v<
 
 LIFE OF 
 
 THE EARL OF DUNDONALD.
 
 LIFE 
 
 THE EARL OF DUNDOMLD, 
 
 G.C.B. 
 
 REAR-ADMIRAL OF THE UNITED KINGDOM, 
 
 AND 
 
 ADMIRAL OF THE RED. 
 
 JOSEPH ALLEN, 
 
 AUTHOR OF "TUE LIFE OF NELSON," ETC. ETC. 
 
 Illustrations. 
 
 LONDON: 
 EOUTLEDGE, WARNE, & ROUTLEDGE, 
 
 FARRIXGDON STREET; 
 NEW YORK: 56, WALKER STREET. 
 
 1861.
 
 TO 
 
 MISS ANGELA BTJRDETT COUTTS, 
 
 THE EXEMPLARY DAUGHTER AND REPRESENTATIVE OF 
 
 SIR FRANCIS BURDETT, BART. M.P. 
 
 THE STANCH PARLIAMENTARY ALLY AND FIRM PERSONAL 
 FRIEND OF 
 
 THE LATE EARL OF DUNDONALD, G.C.B. 
 
 
 
 Ois rio 
 
 IS, WITH HER KIND PERMISSION, 
 RESPECTFULLY DEDICATED 
 
 BY 
 
 THE AUTHOR.
 
 PREFACE. 
 
 THE necessity for this little volume will be obvious 
 to all who set a right value upon the achievements 
 of British sailors. It is true that the public is not 
 without full and authentic particulars of the career oi' 
 the late Earl of Dundonald. Two comprehensive 
 volumes were published in 1S59, containing an ac- 
 count of his services in Chili, Peru, and Brazil, written 
 by himself;* and the second volume of his " Autobio- 
 graphy "f was published shortly before his death. 
 Those who are more than commonly interested in the 
 services of this distinguished man, therefore, will find 
 in these works ample information. 
 
 But it is due to " the million," to whom I 
 volumes are unattainable, to place within their reacu 
 in a clear and impartial form, a record of the deeds 
 
 * '' Narrative of Services in the Liberation of Chili, Pens, 
 aud Brazil," by Thomas, Earl of Dundonald, G.C.B., 2 vols. ; 
 Ridgy 
 
 t " Autobiography of a Seaman," by Thomas, Earl of Dun- 
 donald, Vol. I. and II. ; Bentley,
 
 of one of the bravest and most ill-used of British 
 naval heroes. 
 
 Au autobiographer, particularly one who has been 
 engaged in deeds of arms, must ever be at a great dis- 
 advantage. He cannot place his own gallant services 
 in a correct point of vie\v without incurring the risk 
 of being charged with egotism, or with arrogating to 
 himself an undue share of credit. 
 
 An autobiographer, moreover, who has suffered 
 from unmerited persecution, too often fatigues his 
 readers, who are ready enough to admire his gallan- 
 try by dwelling too much upon his personal wrongs. 
 Comments which flow freely and unquestioned from 
 the pen of an impartial biographer, would be looked 
 upon as exceedingly out of place when published by 
 the principal party interested. 
 
 Lord Cochrane (for by that name he is most fami- 
 liarly known) particularly laboured under these dis- 
 advantages. He performed heroic actions, which he 
 could not specify as such, and suffered grievous wrongs, 
 the remembrance of which were, naturally enough, 
 always uppermost in his thoughts, and colouring his 
 narratives. 
 
 It has been the object of the author of this bio- 
 graphy to remove these drawbacks as far as possible, 
 and to set his hero before the world in his true 
 light ; neither hiding his faults, magnifying the merit 
 of his achievements (for that, indeed, would be diffi-
 
 PREFACE. IX 
 
 cult), nor overstating his grievances. Like most men 
 of ardent temperament, be was occasionally led away 
 by its impulses, and not unfrequently imputed 
 faults to others \vbicb were due, in some measure, to 
 bimself. 
 
 The great cause of Lord Cochrane's downfall was 
 tbe charge he brought against Lord Gambier. He, 
 in that case, seemed to forget that the admiral had 
 the charge of an important fleet, and did not make 
 sufficient allowance for the difference of age, rank, 
 and responsibility that existed between himself and 
 his superior officer. It was not his province, as one 
 of Lord Gambier's captains, and still less as a member 
 of Parliament, to question, as he did, the conduct of 
 his commander-in-chief ; and he found, when too late, 
 that the missile he had somewhat heedlessly aimed 
 at his admiral recoiled upon himself, and destroyed bis 
 fortune, if it exalted his fame. 
 
 At all times, it is well to remind the service of 
 deeds of daring, and to show by a statement of facts, 
 what may be done by practical skill, perseverance, 
 and intrepidity. Those who hesitate to undertake 
 ordinary risks will do well to refer to the account of 
 tbe capture of a large ship by a brig of 158 tons ; 
 to read the account of the engagement under the 
 batteries of Aix roads, when a small 12-pounder 
 frigate challenged, and gallantly engaged, another 
 frigate more than a third superior in weight of metal
 
 I PREFACE. 
 
 and number of men ; or to reflect upon the daring 
 valour shown on the 12th April, 1809, when a frigate 
 advanced, single - handed, to the attack of four 
 grounded line-of-battle ships. If other examples are 
 wanting, let them turn to the storming and capture 
 of YalJivia ; the cutting-out of the Esmeralda ; or 
 the chase of a squadron of thirteen sail by one ship. 
 
 The author does not pretend, in the following pages, 
 to do more than furnish a popular account of this 
 noble officer's services. He does not appear either as 
 his panegyrist, his defender, or, still less, as his 
 accuser. His object is to give an impartial sketch of 
 the Life of a hero whose deeds the country may well 
 be proud of, and to render the name of COCHRANE, 
 like that of NELSON, a " Household "Word." 
 
 GREENWICH HOSPITAL, 
 
 January, 1S61.
 
 CONTENTS. 
 
 PAGE 
 
 Lord Cochrane enters the Xavy, 1793-4 7 
 
 Made a Lieutenant, 1794-9 14 
 
 Promoted to the rank of Commander, 1800 24 
 
 First Cruise of the Speedy, 1800 26 
 
 Nearly catching a Tartar, 1 SOO-1 29 
 
 A Masquerade Ball, 1801 32 
 
 Another Cruise, 1801 33 
 
 Capture of the Gamo, 1801 35 
 
 The end of the Speedy, 1801 48 
 
 Command of the Arab, 1 803-4 52 
 
 Golden Cruise of the Pallas, 1804-5 54 
 
 Fighting Cruise cf the Pallas, 1805-6 59 
 
 The Naval M.P., 1806 72 
 
 The Imptrieuse, 1806-7 78 
 
 He is returned for Westminster, 1807 81 
 
 Services on the Coast of Spain, &c., 1807-8 93 
 
 Spanish co-operation, 1808 99 
 
 Operations on the Coast of Catalonia, 1808-9 Ill 
 
 An Episode 114 
 
 The affair in Basque Roads, 1809 134 
 
 The Court-Martial 155 
 
 Professional Kuin, 1809-10 173 
 
 The Malta Prize Court, 1811 17S 
 
 Naval Debates, 1812-13 179
 
 Xll CONTENTS. 
 
 PAGE 
 
 Disgraced and Degraded, 1814 198 
 
 Account of the Trial, 1814 217 
 
 His Imprisonment, 1814-16 ~2'25 
 
 Services in Chili and Peru, 1817-19 228 
 
 Second Attack on Callao, 1819 243 
 
 Storming of Vaklivia, 1820 253 
 
 Reception .it Valparaiso, 1820 271 
 
 Capture of the L\tmcralda, 1S20 280 
 
 Proves his Fidelity, 1820-2 293 
 
 Returns to Valparaiso, 1822 325 
 
 Services in Brazil, 1823 331 
 
 His Return to Europe, 1823-5 345 
 
 Services iu Greece, 1826-8 352 
 
 From his restoration to the British Service, up to his 
 
 Death, 1832-60 357 
 
 Poetical tribute to his Memory 359
 
 LIFE OF THE EAEL OF DUNDONALD. 
 
 ADMIHAL THE EARL OF DUNDONALD, G.C.B., 
 better known to fame as Thomas Lord Cochrane, 
 K.B., was born at Amisfield, a small town border- 
 ing on Lanarkshire, on the 14th December, 1775. 
 He was the eldest of seven children, of whom the 
 second, third, and last died young. Two of his 
 brothers, Basil and William Erskine, entered the 
 army ; and his youngest brother, Archibald, the 
 navy, in which he rose to the rank of post-captain. 
 Basil became Lieutenant- Colonel of the 36th regiment, 
 and William a major in the 15th Light Dragoons. 
 
 He was descended from a very ancient family, 
 traditionally associated with a celebrated Scandinavian 
 sea-rover who is supposed to have settled on the 
 lands of Renfrew and Ayr. In Crawford's Peerage 
 of Scotland it is stated that the family derives its 
 name from the barony of Cochrane, in Renfrewshire. 
 " Opposite to Johnstoun," runs this authority, in the 
 description of Renfrew, " upon the east side of the 
 river, lye the house and barony of Cochran, the prin- 
 cipal manour of the Cochraus, a family of great 
 antiquity in this shire ; whose ancestors have pos- 
 sessed these lands well-nigh 500 years, and, without
 
 2 PEDIGEEE. 
 
 doubt, have taken appellation from their hereditary 
 lauds when fixed surnames came to be used." 
 
 Pinkerton, in the Iconoyrapliia Scotica, or Por- 
 traits of Illustrious Persons of Scotland, relates 
 that one of his ancestors, Robert Cochran, gained 
 distinction, in the reign of James III. of Scotland, 
 as an architect ; and that he afterwards rose to emi- 
 nence as a courtier, but never lost his cognomen of 
 " the mason chiel." He was created Earl of Mar ; 
 but, unfortunately, the favour of King James brought 
 upon him the jealousy of the Scotch barons, and he 
 was hung over the bridge of Lauder. 
 
 In 1669, the first Lord Cochrane was created Earl 
 of Dundonald ; and the subject of this memoir was 
 the son of Archibald, the ninth earl. Archibald was 
 descended from John, the younger sou of the first 
 earl, and on default of issue in the elder branch of 
 the family, the title devolved on his grandfather 
 Thomas, who married the daughter of Archibald 
 Stuart, Esq., of Torrence, 'in Lanarkshire, and had 
 issue one daughter and twelve sons, the most distin- 
 guished among whom was Admiral the Honourable 
 Sir Alexander Inglis Cochrane, father of the present- 
 Admiral Sir Thomas Cochrane, Gr.C.B. The mother 
 of Lord Cochrane was Anna, daughter of Captain 
 James Gilchrist,* of the royal navy, and a very 
 distinguished officer. 
 
 * On the 2Sth March, 1759 (Lord Dundonald, in his Auto- 
 biography, places the action a year earlier), the Southampton, 
 of 32 guns, Captain James Gilchrist, and the 36-gun frigate 
 Mdampc, Captain W. Hothani, cruising in the North Sea,
 
 A SCIENTIFIC FATHER. 3 
 
 Archibald Cochrane was for some years in the 
 navy; but having served on the coast of Guinea 
 as an acting lieutenant, conceived a great dislike 
 to the profession, and entered the army. This dislike 
 had the effect of inducing him to do all in his power 
 to prevent his son from joining the sea service. 
 
 The Earl of Dundonald was peculiarly given to 
 scientific pursuibs and investigations, which appear 
 to have involved him in many pecuniary losses and 
 embarrassments. Among his inventions, was one for 
 preserving the bottoms of ships from the attacks of 
 the teredo navalis ; but the introduction of copper 
 sheathing about that time, rendered his preventive of 
 little value. 
 
 Lord Cochrane lost his mother during his boyhood ; 
 and so much had the speculations of his father im- 
 
 chased two large ships. The Melampe was the first to get into 
 action, and for three quarters of an hour engaged the two 
 strangers, which proved to be large class French frigates. The 
 Melampe, being much damaged, dropped astern ; but the 
 Southampton, passing her, brought the sternmost frigate to 
 action, when the other made all sail away. After a very sharp 
 contest, the Southampton's opponent, which was the French 
 40-gun frigate Dande, observing the Melampe to be again ap- 
 proaching, surrendered. Out of a crew of 330 men, the Dande 
 lost her first and second captains, and 30 men killed, and a 
 great many wounded. The Melampe sustained a loss of 8 killed, 
 and 20 wounded. The Southampton had one man killed, and 8 
 wounded, but among the latter was her gallant captain, who 
 received so bad a wound in the shoulder from a pound shot, that 
 lie was disabled from further employment ; and in reward for 
 past services, a pension of 300 a year was settled upon him for 
 life. 
 
