Oct.

1798. sail yard knocked away, sails and rigging much cut, and the boat on her starboard quarter shot to pieces; and one of the Bellone's shot had also entered between wind and water. The loss sustained by the Ethalion, however, was only one seaman killed and four wounded; while that on board the Bellone is represented to have been 20 killed and 45 wounded: an amount, if correctly stated, partly attributable to the crowded state of the Bellone's decks, her crew and soldier-passengers amounting, according to the deposition of her officers, to 519. It seems probable, that a proportion of the loss accrued in the general action; but it is not so stated in the gazette letter. The french accounts, indeed, represent the loss of the Bellone, in killed and badly wounded together, at no more than 35.

Of commodore Bompart's squadron, we have already given an account of the capture of one line-ofbattle ship and three frigates. Of the remaining five frigates, all standing to the west-south-west, the Loire was the headmost by nearly a mile and a half. On approaching the Anson, then about seven miles from the nearest ship of her squadron, the Loire shortened sail, in the expectation that her companions would unite with her in the attack upon the former. Finding that, while they apparently hung back, the Anson kept getting nearer, captain Segond, by way of a ruse, hoisted the british flag over the french. It appears that captain Durham, deceived by this appearance, hailed the Loire. Finding, however, that she did not shorten sail, the Anson, at about 4 P. M., opened a destructive fire. Shifting her colours to french, the Loire returned the fire, and, hauling up athwart the hawse of her disabled opponent, effected her escape. Three other french frigates followed in close order, and, at about 4 h. 30 m. P. M., exchanged broadsides with the Anson, in passing her to-leeward. Shortly afterwards the fifth and last frigate bore down upon the Anson's weather quarter, and, like her companions, gave and received a passing fire. The effect of all this upon

the Anson was tolerably severe she had her fore 1798. and main masts, fore yard, fore topmast, and bowsprit o shot through in several places, besides two seamen killed, and two petty-officers, eight seamen, and three marines wounded.

The loss on board the other british ships from the fire of their opponents in this action was comparatively trifling. The Canada had one seaman mortally wounded, by, we believe, the recoil of a gun when firing at the Hoche and frigates just before the french 74 surrendered. The Foudroyant had nine seamen wounded by the fire of the Bellone and other frigates passing near her. The Robust, in her close conflict with the Hoche and the frigates ahead of her, had ten seamen killed, her first lieutenant, (David Colby,) one lieutenant of marines, (William Cottle, mortally,) and 38 seamen and marines wounded; the Melampus one, and the Magnanime seven seamen wounded: making, with the loss of the Ethalion and Anson already enumerated, a total of 13 killed and 75 wounded. On board the french ships the loss was excessively severe. The Hoche, out of the 1237 men and boys that, according to the depositions of her officers, were on board of her, is represented to have lost, in killed and wounded together, 270. The Embuscade, out of a crew, including soldiers, of 486 men and boys, lost 15 killed and 26 wounded; and the Coquille, out of her 507 sailors and soldiers, 18 killed and 31 wounded. The loss on board the six remaining french frigates cannot with accuracy be stated. The Résolue appears to have had five, and the Romaine three men wounded; and the Loire, chiefly by the fire of the Anson, five seamen and soldiers killed, and 10 seamen and 14 soldiers wounded: making, with the loss of the Bellone already stated, the serious total of 462 in killed and wounded.

Having done with the action between the two squadrons, before we attend to the scattered remains of that of M. Bompart, we will briefly advert to the

1798. relative force of the parties. On the one side were Oct. an 80-gun ship, two 74-gun ships, five frigates, two of the latter (one with her mizenmast gone) carrying long 24, and the remainder, long 18 pounders; and on the other side, one 74-gun ship, without a main topmast, and eight frigates, two of the latter (the Romaine and Immortalité) carrying long 24, one of them, (the Loire,) long 18, and the remainder long 12 pounders. The brunt of the action, as has already been shown, was borne by the Robust and Magnanime, they having been, at the onset, the nearest ships to the enemy. The rest of the affair was of too detached and skirmishing a character, to be at all illustrated by confronting, in our usual manner, the aggregate force of the rival squadrons. We may here remark, that rather more consequence was attached to this action than it really merited, on account, chiefly, of some slight mistatements in the accounts given of the force of the french squadron. The eight frigates, for instance, were all styled heavy," although five of them mounted 12 pounders, a less caliber than was carried by any of the british frigates; and the Hoche was designated as an 84-gun ship, which was assigning her eight guns more than she had ports to fit them to.

