"RECAPITULATORY JOURNAL"
OF ASHETON Y. HUMPHREYS,
CHAPLAIN,
USS CONSTITUTION
17
December 1814 ‑ 26 March 1815
On the 17th December 1814 sailed from Boston in United
states frigate Constitution as her chaplain
having previously sailed in her as Captains Clark with Captain Stewart on his
first cruise. At sunset a fine smart
breeze from the Nd & Wds with every prospect of continuing through a fine
clear starlight night, [?] Boston
light bearing W by S of us discharged the pilot and cracked on the old ship
till [sic] her way was ten knots. Twas
now time to collect our thoughts and let the joyous feelings consequent upon getting
to sea, with every prospect of eluding the vigilance of a heavy blockading
force, give way to reflections of what we were about to undertake and weigh the
responsibility. It may easily be
supposed that by the morning of the 18th we were all well prepared to give our
ideas upon what was most consonant to our wishes, and we felt no little degree
of importance when the circumstance of our being the only American frigate at
sea presented itself to our minds. We
felt that the eyes of the country were upon us and that every thing [sic]
within the bounds of possibility was expected and we knew that a desperate
chance was before us, however we had escaped from Port and hope presented
bright prospects. Flattering however as
every thing appeared at this moment, yet the fact was little chance of being
able to realize a safe arrival to port, should we be in any wise crippled by an
equal force or by disaster of the ocean; particularly as the terms demanded by
the British Government as the sine qua non for peace were such as no nation
jealous of its sovereignty and independence could listen to and the war had
began [sic] to assume a character which it appeared would render it
interminable and consequently as there was nothing else to occupy the attention
of the enemy's numerous squadrons they would be thrown upon our coast and close
every avenue to an arrival already deemed, in the technics of mercantile life,
extra hazardous.
At meridian on the 18th, the weather became
overcast with every appearance of its continuance, the wind however still
steady to the Northwd & Wd and the ship running off to the Southwd and Ed at
a good rate. At sunset a tolerable sea
was up, and continued through the night; and Friday morning the 23d had come
round before the weather had abated, and then left so high a sea that our decks
already wet since the noon of the 18th, had little prospect of becoming drier,
a desideratum devoutly to be wished for so leaky did we prove the gun deck to
be that clothes bags, bedding, and every thing partaking of the comforts of
life had quite changed their natures and become greatly inconvenient. Our latitude at noon on Friday, as well as I
now recollect, was about 32N and our longitude about 58W. Bermuda
bearing nearly East of us and some little signs of disappointment and chagrin
became evident at our not having yet fallen in with a sail of any description
since leaving port; and it appeared particularly hard as we kept a bright look
out [sic] off the Delaware and Chesapeake for a
straggler from the blockading squadrons off those bays. Add to all these little sea miseries that the
last bone of the fresh beef we brought out from Boston was finished by the first lieutenant
to day [sic] at dinner, and unless we shortly fell in with something of a prize
salt junk and biscuit must be our portion, for as to any thing [sic] else 'tis
wholly out of the question. Indeed so
miserably poor were we all when we left port, by reason of treasury notes being
at 30 Per cent discount, and too proud to ask for credit (and in fact I have
been since assured that we were looked upon so indifferently that the credit of
every of every man seen in conversation with a navy uniform was in some degree
rendered equivocal) that save a few pounds of fresh beef and an ounce or two of
sugar & tea, the parsimonious savings of the caterer, we had nothing. Things must mend when at the worst and it is
now as near that as can be without being really the case, so a little salt beef
and a glass of grog and I'll turn in, trusting to chance for better fare on the
morrow.
Saturday the 24th was ushered in with a
clear sky and our prospects of a dry deck improving. A week at least of good weather will be
required to make the ship comfortable.
At 7 A.M. the man on the fore topgallant yard sung out "Sail
ho!" (a joyful sound in this part of the world as Bermuda
is not very [sic] and the idea suggested itself it might be a cruiser bound out
or in). "Where away!" "A point on the lee bow!" ‑‑
"W let the Captain know
there's a sail in sight in sight"‑‑ "Aye, aye, sir"‑‑ The
Captain comes on deck "What do you make of that sail"‑‑ "Mast head there!"‑‑ "Sir" "What do you make of that sail"‑‑ "It is very hazy, Sir, and I cannot distinguish!"‑‑ "All hands to make sail in chase!"
but there was no need of the order; sail ho! had rung through the ship and the
sick, the lame, the blind, and the lazy, were all on deck; the blind
to see the lame to work and the lazy to look on, while the
sick to give the lie to the doctor could not be distinguished from the idle or
busy so intent were all upon the prospect before us and eager to overhaul the
stranger. In a short time she was made
out to be a schooner standing to the westward; disappointment appeared depicted
in every countenance so little were we dreaming of the comforts in store for
us, and so eager were all to try their skill in combat that had a superior
force been close aboard I believe many of the long visages now stalking about
the deck would have been full an inch shorter.
But as I estimate the good things of this world the higher in proportion
to my want of them, so was I not a little pleased to find a good breakfast in lieu
of a hard fight. At 9 the chase having
previously hove to, and hoisted English colours after the old fashion, union
down, we ranged alongside of her to windward with British colours flying also,
upon hailing were informed she was the British schooner Lord Nelson from St. Johns Newfoundland
bound to Bermuda, having parted from her
convoy in a gale. This information
appeared to cheer up and make some little compensation to the disappointed in
their late visionary schemes, but perhaps they were all dreaming of overhauling
the convoy; be that as it may a boat was lowered down and sent on board the
prize to collect what information relative to the convoy it was possible to
obtain. In a few minutes it returned
with the skipper of the schooner who was yet deceived as to our real national
character and supposed us "for all the world" (in his own lingo), to
be one of his countrymen. His papers had
been left on board, the boat was again sent for them with an officer to take
possession and a prize crew, and upon the boat again leaving the schooner for
the ship her proper colours were displayed on board the latter. The astonishment of the skipper can better be
imagined than depicted and it was sometime [sic] before he could be made sensible
that it was no "joke," and when convinced expressed his
surprise very laconically, by saying, he had been told, "that no men of
war were allowed to be on the ocean but English." Upon overhauling the invoices of the schooner
she proved to be a perfect slop ship and grocery store, very opportunely sent
to furnish a good rig and bountiful cheer for christmas [sic], and never more
opportune could Fortune have us played her very best freak ‑‑ there
was lots of meats tongues, corn beef in rounds, smoked salmon, dried beef and
codfish, tongues and rounds, fine apple cheeses & barrels of loaf sugar of
the most superior kinds, pipes of best brandy, gin, and port wine, chests of
imperial and gunpowder tea, barrells [sic] of flour, hams inferior not even to Smithfield virginia
[sic], and besides various other inside linings, abundance of outward covering,
for use and show, from inferior qualities, to the very best superfine. No loss
of time occurred in gutting the schooner of these desirable valuables, more
precious than the diamonds of Golconda,
and ere the Christmas sun was low it shone no longer on the hull of the Lord
Nelson, it had sunk below the wave to rest with its godfather. This schooner was one of a convoy under protection
of the [blank] frigate bound for the windward islands, to rendezvous to the
eastward of Bermuda and detach the vessels
bound thence under the charge of a Sloop of War. Here was a bright prospect and in imagination
we had already the frigate and whole convoy in possession, worth a few millions. Having disposed of the Nelson, (a name from
which the sailors argued a propitious omen for the remainder of the cruise), at
sunset on Christmas, being Sunday, filled away under short sail to the westward,
in hope of falling in with the convoy, which although it sailed in November yet
has had a succession of heavy gales to retard its progress, and as a gun was
heard in the latter part of last nights first watch hope is alive and
expectations awake to realize our anticipation.
We have plenty of good cheer and a little more fine weather will give us
a dry ship.‑‑ Throughout
Monday and Tuesday we continued standing off and on Bermuda,
crossing the probable track and place of rendezvous for the convoy, our
expectations though not quite so keen yet sufficiently alive to keep the watch
at night wide awake, and bring the idlers from their nests at daylight; the
ship getting quite comfortable but on the evening of the latter day the weather
lowred [sic] with every prospect of a boisterous night and we were not
deceived. Wednesday & Thursday were
passed lying to under a close reefed Main Topsail; Friday in scudding under a
close reefed Fore topsail until midnight, when the gale abating hove to under a
close reefed Main Topsail.
