for the inflammation of the trains. The moment the signal was made, we had the satisfaction to see the flames rise in every quarter. Lieutenant Tupper was charged with the burning of the general magazine, the pitch, tar, tallow, and oil store-houses, and succeeded most perfectly; the hemp magazine was included in this blaze: its being nearly calm was unfortunate to the spreading of the flames, but two hundred and fifty barrels of tar divided among the deals and other timber, insured the rapid ignition of that whole quarter which Lieutenant Tupper had undertaken. The mast-house was equally well set on fire by Lieutenant Middleton, of the Britannia. Lieutenant Pater, of the Britannia, continued in a most daring manner to brave the flames, in order to complete the work where the fire scemed to have caught imperfectly. I was obliged to call him off lest his retreat should become impracticable; his situation was the more perilous, as the enemy's fire redoubled as soon as the amazing blaze of light rendered us distinct objects of their aim. Lieutenant Ironmonger, of the Royals, remained with the guard at the gate till the last, long after the Spanish guard was withdrawn, and was brought safely off by Captain Edge, of the Alert, to whom I had confided the important service of closing our retreat, and bringing off our detached parties, which were saved to a man. I was sorry find myself deprived of the further services of Captain Hare; he had performed that of placing his fire-ship to admiration, but was blown into the water, and much scorched, by the explosion of her priming when in the act of putting the match to it. Lieutenant Gore was also much burnt, and I was consequently deprived of him also, which I regretted the more from the recollection of his bravery and activity in the warm service of Fort Mulgrave. Mr. Eales, Midshipman, who was also with him on this occasion, deserves my praise for his conduct throug B 2 to throughout this service. The guns of the fire-ship going off on both sides as they heated, in the direction that was given them, towards those quarters from whence we were most apprehensive of the enemy forcing their way in upon us, checked their career. Their shouts and republican songs, which we could hear distinctly, continued till they, as well as ourselves, were in a manner thunderstruck by the explosion of some thousand barrels of powder on board the Iris frigate, lying in the inner road without us, and which had been injudiciously set on fire by the Spanish boats in going off, instead of being sunk as ordered. The concussion of air, and the shower of falling timber on fire, was such as nearly to destroy the whole of us. Lieutenant Patey, of the Terrible, with his whole boat's crew, nearly perished; the boat was blown to pieces, but the men were picked up alive. The Union gun-boat, which was nearest to the Iris, suffered considerably, Mr. Young being killed with three men, and the vessel shaken to pieces. I had given it in charge to the Spanish Officers to fire the ships in the bason before the town, but they returned, and reported that various obstacles had prevented their entering it. We attempted it together, as soon as we had completed the business in the arsenal, but were repulsed in our attempt to cut the boom by repeated vollies of musketry from the flag-ship, and the wall of the battery Royale. The cannon of this battery had been spiked by the judicious precaution taken by the Governor previously to the evacuation of the town. The failure of our attempt on the ships in the bason before the town, owing to the insufficiency of our force, made me regret that the Spanish gunboats had been withdrawn from me to perform other service. The Adjutant Don Pedro Cotiella, Don Francisco Riguelme, and Don Francisco Trusello, remained with me to the last; and I feel bound to bear testimony of the zeal and activity with which they they performed the most essential services during the whole of this business, as far as the insufficiency of their force allowed it, being reduced, by the retreat of the gun-boats, to a single felucca and a mortarboat, which had expended its ammunition, but contained thirty men with cutlasses. We now proceeded to burn the Hero and Themistocles, two seventy-four gun-ships, lying in the inner road. Our approach to them had hitherto been impracticable in boats, as the French prisoners, who had been left in the latter ship, were still in possession of her, and had shewn a determination to resist our attempt to come on board. The scene of conflagration around them, heightened by the late tremendous explosion, had, however, awakened their fears for their lives. Thinking this to be the case, I addressed them, expressing my readiness to land them in a place of safety if they would submit; and they thankfully accepted the offer, shewing themselves to be completely intimidated, and very grateful for our humane intentions towards them, in not attempting to burn them with the ship. It was necessary to proceed with precaution, as they were more numerous than ourselves. We at length completed their disembarkation, and then set her on fire. On this occasion I had nearly lost my valuable friend and assistant Lieutenant Miller, of the Windsor Castle, who had staid so long on board to insure the fire taking that it gained on him suddenly, and it was not without being very much scorched, and the risk of being suffocated, that we could approach the ship to take him in. The loss to the service would have been very great had we not succeeded in our endeavours to save him. Mr. Knight, Midshipman of the Windsor Castle, who was in the boat with me, shewed much activity and address on this occasion, as well as firmness throughout the day, The explosion of a second powder vessel, equally unexpected, and with a shock even greater than the first, again put us in the most imminent danger of perishing; and when it is considered that we were within the sphere of the falling timber, it is next to miraculous that no one piece of the many which made the water foam round us, happened to touch either the Swallow or the three boats with me. Having now set fire to every thing within our reach, exhausted our cumbustible preparations and our strength to such a degree that the men absolutely dropped on the oars, we directed our course to join the fleet, running the gauntlet under a few ill directed shot from the Forts of Balaguier and Aiguillette, now occupied by the enemy; but, fortunately, without loss of any kind; we proceeded to the place appointed for the embarkation of the troops, and took off as many as we could carry. It would be injustice to those officers whom I have ommitted to name, for their not having been so immediately under my eye, if I did not acknowledge myself indebted to them all for their extraordinay exertions in the execution of this great national object. The quickness with which the inflammation took effect on my signal, its extent and duration, are the best evidences that every officer and man was ready at his post, and firm under most perilous circumstances; I therefore subjoin a list of the whole who were employed on this service. We can ascertain that the fire extended to at least ten sail of the line, how much further we cannot say. The loss of the general magazine, and of the quantity of pitch, tar, rosin, hemp, timber, cordage, and gunpowder, must considerably impede the equipment of the few ships that remain. I am sorry to have been obliged to leave any, but I hope your Lordship will be satisfied that we did as much as our circumscribed means enabled us to do in a limited time, pressed as we were by a force so much superior I have the honour to be, &c. W.SYDNEY SMITH. to us. Right Hon. Lord Hood, &c. &c. &c. A List A List of the Officers employed under the Orders of Sir Sydney Smith, Commander, Grand Cross of the Royal Military Order of the Sword, in the Service of burning the French Ships and Arsenal of Toulon, in the Night of the 18th December 1793. Captain Hare, Vulcan fire-ship. Captain Edge, Alert sloop. Don Pedro de Cotiella, Adjutant, and Don Francisco Riguielme, Lieutenant Spanish Navy. Don Francisco Truxillo, commanding a mortar-boat. Lieutenants Melhuish and Holloway, Alert sloop. Lieutenant Priest, Wasp gun-boat. Lieutenant Morgan, Petite Victoire gun-boat. Mr. Young, Union gun-boat, killed. John Skrimger, boatswain's-mate; James Young, gunner's-mate; Thomas Knight, quarter-master; and Thomas Clarke, carpenter's-mate, of the Swallow tender, and who performed the service of preparing combustibles. John Wilson, advanced centinel. An |