1800.

amounted to one officer and 13 seamen and marines Feb. killed, and two officers and 23 seamen and marines wounded. That of the Vengeance is represented, in the american accounts, at 150 in killed and wounded; but, according to a published letter from one of her passengers, it amounted to only 20 men killed and 40 wounded.

The officer killed on board the Constellation was Mr. James Jervis, a young midshipman, who, along with some of the men, went overboard with the mainmast. "It seems this young gentleman," says commodore Truxton, "was apprized of the mast going in a few minutes, by an old seaman; but he had already so much of the principle of an officer engrafted on his mind, not to leave his quarters on any account, that he told the men, if the mast went, they must go with it; which was the case, and only one of them was saved."

Although, undoubtedly, the american frigate was the superior both in force and effectiveness, yet, had the Constellation made a prize of the Vengeance, no one can deny that it would have redounded to the honour of commodore Truxton, and been a subject of fair triumph to so young a navy as that of the United States. But if it be true, as the french captain is represented to have stated, that the flag of the Vengeance came down three times during the contest, what was the Constellation about that she did not attempt to take possession? It would seem that the Constellation, notwithstanding she was towindward, persisted in remaining at too great a distance from her antagonist, to observe, in the dark, what the latter was doing. According to captain Pichot's account, indeed, the Vengeance lost all three masts by the Constellation's fire; and yet commodore Truxton, although so minute in his "Journal," as to tell us that, previous to the action, he got "the large trumpet in the lee gangway ready to speak" the french frigate, takes no notice of the loss of her masts.

The most extraordinary circumstance, however, 1800. remains to be told. The Vengeance, M. Pichot Feb. declares, was compelled, owing to the inexperience of her crew, to remain stationary for three days, while jury-masts were erecting; and, during the whole of that time, the Constellation lay to-windward, with her fore and mizen masts still standing, (her mainmast had fallen a few minutes after the firing had ceased,) and yet did not bear down, or evince the least inclination, to renew the engagement. The Constellation, soon afterwards, made sail for and anchored in Port-Royal, Jamaica; and the Vengeance, no less happy than surprised at such an escape, stemmed her way to Curaçoa, where she at length arrived in a very shattered state.

No sooner did the commodore's account of his rencontre reach the United States, than his fellowcitizens, particularly those of his own, or the federal party, set to work to bring to an issue on paper, that which had been left undecided on the ocean. They pronounced and published the action as a victory; ate dinners, and drank themselves drunk, in honour of it; and, when the commodore arrived in port, assailed him on all sides with addresses of congratulation, founded on assertions that the commodore's letter had never sanctioned, and from which, although not possessed perhaps of a very extraordinary share, his modesty must have recoiled.

We formerly mentioned, that the merchants of London presented the commodore with a piece of plate for having captured the Insurgente. Such was actually the spirit of party in the United States, that the democrats abused commodore Truxton, calling him Tory, &c. for having accepted it. About the middle of the year 1800 the commodore was promoted to the command of the 44-gun frigate President; but, the moment the democrats came into power, on March the 4th in the succeeding year, he was displaced, and, as a proof how liberal republics can be, was never afterwards put in command

1800. The more moderate among the democrats, however, Feb. did at length relent a little; and commodore Truxton got appointed (of all places for a commodore !) sheriff of Philadelphia; in which office he realized an independency.

the Pal

las.

Cap- On the 5th of February, at 6 A.M., the british 16-gun ture of ship-sloop Fairy, (armed similarly to Rattlesnake, vol. ii. p. 508,) captain Joshua Sydney Horton, and 18-gun brig-sloop, Harpy, (same force as Racoon, vol. ii. p. 535,) captain Henry Bazely, weighed and set sail from St.-Aubin's bay in the island of Jersey, with the wind a fresh breeze at north-west, to reconnoitre the port of St.-Malo, and discover if a french frigate, which on the preceding evening had chased the 14-gun brig Seaflower, lieutenant James Murray, had got into that harbour. At 11 h. 30 m. A. M., Cape Frehel bearing south-east distant five or six miles, a large ship, evidently a frigate, was discovered in the south-south-west quarter, running down close alongshore to the westward, with a light breeze nearly aft, or from the southsouth-east. This was the french 38-gun frigate Pallas, captain Jacques Epron, from St.-Malo bound to Brest, and the same, as it appears, that had chased the Seaflower.