 B 2
 
 4 EDUCATION. 
 
 poverished the family, that it was found impossible to 
 pay for the education of the children. The minister 
 of Culross, Mr. Holland, kindly offered to supply the 
 place of a tutor gratuitously; but pride, unhappily, 
 stood in the way of the acceptance of this generous 
 offer. To the widow of Captain Gilchrist, their 
 maternal grandmother, they owed much of the 
 education they did receive, that lady having applied 
 her small income to the exigencies of her daughter's 
 children. But even this imperfect education was 
 early put an end to ; for the young lord was made 
 his father's companion during a journey which he 
 made to London, in the hope of inducing the Govern- 
 ment and ship-owners to adopt his coal-tar composi- 
 tion for ships. He failed to obtain the patronage of 
 the Admiralty ; and the ship-builders declared that 
 they had no wish to prevent the ravages of the 
 worms, as they were their best friends. 
 
 Lord Cochrane was destined by his father for the 
 army, while the son was bent on becoming a sailor. 
 His uncle, the Hon. Captain Alexander Cochrane, 
 probably aware of the youngster's bias, took the 
 wise precaution of placing Lord Cochrane's name 
 on the books of the ships he severally commanded, 
 so that, unknown to the earl, Lord Cochrane was 
 nominally serving his majesty in the Vesuvius, Caro- 
 lina, La SopJiie, and Hind. 
 
 This, though irregular, was a common practice at 
 that period, so that many a lad who was at school 
 was supposed to be at sea. Though objectionable, 
 inasmuch as the government were paying wages for
 
 MILITARY TOETUEE. 5 
 
 services not performed, there is no doubt that benefit 
 sometimes accrued from the practice, as a lad of eleven 
 or twelve years of age was much more likely to 
 become a good officer by remaining at school for a 
 few years, than by being knocked about at sea with- 
 out a schoolmaster. 
 
 Through the influence of a friend, the young lord 
 received a nomination to a commission as ensign of 
 the 104th regiment, and was placed by his father 
 under the tuition of an old sergeant, who lost no 
 time in inducting his pupil in the mysteries of the 
 profession. His hair, cherished with boyish pride, 
 was brought down to the regimental " crop," and 
 plastered back with pomatum compounded of candle- 
 grease and flour, to which was added the cultivation 
 of a queue. " My neck," wrote his lordship, in his 
 autobiography, " from childhood open to the lowland 
 breeze was incased in an inflexible leathern collar or 
 stock, selected according to my preceptor's notions of 
 military propriety : these almost verging on strangu- 
 lation. A blue semi-military tunic, with red collar 
 and cuffs in imitation of the Windsor uniform, was 
 provided; and to complete the tout-ensemble, my 
 father, who was a determined Whig partisan, insisted 
 on my wearing yellow waistcoat and breeches yellow- 
 being the Whig colour, of which I was admonished 
 never to be ashamed." 
 
 One can imagine how hateful this restraint must 
 have been to a high-spirited lad, whose stature, being 
 beyond his years, was calculated to make his mounte- 
 bank costume more remarkable. "Passing one day,"
 
 6 EENOTJNCES THE AEMT. 
 
 said he, "near the Duke of Northumberland's 
 palace at Chariug-cross, I was beset by a troop of 
 ragged boys evidently bent on amusing themselves at 
 the expense of my personal appearance, and, in their 
 peculiar slang, indulging in comments thereon far 
 more critical than complimentary. Stung to the 
 quick, I made my escape from them, and rushing 
 home, begged my father to let me go to sea with my 
 uncle in order to save me from the degradation of 
 floured head, pigtail, and yellow breeches." This 
 burst of despair, however, only aroused the indigna- 
 tion of the parent and the Whig ; and the result was 
 " a sound cuffing." Remonstrance was useless ; but 
 his dislike to everything military became confirmed, 
 and the events of that day certainly cost his Majesty's 
 104th regiment an officer, notwithstanding that the 
 military training by his tormenter proceeded with 
 redoubled severity. 
 
 The Earl of Dundonald having, at this juncture, 
 contracted a second marriage with Mrs. Mayne, the 
 widow of a clergyman, by which he slightly improved 
 his circumstances, Lord Cochrane and his brother 
 Basil were sent to an academy in Kensington-square, 
 London ; but this lasted only six months. A lapse 
 of four years and a half succeeded, during which 
 Cochrane did all in his power to improve his educa- 
 tion, but grew more than ever determined never to 
 take up his army commission, The Earl,* finding 
 
 * In the annual address of the Registrars of the Literary Fund 
 Society in 1823, the following notice appears relative to this 
 unfortunate nobleman : " A man born in the high class of the -
 
 JOINS THE NAVY. 7 
 
 this to be the case, at length gave Ins consent, and 
 Captain Cochrane, his uncle, being then in command 
 of the Hind, consented to receive him, or rather to 
 allow him to join the ship, on the books of which his 
 name already figured. The expense of his outfit was 
 met by a timely advance of 100 on the part of the 
 Earl of Hopetoun, and with the stock thus purchased 
 and his father's gold -watch as a keepsake the only 
 patrimony he ever inherited he started to seek his 
 fortune. 
 
 ENTEES THE NAVY. 
 
 [1793-4.] 
 
 ON the 27th of June, 1793, Lord Cochrane, being 
 then of the mature age of seventeen years and six 
 months, presented himself on board his Majesty's 
 sloop Hind, of 28 guns, lying in Sheerness harbour. 
 He was accompanied by his uncle the Hon. John 
 
 old British peerage has devoted his acute and investigating 
 mind solely to the prosecution of science ; and his powers have 
 prevailed in the pursuit. The discoveries effected by his scien- 
 tific research, with its direction altogether to utility, have been, 
 in many instances!, beneficial to the community, and in many 
 have been the source of wealth to individuals. To himself alone 
 they have been unprofitable ; for with a superior disdain, or (if 
 you please) a culpable disregard of the goods of fortune, he has 
 scattered around him the produce of his intellect, with a lavish 
 and wild hand. If we may use the words of an apostle, 
 'though poor, he hath made many rich ;' and though in the im- 
 mediate neighbourhood of wealth, he has been doomed to suffei' 
 through a long series of laborious years the severities of want." 
 We may add that this venerable martyr to an inventive genius 
 died at Paris in poverty, on the 1st July, 1831, at the age of 
 eighty-three."
 
 8 JACK LAKMOUB. 
 
 Cochrane, who undertook to introduce him to the 
 first lieutenant. The officer in question was one of, 
 at that time, a numerous and most valuable class in 
 the service. He had been promoted from before the 
 mast, but retained his fondness for the forecastle not- 
 withstanding, and was never more at home nor better 
 pleased than when engaged in teaching those about 
 him their duty by manual labour. Jack Larmour, for 
 that was the generally received name of this rougli 
 specimen, was, on this occasion dressed in the garb of 
 a seaman. He was superintending the setting-up of 
 the lower rigging, with a marlin-spike slung round his 
 neck, and a lump of grease in his hand to ease the 
 laniards. Toung Cochrane was six feet high and a 
 lord, besides being the nephew of the captain. These 
 circumstances did not, however, appear to make a 
 favourable impression. He probably had the look of 
 what was termed a "K.H.B.," otherwise "Kind's 
 
 * O 
 
 hard bargain." He might have done for a spare top- 
 mast ; but no one, to look at him, would have expected 
 him to be useful as a midshipman. "Whatever others 
 might have thought, this was unquestionably the first- 
 lieutenant's impression. 
 
 The presence of the captain's brother for the time 
 prevented any expression of this feeling. On the con- 
 trary Jack affected civility, but terminated the in- 
 troduction by ordering this addition to the ship's 
 complement to get his traps below. Our hero was 
 then left alone in his glory. 
 
 Of all the spectres which haunted first lieutenants 
 in those days, and the feeling has even now scarcely
 
 A MIDSHIPMAN'S CHEST. 9 
 
 died out, a large midshipman's chest was the most 
 appalling. Many unhappy youngsters have had to 
 stand by and see a clumsy ship's carpenter engaged in 
 " docking " the receptacle of all his earthly valuables, 
 and Cochrane was not exempt from this trial. " Does 
 Lord Cochraue think he is going to bring a cabin on 
 board this ship?" asked, or rather ejaculated, the indig- 
 nant Jack Larmour on viewing the chest which he had 
 just ordered to be taken below ; " get it up again on 
 the main deck ; send down to Lord Cochraue for the 
 key." 
 
 The Newcome complied with the latter request 
 more readily than many would have done, but hearing 
 the sound of a saw at work, and perhaps warned by 
 the hints of his messmates, he followed the bearer of 
 the key just in time to see all his valuables turned 
 out upon the dirty deck. 
 
 This sea-ogre, in high glee, was standing over a 
 man who was cutting the chest just beyond the key- 
 hole, and uttering sneering remarks on the folly of 
 midshipmen in general, and lords in particular. Ke- 
 cluced to what Jack was pleased to consider reason- 
 able dimensions, he pointed out the lubberliness of 
 shore-going carpenters in not making keyholes where 
 they could most easily be got at, namely, at the end 
 instead of the middle of a chest. 
 
 The young Scotchman bore this with wonderful 
 temper, so that if Lieutenant Larmour was guilty of 
 this act of folly, in order to try the mettle of the 
 midshipman, he at least did not succeed in dis- 
 turbing his equanimity.
 
 10 NORWAY. 
 
 Pride seemed to have been eliminated from the 
 composition of the poor Earl's son. Poverty had 
 sternly schooled him, and it would have been well for 
 him, had he through life maintained the same pru- 
 dent control over his temper. 
 
 From this time, this rough son of Neptune seemed 
 to have conceived an interest in the captain's nephew. 
 "We can imagine that the gaunt midshipman was for a, 
 term the sport of his messmates, but his steadiness, 
 and determination to acquire a knowledge of his duty, 
 were such, that, assisted by the ability to retort their 
 practical jokes, he was not long in obtaining an easy 
 footing on board the ship. 
 
 The first cruise of the Hind was to the coast and 
 fiords of Norway, about which French privateers 
 were suspected to be lurking. The interception 
 of an enemy's convoy which was expected from the 
 "West Indies, going north about, was also an object 
 in view. 
 
 But beyond eliciting much hospitality from the 
 Norse men and Norse ladies, their cruise was unpro- 
 ductive. Captain Cochrane, though a strict discipli- 
 narian at sea, and indeed elsewhere, knew when to 
 relax. He knew that he would be better served by 
 his officers, if he respected their little privileges ; and 
 as there was no particular call of duty, the officers 
 and crew spent more of their time on shore than on 
 board. Sleighing, fishing, and shooting, were their 
 every-day sports. 
 
 Although Cochrane had made up his mind to avoid 
 everything in the shape of transgression, he was one
 
 MASTHEADED. 11 
 
 day caught tripping by his hard-a-weather first lieu- 
 tenant. It was his watch on deck, and Cochrane had, 
 for a few minutes only, quitted his post, when hearing 
 his name called, he found, to his cost, that his IdcJtc 
 had been discovered. Larmour had hit the unlucky 
 blot. The ordinary mode of punishment for midship- 
 men in those days, and for the succeeding half 
 century, was the absurd and often cruel one of " mast- 
 heading." Many old officers can tell tales of this 
 ridiculous and objectionable mode of punishment ; 
 how they have had to endure long hours of hunger and 
 cold merely to gratify the whim, or appease the anger 
 of some irascible first lieutenant or captain. Some 
 particularly smart officers have been known to resort 
 to the absurdity of decorating not only mastheads 
 but yardarms with midshipmen, and it was not until 
 a first lieutenant was tried by a court-martial for 
 having caused a midshipman, who refused to go to 
 the masthead for a punishment, to be hauled into the 
 top, that common sense interfered, and put a stop to 
 so objectionable a mode of reclaiming offending junior 
 officers. 
 
 Cochrane had no sooner regained his post on deck, 
 than the curt but ominous and well-understood com- 
 mand, "Masthead, sir," assailed his senses. Remon- 
 strance or excuse was utterly out of the question, and 
 the six-foot middy was, in due course, ensconced 
 under the lee of the maintopmast-head, endeavouring 
 to shelter himself from the cutting cold wind. 
 
