sail, and received, just as she had passed clear of her consort, a heavy parting fire from the frigate.

At about 7 h. 20 m. P. M., being in the unmanageable state already described, the Ceylon hauled down her colours, and was. taken possession of by a boat from the Minerve, then coming up on her starboard quarter. Shortly afterwards, in passing the Windham, the Ceylon hailed that she had struck. The Astell, just before she put out her lights, had received the same information, and had then her fore and main masts badly wounded, and her rigging and sails greatly disabled. The Windham, who by the Astell's departure was now left quite alone, finding that her damaged masts and the state of her rigging would not admit of her making sail, continued the action, chiefly for the purpose of favouring the escape of the Astell; when, at 7 h. 45 m. P. M., having had nine of her guns dismounted, and sustained a serious loss in killed and wounded, the Windham hauled