Saturday the 31st. day of December
1814. By daylight the gale had abated
considerably and we filled away under close reefed topsails to the
Westward. At 6 A.M. discovered a
schooner lying too on our weather quarter with her head to the Nd, and from
appearances supposed to be a cruiser, hauled on the Starboard tack to the
southward intending to gain her wake before making sail in chase, hoping that
she would haul her wind upon the larboard tack depending upon his laying well up
for his safety, when the high sea would knock him off, but he was no Englishman
and was not to be caught in this way; for no sooner had we made sail than he
squared away, set all the sail he could carry, and by sunset had led us a chase
of 120 miles to the Eastwd when he answered signal. She was the Anaconda privateer schooner of New York. At sunset gave up the chase and having a fresh
westerly breeze abandoned all further hopes of falling in with the convoy here
and made sail to the southward and E'd with a very wet ship and a high sea, not
a little down in the mouth that the convoy had not furnished us with richer
booty, and having yet a faint hope of falling in with them before they got
sufficiently to windward of the Barbadoes [sic] to enable them to keep away for
it. Continued standing to the southward
and Eastward for some days and at length found pleasant weather and experienced
the comforts of a dry ship. By and by, a
circumstance occurred in the gale off Bermuda
which I had forgotten in this recapitulatory journal to notice, and which although
it may be deemed exaggeration by the incredulous, yet as I was an eye witness
to it I will risk the hazard of my veracity being questioned, and relate it,
particularly as it will give some idea of a "blow" as Saw[??]y says;
it is no other than this, that a coat belonging to Capt. Henderson of Marines
stopped in the rigging for the benefit of fresh air had a button torn
off of it by the violence of the wind.‑‑ Quere [sic] Was it loose before?‑‑. No doubt many little incidents will slip my
memory which occurred during the cruise the apology for which will be found by
and by and a good reason assigned not very creditable to an officer commanding
one of the finest frigates in his Majesty's service.‑‑
Standing to the Southward a few days found
us south of the tropic when having seen nothing nor heard any tidings of the
convoy as low down as 18N.; about ship to recross it, which we accomplished
without the occurrence of any thing more remarkable than the monotony always attendant
upon a life at sea in time of war, with nothing in sight. Thence we stood to the Northward & Ed.
intending to make Madeira crossing the track of the homeward bound Brazil
men. The only circumstances worth noting
were a heavy gale which we encountered on the passage, which kicking up a
terrible sea at midnight stove in the hawse plugs, and deluged the gun
deck. In a few moments nothing was to be
heard but the washing of a great body of water fore and aft on the gun deck and
as my cot in the War Room was slung to the beams of that deck (having no
cabin). I was soon sensible that something novel was the matter, and I was soon
confirmed in my belief by hearing the Carpenter sing out the ship was
foundering and call upon the Boatswain to turn out all hands. No water yet had found its way into the Ward Room
and though a little frightened I concluded to remain where I was, in which I
was further encouraged by Capt. Henderson, who having been waked by the noise,
ejected his head with night cap on and eyes half opened thro [sic] the door of
his stateroom & enquired what was the matter, upon being told, he coolly
observed there was no water here, and then turned in, an example I speedily
followed, concluding that if he took it so easily, there was no reason why I
should not. In a short time a little
order was established, and by cutting down the hammocks of the men birthed
[sic] forward and jamming them in the hawse holes further ingress to the water
was denied. and egress obtained for that already shipped by manning the pumps
and drawing the scupper plugs. 'Tis
certain a large body of water, a weight of many tons, found its way into the
ship, but I cannot subscribe to the opinion of Soundings that she was settling
by the head. Standing up for Madeira we boarded several homeward Portuguese Brazil men
but met with none of the Enemys vessels.
A Portuguese vessel, whom we boarded a little to the westward and
southward of the island under English colours, was inquisitive upon several
points particularly asking if there was any probability of the differences
being accommodated between England
and America,
upon being told by the boarding officer that there was not, he expressed his
satisfaction, saying that he was glad of it, for if the yankees got again
abroad they would spoil all trade and mar the fortunes of the Portuguese which
were now very prosperous ‑‑ the mate of this vessel recognized in
the coxswain of the boat an old shipmate and among other things enquired what
we were cruising there for, being told for American frigates and privateers he
replied in broken English Ah you want to see the privateer but no frigate. We now began to fall in with frenchan [sic]
bound to the West Indies one of whom a little
to the Northward of Madeira gave us information of a treaty of peace having
been sent to America
for ratification, and which was confirmed the next day by a dutchman [sic]
bound from Limerick to Amelia island, from
whom we got a paper containing the outlines of the treaty. Here was a field for discussion and various
were the opinions upon the causes of so great a change in the dispositions of
the British Government and the reasons for their abandoning so quickly the pretensions
they had so pertinaciously adhered to and insisted when as the only
alternatives for a cessation of hostilities.
Whether the treaty would be ratified was now a question, and I was singular
in the belief that it would not. My
reasons for this supposition were, that I believed something had occurred in Europe not quite consonant to the interest of the
British, perhaps some schism in the Congress at Vienna that might place her monstrous
numerical monopoly in jeopardy, or had excited the attention of other powers to
restrict it within due bounds. Under
those circumstances I thought more than an armistice, tho' the previous
correspondence of the negociators [sic] admitted on the part of England that
all the pretensions she had set up were in some degree questionable ‑‑
the advantages, however, from the embarrassing situation in which the government
was placed from the want of money and unanimity, I considered as being all upon
our side, though I have since had reason to believe that had the war continued
another year we should have taught the enemy a lesson they would not have
forgotten in the present generation. In
one opinion we were unanimous, that if any thing was to be done there was now
no time to lose, and as we approached the shores of Europe
we began to feel confident that we should soon have something to do. Hitherto every sail that we have seen but
one, have been on Saturday and so great a favourite has the day become that any
of the men would wager a months pay that another will not be seen until its
return, but we are now getting in the track to fall in with them daily. On one of these Saturdays a sail was
discovered at day light (the only one we have not yet overhauled) on our weather
beam, the wind light and a smooth sea but freshening and rising gradually, made
all sail in chase and by 2 P.M. had got in her wake, when having gone about,
William Herrington [sic], a seaman,
being in the weather fore chains setting up the rigging incautiously caught
hold of a rope yarn which was not sufficient to sustain him and overboard he
went; in a moment the main and mizen [sic] topsails were aback the courses
brailed up, a boat lowered down, and in eight minutes he was picked up a degree
of dispatch seldom surpassed. The chase
however reaped the benefit from this accident for we fell so fast to leeward
that by the time the boat returned a space of half an hour she was again on our
weather beam and as night was fast approaching it was useless to continue the
pursuit. The man who was unfortunately
the cause of losing this fellow was well known among his companions on the
forecastle for a great swimmer, one of whom during the circumstances just
related, upon perceiving preparations to have to came aft, and related what he knew
of this mans swimming abilities, and (more anxious to overhaul the chase than
regardless of the life of his shipmate) said, he knew he would swim for a
month, so if we only overhauled the brig we could come back for him at night, a
piece of advice which however good, the man who was the subject of it had some
reason to congratulate himself upon its not having been followed.
It is now advanced in the month of February
and we are steering to the Northwd. & Ed. under short cruising sail, with
the weather variable and squally, though by no means so cold and disagreeable
as the weather in parallel latitudes on the coast of America. Falling in with neutrals daily but hear
nothing of the Enemy except that a large cork fleet have several times been
obliged to put back from stress of weather, and their numbers diminished in
some degree by the privateers in the channell [sic] ‑‑ there will
still be enough left for us yet should they fall in our way ‑‑ the India fleet too
it appears by the papers are ready, so much the better, all will be fish in our
net if they come to it.‑‑ On
Sunday the 12th the look out at the mast head descried land, and the promontory
of Cape Finisterre rising majestically from
amid the waves that lashed its base was soon apparent from deck, and at noon
bore East of us a league or two distant; descried several small craft close
under the land. Found a strong current
setting to the E.S.E. and at four o clock P.M. found it had set us so close in
shore and the wind lulling that it was necessary to claw of[f] in which we at
length succeeded just weathering the cape within safety distance and got a good
offing at night in the mouth of the bay of biscay [sic].