 " The thermometer," said Cochrane, " was below 
 zero ;" but this we take to be a mistake, as the ship
 
 12 DEARLY FEOZEN. 
 
 would, under such circumstances, have been frozen in, 
 which was not the case. We presume he meant 
 "below the freezing point," and quite cold enough 
 even that temperature must have been at the mast- 
 head. The first lieutenant calculated the power of 
 endurance in his victim to five minutes, and when he 
 thought it probable that frost-biting would commence, 
 he prudently called his midshipman down. This was 
 the only time the punishment was inflicted upon 
 Cochrane ; but we have no doubt Jack duly practised 
 the art of torture upon others who had less influence 
 in the captain's cabin. As a general rule, it was 
 found that those officers who had come from before 
 the mast, were the most rigorous in their discipline. 
 
 A laughable incident is recorded connected with 
 this period. The Hind was, as a matter of course, 
 thrown open to the Norwegians, and the ship had 
 generally a good sprinkling of visitors on board. The 
 seamen had a pet parrot, which, from constantly 
 hearing the boatswain's whistle and following call, 
 had acquired the sounds to the greatest nicety. 
 Sometimes Poll would " turn the hands up," to the 
 great annoyance of those who were thus imposed 
 upon ; and one day a party of ladies having arrived 
 alongside to visit the ship, a chair suspended by a 
 single purchase on the main-yard, was duly lowered 
 into the boat to "whip" them over the side. 
 One or two ladies had been safely lauded on deck, 
 and the chair had been again lowered and the whip 
 hauled taut, when Polly mischievously piped " let go." 
 The order was promptly obeyed, and the lady conse-
 
 TKATTSFEEBED TO THETIS. 13 
 
 quently ducked over head and ears. Jack Larmour, 
 fortunately, was out of the ship at the time this hap- 
 pened, or the innocent mischief-maker would have 
 no doubt paid a severe penalty for practising her 
 imitative art. 
 
 The Hind returned to Sheerness, and her officers 
 and crew were turned over to the 12-pounder 32-gun 
 frigate TJietis. The Hind was a class of ship just 
 then going out. They were vessels of about 600 tons, 
 armed on the main deck for they were frigate-built 
 with twenty-four long 9-pounders, and on the 
 quarter deck and forecastle with four long 6-pounders. 
 The Thetis was not much better. She measured 
 about 680 tons, and was armed with twenty-six long 
 12-pounders on the main deck, four long 6-pouuderg 
 on the quarter deck, aud two of the same description 
 on the forecastle. 
 
 As the Thetis had to be fitted for sea, Cochrane, 
 instead of going on shore as others in his position 
 would have done, remained by the ship, and assuming 
 the frock of a seaman, turned to with the crew, deter- 
 mining to make himself familiar with this practical 
 portion of a sailor's duty. The bowsprit of the Thetis 
 overhung the common highway, and, perched upon 
 this, Jack Larmour might have been seen busily 
 superintending the process of " gammoning," assisted 
 by his six-foot midshipman. At this period intelligent 
 young officers found their advantage in a close atten- 
 tion to the minutest details, and studied to understand 
 everything connected with the ship to which they be- 
 longed, from stowing the hold to rigging the top-gallant
 
 14 RAPID PROMOTION. 
 
 mast. " The modern practice," said Cochrane, " is to 
 place ships in commission with everything perfect to 
 the hands of the officers and crew, little being required 
 of them beyond keeping the ship in order while at sea. 
 The practice is, to a certain extent, praiseworthy ; but 
 it has the disadvantage of impressing officers with the 
 belief that handicraft skill on their part is unnecessary; 
 though in the absence of practically-acquired know- 
 ledge it is impossible even to direct any operation 
 efficiently. "Without a certain amount of this skill, as 
 forming an important part of training, no man can 
 become an efficient naval officer." 
 
 PROMOTED TO THE BANK OF LIEUTENANT. 
 
 [1794-9.] 
 
 The Thetis, at the latter end of 1794, being man- 
 ned and ready for sea, was ordered to join the squadron 
 of Vice- Admiral George Murray, fitting out for North 
 America, and designed for the capture of the French 
 islands of St. Pierre and Miquelon. During the 
 voyage some icebergs were fallen in with, on the top 
 of one of which was a polacre-rigged ship. Being 
 now in his twentieth year, and having, by virtue of 
 the nominal time served in his uncle's ships, become 
 eligible for promotion, Admiral Murray gave Lord 
 Cochrane an acting order as third lieutenant of the 
 Thetis. 
 
 This unexpected piece of good fortune caused him 
 to redouble his zeal, and having been tolerably well 
 ground up by the first lieutenant, he was, perhaps, far 
 from being an inefficient officer. But the speedy
 
 INFLECTIONS. 15 
 
 promotion was, we are disposed to think, to some 
 extent, the cause of the misfortunes which afterwards 
 attended the career of this gallant man. From a, 
 very remote period it has been a rule for those who 
 are intended to become executive officers to betake 
 themselves very early to the sea. The peculiarity 
 about naval discipline is, that it must form a part, as 
 it were, of a young man's growth. Obedience must 
 be instilled into his mind when the will is, to a certain 
 extent, in a plastic state, or discipline will never have 
 its proper effect upon the actions. This practice was 
 carried to far too great an extent at one period, for 
 mere children were taken to sea under the idea that 
 they would grow more into the service. Unhappily 
 they took the inclination too much, and were for ever 
 afterwards unable to divest themselves of the quarter- 
 deck and its asperities', even in domestic life. There 
 is a mean, no doubt ; and we agree with the autho- 
 rities of the day, that fourteen is a good limit of age. 
 Cochrane, as we have seen, did not ship until nearly 
 eighteen, and in less than two years from that time 
 he was a confirmed lieutenant. Midshipmen in those 
 days were hardly considered officers. They were 
 " midshipmen," and had no rank, relative or other- 
 wise. Some years later they were called " quarter- 
 deck petty officers ;" they have now the relative rank 
 of ensign. 
 
 On the 13th April, 1795, Cochrane was transferred 
 to the 64-gun ship Africa, commanded by Captain 
 Eoddam Home ; and on the 6th July he was con- 
 firmed to the rank of lieutenant. "While on board
 
 16 PAIK A:S* EVIL. 
 
 this ship Cochrane met with a very disagreeable acci- 
 dent. He had invented a machine for catching por- 
 poises. This consisted of a leaden shot, stuck round 
 with barbed prongs. The surgeon laid him a wager 
 that he could not hurl this missile a certain distance, 
 in the attempt to accomplish which one of the barbed 
 prongs or hooks caught the fore-finger, and very 
 nearly separated it from the hand. The pain attending 
 this wound put Cochrane's philosophy to the rout. 
 He had arrived at the conclusion, by his specious 
 reading, that pain was not an evil, or that pain had 
 no existence. " As the doctor was dressing my hand," 
 said he, " the pain was so intense that my crotchet 
 was sadly scandalized by an involuntary exclamation 
 of agony. ' "What ! ' said the doctor, ' I thought there 
 was no such thing as pain?' oSTot liking to have a 
 favourite theory so palpably demolished, the ready 
 reply was, that my exclamation was not one of pain, 
 but mental only, arising from the sight of my own 
 blood. He laughed, whilst I writhed on ; but the 
 lesson knocked some foolish notions out of my head." 
 The rough and ready Larmour, who was a lieutenant 
 of twelve years' standing, having obtained promotion 
 to the rank of master and commander,* Captain 
 Cochrane obtained the removal of his nephew to the 
 Thetis. On rejoining this ship he was ordered to pass 
 an examination, sho-.ving his qualifications for the rank 
 
 * This title, though for a long time common in the navy, was 
 officially disused in 1797. For a century prior to that date the 
 title was that of " master and commander." Captain Larmour 
 obtained post rank in April, 1800, and died in 1807.
 
 A. SEA ODDITY. 17 
 
 of lieutenant, which, as a matter of course, he was 
 able to do, as the certificates of his uncle were avail- 
 able for the requisite six years' servitude. 
 
 Cochrane, by his absence from the Thetis, had lost 
 a fine chance. In company with the Hussar, that 
 ship had captured a French frigate and corvette, 
 which was the only action in which she participated 
 during her five years' service on the station. 
 
 Admiral Murray was succeeded by Vice-Admiral 
 George Yandeput ; and on the 21st June, 1797, 
 Cochrane was appointed a lieutenant of the flag-ship 
 Resolution. Admiral Vandeput was a sea oddity, if 
 we are to judge from the following anecdote : "Being 
 seated near the admiral at dinner, he inquired what 
 dish was before me. Mentioning its nature, I asked 
 if he would permit me to help him. The uncourteous 
 reply was, that whenever he wished for anything he 
 was in the habit of asking for it. Xot knowing what 
 to make of a rebuff" of this nature, it was met by an 
 inquiry if he would allow me the honour of taking 
 wine with him. ' I never take wine with any man, 
 my lord,' was the unexpected reply." 
 
 Cochrane fancied he had got among the Groths, and 
 that Yandeput was their chief; but he found that it 
 was only a habit which the gallant admiral had ac- 
 quired. He thought, by showing his worst qualities 
 first, he would improve by acquaintance. In this he 
 was tolerably sure of succeeding, provided he always 
 met with those who could put up with his Irusquerie, 
 and e;ive him a second trial. Cochrane described him
 
 18 SHOOTING A PIG. 
 
 as being a perfect gentleman, and one of the kindest 
 commanders living. 
 
 Tired of the quiet monotony of Halifax, the vice- 
 adiniral determined on wintering in the Chesapeake, 
 and took up his quarters on shore, inviting his officers 
 in turn to spend a week with him. The service was 
 most agreeable. The innkeeper of the small town 
 mustered a pack of hounds, which often led their fol- 
 lowers into perilous situations in a country so over- 
 grown with wood, the thick forests frequently com- 
 pelling the riders to lie flat on the backs of their 
 horses to escape being thrown ofl'. Cochrane here 
 met with a curious adventure. It was his turn to 
 spend a week at the admiral's house ; and as the 
 admiral was about to give a large dinner to the neigh- 
 bouring gentry, Cochrane officiously determined to add 
 some delicacy to the feast. 
 
 He sallied out with this object in view, and on 
 reaching the forest, encountered a huge wild-looking 
 sow, with a farrow of young pigs. The idea of a 
 sucking-pig immediately suggested itself to the 
 sportsman ; and selecting the most promising of the 
 lot, he levelled hid rifle, and, being a good shot, 
 stretched the infant porker on a gory field. But his 
 shot was not paid for. He had aroused the maternal 
 sympathies of Mrs. Pig, and the consequence was a 
 ferocious charge upon the butcher of her tender off- 
 spring. Retreat was decidedly advisable. He could 
 not shoot the sow, for his riile was unloaded. For- 
 tunately a tree interposed its friendly shelter, and 
 now the gallant lieutenant, leaving his rifle at its foot,
 
 COKSEQUENCES. 19 
 
 might have been seen perched in the fork of the tree, 
 and watching, with unwonted earnestness, the move- 
 ments of his wild-looking acquaintance. Maternal 
 duty at length called away his persecutor, and Coch- 
 rane was released from his very unpleasant dilemma. 
 It would have occasioned no surprise had the slain 
 sucking - pig been devoured by the bereaved parent 
 and the young brothers and sisters ; but such was 
 not the case, for Cochrane found the defunct animal, 
 which he carried back in triumph to the admiral's 
 house, but too late for that day's feast. 
 
 Having told his story, Cochrane found that if little 
 piggy had escaped roasting, it was only in order that 
 the operation should be performed upon himself, and 
 the fire was sustained until Cochrane's skin began to 
 scorch. 
 
 Another incident is mentioned in his Autobiogra- 
 phy, which throws some light upon the character of 
 our hero. Byron has said 
 
 Man being reasonable must get drunk, 
 The best of life is but intoxication ; 
 
 but wiser men than Byron have declared wine to 
 be a " mocker," and an " equivocator." Cochrane 
 declared that even in his early days, when hard drink- 
 ing was considered an indispensable qualification for a 
 gentleman, he never indulged in the vice so as to 
 become inebriated. "While on the bank of the Chesa- 
 peake, however, he was severely tried. The bottle 
 circulated freely, but Cochrane managed to pour the 
 wine into the sleeve of his coat. The evasion was 
 c 2
 
 20 LORD KEITH HIS PATRON. 
 
 discovered, and he was sentenced to drink a bottle as 
 a penalty ; but he had a desperate struggle, and at 
 length escaped from his boon companions, and took 
 refuge in a farm-house for the night. His longevity, 
 and the freshness and vigour which continued to the 
 last, are strong arguments in favour of temperance. 
 