66

As every publication, in which an account of this action appears, except one, has relied upon the statement at the foot of sir John Warren's letter, that the Hoche was a ship of "84 guns," we deem it necessary to show how many ports on each deck the ship was really pierced for. On her lower deck, the Hoche had 30 ports, but the French, acting more wisely than the English, had left the two foremost ones vacant: consequently, the ships mounted 28 guns, which, as usual, were 36-pounders. On the second deck her ports were also 30, and all filled with guns, 18-pounders. On the quarterdeck the Hoche, leaving, as is customary in french line-of-battle ships, room for two ports of a side in the cabin, had ten ports, in which were as many 8-pounders. On

the forecastle she had six ports, in four of which 1798. (two being chase-ports) were four more 8-pounders, Oct. making just 74 guns. But the Hoche also mounted four brass 36-pounder carronades on her poop, total 78 guns. Of sir John Warren's account of the force of the Hoche, the French, however, must not complain, until they have made some correction in the following account of the force of the Ethalion: "Cette frégate, l'une des plus forte de, la marine anglaise, portait cinquante bouches à feu, savoir: vingt-huit canons de 18, (so far right,) douze de 12, et dix caronades de 42."*

There is not an action recorded in these pages, which has given us more trouble to comprehend in its details, than the one we have now nearly disposed of. The official letter contains no particulars, and the entries in the different ships' logs are confused, and, in some instances, contradictory. One fact, however, appears certain, that the action commenced when the Hoche and frigates were, as stated. in sir John Warren's letter, "on the starboard tack.” Yet the following appears in the work of a contemporary: "In which (the admiral's letter) we are told, that the enemy bore down and formed a line on the starboard tack, &c.; but this is certainly incorrect. By a sketch from the hand of one of the best witnesses now living, (Nov. 1822) Plate XXIII. has been formed; by which it appears that, although the enemy's squadron was considerably to-windward of the flagship, it was very little so of the Robust, Magnanime, and Amelia, who, on the morning of the 12th of October, discovered the enemy as given in the figure, on the larboard tack. The Robust and frigates brought the Hoche and others to action on the larboard side and to-windward of them; and the action was nearly over before the Canada and Foudroyant, from being so far to-leeward, could render any assistance." In answer to this, there is, besides the * Victoires et Conquêtes, tome x. p. 411.

+ Ekins's Naval Battles, p. 251.

VOL. II.

Oct.

1798. statement in the official letter, a pair of large engravings, dedicated to the duke of Clarence, and purporting to be taken from drawings by a marine officer present in the battle, in which the french ships are placed on the starboard tack; but in which (proh pudor!) the officer's own ship, the Canada, is brought, where she never was able to get, into the thick of the fire. Another officer who participated in the action, in answer to our inquiries on the subject, has expressly stated, that the ships were on the starboard tack. But what will admiral Ekins's "best witnesses now living" say to the following extracts from a respectable french account of the action? "Le vent était au N.-O., et la division française le recevait à tribord. L'escadre ennemie, en se plaçant sous le vent, coupait la terre aux bâtimens français, &c." "Bientôt le Robust, le Magnanime, et l'Amelia l'engagèrent, le premier vaisseau ayant pris poste par son travers à babord, et le Magnanime le canonnant en hanche et en poupe."*

On taking the Hoche in tow, as she had been ordered by the Canada, the Robust steered for Lough-Swilly. On the 13th, at 11 A. M., the latter ship's fore topmast, owing to the injuries it had received in the action, fell over the side. At 1 h. 30 m. P. M., a squall carried away the wounded fore and main masts of the prize; and at 9 P. M., the tow-rope breaking, the Hoche went adrift. A stormy night ensued, and the latter was with difficulty kept afloat. In this emergency all national prejudices were laid aside, and the French united their exertions with the English in pumping, and performing the other duties of the ship; and, considering how numerous the former were to the latter, there cannot be a doubt that the french crew and soldiers were pri cipally instrumental in saving the prize. To us it certainly appears unaccountable, that one crippled ship should have been sent to conduct home another;

* Victoires et Conquêtes, tome x. p. 406.