During the night it became turbulent and we soon were made sensible of
the uncomfortable sea so well known to navigators of this bay. At daylight on Monday disagreeable weather
wind to the westward, the chill so common in the Easterly winds on the coast of
America
is here felt as sensibly when Westerly winds prevail from the vast body of
water over which it passes before it comes in contact with the land ‑‑ Made cape Ortegal [sic] and then hauled off shore to the northward until noon when
we tacked to the southward. At sunset
fresh breezes and the weather lowering, finding ourselves to the southward of Cape Finisterre shortened sail and headed off shore, a
strong current setting on to the land about S.E.‑‑ Tuesday the 14th
comes in with thick hazy weather rather cold ‑‑ during yesterday
afternoon from the look out [sic] being more inclined to shelter himself under
the lee of the mast head than ambitious of performing the tasks assigned them
[sic], allowed a brig to cross our bows without discovering her and when the
man at the wheel first saw her she was so far under our lee that it was
hazardous to run in shore after her.‑‑ Being all severely corrected for such great
remissness it was reasonable to suppose that such an example would keep the
eyes of all at the mast heads opened for the future ‑‑ but to day
was to prove that more comfort was to be found under the lee of the mast in bad
weather than compensated for all the uncomfortables of a round dozen not very
well laid on.‑‑ A terrier
dog (named Guerriere) belonging to Lieut. Hoffman, from the very great sagacity
with which he was gifted had become a great favourite with all hands officers
and man [sic]. So a display of almost
natural faculties did he exhibit that many were of the opinion that he would
talk were it not that he feared he should be set to work, be the talking part
as it may, he frequently did work, for whenever all hands were called to about
ship he was sure to pay his respects to the Captain of the mast who placing the
end of the weather fore brace in his mouth he would lead it along in as perfect
order as any two legged sea dog and perform various little duties about the
mast full as well. Never would the drum
beat to quarters but with every token of the greatest satisfaction he would
repair to the taffrel [sic], and there remain until it again beat for boarders,
firemen, &c when he would always go with them and when they returned to
their quarters or guns he would return to his former station. On this day his sagacity appeared
preeminent. 'Twas about 4 o'clock P.M.
Lieut. Ballard and myself were walking the weather side of the quarter deck
lamenting our hard luck in not falling in with an Enemys [sic] ship altho' we
had almost bearded the lion in his den, and all unconscious of any craft being
near us. Guerriere who was playing about
the heels of Lieut Ballard appeared uncommonly frisky and was rather
troublesome, at length becoming an incumbrance he attracted the particular
attention of the Lieut, perceiving which he jumped upon the hammock clothes and
stretching his head to windward began to bark most vehemently;‑ upon
looking to discover what attracted his notice lo! and behold! there was a large
frigate standing down before the wind under a press of sail, which the
gentlemen at the mast head had not yet discovered, fearing perhaps to look to
windward lest "the winds should visit their cheeks too unduly" as my friend
Hamlet the dane [sic], says. Hove about
and hauled too on the larboard tack head to the northward, at 5 she crossed our
stern took in her topgallant sails & hauled by the wind to the southward;
tacked ship and made sail in chase of her.
At 9 ranged close alongside of a large frigate with her gun deck lit up
and apparently all hands at quarters, hoisted our colours with a lanthorn to
windwards of them that they might be discovered distinctly; perceived her
colours flying but could not make them out, hailed to know what she was,
received no answer, hailed a second and third time with no better success; an
order was sent down to the gun deck not to fire unless she returned the fire
from our Quarter deck; fired the three forward carronades on the Quarter deck
into her; a reply was instantly made that she was the Portuguese frigate Amazon
from the Canary islands bound to Lisbon
(a little out of her way to be sure) ordered her to heave to, with which she
complied, but blowing heavy and a high sea up could not board her, filled away under
double reefed topsails to the Westward and Southward‑‑‑‑
Wednesday the 15th of February came in with
more moderate weather, stood to the Southward, making our comments on the
conduct of the gentlemen we encountered last evening, which was certainly
foolish in the extreme as he had nothing to fear in making himself known; and
he owes his getting off so easily in some measure to the boisterous weather,
but more particularly to the high state of discipline prevailing on board the
Constitution for had the order sent down to the gun deck been disregarded (and
from the eagerness expressed to engage it was lately to be expected that it
would claim much attention) the consequences would have been very disastrous
and he would have had nobody to blame but himself for drawing upon him a
punishment he so richly merited.‑‑
At 10 AM spoke a vessel bound into St. Ubes in distress having
encountered a severe gale to the westwd [sic] of the Azores. Had fallen in the same Portuguese frigate
that we did, a few hours before we saw him, last night. At 11 spoke another sail from St. Ubes got
information of a convoy sailing thence for the channell [sic] two days before ‑‑
deemed it strange we had seen nothing of them ‑‑ learned that the
Voluntaire frigate with the Duke of Bedford & family on board were expected
along from Lisbon bound to England, and
thought our prospects of getting his Grace and graceless suit [sic] on board
were tolerable [sic] good ‑‑ saw nothing for the remainder of the day;
continued under easy sail throughout the night, and our surprise on the morning
of Thursday was no little when at daylight we found that the strong current had
set us so far to the Eastwd [sic] that the Rock of Lisbon was in sight under
our lee. At 8 bore away for the Rock,
the winds growing light and a smooth sea.
At 9 discovered a schooner on the starboard bow apparently a cruiser standing for us; discovered a large
ship which we afterwards knew for the Elizabeth
74 going into the Tagus ‑‑ made
sail in chase of the Schr when she hove about and stood in for the Rock;
discovered several sail in shore [sic] of her; at 10 gaining slowly on the Schr
wind very light. At 10.30 discovered a
ship on the larboard bow standing for the rock, gave over the chase of the Schr
and hauled up for the ship supposing that the long wished for moment had come,
and were almost confirmed in the idea by perceiving her haul up for us; blow,
blow ye winds! whistling and chirping by
all hands on the forecastle, but it would not do, the winds were obstinately light;
at length at 3 PM we made him out by his colours to be English and at 4 hove to
alongside the British ship Susan, Malcolm Ross, master, from Buenos Ayres [sic]
for Liverpool putting into Lisbon for water. Hailed him upon coming alongside supposing him
to be one of the Cork Convoy, "how dare you part company with your convoy
and when did you have them"
"What convoy" "The
Cork fleet convoy." But he was not
the right one he was bound the contrary way, but his course was soon to be
changed, though as yet he was quite unconscious of it, not suspecting the
integrity of the flag at our peak, which was British. Sent a boat on board and when it had reached
the ship hoisted proper colours. A
little boy, a passenger, going to England to be educated, upon being
told that we were Americans fell at the feet of the boarding officer and entreated
he would not kill him; being assured of his safety he acquired confidence, and
replied to the question, of what motive induced him to behave so, that the
inhabitants of the country from whence he came were assured by the British
Officers that the American ships were all provided with scalping knives and
tomahawks, and that none of their prisoners were spared. One method of exalting their own character at
the expense of an enemy whose conduct towards them had been but too liberal,
and it is my opinion that their national character for magnanimity has been
acquired in the same way, at least every passing day strengthens the
surmise. From this character is appreciated
by individuals of their own nation a simple fact well demonstrated; as was the
case with the Lord Nelson, so was it with the Susan, and with every other
British ship that I have seen upon the ocean; whenever a frigate heaves in
sight their colours are displayed union down, and all hands are seen at the
pump brake, labouring as though their utmost exertions would be unavailing to
keep them from foundering; and this expedient is resorted to to prevent any of the
crew from being impressed, a fate more dreadful in idea to them than if they
were actually foundering. Another
instance of their magnanimity in their treatment of a brave fallen foe, was
related to me by Capt Ross, who says, that he saw upon the arrival of the late U. S. frigate Essex at Rio
Janeiro [sic] the American ensign displayed under the spritsail yard of every man of war in the port
from Admiral Dixon's flagship down to the smallest craft; but the "galled
jade will wince" when their "withers are wrung."‑‑‑ Sent a prize crew on board the Susan and
ordered them to keep company through the night.
Received an addition to our crew in the persons of two tigers found on board
the Susan intended as a present (somewhat outre to be sure) to the
owners from his late consignees in S. America. They are perfectly docile and upon a short
acquaintance became very familiar, and though but four or five months old are
remarkably large and exhibit feats of strength beyond what I have ever seen in
any other animals of a similar size ‑‑ with a blow of the paw they
capsize a dog much heavier than themselves and have taught some of the men in
the same manner to keep a respectful distance while they are at meals, at which
time they appear to have a particular aversion to being disturbed, in which
however they are not singular.‑‑
Friday the 16th comes in with pleasant weather and a light breeze from
Sd. & Wd.‑‑ Under short
sail standing to the Westward, the Susan in company; at 9 A.M. spoke a Portuguese
ship bound into Lisbon
with the loss of her maintopmast and otherwise disabled in a severe gale to the
westward; in the course of the day spoke several neutral sail bound in under
like circumstances for repairs. On board
the first of these put Capt. Ross and his crew and were well pleased to get rid
of the latter and give them but a short passage to port. Their long passage from America upon a very scant allowance
having introduced the scurvy among them and the poor fellows in a miserable
situation. As for the Captain he was a
jolly, short round visaged fall [sic] little gentleman and bore his misfortune with
all the philosophy of a man inured to them, consoling himself for this mishap
by saying he had been running all the war in safety and had twice beaten off a
privateer in the very ship we had now taken from him. Upon coming on deck with his baggage when
about to leave the ship he cast round an inquiring eye until they [sic] fell
upon the brace of tigers when looking in the face of Captain Stewart he asked
him in his Scottish dialect if he "wad na restore him his pet kie" roundly
asserting that he paid a considerable sum for them and that they were his own,
and he could hardly be convinced that he was lying when the letters advising the
owners they were on board were produced to him.