 Cochraue returned to England after an absence 
 of five years, and Lord Keith having been appointed 
 to succeed Earl St. Vincent, in command of the 
 Mediterranean fleet, offered to take him as a super- 
 numerary lieutenant on board his flag-ship. He 
 thankfully accepted the offer, as it would place him 
 in the fair way of promotion; and, on arriving at 
 Gibraltar, in December, 1798, he was appointed to 
 the arfleur, bearing Lord Keith's flag. 
 
 As, however, Lord St. Tincent did not give up 
 command, but remained at Gibraltar, Lord Keith was 
 despatched in command of the fleet employed in the 
 blockade of Cadiz. For four months the fleet was 
 engaged on this service, the monotony being occa- 
 sionally relieved by a stretch across to Tetuan Bay, 
 for water and fresh beef. 
 
 The first lieutenant of the Barfleur, Philip Beaver,* 
 was an officer of some note, and it was Cochrane's 
 misfortune to have a serious quarrel with this officer, 
 which ended in a court-martial. The account given 
 by Lord Cochrane tells very much against himself. 
 His lordship had, it appears, made some very strong 
 
 * This officer died a post-captain. A memoir of his services 
 was published in 1829, written by the present Vice-Admiral 
 Smyth, D.C.L.
 
 A QUARKEL; 21 
 
 remarks with reference to certain commercial specu- 
 lations with the hides of beasts slaughtered on board 
 the Barfleur, which some of the officers of the ship 
 were engaged in, and had thereby incurred their 
 animosity ; but this circumstance seems to have had 
 little bearing on the dispute with the first lieutenant. 
 The account given by Cochrane was as follows : 
 
 " One day when at Tetuan, having obtained leave 
 to go on shore and amuse myself with shooting wild- 
 fowl, my dress became so covered with mud as to 
 induce me not to come off with other officers in the 
 pinnace, preferring to wait for the launch, in which 
 the filthy state of my apparel would be less apparent. 
 The launch having been delayed longer than I antici- 
 pated, my leave of absence expired shortly before my 
 arrival on board not without attracting the attention 
 of Lieutenant Beaver, who was looking over the 
 gangway. 
 
 " Thinking it disrespectful to report myself on the 
 quarter-deck in so dirty a condition, I hastened to 
 put on clean uniform, an operation scarcely com- 
 pleted, when Lieutenant Beaver came into the ward- 
 room, and in a very harsh tone demanded the reason 
 of my not having reported myself. My reply was, 
 that as he saw me come up the side, he must be aware 
 that my dress was not in a fit condition to appear on 
 the quarter-deck, and that it had been necessary to 
 change my clothes before formally reporting myself. 
 
 " Lieutenant Beaver replied to this explanation in 
 a manner so offensive, that it was clear he wanted to 
 surprise me into some act of insubordination. As it
 
 22 COURT MABTIAL. 
 
 would have been impossible to be long cool in oppo- 
 sition to marked invective, I respectfully reminded 
 him that by attacking me in. the ward-room, be was 
 breaking a rule which he had himself laid down, viz., 
 that ' matters connected with the service were not 
 there to be spoken of.' The remark increased his 
 violence, which at length became so marked as to 
 call forth the reply, ' Lieutenant Beaver, we will, if 
 you please, talk of this in another place.' He then 
 went on deck, and reported to Captain Elphiustone, 
 that in reply to his remarks on a violation of dutv, he 
 had received a challenge ! " 
 
 Although Cochrane seemed to think the interpreta- 
 tion put upon his observation was not justified, we 
 cannot see that it bore any other. Cochrane meant 
 we will talk of this "on shore," or his words had no 
 meaning. 
 
 Captain Elphinstone endeavoured to soften the 
 matter down, and suggested that Cochrane should 
 apologize; but as he declined to do this, a court- 
 martial was the necessary result, and Cochrane was 
 " admonished to be more careful in future." The 
 Admiral's secretary, who officiated as judge-advocate, 
 was one of the raw-hide speculators, and, after the 
 business of the Court was over, Lord Keith advised 
 Cochrane privately to " avoid in future all flippancy 
 towards superior officers." The secretary over- 
 hearing the remark, embodied it in the sentence of 
 the court-martial at least Cochrane was under that 
 impression, but, if correct, it was one of the most 
 extraordinary proceedings on record.
 
 FLESHES HIS SWORD. 23 
 
 Lord Keith having shifted his flag to the Queen 
 Charlotte, Lord Cochraue joined that ship in June, 
 1799, and Lord St. Vincent having quitted the station, 
 Lord Keith became the Commander-in-Chief, thereby 
 putting an end to a series of very questionable pro- 
 ceedings, such as are certain to result from divided 
 authority. 
 
 On the 21st December,* 1799, Lord Cochrane 
 participated in a gallant affair in the straits of 
 Gibraltar. The hired cutter Lady Nelson, of 10 
 guns, was attacked off Cabreta point, and captured 
 by three French privateers and some gun-boats. The 
 act being observed on board the Queen Charlotte, afc 
 anchor in the bay, Lieutenant William Bainbridge 
 was ordered to take the barge and proceed to re- 
 capture the British vessel. He was accompanied by 
 several other boats, of one of which Lord Cochrane 
 was in charge. Bainbridge at the head of the barge's 
 crew of sixteen men, gallantly boarded the cutter, 
 and, after a sharp conflict, recaptured her, making 
 seven officers and twenty-seven men prisoners, but at 
 the expense of a severe sabre cut in his head. The 
 boat which Cochrane commanded was not so honour- 
 ably mentioned. Observing two privateers which had 
 been engaged making off", Cochrane dashed alongside, 
 and jumped on board ; to his surprise, however, not a 
 man of his boat's crew ventured to follow him. " This," 
 says Cochrane, "was the only time I ever saw British 
 seamen betray symptoms of hesitation." 
 
 * In the "Autobiography of a Seaman" the date of this 
 affair is erroneously given in September.
 
 24 MADE COMilAKDEE. 
 
 The French 74-gun ship, Genereux, having been 
 captured off Malta by the British squadron on the 
 18th February, 1800, was despatched to Port Mahon 
 under the charge of Lord Cochrane as prize-master. 
 The crew, hastily made up of invalided men, contri- 
 buted by the ships of the fleet, \vere very inefficient, 
 and the ship badly rigged ; but by dint of hard work, 
 in which Cochrane was assisted by his brother 
 Archibald, a volunteer, the ship was eventually navi- 
 gated to her destination. To this circumstance he 
 owed his escape from probable destruction in tha 
 Queen Charlotte, that ship having been burnt off 
 Leghorn, when three-fourths of her officers and crew 
 perished. 
 
 PKOMOTED TO THE RANK OF COMMANDED. 
 [1800.] 
 
 For his conduct as prize-master of the Genereux, 
 Lord Keith took the opportunity of recommending 
 Lord Cochrane for promotion to the rank of com- 
 mander, and his recommendation being successful, he 
 not only gained the step in rank, but was appointed to 
 command the Speed//, a brig of 14 guns. The Speedy, 
 was a very small vessel, but had just before gained great 
 distinction under the command of Captain Jahleel 
 Brenton, and had been particularly successful among 
 the Spanish gun-boats. Her armament was con- 
 temptible according to our present notions, but had, 
 nevertheless, done good service. The guns were long 
 i-pounders, but at close quarters, and well supplied 
 with grape and canister shot, they proved to be
 
 THE SPEEDY. 25 
 
 capable of doing much execution. Cochrane treated 
 this little craft with some disdain, for his ambition 
 led him to covet the command of the finest corvette 
 in the navy, the Bonne Citoyenne, which vessel had 
 not long before been captured from the French ; but 
 he was forestalled by the secretary, who had got the 
 promise of her for his brother. Little did he think, 
 perhaps, that he would gain more honour in com- 
 mand of a little brig of 158 tons than would have 
 fallen to his lot in a corvette of 511 tons. 
 
 The Speedy was at least well manned. She was, iu 
 fact, crowded with a complement of eighty officers 
 and men, a needlessly large number, except for 
 boarding purposes or manning prizes. Thinking the 
 armament insufficient, Cochrane applied for and 
 obtained an addition of two 12-pounders for bow and 
 stern guns ; but was obliged to return them into 
 store, as there was not space on deck to work them 
 independent of which the brig's scantling was too 
 slight to bear the weight. 
 
 Behold now Lord Cochrane his own master! Xo 
 longer the object of persecution to a Jack Larmour, 
 nor liable to the strict etiquette of the stiffly starched 
 Philip Beaver. No doubt he felt proud at the time 
 of his command, and he has confessed as much, 
 although his Autobiography abounds with remarks- 
 deprecatory of the humble little brig. 
 
 She was rather low between decks, and Cochrano 
 said he had to resort to a singular expedient in order 
 to shave with comfort. He caused the skylight over 
 his cabin to be removed, and pushing his head and
 
 26 HIS FIliST PKIZE. 
 
 shoulders through the aperture, made the deck his 
 toilet-table. The Speedy' s mainyard being sprung, 
 the foretop-gallant yard of the Gentreux was supplied 
 in lieu, and found too square. His cabin had not 
 room enough for a chair the floor being entirely 
 engrossed by a small table surrounded by lockers, serv- 
 ing as seats and store-closets. To one of Cochrane's 
 stature, the height of the cabin must have been incon- 
 venient enough, being only five feet. 
 
 THE FIRST CRUISE OF THE SPEEDY. 
 
 [1800]. 
 
 On the 10th May, 1800, the Speedy sailed from 
 Cagliari for Leghorn, having under convoy a fleet of 
 merchant-ships. At 9 A.M. a strange sail hove in 
 sight, which boarded and took possession of a Danish 
 brig, one of the convoy. The Speedy immediately 
 bore up in chase of the marauder; and at 1T30 A.M. 
 recaptured the Danish brig, and captured the assailant, 
 which proved to be the French privateer Intrepide, of 
 6 guns and 48 men. 
 
 Four days afterwards, during a calm, five armed 
 boats from Monte Christo were observed making for 
 the convoy. The Speedy got out the sweeps, and pro- 
 ceeded towards the vessels under her protection, but 
 was not in time to prevent the boats from taking 
 possession of two of the sternmost ships. A breeze 
 springing up, the Speedy was soon alongside the cap- 
 tured vessels, and regained possession of them, together 
 with the prize crews ; but the armed boats escaped. 
 The convoy arrived safely at Leghorn on May 21st.
 
 SHAKP AVOBK. 27 
 
 Shortly after this, the French under Massena having 
 been starved into a treaty with Lord Keith for the 
 surrender of Genoa, the Speedy was ordered to cruise 
 off the Spanish coast. On the 16th June, a tartan 
 was captured off Elba. On the 22nd, a French pri- 
 vateer, with a Sardinian prize in tow, was chased off 
 Bastia, and the prize, laden with oil, recaptured ; but 
 the privateer escaped by taking refuge under Caprea. 
 On the 26th, she brought out a Spanish 10-guri letter- 
 of-niarque at anchor under a fort near Bastia ; and 
 afterwards engaged five gun-boats which carae out of 
 Bastia with the intention of recapturing the prize. 
 The gun-boats followed the Speedy until midnight, 
 but did no considerable damage to her. On the 29th, 
 observing a French privateer off Sardinia, the Speedy 
 cast off her prize and endeavoured to bring the 
 stranger to action, but was outsailed. On the 4th 
 July, anchored in Port Mahon with her prize. Thus, 
 in the space of eighteen days, the Speedy had fought 
 three actions and captured three prizes. 
 
 On the 9th July she again put to sea, and when off 
 Cape Sebastian, cut out a vessel at anchor under the 
 protection of the forts. Ten days afterwards she cap- 
 tured a small French privateer; on the 27th, made 
 preparations for cutting out three others off Pianosa, 
 but was deterred by a large military force ; and on 
 the 31st recaptured a prize which, had been taken by 
 another privateer. All these little incidents took 
 place during a voyage from Port Mahon to Leghorn. 
 
 It seems scarcely credible that so many services 
 should have been accomplished without loss or
 
 28 BOLD AND PETJDE>~T. 
 
 casualty of auy sort; but the fact indicates the 
 great ability of the Speedy's commander, and which 
 his subsequent brilliant achievements developed more 
 
 fully. 
 
 His actions were not, even in the dawn of his 
 career, disfigured by rashness. It was not mere 
 bravado and dash with him, but discreet courage, 
 and admirable skill and forethought. His patron, 
 Lord Keith, must have felt greatly pleased with the 
 success; aud, probably imagining that this flush 
 might induce him to overrate his powers, gave him 
 a timely caution against attempting too much. 
 
 The gaieties of Leghorn, now freed from, the 
 restraints of the French army, were a welcome 
 relief, no doubt, to the young captain ; but his 
 slay was not very prolonged. The Speedy sailed 
 again, on the 16th August, for a run down the 
 Spanish coast ; and on the 21st she captured a French 
 privateer, with which, and a number of prisoners put 
 on board by the Jlittine nnd Sftlamine, she returned to 
 Leghorn. 
 