At about 20 m. P. M., seeing no chance of bringing the Pallas to action while she remained so close under the land, captain Horton tacked and stood off, in the hope that the frigate would follow the two sloops to an offing. This the Pallas immediately did; and at 1 P. M. an engagement, within pistol-shot, commenced between her and the Fairy and Harpy, the latter close astern of her companion. The action, during which the Harpy obtained several opportunities of raking the Pallas, continued until 3 P. M. ; when the french frigate ceased firing, and made all sail to the northward and eastward, having the wind now from the south-west.

So great were the damages which the Fairy and Harpy had received in their rigging and sails, that

it was not until 3 h. 15 m. P. M. that the sloops were 1800. in a condition to make sail in chase. About this Feb. time the Pallas, observing two sail nearly ahead, or in the north-east by north, hauled up to the northward and westward. Captain Horton immediately made the signal for the Harpy, who was the more advanced in the chase, to endeavour to gain the wind of the enemy. At 4 P. M. three sail, including the two already noticed as seen by the Pallas, were discovered by the two sloops. No doubt being entertained that the vessels approaching were friends, the Fairy made the signal for an enemy; which was repeated by the Harpy, both sloops firing guns every five minutes to enforce attention to it.

These ships, then working up from the northward with a light wind from the south-east by south, were the british 38-gun frigate Loire, captain James Newman Newman, 20-gun ship Danaé, captain lord Proby, and 16-gun ship-sloop Railleur, captain William James Turquand; and all of which had sailed from Plymouth on the 27th and 28th of January, purposely to intercept the Pallas and a corvette, expected to be on their way from St.-Malo to Brest. At 4h. 15 m. P. M. the Pallas bore away large; and, in order to deceive her new pursuers and distract their attention, hoisted english colours, and endeavoured to repeat the signal made by the Fairy and Harpy. At 4 h. 30 m. P. M. Roche Douvre bore from the Fairy north-north-east distant six or seven miles; and at 5 h. 30 m. P. M. the Pallas bore west, and the Harpy west by south, the breeze now light from the south-east.

At 7 P. M. captain Bazely received orders to go ahead, as far as signals were discernible between the two sloops, and make the private signal to the two ships, the Loire and Danaé, upon her lee bow. This was done, and subsequently the Fairy also made the private signal; but it was not answered by either the Loire, Danaé, or Railleur, which latter was considerably ahead and to-windward of her

1800. two consorts. Notwithstanding this apparent reFeb. missness, captain Hotton was tolerably satisfied that the ships approaching were friends, and therefore stood on in chase of the Pallas. We may add to this, that captain Newman also knew, (although that is no excuse for not answering the private signal,) that the two ships and brig in sight were the Pallas, Fairy, and Harpy; having learnt from lord Proby, who had been detached for information to Jersey, upon what mission the two sloops had sailed.

At about 7 h. 45m. P. M., observing ahead, and close under the Seven Islands, a ship approaching, which was the Railleur, the Pallas tacked; and at 8 P. M., while passing about three miles to-windward of the Harpy, and at a still greater distance from the Loire, both on the opposite or larboard tack, was fired at, of course without effect, by the Loire. The latter and the Harpy then tacked in chase; and at about 9 P. M. the Loire spoke the Fairy, who had also just tacked, and whose commander informed captain Newman of the name and force of the Pallas, at that time "about a gun-shot and a half" upon the Fairy's weather quarter. Whether owing to bad management, bad sailing, or disabled rigging from her previous action with the two sloops, the Pallas was gradually gained upon by the chasing ships, the Loire, Railleur, and Harpy especially.

At about 10 h. 30 m. P. M. the Loire had weathered her opponent so much as to be able to set her topgallant studding-sails, and at 11 P. M. arrived up with the Pallas. The Railleur, being ahead of the Loire, was directed to fire her broadside and drop astern. This the sloop did; and immediately afterwards, the nearest of the Seven Islands bearing south-west by south distant about 750 yards, the Loire commenced a close action with the Pallas, who opened a spirited fire in return. In a little time a battery upon the island, of several guns and a howitzer, began a smart fire upon the british ships, and did considerable damage to the Loire. In this way the action con