Foiled in this he sought for something else that might strike his fancy
and soon pitched on the cot of an officer airing on the booms, "'twould be
a fine thing to have a cot to sling in instead of making may bed up on the bare
deck, wad it not." "O yes it would
be preferable" and he was supplied with one; in this strain he continued
until he had attained several conveniences with which merchant Captains
generally dispense, and perceiving an inclination in the Captain to baulk his
desires, he stated, "what a pretty thing it wad be to ha' a boat to paddle
about in the harbour
of Lisbon and the Susan's
boat wad be a muckle gude one for that" in this he also succeeded upon
condition that it should be his last request, to which he assented, but when he
had got over the side the spirit still moved him, and he thought "a acorrn
[sic] or two of tallow and a small package of furs wad be a pretty thing to set
him on his legs again in Lisbon;"
it is needless to say his understanders were not strengthened by a compliance with
this hint. Throughout the remainder of
this day and Saturday continued standing under short sail to the westward the
Susan in company and preparing her for a trip to the western side of the Atlantic. Sunday
comes in with a continuance of fine weather and no appearance of a change for the
worse, standing under short sail to the southward. At 9 discovered a large sail on the larboard
bow ordered the Susan to stand to the southward and westward under short sail
while we went in chase of the stranger who was standing to the Westward. At 9.30 came up with him and hoisted English
colours he having displayed Russian.
Sent a boat on board the stranger intending to pass for the Endymion,
but the boarding officer to his surprise was addressed by name by the commander
of the ship and could not prevail upon him to believe she was any other than
the Constitution‑‑ the fact
was, this ship had been lying in Boston
within a cables length of the Constitution during the whole of last summer and
as her appearance had in no respect undergone alteration 'twas not to be
wondered at that her Captain should know her again, and perhaps anticipating an
event like the present had made himself familiar with the persons of the
officers to prevent imposition in case of being boarded. Descried another sail to the Eastward, filled
away in chase of her and at 1 P.M. spoke a Portuguese. Tacked ship and stood to the Westward to fall
in with the Susan and at sunset discovered her on the starboard bow standing to
the Sd. & Wd. at [sic] 7 sent her
papers on board and parted company relying on her safe arrival for a good blow
out. Throughout the night standing to
the Northwd and westward [sic] under short sail on the starboard tack;
continued on this tack without seeing any thing [sic] untill [sic] 1 h. 10m.
P.M. on Monday when a sail was cried from the mast head as being on the weather
bow; hauled up for her under all sail, shortly after another sail was descried
on the lee bow and word from aloft that the ship to windward had bore up for
us. As we were now in the direct track
for craft bound from the Meditterranean [sic] to Madeira &C felt assured
that none but men of war would maneouvre in this way and were not
mistaken. At 2.30 P.M. the ship standing
for us displayed signals which not being answered she squared away to the
westward to join her consort setting all studdg [sic] sails and making a great
display of bunting, which she enforced with a number of guns. Let every rag in chase, the wind rather
lulling. At a Few minutes before three
commenced firing from the forward guns on the gun deck, the shot falling short
ceased firing; at 3.15 opened again from the forward guns the shot just
reaching At 3.45 carried away the Main
royal Mast which enabled the chase to distance our fire. Set Carpenters to work to make a new royal
mast which they completed about five. At
5.30 the breeze freshening a little. The
ship to leeward tacking to the Southward under all sail. At 6 the weather ship passed under the stern
of the other and spoke with her took in all light sails and both of them hauled
up their mainsails and hauled too on the starboard tack in line. At 6.10 ranged ahead of the sternmost which
we found to be a frigate built ship, bringing her on the quarter, and her
consort on the bow distant about two hundred yards, and opened our broadside
which was returned with great quickness and spirit and some degree of precision;
continued exchanging broadsides until the whole were enveloped in smoke upon
the clearing away of which perceived we had got abreast of the headmost ship,
manned both sides in case it should be necessary to ware [sic] ship, and backed
the main and mizen topsails and dropped into our first station, the ship on the
bow backing her topsails also; broke the men off from the starboard battery and
renewed the action from the larboard; after a few broadsides the ship on the
bow perceived the error she had committed in getting sternboard, & filled
away with the intention of tacking athwart our bows, the ship on the quarter at
the same moment falling off perfectly unmanageable; filled away in pursuit of
the former and compelled him to put his helm up at about one hundred yards
distant pouring several raking broadsides into him he made all sail before the wind which we did
not think proper to reduce knowing his crippled situation would enable us to overhaul
him after securing his consort, wore round and ranged alongside the latter when
she hoisted a light and fired a gun to leeward and upon being hailed to that
effect replied she had surrendered. Sent
a boat on board and took possession of His Majesty's Ship Cyane Capt Gordon Falcon
mounting 34 guns 32 pound carronades ‑‑ having received her
Commander and officers on board with the greater part of her crew ordered her
to keep company and filled away in chase of the other gentleman and in a short
time discovered him on the weather [sic] bow standing for us. In a few minutes he luffed to and fired his
broadside which was duly replied, he then tacked ship and made all sail by the
wind receiving a rake from our starboard broadside; set the Royals and soon gained
his wake and opened upon him from the gun deck chase guns with great effect and
in a few minutes after she hoisted a light and hove too [sic]. Ranged alongside sent a boat on board and took
possession of His Majesty's Ship Levant Capt Douglas of 18 23 pound carronades
and 2 long 12 pounders. The whole of
this business occupied about three hours, only forty five minutes of which were
taken up in compelling both ships to
yield to our superior gunnery.‑‑
The Cyane when she struck had five feet water in the hold and otherwise
very much cut up, her masts tottering and nothing but the smoothness of the sea
preventing them from going over the side‑‑ The Levant
in a condition somewhat better, her spars having generally escaped, but her
hull pretty well drilled and her deck a perfect slaughter house, in fact so
hardly had she been dealt with on deck that her men by the acknowledgement of
their Officers twice went below from their quarters. The Constitution lost not a spar but the fore
topgallant yard, and was in better order if possible to have fought a similar
action than when the late one commenced.
The loss on the part of the two ships was upwards of forty killed and
nearly double that number wounded, the Constitution had four killed and eleven
wounded. Two or three hours sufficed to
place the three ships in a condition to make sail and by four oclock on the
morning of Sunday [sic] Feby 21st they were standing to the Westward.
Throughout Tuesday every disposition was made to render all things snug and
comfortable and by the evening every thing [sic] had assumed a comfortable
aspect, and the prisoners began to feel a little at home and no pains were
spared to make their time pass agreeably.
In fact they appeared determined that it should, for a few hours
sufficed to make them as independent and unruly as though the ship belonged to
them and it was necessary to check them before they became aware of the
impropriety of their conduct and then it was dropped for the moment only, again
to be resumed with additional impertinence.
The loss of their vessels appeared to give them no uneasiness nor did
they appear at all to feel the least mortification from being taken by inferior
force, though they frequently resorted to very unmanly recrimination in
mutually accusing each others ship as the cause of their being here. Nor was this confined to the Ward room; Cabin
and steerage were alike the scenes of ungentlemanly accusation and
recriminations.‑‑ Were I
disposed I could here dwell upon scenes that would astonish all who have any
idea of the conduct becoming an officer and gentleman, but 'tis an unpleasant
theme and better dispensed with, suffice it to say, that the sun of Britain's naval
glory has set unless measures are taken to prevent influence and sordid
interest from rising paramount to merit and ability, and plebian worth from
being obscured by the rubbish of lordly imprudence and ignorance‑‑ Of the baleful effects of this influence I
will cite only one instance of many which have come under my notice; would it
be believed, in any Service, that a first lieutenant of a frigate would have
for his commander at any future day an officer who at that time was a young
midshipman, under his control and subject to his beck in all things. Yet the first lieutenant on board the Newcastle frigate was
first lieutenant of the frigate that his commander, Lord George Stewart,
first went on board of as a midshipman,
and the comparison between the two, as men or as seamen,‑‑ it would
be doing an injustice to the lieutenant to make one.
Wednesday the 22d of February comes in with
some of the finest weather I have ever experienced, and in which with a due
degree of temperance and no cares to harrass [sic] him I think a man would live
for ever [sic]. But a truce with speculation,
and let us proceed as well as the recollection of the unruly and disagreeable
scenes I witnesses at this period from men calling themselves English naval
officers will allow, in cool blood and matter of fact narrative; forgetting to
record what is disagreeable as far as truth will justify it.‑‑ At daylight made the island of Porto Santo
on the larboard beam still standing west; continued this course untill [sic] 4
P.M. when we hauled our wind to the Southwd on the larboard tack and continued
under short sail on this tack thro' the night.