 This cruising continued ; but, on the 5th October, 
 the Speedy again anchored at Minorca, and learnt 
 that several Spanish vessels were on the look-out to 
 capture the little Speedy. This induced Lord Coch- 
 rane to apply for an increased armament. He was, 
 accordingly, supplied with G-pounders, but the ports 
 were not large enough, and the old long-fours re- 
 sumed their position. She put to sea again on the 
 12th, but was unsuccessful ; and, moreover, received 
 so much damage in a heavy gale, that she was obliged
 
 NIGHT-WOEK. 29 
 
 to return to Port Mahon to repair the injuries sus- 
 tained, which detained her till the middle of December. 
 On the 15th December she fell in with several of 
 the enemy's vessels oft' Majorca, and chased the most 
 promising of the group. A French bombard appeared 
 disposed to defeat the Speedy 's object, upon which the 
 latter cleared for action, and altered course to meet 
 her opponent. A running action ensued, which ended 
 in the bombard going on the rocks between Dragon 
 Island and the main. But observing three other 
 vessels in the passage, the Speedy turned her 
 attention to the strangers, and engaged and cap- 
 tured one of the number, which was a 10-gun pri- 
 vateer bound from Alicant to Marseilles. As the 
 bombard appeared likely to become a wreck, no fur- 
 ther attention was paid to her; but an unsuccessful 
 pursuit commenced after the other two vessels. 
 Cochrane was now so crowded with prisoners that 
 he was obliged to laud a number. One secret of his 
 great success was the night-work. During the day 
 the crew of the Speedy were allowed to sleep ; but no 
 sooner did the night close in, than all hands were on 
 the alert looking out for strangers ; and their watch- 
 fulness was seldom unrewarded. 
 
 NEARLY CATCHING A TARTAR. 
 
 [1800-1]. 
 
 The information conveyed to Cochraue at Minorca, 
 in October, was correct. The Spaniards had prepared 
 a rod wherewith to chastise the insolence and presump- 
 tion of the little British brig ; but in making certain
 
 30 >~EABLY TBAPPED. 
 
 of success, they reckoned without their host. Never- 
 theless, the danger was imminent ; and the cruise of 
 the Speedy would most assuredly have been cut short, 
 but for the singular adroitness and foresight of her 
 commander. There was a Danish man-of-war brig on 
 the station very peculiarly painted ; and when Cochrane 
 heard that the Dons were on the watch for him, he 
 determined to copy the Danish brig Clomer, thinking 
 he might, on a push, be able to personate one of that 
 nation. In order to make the deception, should he 
 have to practise it, more complete, he shipped a real 
 Danish quartermaster, and procured a suit of Danish 
 naval uniform. Never was precaution more needed ; 
 for on the 21st December, beiug off Plane Island, the 
 Speedy discovered a large ship inshore, having all the 
 appearance of a well-laden merchant-ship. All sail 
 was, of course, made to close the stranger ; and before 
 the true character of the chase was discovered, the 
 Speedy was completely in her power. The " deep- 
 laden merchant-ship" opened her ports, and disclosed 
 an array of heavy guns, a well-directed broadside from 
 which would have sent the little brig to the bottom 
 without more ado. 
 
 A\'e can imagine the chagrin of Cochrane at having 
 been fairly caught in the trap laid for him. Fight 
 was out of the question, so he tried the effect of a 
 ruse. Hitherto he had hoisted no colours. Had he 
 run down under British colours, the Spaniard would 
 have opened fire without asking a question ; but no 
 doubt the imitation of the Clomer occasioned the 
 hesitation, which saved the Speedy from certain cap-
 
 CLEYEB, FINESSE. 31 
 
 ture. Danish colours were therefore displayed, and 
 the Danish quartermaster was put in requisition, 
 ready to answer any questions. But anxious to avoid 
 too searching a scrutiny, and in particular to escape 
 being boarded, Cochraue deemed it advisable to resort 
 to another plan. He hoisted the yellow flag at the 
 fore, so that when the Spanish boat came alongside, 
 there would be no difficulty in preventing the officer 
 from boarding. The Clomcr, which the Speedy assumed 
 to be, had, so it was said, just left the Barbary 
 coast, and the yellow or quarantine flag denoted a 
 foul bill of health. The boat from the Spanish frigate 
 only carno within hailing distance. The " Danish 
 officer" stood in the gangway, and answered the 
 Spaniard's questions. He told the Spanish officer 
 that he had just left Algiers, where the plague was 
 raging ; and the information was so much to the 
 point, that, after wishing them a good voyage, the 
 Spanish frigate made sail, and parted company. 
 James, in his " Naval History," confounds this frigate 
 with the Ganto subsequently captured ; but Lord 
 Dundonald, in his Autobiography, has declared this 
 to be erroneous. 
 
 Unbounded praise was due to Lord Cochrane, for 
 the admirable finesse displayed throughout ; and so 
 highly was he commended for it by his gallant uncle 
 and former captain, Sir Alexander Cochrane, that 
 the latter wrote to Lord Sfc. Vincent on the occasion, 
 and begged his promotion on the score of the ability 
 he had displayed. 
 
 The Speedy resumed her cruise, and was again
 
 32 " LOS G TOM COFFIN." 
 
 successful. On the 24th December she captured a 
 Spanish vessel off Cartliagena, laden with wine ; and 
 engaged two privateers, which had charge of the 
 convoy. On the 25th chased another under a battery, 
 and on the 30th had a skirmish with gun-boats. 
 She refitted at Port Mahon ; and on the 16th January, 
 1801, again put to sea, and in less than a week took 
 three small privateers of ten, eight, and one gun 
 respectively. The Speedy had now more prisoners 
 than crew, and was obliged to put twenty-five of them 
 into a launch, and let them go. 
 
 A MASQUERADE BALL. 
 
 [1801]. 
 
 The Speedy went to Malta ; and it happened that the 
 officers of a French Royalist regiment had organized 
 a fancy-dress ball. Cochrane purchased a ticket, and 
 selected for his character that of a British sailor. So 
 closely did he copy a genuine tar, that when he pre- 
 sented himself at the door he was refused admission. 
 A rough, uncouth looking sailor he must have ap- 
 peared. If our readers will picture to themselves 
 " Long Tom Coffin," in a round tarry canvass frock, 
 a tarpaulin hat with a lump of tallow stuck in the 
 fore part, an iron implement, known as a marlinespike, 
 suspended round his neck by a bit of spun yarn, 
 redolent of tar instead of atar of roses, and with the 
 true swagger, they will bring before them Lord 
 Cochrane at the door of the ball-room. The dress 
 was not admissible, and Cochrane grew indignant. 
 The French master of the ceremonies insisted on his
 
 A DUEL. 33 
 
 leaving. " Jack Tar" elected to remain. " Some," 
 said be, " were in the guise of shepherds, others in 
 fantastic costumes of various kinds ; but the sailor 
 was too true a resemblance of a veritable Jack to pass 
 muster." In fact, he was thought not to be an 
 imitation at all, but the real thing. An altercation 
 ensued, which reached such a pitch as to render it 
 necessary to call in the picket from the guard-house. 
 No sooner had Lord Cochrane declared his name and 
 rank, than he was released ; but the French officer 
 who had endeavoured to expel his tarry visitor, re- 
 quested an apology. As Cochrane refused to apologize 
 to a man for collaring him, a duel was the consequence. 
 They met the following morning behind the ramparts, 
 and exchanged shots. The French officer was shot 
 through the thigh, and Cochrane had a narrow escape 
 a ball having perforated his clothes and grazed his 
 side. And so this piece of folly ended ; but Cochrane 
 declared that the lesson was not lost upon him, and 
 that he made a vow " never to do anything, even in 
 frolic, which might give unintentional offence." 
 
 ANOTHER CRUISE. 
 
 [1801.] 
 
 Cochrane's next cruise was to the coast of Tripoli. 
 Off Tunis Bay a strange sail was observed and chased, 
 which being a French vessel, ran into the bay to claim 
 the asylum of a neutral port. The brig mounted four 
 guns ; and Cochrane having ascertained that she was 
 laden with arms and ammunition for the army in 
 Egypt, undertook to violate the neutrality of the 
 D
 
 34 AN ESCAPE. 
 
 port. At night he boarded and took quiet possession ; 
 and having lifted her anchor, the captured brig was 
 expeditiously moved clown close under the Speedy's 
 lee, so as to prevent any communication with the 
 shore. Cochrane then coolly ordered a portion of the 
 French ammunition to be transferred to the Speedy's 
 magazine. As the crew of the French vessel evinced 
 a disposition to murmur at this unauthorized pro- 
 ceeding, an opportunity was afforded them to make 
 their escape. The launch was left in their way ; and, 
 taking the hint, they got into the boat, and rowed out 
 of the bay. Toothing more was ever heard of this 
 affair ; and the Tunisian Government either did not or 
 would not know anything of this outrage, for such it 
 undoubtedly was, and Cochrane conducted his cleverly 
 but unscrupulously obtained prize to Port Mahon. 
 
 On the 18th March, the Speedy had another narrow 
 escape from capture. A large frigate was observed to- 
 wards evening in chase, and the Speedy made all sail to 
 get away. During the pursuit, the frigate was gaining 
 rapidly ; and to add to the danger of being overtaken, 
 the Speedy sprung her maintopsail-yard, and was tinder 
 the necessity of lowering it to fish it. This added to 
 the loss of ground, and her capture must have followed 
 but for a clever, though not original, expedient. A 
 tub was prepared, properly ballasted, and a lantern 
 witli a lighted caudle, so placed as to be visible to the 
 chasing ship. Every light on board the Speedy was 
 then carefully covered up or extinguished, and the 
 tub, with the light in it, lowered gently over the side. 
 The Speedy then altered her course several points,
 
 A TKAP TOR THE SPEEDY. 35 
 
 leaving her pursuer to chase the light. The wind 
 having; in the mean while, changed and freshened con- 
 siderably, the ruse was the more likely to be success- 
 ful, and, indeed, it succeeded admirably, as at daylight 
 the enemy was not in sight. 
 
 CAPTURE OF THE GAMO. 
 [1801.] 
 
 After being engaged in several other affairs of 
 secondary importance, the Speedy now approached 
 the culminating point of her glory. The attempt to 
 rid themselves of this destructive little pest to their 
 trade and small privateers was resumed, and the mer- 
 chants and others of Barcelona equipped a smart sail- 
 ing frigate-built ship, which they sent to sea in the 
 hope of effecting her capture. The ship was the 
 Gamo, and although described as a xebec frigate, 
 she appears, from a drawing by Pocock, from which 
 we give an engraving, to have been a square-rigged, 
 polacre ship, with the exception of her mizen-mast, 
 which had a long lateen yard, not much unlike the 
 mizen-yard which was in. vogue until towards the 
 close of the last century. A number of gunboats 
 were sent as a bait to the trap the Spaniards had laid 
 for her, with orders to decoy the Speedy well under 
 the land, so as to insure her capture, and also, pro- 
 bably, to endeavour to shoot away some of her spars. 
 
 After a running fight of some duration with the 
 gunboats, the Speedy chased them into port, and after 
 repairing the damages sustained in this encounter, 
 the Speedy again stood in-shore. 
 D 2
 
 36 THE SPEED Y'S CREW. 
 
 At daylight, on the morning of the Gtli May, a 
 large ship was observed in the offing, bearing E.S.E. 
 steering under all sail for the Speedy. Had Cochraue 
 tried his hardest, we doubt whether he could have 
 evaded this foe, for he was hemmed in with the 
 land ; and had any effort been made to escape, it 
 would assuredly have marred any chance of victory 
 over so powerful an adversary. The officers and 
 ship's company of the brig, too, were emboldened by 
 their success, never having met a repulse ; and, no 
 doubt, reposed implicit confidence in their captain. 
 Some murmurs had also been heard consequent upon 
 the former retreat from a Spanish frigate ; so, putting 
 all these considerations together, Cochrane made up 
 'his mind to engage the approaching foe. 
 
 The proper complement of the Speedy, as we have 
 already seen, was eighty officers and men ; but of 
 these, no less than twenty-six were absent in prizes. 
 The total force in officers and men, therefore, was 
 only fifty-four. These comprised the commander, 
 Lieutenant Kichard "W. Parker, Surgeon James 
 Guthrie, Mr. Archibald Cochrane, midshipman, and 
 two warrant officers. 
 