Thursday hails a continuance of the same
pleasant weather, and deeming it a favorable opportunity to place the prizes in
as good condition as possible hove the maintopsails aback of all the ships,‑‑ and fell to. On board the Levant Lieut Ballard rigged his
shears whipped out his mizen [sic] mast and sent it on board the Constitution
to be scarfed and fished much to the amusement of the British Officers who
declared it wholly impracticable to restep it.
Strong fishes were applied to the masts of the Cyane and she was soon
placed in a condition to carry a tolerable press of sail; and on board the
Constitution the Carpenter was not dilatory with the aid of the armorer in
furnishing the Levant with her repaired stick
susceptible of more labour and pressing than ever, and much to the astonishment
of all at 7 P.M. he stood with his peers with royal yard athwart, a monument of
the skill and industry of her commander and much to the mortification of her
late proprietors. At * P.M. filled away
to the southward in hopes of intercepting on her homeward passage the British
frigate Inconstant with upwards of a million on board whom we learned from
letters found on board the Susan captured the 16th was to sail the beginning of
January from Rio Janeiro [sic]. As
Fortune had now turned her wheel a spoke at least in our favor, we were willing
to believe that that tide in our affairs which would carry us to the top was
now in the young flood and surely did we build on her handmaid luck to carry us
through the shallows that hope was overlooked in the prospect of
certainty. In excellent spirits save when occasionally jarred by the discord of the
Prisoners whom neither intreaties [sic] nor threats would prevail upon to
adjourn their quarrels until they could settle them on shore.‑‑ Nothing
occurred worthy of remark while standing to the Southward until the 27th
(Monday) when much to my satisfaction I received an order from Capt Stewart to
repair on board the Levant as her Purser and a
reprieve to any condemned malefactor was never hailed with sincerer
gratulation, for add to the disagreeables of a crowded ward room, a precarious
state of health and continual annoyance from the Prisoners, whose only
amusement and gratification appeared to arise from lavishing abuse upon one
another, (and to get rid of whom 'twas necessary only to give them a quantity
of liquor and by four in the afternoon intoxication would stand the friend of
order, not from any inclination on their part to be less turbulent but from
inability to be more so) and it will require no uncommon penchant for ease and
quietness to determine that I was making a happy exchange. One exception however to this general
character of the prisoners I am in duty bound to record, not only from a sense
of the liberality of feeling with which I was treated by him when fortune had
turned the tables in his favour, but from his uniform gentlemanly deportment,
which was so conspicuous that it extorted the esteem of even those whom the
conduct of his fellow prisoners had compelled to forget that any attention or
respect was due to them, in fact had the conduct of the Commanding Officers of
the two vessels corresponded in the least with that of Lieutenant Jellicoe 2d
of the Cyane, that respect which we had all been taught to believe attached itself
to the [blotted] of a British naval officer would have been heightened, but the
contrary with a solitary exception has been the result and in so great a degree
have they compromitted [sic] themselves that I question whether any officer at
that time on board the Constitution will be hereafter disposed to treat one of
that nation with the least respect until he shall have proved himself deserving
of it.‑‑‑‑
Upon joining the Levant
I found her to be one of the best fitted ships I had ever seen, abounding in
every convenience that could be desirable for the comfort of a cruising vessel
and much more roomy than vessels of her description generally are, and
perfectly new. In fact when an officer
of that service receives his commission for any particular vessel he expects to
remain in that vessel until promotion six or eight years thereafter and most
frequently a time much longer procrastinated shall give him a chance for a
change; under these circumstances his ship becomes his home, all his moveables
follow him to her to sink or swim as fate shall mark his destiny, and not
forgetful of the comforts he has been accustomed to enjoy on shore he sets to
work and in a few days his new habitation is rigged out with every desirable
convenience.The effect of this custom in this particular will be well defined
in the following trifling occurrence ‑‑‑ what are called the
"spice boxes" on board men of war are temples erected to the service
of Cloacinas; those on board the Constitution had been displaced to afford room
to work the forward gun deck guns in action and those who paid their respects
at her shrine were now compelled to make the chains the scene of their profane
rites, or worship at her [?] by stealth in the quarter gallery. It was upon the third day that Capt Falcon
had been on board and his eyes upon every thing that passed, when walking the
Quarter deck in company with Lieut Ballard he remarked in a tone truly
contemptuous that "a British Officer would think it derogatory to be found
in the chains in the obscene manner in which he perceived the Americans visited
them." To this impertinent remark
the following pertinent answer was made and it had the effect of silencing the gentleman upon such subjects for the
future "Why, Sir, we know that these things are mere matter of opinion and
our reputation not at all affected by it provided our discipline otherwise is
such as will do ourselves credit and our country justice, and when her
reputation is at stake we are particular in little else, provided our guns tell
well, and you can be a competent judge of how far that end has been
attained." To a similar illiberal
observation of Capt Douglas's relative to the discipline of the Constitution
(which from the diminished state of her crew in manning her prizes had
necessarily become a little relaxed in unimportant particulars), made with the intention
of being heard by Capt Henderson, the latter observed that the former had
tested it on the 20th and could best tell whether it were effectual or
not. But to resume my narrative and leave
this keen encounter of others wit, I was surprised to find that the marks of
slaughter had not yet been wholly got rid of, for upon overhauling the sail
room a few hours after I had been on board, the mangled limbs of several
persons were found, intangled [sic] in a lower studding sail, which in the
bustle of taking in sail clearing decks &c had been carelessly thrown in
without being made up, and since she had been in our possession an opportunity
had not before offered for overhauling. Although every mode had been adopted to
repair her damage, yet marks enough remained in her bulwarks masts &c to
denote that there was some justification for the crew leaving their quarters;
in the Spanker alone, below the first reef band, were one hundred and forty
seven patches on the hole [sic] of musket balls, and lots upon lots of them in
higher parts, in fact the sail was literally cut to pieces and would not have
been patched had it not been considered an excellent trophy and a testimonial
of great execution‑‑ On
board the Levant I found her late Purser and
Surgeon, the former an Englishman and the latter an Irishman, in their
characters apparently somewhat better than the prisoners on board the
Constitution, but as I afterwards discovered their deportment arose more from
want of opportunity than from any regard for us or our attentions. The purser [sic], Hunt, was a well informed
man, a qualification rarely found in British ships, but from the want of a friend at court he had been unable
to obtain a larger ship, which seventeen years service entitled him to. One circumstance however convinced me how
little dependance [sic] is to be placed on the integrity of a Purser in that
service. There were several beeves on
board the ship when she went into action one of which was killed, the remainder
fell into our hands. This Purser,
nothing loth, requested me to see how nicely he would place the whole of them
to the debit of his government, or to use his own words "how nicely he
would cheat my Lords" which with the assistance of the Steward and Clerk
he accomplished in a few minutes and gained three whole beeves in the
transaction. Kelly, the Surgeon, though
young was apparently a man of science and skill, and appeared to be the only
man whom the prisoners had any respect for, and to do him justice his unwearied
attention to the wounded and the sick made an impression in his favour which
was hardly effaced by a knowledge of his selfish disposition otherwise. Speaking of the attainments of the officers
in a literary point of view as well as professional, it was with no little
degree of satisfaction that it was perceived the advantages lay all on the
American side, even the youngest of the Midshipmen having read most of the
classics and added thereto a stock of very general information improved by
their intercourse with polite society; whereas the extent of the researches of the British
Officers with but a few exceptions were bounded by the title and finis pages of
Hamilton Moore. It may be conceived that
this superiority did not pass unnoticed by the British, who more than once
expressed their surprise stating that they expected to find us a set of uncouth
animals uninformed and possessing little more intelligence than a brute, for
such we had always been represented to them, and such was the force of British prejudice
that they had never troubled themselves with the idea that we might be
Christians. If I might judge from what I
have seen in the British colonies I should say that a naval officer of that
nation is as little respected at home as he is feared in America and that his opportunities of
becoming a man of the world are restricted within very narrow bounds. In the colonies they are not tolerated in the
least by any man having a family, and it is rarely that they are to be found in
company with any one [sic] whose licentiousness has not closed the doors of
every thing like respectability against him.
From the 27th February to the evening of the 7th of March being Tuesday
we were standing to the Southwd under short cruising sail, smooth seas and
delightful weather, only occasionally for the last twenty four hours thick fog
and appearances denoting the proximity of land, such as drift weeds, and the
occasional appearance of man of war birds &c. At 4 P.M. the haze lifting
discovered the land on the larboard beam and made signal to that effect to the
Constitution, who hailed shortly after to know what land we called it, informed them we supposed it to be the isle
of May [sic]. Tacked ship to the
Westward and through the night stood off and on the centre of the island as we
supposed, but the strong current setting to the Southward carried us
considerably to leeward of it, and from daylight until 5 P.M. on Wednesday was
spent beating in round and weathering the dangerous reef at the North West end of the island, The Constitution and Levant delayed therein by the heavy working of the Cyane
and her inability to carry a press of sail. At 5 P.M. all three ships came to
in English road in the isle of May, a Spanish Schooner engaged in the Slave
trade [sic] making her escape from the harbour upon our appearance, leaving
behind a boat and boats' crew.‑‑
Upon displaying our colours a Portuguese flag was displayed upon the
hovel of the governor and a boat being sent on shore he manifested every
disposition to supply us with what we might want that lay in his power, but his
means were quite limited except in the article of goats and for these we were
not very well disposed to trade in great numbers; he gave us to understand
however that at Port Praya in the island
of St. Jago abundance of
fruit and stock was to be procured and advised our going thither. The inhabitants and natives of the island,
who live in a state of almost patriarchal simplicity dispensing with the use of
coin and trading with each other for what may be superfluous with either, and
with strangers for old clothes which they esteem of more price than gold and
for which they give their goats fowls and other commodities, were very happy in
recognizing our flag and were earnest in the wish that the war might soon be at
an end; and for this wish there appeared to be good grounds their salt pans
having gone into disuse, and hundreds of tons of that article standing, without
value, on the quay, for want of the American trade. This harbour is not a very convenient one for
large vessels being rather exposed to a fresh trade wind and of a depth of
water so great that the anchorage is too near the beach upon which there is at
all times a heavy surf running in so much that at the quay it has been found
necessary to erect a crane for the safety of those who go there in boats;
smaller vessels however will find good anchorage under the lee of a projecting
point of land a little to leeward of the town, if town it may be called which
town is none. Abundance of fish are to
be caught in the harbour of all hue and colours, some a deep red, others
lighter, and you may pursue the colour through all its gradations, as well as
the green, the yellow, the purple &c. red speckled with black is the most
predominant and is found in a fish resembling the perch in size and
conformation, and is not objectionable as a pan fish‑‑‑ one species of fish is caught here which is
boiled equal to the boasted tortoise or favorite parts of halliboat [sic], it
is called the grouper of a light greenish cast when in the water but has in
common with the rest of the fish caught
here all the properties of the dolphin in changing their hue and colours when taken
from their element, though not so distinctly defined as in the dolphin‑‑
the grouper has a head resembling in some degree that of a hog being rather
flatter on the top and his mouth is furnished in the upper jaw with a perfect
row of canine teeth the under one is furnished with but one tooth if it can be
called being a solid piece of bone extending from one extremity of the jaw to
the other and set in so strongly and furnished with an edge so keen that it is
necessary to be careful of your fingers if you wish to preserve them when
disengaging one from the hook.‑‑
While speaking of the finny tribe it may not be improper to remark that
in this part of the Atlantic the Nautilus or
what is called by sailors, the Portuguese man of war, are to be seen in fleets
in all directions, nor is the eye less gratified with the continual shoals of
flying fish which are alternately courting the water and the air, and it would
be doing father Neptune [sic] and his Court no injustice to suppose that they
had forsaken their abode upon the equator to wanton in the smooth seas at this
season. Thomson in his seasons remarks
that the birds found within the tropics boast more elegant plumage than those
of the more northern or Southern latitudes, but that they are deficient in
melody;‑‑ this remark might extend to the water and embrace the
finny tribe as respects their utility and flavor, for in elegance nothing can
compare with them but in other essentials they are more than deficient, they
are destitute. The flying fish that
phenomenon of the water and which is beheld with so much surprise and
admiration at first sight of it, though beautiful in form yet has with it when
served up a dryness and strength of flavor that renders it unpalatable, and
though great abundance of them are caught near the windward West
India islands yet they are food for none but the Slaves... Kelly the Surgeon who had never before been
within or near the tropics was so struck with the appearance of the flying
fish, which he in common with most of his countrimen [sic] believed only to
exist in fable, that his impatience to procure a sight of one had very near
cost him a trip to Old davy [sic]. His
desire was soon however gratified, a luckless one soaring beyond his abilities
falling upon the deck, a circumstance not uncommon and easily reconciled to
belief when it is known, that their powers of locomotion in the air extends no
further than to the time that their wings or fins remain wet after they rise
from the water, and in the hot tropical sun this is not of a minutes
duration. His pleasure upon this occurrence
was like that of a school boy in being gratified in the possession of a long
wished for toy, and he forthwith fell to dissecting and stuffing the Skin which
he accomplished in its natural form and suspended it in his state room, much to
the amusement of his shipmates, intending it as he said for a future present to
his uncle in Killmallock, that he might be convinced there was such a thing as
a flying fish.‑‑‑ We
remained in English roads until Tuesday at noon when the signal was made from
the Constitution to get under way which was accordingly done and all three ships
under easy sail standing to the Southward and Westward with a fresh trade wind
for Port Praya in the island
of St. Jago distant 5 or
6 leagues and where we had every expectation of anchoring in an hour or two, or
at furthest before sunset; but after leaving the land a league astern the breeze
lulled and left us almost becalmed a circumstance which we afterwards found was
almost always the case about these islands to leeward and accounted for upon
the principle that it has been attempted to account for the trade winds and
other phenomena of the tropics, that is, that the land becoming heated from the
sun so rarefies the air in passing over it that a current is formed to windward
of the islands which rushes in with such velocity as to force off to leeward a
bulk of the rarified air equal to its own, and which in passing over a mile or
two of sea contracts a density greater in proportion to its high state of
rarefaction, and thus in the product of an equilibrium a total calm almost
ensues‑‑‑ Throughout
the afternoon and evening light baffling winds and hazy which continued until
10 at night when the breeze freshened which ought to have warned us of our
proximity to land but being unacquainted with the signs of the times in these
parts were not aware of its being so close aboard when the look out [sic] sung "breakers
ahead and land upon the lee bow"!
what was it? "breakers, Sir,
and land under the lee bow!" here was the devil to pay, the Constitution
close aboard of us to windward, land under the lee bow about two ships length
off, and only the watch upon deck.
"Constitution, ahoy!" "Holloa!"
Put your helm down instantly, we are close aboard the land!" Fortunately
this was done in time to allow us to do likewise just at the critical moment
when a few yards more headway would have precipitated us upon the rock under
the last point bluff of the island
of St. Jago, and had not
the Levant been a very quick smart working
ship even then our chance would have been desperate, as it was, 'twas a very
narrow Squeak.‑‑‑
Shortened sail and stood to the Southward to get sea room and at 12 on
Thursday night hauled up to the Nd. & Wd. to prevent the Southerly current
setting us too far to leeward of the port and at 4 A.M. on Friday tacked to the
Eastwd standing off and on until daylight when the island of St. Jago
loomed up astern of us tacked again to the Eastwd and at 10 o'clock came to in
the Harbour of Port Praya. The town of Port Praya is the residence of the governor
general of the Cape
Verd [sic] islands but
boasts nothing remarkable in its appearance, save that here as well as in all
other parts of these islands window glass is wholly dispensed with, which to
the eye accustomed to meet it gives an appearance to their shabby houses truly
wretched and disgusting; it is situated on a high bluff overlooking and
commanding the harbour in all directions, and upon which are erected works of
defense which in the hands of any people in the least jealous of their
sovereignty or independence would prove efficient against any force sent
against it, but Portuguese valour certainly has discretion for its better part,
and the weapons placed in their hands for defense are the instruments of their
dishonor. A few miles in the interior of
the island is the town of Rio Grande
which it is said boasts some handsome buildings and every desirable convenience
that makes life comfortable, but this I believe is only the apology of the
inhabitants of Port Praya for their apparent poverty and their wish to be thought
something better than what they really are.
This harbour is one of the best in the world with water sufficient for
the heaviest vessels and almost land locked and can be but slightly affected
although it opens to the South a little westerly by the hurricane which most
generally come up from the South West.