 It is to be regretted that scarcely any of the gaps 
 left by historians have been filled up by Cochrane's 
 Autobiography, and that the names of some of his 
 gallant followers and supporters appear to have es- 
 caped his memory. 
 
 The ship's company having expressed their wish to 
 fight the stranger, every preparation was made cal- 
 culated to bring the contest to a successful issue. The
 
 CLIXGI>*O TO THE EXE1EY. 37 
 
 -pounders would have stood a poor chance 
 against the heavy metal of the frigate, and Cochrane, 
 like an experienced wrestler, determined to cling so 
 closely to his opponent as to neutralize his superior 
 strength. The guns of the Gamo for by that name 
 we may as well at once call the stranger were nearly 
 six feet out of water, and the top of the Speedy 's bul- 
 warks not more than five. By getting close to the 
 enemy, therefore, the shot from the Oamo's guns 
 would go harmlessly over the Speedy; while the 
 small four-pounders of the latter, loaded with round 
 and grape, would produce their full effect. 
 
 The danger attending this position was that arising 
 from the enemy's musketry, and from boarding. 
 Cochrane's aim was, therefore, to run alongside to 
 leeward, and without securing or lashing, maintain a 
 close action. 
 
 The Speedy consequently hauled close to the wind, 
 to hasten the junction, and at 9h. 30m. A.M. the Gamo 
 hoisted Spanish colours, and fired a gun. The Speedy 
 hoisted American colours, and crossed the frigate's 
 bows on the starboard tack, passing to windward of 
 her antagonist, in the hope of inducing her to reserve 
 her fire until the brig could get on the other tack ; but 
 the Gamo was not to be thus deceived, and discharged 
 a broadside. Fortunately, the guns were ill directed, 
 and the Speedy sustained no damage of importance. 
 She then hove about, and bearing up, ran close under 
 the lee and larboard or port side of the Gamo, her 
 yards locking in with those of her huge opponent. 
 
 Xot till then were the guns of the Speedy dis-
 
 38 SPANISH ATTEMPT TO BOABD. 
 
 charged ; arid the effect was greater than any one 
 could have looked for. The Spanish captain, Don 
 Francisco de Torres, and one of his principal officers 
 the boatswain were among the killed by this 
 broadside, the loss of whom must have been severely 
 felt. 
 
 The shot of the Gamo, in the mean while, flew 
 harmlessly over the Speedy ; but this being discovered, 
 the Spaniards determined to put an end to the contest 
 by boarding. The movement was not unobserved. 
 The helm of the Speedy was put a-starboard, and a 
 water space of twenty or more feet quickly inter- 
 posed. The assembled boarders, exposed also to a 
 murderous fire of musketry and grape-shot, returned 
 to their guns, and the Speedy again rubbed sides with, 
 her. 
 
 This movement was repeated with no better 
 result ; but, notwithstanding these successful ma- 
 noeuvres, it was clear that the Speedy was in a 
 position of great danger. Her rigging and sails had 
 been nearly cut to pieces, and if the contest had con- 
 tinued a little longer in this manner, her masts would 
 probably have been shot away. Cochrane therefore, 
 as the only chance of victory remaining, determined 
 on boarding; and his plans were very cleverly 
 laid. 
 
 The whole crew were to be engaged on this service 
 one division to board forward, and the other abaft ; 
 and both to work their way towards a junction in 
 midships. The party ordered to board at the bow 
 had their faces blackened, so as to look as hideous as
 
 SCABBING THE SPAKIABD. 39 
 
 possible ; and these, headed by Lieutenant Parker, 
 were not long in gaining a footing on the enemy's 
 deck, notwithstanding the presence of a large body of 
 Spaniards. The begrimed faces of the Speedy's men, 
 added to their impetuosity, struck dismay into the 
 hearts of the Garnets defenders, and they inconti- 
 nently gave way. 
 
 Cochrane in person had simultaneously headed the 
 aftermost division ; and the enemy, thus unexpectedly 
 assailed forward and aft, were driven a confused mass 
 in the waist. Here a desperate hand-to-hand struggle 
 ensued, which would probably have continued much 
 longer, had not one of the Speedy'' s men, by direction 
 of Lord Cochrane, fought his way to the ensign-staff, 
 and hauled down the Spanish colours. The effect of 
 this was the surrender of the Spaniards they be- 
 lieving that the colours had been hauled down by 
 their commanding officer's directions. In order that 
 every man should have a share in this boarding expe- 
 dition, Mr. Gruthrie volunteered to take the helm, and 
 performed his task with great dexterity. 
 
 The difficulty now was to secure the prisoners and 
 the prize. Several gunboats were observed coming 
 out of Barcelona, and had they acted with any degree 
 of spirit, and attacked the Speedy, she must either 
 have relinquished her hard-earned prize, or have been 
 captured. Cochrane's brother Archibald, a smart 
 young officer, a volunteer on the occasion, was placed 
 in charge of the prisoners, who had all been driven 
 into the main hold of the Gamo, the ladders removed, 
 and guns pointed down upon them, a man standing
 
 40 FOBCE OF THE COMBATANTS. 
 
 with a lighted match ready at any moment to repress 
 any attempt to retake the ship.* 
 
 The following is a comparative statement of the 
 force of the two ships : 
 
 Speedy. Gamo. 
 
 (No. 7 16 
 
 Broadside guns J Ibs. 28 .. 188 
 
 Crew 54 .. 319 
 
 Tonnage 158 .. 600 
 
 Lord Cochrane's official letter respecting this truly 
 brilliant and cleverly-conducted action, was as modest 
 as the service was commendable. It was dated, " Off 
 Barcelona, 6th May, 1800," and addressed to Captain 
 Manly Dixon, who was the senior officer at Port 
 Mahon, on the Speedy' 's arrival : 
 
 " I have the pleasure to inform you that the sloop 
 1 have the honour to command, after a mutual chase 
 and warm action, has captured a Spanish xebec 
 frigate of 32 guns, 22 long 12-pounders, 8 nines, 
 and 2 heavy carronades, viz., the Gamo, commanded 
 
 * The difficulty thus experienced, brings to the recollection 
 of the author of this little work a similar one exjjerienced on 
 the coast of Africa, some thirty years ago, by a mate the late 
 Captain Edw. H. Butterfield. He had captured a Spanish 
 slaver full of men, with a boat's crew ; and as the prisoners were 
 as six to one, he had recourse to a novel mode of keeping them 
 in subjection. The chain cable was ranged along the deck, and 
 each of the prisoners shackled to it by one leg. The anchor was 
 at the same time all clear, and a man in charge of the prisoners 
 was stationed at the stopper ready to let go. So that, had any 
 attempt been made to re-capture the vessel, the man had nothing 
 to do but drop the anchor.
 
 DELAY IX EEPOETINa. 41 
 
 by Don Francisco de Torres, manned by 319 officers, 
 seamen, and marines. 
 
 " The great disparity of force rendered it necessary 
 to adopt some measure that might prove decisive. I 
 resolved to board, and with Lieutenant Parker, the 
 Hon. A. Cochrane, the boatswain, and crew, did so, 
 when, by the impetuosity of the attack, we forced 
 them to strike. I have to lament, in boarding, the 
 loss of one man only ; the severe wounds received by 
 Lieutenant Parker, both from musketry and the 
 sword, one wound received by the boatswain, and one 
 seaman. 
 
 " I must be permitted to say, that there could not 
 be greater regularity, nor more cool, determined 
 conduct shown by men, than by the crew of the 
 Speedy. Lieutenant Parker, whom I beg leave to 
 recommend to their lordships' notice, as well as the 
 Hon. Mr. Cochrane, deserve all the approbation that 
 can be bestowed ; and the exertions and good conduct 
 of the boatswain, carpenter, and petty officers, I 
 acknowledge with pleasure, as well as .the skill and 
 attention of Mr. Guthrie, the surgeon." 
 
 After a delay of a month and three days, Captain 
 Dixon forwarded the above despatch to Mr. Xepean, 
 Secretary of the Admiralty, with a brief covering 
 letter, describing the affair as " a very brilliant and 
 spirited action with a Spanish xebec frigate." Lord 
 Cochrane, however, had meanwhile sent a duplicate 
 copy of the letter to Admiral Lord Keith, who was 
 then with his flag on board the Foudroyant, at
 
 42 THANKS OF LOUD KEITH. 
 
 Alexandria. Lord Keith returned the following 
 answer, dated June 9th, 1800 : 
 
 " I have received your lordship's letter of the 13th 
 ultimo, enclosing a copy of your letter to Captain 
 Dixon, detailing your engagement with, and capture 
 of the Spanish xebec of 32 guns, and cannot fail to 
 be extremely gratified with the communication of an 
 event so honourable to the naval service and so highly 
 creditable to your lordship's professional reputation, 
 and to the intrepidity and discipline of the Speedy' 's 
 officers and men, to all of whom I request your lord- 
 ship will make my perfect satisfaction and approba- 
 tion known." 
 
 The Speedy, .accompanied by her prize, reached 
 Port Mahon in safety, on the 13th May. 
 
 The casualties among the Speedy' s crew were won- 
 derfully slight in comparison with the magnitude of 
 the achievement. Two men were killed prior to the 
 boarding and five wounded, but the loss in carrying 
 the enemy was one man killed ; Lieutenant Parker 
 severely, both by musketry and the sword, the boat- 
 swain, and one seaman, wounded. The Gamo com- 
 menced the action with 274 officers and seamen and 
 45 marines, of whom she had killed, the captain, boat- 
 swain, and 13 men, and 41 wounded. 
 
 In his gazetted letter, as we have seen, Lord Coch- 
 rane mentions in fitting terms Lieutenant Parker, 
 the Hon. Mr. Cochrane, Mr. Griithrie (surgeon), the 
 boatswain, and carpenter, whom he has failed to name,
 
 DELATED PKOMOTION. 43 
 
 and the petty officers. Had a similar announcement 
 appeared half a century later, every person mentioned 
 would unquestionably have been promoted to the 
 date of the transaction; but in those days, when 
 heroic deeds were of every-day occurrence, Gazette 
 letters descriptive of them were looked upon as 
 chronicles of mere matters of course. The friends of 
 Lord Cochrane, however, vigorously plied the First 
 Lord of the Admiralty, who was then Admiral Earl 
 St. Vincent, with applications, which the earl, not 
 willing to concede any favour to the protege of Lord 
 Keith, chose to treat as demands. The rule of pro- 
 motion in the navy has never been properly defined. 
 The authorities in this age, if for no more commend- 
 able reason, aware that any failure on their part to 
 reward conspicuous valour, would be warmly taken 
 up in the House of Commons, have made a practice 
 of promoting all officers whose names appear in a 
 gazetted despatch, or at least the seniors ; but we 
 doubt whether any first lord, even now, would 
 concede a promotion, if claimed as a matter of 
 right. 
 
 His uncle, Captain Sir Alexander Cochrane, wrote 
 two very pressing letters, one relative to the escape 
 of the Speedy from the Spanish frigate, and the other 
 on learning the particulars of the capture of the 
 Gamo. The Earl of Duudonald also wrote a letter 
 on behalf of his son, in which he expressed his 
 " surprise and disappointment " at finding several 
 masters and commanders on the station, who were 
 his son's juniors long before, and for several mouths
 
 41 CAUSES OF THE DELAY. 
 
 after the taking of the Gamo, placed before him on 
 the captain's list. 
 
 The loss of time in acknowledging Lord Cochrane's 
 great merits was not, however, attributable solely to 
 any disinclination on the part of the first lord. Captain 
 Brenton, in his " Is aval History," says that " an 
 illustrious person " had told Lord St. Vincent that he 
 " must promote Cochrane," and that Lord St. Vincent 
 replied, " The first lord knows no 'must' ;" but the 
 delay was mainly owing to the absence of Lord Keith, 
 and to the round-about red-tape system which, from 
 the earliest times, had been the curse of the Ad- 
 miralty. Had Captain Dixon forwarded the des- 
 patches home immediately, the letters might have 
 been laid aside because they had not passed through 
 the office of the commander-in-chief, and no one would 
 have been more likely than Lord St. Vincent to take 
 this exception, for the navy never had a greater stickler 
 for forms and discipline than the noble admiral. The 
 chief reason, therefore, was the absence of Lord 
 Keith in Egypt. 
 
 The intelligence thus delayed, reporting the Gamo's 
 capture, reached England very nearly at the same 
 lime with the .news that the Speedy had herself 
 been taken by the French squadron, and Lord Coch- 
 rane's promotion was, therefore, ostensibly withheld 
 on that account. But Lord St. Vincent is justly to 
 be censured by posterity for having allowed petty 
 jealousy, for it could have been nothing else, to inter- 
 fere with his sense of justice and duty to a brother 
 officer. He might with propriety have resisted every
 
 EARL ST. TI>'Cr>*T. 45 
 
 attempt to claim that as a right -which custom had 
 placed in his power to give freely, or to withhold for 
 a time ; but when he did concede the boon he ought, as 
 a brave man, to have rightly estimated the gallantry 
 and ability of the young lord, and have had his cap- 
 tain's commission antedated. 
 
 "VVe wish that, as the impartial biographer of 
 Cochrane, we could acquit him of having done 
 anything to widen this breach. In this age we vie-,v 
 Lord St. Vincent as a hard, implacable commander ; 
 a man for the times, however, fitted to crush the 
 demon of mutiny with the iron heel of authority. 
 We view him as a stern, immovable admiral, ready to 
 carry out Articles of "War to the strict letter, without 
 the slightest feeling of compunction or hesitation. 
 He was the Judge Jeffreys of his time, and thought 
 nothing of hanging a dozen men suspected of mutiny, 
 or of allowing them to be tortured from ship to ship 
 by the infamous and brutal punishment of " going 
 round the fleet." 
 
 Yet at times St. Vincent could joke, and even do 
 generous acts ; but his antipathies were insurmount- 
 able. Cochrane most unwisely put himself in the 
 power of this officer, although he was doubly armed 
 with the authority of an admiral and of First Lord of 
 the Admiralty. 
 
 Before quitting the Mediterranean, Cochrane ad- 
 dressed a letter to Earl St. Vincent, requesting him 
 to promote Lieutenant Parker, who had been severely 
 wounded in the action. To this letter no answer had 
 been received on his arrival in England, and he wrote
 
 46 IMPEUDENT COKRESPOXDENCE. 
 
 a second letter. This also remaining unanswered, he 
 wrote again ; and to this Lord St. Vincent vouchsafed 
 a reply that his " application could not be entertained, 
 as it was unusual to promote two officers for such a 
 service;" besides which, he said, " the small number 
 of men killed on board the Speedy did not warrant the 
 request." 
 
 Prudence would then have dictated a cessation of 
 letter-writing. The correspondence had gone far 
 enough to show that Lord St. Vincent was not a man 
 to be dunned into promoting Lieutenant Parker ; but 
 the probability is that an early opportunity would 
 have presented itself to reward that gallant officer 
 had the matter been allowed to settle down. But 
 Cochraue took the surest means to prevent this. He 
 wrote again to Lord St. Vincent in terms which were 
 extremely unbecoming, considering the relative posi- 
 tions of the correspondents. Lord St. Vincent need 
 not have stated any reason for not complying with 
 Cochrane's request, and the gratuitous observation 
 about the small number killed was most absurd, in- 
 asmuch as that circumstance was the best feature in 
 the action ; but it was not the province of a young 
 captain to beard an officer holding the rank and posi- 
 tion of Earl St. Vincent. By doing so he not only 
 injured himself, but in gratifying his spleen ruined 
 his unfortunate lieutenant. He said that his (Lord 
 St. Vincent's) reasons for not promoting Lieutenant 
 Parker, because there were only three men killed on 
 board the Speedy, were in opposition to his lordship's 
 own promotion to an earldom ; for that in the battle
 
 PABKER SUPFEES. 47 
 
 from which his lordship derived his title, there was 
 only one man killed on board his own flag-ship ; so 
 that he wrote " there were more casualties in my 
 sloop than in your line-of-battle ship." 
 
 The remark was true enough, and this, no doubt, 
 made the arrow enter the deeper ; but that accident, 
 for such it was, had no proper bearing. Cochranc 
 might have said that seven ships in the battle off Cape 
 St. Vincent did not lose one man, and that their first 
 lieutenants were promoted notwithstanding ; but that 
 remark would have been less personal, and, conse- 
 quently, not so sarcastic, although more to the point. 
 The result was that poor Parker lost his promotion 
 for five years. Cochrane, having got into Parliament, 
 had influence enough to get him promoted ultimately : 
 but either through ignorance or intention, lie was ap- 
 pointed to a ship supposed to be in the West Indies, 
 and went to that station to take up his commis- 
 sion, when he found that no such ship was in the 
 navy. 
 
 In the "Autobiography of a Seaman" a great deal 
 is made of this latter circumstance, much more than 
 the fact warrants. Our impression is that it resulted 
 from an oversight. Whenever an oificer is promoted, 
 he is appointed to some ship "for rank." This is 
 perfectly understood, and an officer may be appointed 
 to the Royal William or to the Royal Oak, but 
 without any intention of his repairing on board to 
 take command. It is simply a form ; and had Com- 
 mander Parker consulted the commander-in-chief at 
 the nearest port, or have applied to the Admiralty to
 
 48 THE DEY OF ALGIERS. 
 
 order him a passage out to join his ship, he would afc 
 once have heeii undeceived. 
 
 A petition was presented to the Admiralty in 1824 
 from the widow of this officer, setting forth that her 
 husband had sustained a loss of a thousand pounds in 
 going to the West Indies on this bootless errand, and 
 claiming relief on that score ; but nothing was ever 
 done for her. 
 
 THE END OF THE SPEEDY, 
 [1801.] 
 
 Subsequently to the return of the Speedy to Port 
 Mahou, Lord Cochrane was ordered to proceed to 
 Algiers for the purpose of remonstrating with the 
 Dey upon the illegality of his cruisers in capturing 
 an English vessel. The Dey is reported to have 
 simulated much anger, in the hope of alarming the 
 representative of the British Government, and re- 
 marked that " the British vessels were the greatest 
 pirates in the world;" to which compliment Cochrane 
 bowed. The mission was, however, successful, and 
 the British vessel consequently released. The Dey 
 was not far wrong in his censure, and Cochraue af- 
 forded an instance in the fact that he had captured 
 a Spanish 6-gun privateer not long before, and had 
 given the command of her to his brother Archibald, 
 to cruise as the Sjieedy's tender. 
 
 The next, and last, service of the Speedy was per- 
 formed in conjunction with Commander Pulling, of 
 the Kangaroo. On the 1st June she fell in with the 
 Kangaroo off Barcelona, and in consequence of in-
 
 AFFAIR AT OEOPESO. 49 
 
 formation obtained from a Miuorquian privateer, it 
 was determined to go in pursuit of a Spanish convoy 
 of twelve sail, protected by five armed vessels. 
 
 On the morning of the 9th they gained sight of the 
 object of their search at anchor under the battery at 
 Oropeso. Commander Pulling, though the senior 
 officer, intrusted the conduct of the expedition to Lord 
 Cochrane, and directed him to lead into the bay. By 
 noon the two brigs anchored within half gun-shot of 
 the enemy, consisting of a xebec of 20 guns and three 
 gunboats, to which were afterwards added a large 
 felucca mounting 12 guns, and two other gunboats, 
 and commenced action. These vessels were lying 
 under a large, square tower, mounting 12 guns, which 
 commanded the anchorage, and which kept up a gall- 
 ing fire. At 3 P.M., two of the gunboats were sunk 
 by the fire of the Kangaroo and the Speedy ; but the 
 firing was kept up by the fort and some vessels in the 
 ofBng until 5 P.AI. 
 
 The Kangaroo then slipped her cables, and Com- 
 mander Pulling despatched the boats under the com- 
 mand of Lieutenant Thomas Foulerton, of the Kan- 
 garoo, Lieutenant Warburton, of the Speedy, assisted 
 by the Hon. A. Cochrane and Messrs. Dean and 
 Taylor, midshipmen, which succeeded in bringing off" 
 three brigs laden with wine, rice, and bread, all, 
 in fact, that remained afloat. When the strong 
 position of the convoy is taken into consideration, 
 coupled with the paltry fire of two small brigs, 
 the result is not only surprising, but reflects great 
 -credit upon all concerned. "\Vhen the action ceased, 
 E
 
 50 AX rXLTJCKY BLAZE. 
 
 the two vessels had expended nearly all their ammu- 
 nition. 
 
 The Gamo, during the absence of the Speedy from 
 Port Mahon, had been sold for half her value to the 
 Algerines. Cochraue would have made a large fortune 
 in command of such a vessel ; but the opportunity 
 was not afforded him. 
 
 The last service upon which the Speedy was engaged 
 was in convoying a dull sailing-packet from Port 
 Malion to Gibraltar. The Speedy and her sluggish 
 charge had reached Alicant, when two vessels were 
 observed at anchor in a bay close at hand. The Speedy 
 made sail towards them, when, without waiting her 
 near approach, they cut their cables and ran ashore. 
 As they could not be got off very easily, the Speedy's 
 boats went in and set them on fire ; and as they \vere 
 laden with oil, they naturally made a great blaze. 
 This, unfortunately, attracted the attention of three 
 French line-of-battle ships in the offing, and occa- 
 sioned the Speedy's capture. 
 
 On the 3rd July, before daylight, these three ships 
 were seen from the Speedy, and at first taken for 
 galleons; but daylight soon dispelled the illusion. 
 The Speedy having the weather-gage, endeavoured, 
 on discovering the true character of the strangers, 
 and that they were line-of-battle ships, to escape by 
 means of using her sweeps or oars. This proving 
 unavailing, the guns were thrown overboard ; and the 
 brig put before the wind, but in vain, for the Dessaix, 
 being the nearest, opened fire upon her. The chase, 
 or rather dodging, lasted three hours ; and at length.,
 
 CAUGHT AT LAST. 51 
 
 as a last resource, the Speedy being by this time 
 lightened of nearly all her stores, endeavoured to get 
 away by suddenly altering her course, and setting 
 studding-sails. But it was too late. The Dessaix 
 was within musket-shot, and the game being up, the 
 Speedy hauled down her colours. There can be no 
 doubt that every effort which good seamanship could 
 dictate, was used; and Captain Palliere, of the Des- 
 saix, deservedly complimented Lord Cochrane on the 
 skill he had displayed, and treated him, as it was the 
 custom of French officers to do, with great kindness 
 and hospitality. 
 
 The Speedy, under Lord Cochrane's command, had 
 done good service. The prize-money accruing from 
 his numerous captures, had enriched all hands, not- 
 withstanding the extortions of the Malta prize-court, 
 ?o bitterly complained of. The partiality shown by 
 Lord Keith, in giving the Speedy the best cruising- 
 ground, had excited the jealousy of other captains of 
 small vessels, and Cochrane attributed his having been 
 sent to convoy the packet to this circumstance. He 
 had, however, made hay while the sun was shining, 
 and had in all captured or retaken no less than fifty 
 vessels, mounting 122 guns. 
 
 The Speedy was carried into Algeciras Bay ; and 
 shortly afterwards Cochrane had to witness the un- 
 toward attack made by the squadron under the com- 
 mand of Sir James Saumarez, which terminated in the 
 grounding and loss of the 74-gun ship Hannilal. He 
 was not, however, long detained a prisoner of war ; 
 for owing to the wonderful celerity with which the 
 E 2
 
 52 MADE A POST CAPTAIX. 
 
 British squadron was refitted at Gibraltar, the disabled 
 ships, reinforced by the Superb, got to sea on the 
 12th July, in time to intercept a squadron of Spanish 
 and French ships in the Straits of Gibraltar, when 
 on their way to Algeciras, and Cochrane was ex- 
 changed for the second captain of the Saint Antoine, 
 one of the prizes. 
 
 A court-martial, as a matter of form, was held upon 
 Lord Cochraue for the loss of the Speed//, which re- 
 dulted in his honourable acquittal ; arid his promotion 
 to post rank was dated Sth August, 1801, just three 
 months and two days subsequent to the spirited 
 capture of the Gamo. 
 
 COMMAND OF THE A It A B. 
 [1803-4.] 
 
 Lord Cochrane had now cause to repent his indis- 
 creet letter to the First Lord of the Admiralty. True 
 it was a time of peace ; but his restless disposition 
 still prompted him to seek further work. But Lord 
 St. Vincent was in power, and had the nomination of 
 captains to ships. Cochrane, therefore, visited Edin- 
 burgh, and during his stay there attended the uni- 
 versity college. He made few acquaintances, and 
 gave himself up to study. The peace was of short 
 duration ; for on the Gth May, 1803, war with France 
 was again formally declared, and Cochrane made his 
 way to the Admiralty, and became a candidate for a 
 ship, no matter of what sort, so long as it was a ship. 
 He waited on the First Lord ; but St. Vincent had 
 nothing whatever open likely to suit him. One ship
 
 COMMANDS A!JT AHAB. 53 
 
 named was too large, another promised, and a third 
 not ready for the pendant. Nettled at the treat- 
 ment, he stated his intention of returning to Edin- 
 burgh to study, with the view to seek some other 
 employment. 
 