The eastern side of the entrance to the harbour is a high bluff called
East point (the same upon which we were so near being in contact) and with
which bearing East a little northerly the Cyane came to, with the Constitution
on her larboard beam and the Levant on the
larboard beam of the Constitution the latter consequently being the westernmost
ship and the Constitution the outre‑‑ In the harbour we found lying a Portuguese
and an English brig trading for Jackasses mules &c‑‑ The latter upon perceiving our colours showed
signs of great uneasiness by hauling down hers, hoisting out boat &c.‑‑
a boat was despatched from the Constitution to inform them they might make
themselves easy, the neutrality of the port being a sufficient protection, with
which they were Satisfied. The boat then
visited the governor to obtain his permission to land the prisoners which he
readily granted and expressed his satisfaction at seeing us, tendering his
services to aid and assist in procuring any supplies of which we might be in
want and intimating indirectly that his friend Capt. Porter had saluted him when
he was there in the Essex, and inferring that
he should on this instance deem it a great compliment and would return it;
circumstances however as will be seen prevented his vanity from being gratified
in that particular. Upon the return of
the boat preparations were made on board the Constitution for landing the
prisoners and several boat loads were landed that evening. Captains Falcon and Douglass [sic] at their
request were allowed to visit the shore for the purpose of endeavoring to make
arrangements with the Master of the English brig to change the description of
his live stock [sic] and carry them and their officers to Barbadoes [sic] under
a flag of truce. Of this opportunity
they availed themselves to behave in a manner unbecoming men of honour on
parole for not satisfied with succeeding in the
ostensible purpose of their visit, they paid a visit to the governor and
by some misrepresentation on their part succeeded in poisoning his ear and a
message was sent on board the Constitution that no more prisoners could be received
on shore; about 12 o clock at night this was followed by a boat load of them,
accompanied by a Portuguese officer, who said he would be alongside with
another load before daylight, but precautions were taken to prevent it by
detaining him on board till daylight when he was dispatched back with the same
luggage he brought. At daylight on
Saturday the 11th March 1815 the signal was made from the Constitution to land
all prisoners which was accordingly done on board the Levant,
and every arrangement was made for painting her &c afterwards‑‑ The Sailmaker and crew came from the
Constitution to repair her sails and topgallant sails, royals &c were
unbent for that purpose, and the yards painted &c remained on deck to
dry. At 11 A.M. a boat was sent from the
Constitution to get the brig chartered by the British Officers under weigh, to
receive the baggage from the Constitution alongside. While in the act of doing this, and Capt
Stewart (as I afterwards understood) on the point of leaving the Constitution
to visit the governor, three large sail were discovered standing in for the
harbour, a few minutes sufficed to make them out Enemy's men of war the signal
from the Constitution to cut and make all sail by the wind was immediately
made, and in a few minutes our sails were bent and yards aloft and we were
under weigh standing to the Eastward on the larboard tack, the enemy hauled to
to leeward on the starboard tack and apparently in great confusion, clearing
ship for action; in a few moments the enemy wore and gave chase‑‑ At about 1 P.M. passed the Cyane to leeward
and followed in the wake of the Constitution the Enemy gaining upon us, but the
Constitution dropping them; by 2 the situation of the chased and pursuers was
as follows, the constitution at the head of the former line at about 5 miles distance
from the Levant and the Cyane in the rear of
the latter distant 3 miles; the pursuing squadron thus, a large fifty gun ship
(which we afterwards knew to be the Newcastle
mounting 64 guns of heavy calibre [sic]) on the lee quarter of the Constitution
and lee bow of the Levant and fast head
reaching on the former though she did not hold so good a wind; another forty four
gun frigate (which proved to be the Acasta) on the lee beam of the Levant fast head reaching on her and apparently coming up
bodily to windward, and another large fifty gun ship (the Leander, similar in
her armament to the Newcastle) broad on the
quarter of the Levant and close under the lee
bow of the cyane which ship sagged considerably to leeward and her situation at
this moment extremely perilous. At a few
minutes past 2 we discovered the Signal from the Constitution for the Cyane to
tack which we repeated and with which her commander instantly complied and
stood to the Northward and Westward.
Shortly after the Cyane left us the enemy opened their broadsides upon
us, but as yet fell short, and on board the Levant
we yet cherished the hope that we could hold way until dark when night might
enable us to bother our pursuers and effect our escape, but another half hour
convinced us that there were no hopes on this tack and we soon perceived the signal
from the Constitution to haul round upon the other with which we most
cheerfully complied. At this time
(previous to tacking) our situation was thus, the Leander 50 about 2 points
abaft the lee beam and the Acasta 44 one point on the lee bow of the Levant and eating us out of the wind as fast as she head
reached on us; the Newcastle
considerably to leeward but had gained so fast that she was full two points on
the lee bow of the Constitution‑‑‑ our situation after tacking
thus, the whole of the enemy having abandoned the chase of the
Constitution and tacked after us, the Leander close under our lee bow yawing
occasionally and giving us her broadside, but badly directed; the Acasta in our
wake, so sufficiently to windward of it to set light staysails, which she did;
and the Newcastle
in her wake‑‑ the latter ship was ordered by signal from the Commodore
(the Leander Sir George Collier) to continue in chase of the Constitution but
my lord George Stewart declined the perilous duty replying that his fore
topsail yard was sprung and his ship other wise [sic] injured but upon which
yard he afterwards carried whole topsails and steering sails all the way over
the Atlantic‑‑ 'tis most true that this ship in firing her broadsides
to day, such is the state of her discipline, had more men wounded than the
Constitution had in her late action with two ships. In about an hour standing to the Northward
and Westward we made t he land ahead and found that it trended considerably to
leeward and that there were no hopes of reaching the harbour other than by
running immediately under the battery of the Leander. In this predicament Lieut Ballard determined
to beach her at all hazards and should time permit destroy her; but the Surgeon
of the Levant and Purser upon being informed
of this determination represented the situation of their wounded (which in
truth with many of them was deplorable in the extreme) in so bad a light that
they must inevitably become victims to it if put in execution, at the same time
endeavoring to impress a belief that the neutrality of the Port would command
that respect from the commanders of the ships of His Majesty as would insure
our safety, that a contrary determination was the result and at all hazards the
harbour was to be gained. The helm was
accordingly put up and we run down the island in the rake of the Leander's
continuing broadsides, until having given the bluff which forms the easternmost
side of the harbour a narrow birth [sic] we hauled round it, borrowing [sic]
within half pistol shot of it, into the harbour
of Port Prays, and came to in a three fathoms [sic] under a fort of 37 guns
with our jib boom over the beach. In
rounding the bluff, the Acasta, in our wake, wore and poured her broadsides
into us but so badly directed that it had no other effect than cutting away
some of our loftiest rigging, while the fire of the Leander on our lee beam
which was almost constant had no other effect than that of covering our deck
with dust and gravel from the bluff, where all her shot lodged. The Acasta after firing hauled up again in
our wake and entering the harbour anchored on our quarter at about a short half
cables length distant and opened upon us from her forward divisions, and the Leander
and Newcastle
soon after wore under out stern and gave us a badly directed broadside each, afterwards
anchoring in convenient positions to annoy us and notwithstanding our colours
were down continued so to do until they were again hoisted and hauled down,
when we perceived a boat push off from the Acasta for us. Having come alongside the first lieutenant of
the Acasta (Davis) briskly came over the gangway and being met by Lieut
Ballard, said, "I am commanded to take possession of this ship in the name
of his [sic] Majesty" "His
Majesty! and pray Sir to whom of his [sic] Majesty's gallant officers are we
indebted for all the good conduct displayed upon this occasion." "M commander, Sir will enlighten you
upon that head when you get on board his ship"— At this moment, a noise on
the forecastle, occasioned by the prize crew having recognized some of their
old shipmates in the prisoners we had on board, arrested the attention of the
Lieutenant and he jumped forward to ascertain its meaning. Returning in a few moments he presented to
Lieut Ballard his side arms which had been surrendered to him when he first
came on board saying, "Captain Biddle, I beg your pardon, I have no
authority to receive your arms, they will be surrendered to the
commodore." "not Captain
Biddle, Sir, but Lieutenant Ballard of the United States Navy." "Not Captain Biddle Sir! I presume Sir this is the United states Ship Hornet!"‑‑ "there is some presumption in that Sir; ‑‑
No sir this is his Brittanic Majesty's late ship Levant"‑‑
"and that ship which escaped to the Westward?" "Is, Sir, his majestys [sic] ship Cyane"‑‑
"and what was the ship of which we gave up the chase"‑‑
"that was the United
states frigate Constitution, and the Cyane
and Levant are her prizes"‑‑ The boat was immediately dispatched to the
Leander to communicate this intelligence to the commodore, and preparations in the
mean time for sending the Americans on board the different ships were made on
board the Levant. We had expected that
when the intelligence sent to the Commodore was received by him, that a signal
for immediate sailing in pursuit of the Constitution would be displayed, and
that in the hurry and bustle consequent upon such an event would not be allowed
to send all the Americans out of the Levant
and that enough might be left in case she were allowed to remain in the harbour
to regain possession of her and we derived some little consolation from this
hope. We were disappointed however, and
upon the return of the boat from the commodore, found that although their disappointment was great, yet they were
fully satisfied with having regained the Levant,
although to keep her was a most flagrant breach of the respect due to the
neutral rights of the Portuguese, in whose harbour we had sought protection,
and were now lying. Circumstances
however will show how much the Portuguese themselves respected those rights,
and the little regard they had for the belligerent rights of a nation,
(whose policy hitherto had been to esteem them as friends,) in a wanton attack
upon her citizens who had sought her protection, in her waters, and under her
guns, and which instead of being fought in their defense were used to compel a
speedier surrender, to their enemy and her ally. The boat brought an order for the late
commander of the Levant to be sent on board the Acasta, with his papers &c.
which was complied with, and upon his arrival there found the commanders of the
respective ships assembled on board her.
Not satisfied with demanding from Lieut B. his authority for taking
command of the Levant and insisting upon a sight
of his commission, (declining to take his word) they demanded so far, as to
require that his desk, letters, &c should undergo and overhaul at the same
time inferring in not the most decent or gentlemanly manner that the same
scrutiny should take place with regard to the other officers of the Levant. This being
communicated by Lieut B upon the return of the boat, it was agreed that journals,
charts and every thing that in any wise related to the cruise or track of the Constitution
should be destroyed, and in the general wreck the journal of which I have spoke
on the 6th page of this recapitulatory narrative met its fate. By sunset all the Americans were removed from
the Levant and distributed among the ships of
the Enemy in such a manner as to prevent any two officers being members of the
same wardroom or steerage, and doctor Johnson and myself were all that were
allowed to remain on board the Levant. The proportion of men which fell to the lot
of each ship could not have been more than twenty four at furthest, as the crew
of the Levant officers and men when captured
was but eighty. The original prize crew
was sixty three and an additional seventeen were had by picking up the boat
which was absent from the Constitution when the Enemy appeared off the harbour,
yet notwithstanding there were no other prisoners on board any of their ships,
and the lenity with which the British prisoners on board the Levant
acknowledged themselves to have been treated these twenty odd men on board each
ship were treated with a vigour that would put humanity to the blush. Confined in the hold with double irons, and deprived
of their bedding, they were obliged to take the partial rest, which such
circumstances allowed, upon [the stones constituting] the shingle ballast used
in the stowage of the water casks; add
to this a total privation of grog (the elixir vitae of a sailor) in a warm
climate, and a reduction of water and provision, in the proportion of four of
their own crew allowance to six prisoners, and obliged to submit to all the
indignities which British seamen are so fruitful in towards their prisoners,
and it will require no great degree of sympathy to conceive their situation
truly pitiable. On board the Newcastle it fared still
worse with the poor fellows than on board either of the other vessels, and her
commander Lord George Stewart with brutal satisfaction, boasted upon his
arrival at Barbadoes, that his yankee prisoners were not so spirited by half as
when he first saw them, and that those of Sir George Collier and Capt Kerr did little
justice in appearance to the discipline of either of those commanders. In
truth, my Lord was right, for bad as all of them appeared those from his ship
would have done justice to a resurrection from the dead. in [sic] point of
flesh, though in spirit unbroke. It now
remains to account for the appearance of this squadron at a moment so unlucky,
for although the prisoners (the officers) were continually warning us that a
squadron was not far off, that would release them from durance, yet we looked
upon it more as a thing that they wished than that they were apprised of, or
something of that character so peculiar to their country which gave rise to the
bombast, "that the Sea is her domain and not a sail but by permission
spread" and which one half of them believed. But in this case they were better informed,
and knew that this very squadron had sailed from Boston bay [sic] in pursuit of us, and every
vessel on the eastern coast of the Atlantic
was apprised of their instructions and were furnished with orders that should
they fall in with us or any American frigate to cruise afterwards (in the event
of escape) in the track of this squadron and give them every necessary
information. By a reference it will be
seen that on the day previous to the capture of the Cyane we fell in with a
Russian ship which recognized our true character, and which a few hours after
leaving us fell in likewise with our prize ship the Susan. The Susan hoisted English colours and the
Captain of the Russian informed him of his having but an hour before been
boarded by the Constitution to the eastwards and which ship when he left was
standing to the Southwd and advised the prize master if he meant to be safe to
stand more to the Northward and Westward, the prize master thanked him for his
advice and stood on. The Russian
standing to the Westward, on the morning of Monday (the day of the action) fell
in with the British Squadron, and communicated to them like particulars who
judging from the course concluded our destination was for the Canary
islands [sic] and in the hope of there finding us had visited
Fortaventura, Teneriffe &c &c and had cruised round them for several
days when not hearing of us concluded to visit the Cape Verds
[sic] where they so much surprised us and by their unskilfulness [sic] allowed
an escape that ought deservedly to claim the merits of a victory. After lying in the harbour of Port Praya
throughout the night of Saturday (during which time the Constitution must have
been standing to the Southward and Eastward, or beating up between the islands
and the coast of Africa, and in either case
had she been pursued must have been overtaken by one or other of the three
ships) without evincing any disposition to pursue the Constitution, on the
following morning the order was given to weigh, and at 11 o'clock the commodore
exchanged salutes with the governor. It
has been already stated that the guns of the Portuguese in the harbour of Port Praya instead of being used in the
defense of those who had sought their protection were used to compel a speedier
surrender to the enemy. This was
literally the case, for the moment the British squadron hove in sight off the
harbour, and indicated a disposition to attack us, the guns from the Portuguese
forts commenced a fire upon us; nor did they cease after we had got under weigh
until their shot would no longer reach‑‑ Upon the return of the Levant
to the harbour she was welcomed back in the same stile [sic] although the
American colours were yet flying on board her, and the presumption is that as
long as those colours continued to fly so long would they hostilely having
continued, had they not been dislodged from their forts by the shot from the
enemy's vessels, which passed over or through us, creating alarm and dismay
among them, and penetrating as well as others, the house of their Governor, and
their church. Notwithstanding these
multiplied enormities, this outrageous violation of his sovereign's rights,
this total want of respect for himself, and the people over whom he presided,
and the wantonness which had endangered so many of their lives, notwithstanding
all this, this Portuguese Viceroy, Governor, or whatever other title may be
most applicable to so black a villain, consented to compromise, (for a cask of
wine sent to him by the commodore and a promise of uncontested possession of
the boats unavoidably cut a drift [sic] by the Constitution and her prizes) the
indignities offered to his sovereign,
and returned the Salute of the commodore [sic] when under weigh gun for
gun. The Squadron, now under weigh,
consisting of the Leander, Sir George Collier‑‑ the New Castle, Lord Geo.
Stewart‑‑ the Acasta, Capt Kerr and the Levant
their illegal prize, shaped their course for Barbadoes,
the British officers full confident of intercepting the Constitution, and
building pretty security upon the recapture of the Cyane, whom they had seen
square away to the Southward and Westwd and whom they knew had not yet hauled
up for the States. How earnestly their
prisoners wished them disappointed in these anticipations must be
apparent. There is little doubt from
what has since transpired that had they conducted themselves as their duty to
their country required that both these objectives would have been accomplished,
but for eight days after leaving the Cape Verde
islands [sic], these four ships were never without signal distance of each
other; in the mean time the cyane was beating to the Nd & Ed and passed astern
of the squadron before she shaped her course for America. On the 9th day after leaving the harbour of Port Praya
the Levant was instructed to make the best of
her way to Barbadoes and upon her arrival to request of the admiral to permit
the Venerable 74 to look out to windward while this gallant and puissant
squadron went in pursuit of the constitution on the Coast of South America‑‑ On the 26th of March the Levant
arrived at Barbadoes, and in one hour after the Venerable was out of sight to
windward under a press of sail. How my
time passed in crossing the Atlantic is a
subject that I take no pleasure in
recording, suffice it that the unmanly exultation that I was every day doomed
to hear and see made my arrival, even as a prisoner, a circumstance more to be
desired than regretted. The conduct and
gentlemanly feeling of Lieutenant Jellicoe, (second of the Cyane, placed in
charge of the Levant when she was retaken),
was such as in a great degree to counteract most of the other disagreeables to
which I was subjected when he was not present, and from which I had no appeal, and
no refuge but retort, and much to my chagrin, I must say, that I was by no
means sparing in recrimination. On my
arrival in Barbadoes a great cause of exultation was the supposed capture by the
Endymion Capt Hope of the President but a few days turned the tables [sic]
This
typescript was made from the microfilm of the Humphreys mss. collection in the
Lilly Library, Indiana University, Bloomington,
Indiana. Permission to quote, or publish from this
material or to reproduce this material for any purpose must be obtained from
the Curator of Manuscripts, Lilly Library, Bloomington, Indiana.