 Lord St. Vincent did not intend this ; he wished, 
 however, to punish him for the disrespect he had 
 shown him. The torture he had in store for him was 
 of a more refined description than simple refusal ; so 
 he appointed him to one of the most confirmed lag- 
 gards of a ship in the British navy. A number of 
 worthless north-couutry-built ships had been pur- 
 chased into the service, with the view to their being 
 employed in charge of convoys. The inequality in 
 sailing between the heavy merchant-ships and men-of- 
 war having struck some clever in dividual, who perhaps 
 had ships to sell, the Admiralty were induced to 
 purchase a small fleet of them, nearly all of which 
 came to an untimely end. The Wolverine, one of 
 this class, was captured in 1804, in defending a con- 
 voy ; and the Alert sunk by a few broadsides from an 
 enemy's frigate, and such a fate was predicted for the 
 delectable craft, the command of which was conferred 
 upon Lord Cochrane. 
 
 Lord St. Vincent ordered Cochrane to proceed to 
 Plymouth, and on his arrival there, he found himself 
 appointed to command the Arab. Never was a ship 
 more inappropriately named, the Tortoise would 
 have been a fitting designation. Cochrane repaired 
 to the dockyard to find the craft which was to bear 
 his pendant; and his chagrin may be imagined at
 
 54 PROFESSIONAL PUKGATOBY. 
 
 finding the Arab a barque, under conversion to a man- 
 of-war, which had previously been engaged in a very 
 becoming employment for her, that of carrying 
 coals from Newcastle. The dockyard people were 
 patching her up with old converted timber ; and when 
 finished, she was armed with 18-pounder carronades. 
 The Arab, in fact, though designated a ship-sloop, was 
 a far less effective man-of-war than the little 22-gun 
 Speedy. 
 
 His commission was dated October, 1803 ; and he 
 remained in this tub until November, 1S04. The Arab 
 would not stay in a moderate breeze of wind ; and 
 had she been caught on a lee shore in half a gale of 
 wind, must have been lost. Cochrane was enduring 
 the fires of professional purgatory ; for, in addition to 
 giving him the most inefficient ship in the navy, his 
 tormentor ordered him to cruise to the north-east of 
 the Orkney Islands, to protect fisheries, aware, all 
 the time, that no fishermen visited the locality pointed 
 out. Fortunately for him, Lord St. Vincent's term of 
 office was brief; and when the Arab returned from her 
 penal service in November, 1804, Lord Melville was 
 First Lord of the Admiralty. 
 
 GOLDEN CRUISE OF THE PALLAS. 
 
 [1804-5.] 
 
 On the 24th November, 1804, Lord Cochrane was 
 transferred from the Arab to a new 32-gun fir-built 
 frigate of 607 tons, armed with long 12-poimders on 
 the main-deck, and 24-pounder carronades on the 
 quarter-deck and forecastle. The Pallas had been
 
 CATCHES A HAEE. 55 
 
 off the stocks only four days, having been launched 
 from Plymouth dockyard on. the 17th November, on 
 the same day with the Hilernia, 104, then the largest 
 ship in the navy, and the Circe, 32. The Pallas, though 
 classed as a 32-gun frigate, in fact mounted 38 guns. 
 In the same \vay, owing to the erroneous mode of 
 calculation, 38-gun frigates mounted 46 guns ; and 
 44-gun frigates, 50 guns. The Pallets, being fir-built, 
 possessed the quality of speed, which was one in 
 great request ; and, after such a tortoise as the Arab, 
 this frigate must have seemed a hare when under 
 canvas. 
 
 Cochrane, however, had hardly effected this, to him, 
 very desirable exchange, when he found himself in- 
 volved in a disagreeable controversy. The commander- 
 in-chief at Plymouth was Yice-Admiral "William 
 Young ; and, in order to claim a share of the prize- 
 money which the new Pallas was likely to make, 
 he, so says Lord Dundonald, copied the Admiralty 
 orders, and so constituted the Pallas a ship belong- 
 ing to his squadron. This practice was, we believe, 
 not uncommonly resorted to by port-admirals ; and 
 captains were only too glad to consent to the arrange- 
 ment, inasmuch as it generally secured to them the 
 most lucrative cruising-ground, and often prevented 
 their being employed in the monotonous and unpro- 
 fitable service of convoying a fleet of merchant-ships 
 to Xorth America or elsewhere. But Cochrane was 
 an unwilling party to the arrangement, which proved 
 a good one for the admiral. Lord Melville had pro- 
 mised him a short cruise, as a means of rewarding
 
 56 ALL AMONG THE GALLEONS. 
 
 him for his past neglect ; and had he remonstrated 
 against the act, Admiral Young would, most likely, 
 have been ordered to cancel his selfish and un- 
 authorized order. Had he foreseen the success in 
 store for him, he would, no doubt, have done this. 
 
 The Pallas put to sea, and proceeded to cruise off 
 the Western Islands a perfect El Dorado, as it turned 
 out. One month was to be the duration of the cruise. 
 On the 6th February, the Carolina, a large Spanish 
 ship from Havannah, bound to Cadiz, was fallen in 
 with, captured, and sent to Plymouth. This piece 
 of good fortune was rendered doubly so by the in- 
 formation gained from the prisoners, namely, that the 
 Carolina was one of a convoy from which she had 
 not long before parted company. 
 
 That day week the Pallas fell in with a second, still 
 more valuable ; for, in addition to an ordinary cargo, 
 she had on board valuable diamonds and bars of the 
 precious metals. This vessel was also sent to Ply- 
 mouth ; and two days afterwards a third, richer still, 
 fell into his net. This ship having a great many dol- 
 lars on board, they were trans-shipped to the Pallas 
 for better security, and the prize despatched to 
 England. Next day, on the 16th, a fine Spanish 
 letter-of-marque was captured, also having on board 
 a quantity of dollars, but which, owing to the heavy 
 sea running, could not be removed without risk. The 
 treasure was, therefore, left on board, and reached 
 Plymouth in safety. In ten days Cochraiie had 
 realized a very respectable fortune. The amount is 
 nowhere stated, but it must have been considerable ;
 
 PAYING PRIZE MONET. 57 
 
 but the drawback was, that the port-admiral claimed 
 a third of the captain's share.* 
 
 Fortune, which had thus come so suddenly upon 
 the Pallas, seemed about to desert her, for while in 
 the act of securing the fourth prize, a British pri- 
 vateer was observed to take possession of another 
 Spanish vessel, which was in fact more valuable than 
 either of those captured ; and had not the privateer, 
 in her endeavour to prevent the Pallas from sharing, 
 made sail away, the probability is the fifth of the 
 convoy would have also found her way to Plymouth. 
 The privateer, in avoiding the Pallas, caused her 
 rich prize to fall into the jaws of a French squadron, 
 by which she was recaptured. 
 
 "We gather from the Naval Chronicle for 1805, that 
 the Fortuna had on board 450,000 dollars, equal to 
 132,000, and about the same sum in valuable mer- 
 chandise ; and as the other three prizes were very 
 
 * It was fi common saying among sailors at this period, that 
 when the pay-clerk went on board ships to pay prize-money, he 
 clambered with his money-bags into the maintop, and showered 
 the money down at random. All which remained upon the 
 splinter netting (a coarse rope netting, spread as a kind of 
 awning) was for the men, and all that went through, for the 
 officers. There was some reason for this saying. The captain 
 of a ship, not under an admiral's flag, received three-eighths of 
 the net proceeds. Lord Cochrane would therefore have enjoyed 
 three-eighths of the proceeds of his four fabulously rich prizes, 
 had not Admiral Young thrown in his claim for one of the 
 eighths, or one-third of Lord Cochrane's share, In the Auto- 
 biography, it is said that Admiral Young took "a half;" but 
 this could not have been so, unless some private arrangement 
 was made prior to the cruise.
 
 58 YERY >'EAELY TABBED. 
 
 valuable, the total net proceeds, at a moderate esti- 
 mate, could not have been far short of 300,000, 
 of which Lord Cochrane took one-fourth or 75,000, 
 and Admiral Young 37,500. But Cochrane was 
 well-nigh losing a good part of his booty as well as 
 his liberty. While on the passage home, between 
 the Azores and the coast of Portugal, a light fog 
 came on, which, though obscuring the hulls of vessels, 
 left their mast-heads visible to the look-out men 
 aloft. Three ships were reported, and it was soon 
 seen that they were line-of-battle ships. It was a des- 
 perate position. The wind freshened to half a gale, and 
 the Pallas, being a crank ship, was sailing with her 
 hammock-nettings half under water. The escape 
 appears to have been admirably managed. Finding 
 that the pursuing ships were gaining in the chase, 
 Cochrane determined to try what he could effect 
 by a manoouvre. He ordered everything to be pre- 
 pared for taking in every stitch of sail together; 
 and, just as the enemy's ships were expecting to 
 take possession of their prize, every sail was sud- 
 denly clewed up and lowered down, and the three 
 chasing ships one being on the weather, another 
 on the lee beam, and the third nearly astern or on 
 the weather-quarter, unable to get the canvass off in 
 time and haul to the wind, shot miles away to leeward. 
 Meanwhile the Pallas wore round and made sail on 
 the opposite tack. The pursuing ships, however, were 
 not long in resuming the chase, and were soon again 
 in the track of the Pallas. Night fortunately came 
 on, and the old trick of a lantern in a cask was put
 
 "PEWTEK" AXD "COBS." 59 
 
 in practice, while the Pallas altered her course and 
 got clear of her pursuers. 
 
 The golden Pallas, as she was now truly desig- 
 nated, reached Plymouth ; and, as Cochrane had, while 
 manning his ship, partly by pressing, promised to fill 
 men's pockets with Spanish " pewter " and " cobs," 
 he fully redeemed his promise by entering the har- 
 bour not only loaded with dollars, but with a gold 
 candlestick, five feet in height, at each mast-head.* 
 Cochrane never had occasion after that to send out a 
 press-gang, for men readily presented themselves as 
 volunteers. " Pewter " and " cobs," the nicknames 
 for silver and dollars, superadded to gold candlesticks, 
 never fail to have a strong attraction for sailors. 
 
 FIGHTING CRUISE OF THE PALLAS. 
 
 [1805-6.] 
 
 The Pallas was next ordered to convoy a fleet of 
 merchant-ships to Quebec. Au incident in con- 
 nection with this voyage is worth recording. "When 
 the Pallas sighted the American coast, it was found 
 that she was no less than 800 miles out in her dead 
 reckoning. The cause of this great deviation proved 
 to be incorrect compasses ; and upon investiga- 
 tion it was found that the binnacles were surrounded 
 by iron instead of copper bolts. Finding this to be 
 
 * As these fine pieces of workmanship, intended for the 
 cathedral at Madrid, came under the denomination of manu- 
 factured articles, the custom-house authorities demanded that 
 they should pay duty ; to avoid which they were broken up and 
 passed as old gold.
 
 GO 
 
 the case, Lord Cochrane, instead of entering the Gulf 
 of St. Lawrence, proceeded to Halifax ; and although 
 the dockyard authorities for a time demurred to 
 making any change without first communicating with 
 the home authorities, yet as Cochrane refused to lift 
 an anchor until the defect had been remedied, they at 
 last gave in. 
 
 The Pallas on her return to England in December, 
 was ordered to join Bear-Admiral Thornborough's 
 squadron, intended to cruise off the French and 
 Spanish coasts ; and, accordingly, left the Downs on 
 the 23rd January, 1806. Previously to proceeding 
 thither, however, Lord Cochrane cut out a vessel by 
 means of his boats at the mouth of the Somme, and 
 also captured a fast-sailing lugger. The Pallas sailed 
 in company with the squadron on the 22nd February ; 
 and on the 24th, being off the Isle Dieu, detained 
 seven French fishing-boats. Having purchased a 
 quantity of fish, Lord Cochrane released the boats ; 
 but not before he had obtained information which 
 enabled him, in the night, to capture a vessel laden 
 with wine. The boat used by the night parties in 
 capturing vessels was a very large galley, the private 
 property of the captain, which rowed eighteen oars, 
 double banked. Her rapidity was such that the French 
 merchant vessels, on observing her approach, invari- 
 ably endeavoured to run ashore. 
 
 Having made several prizes by these and other 
 means, the Pallas, being detached from the rest of 
 the squadron, chased a convoy on the 5th April into 
 the Garonne; and learning that some French cor-
 
 CUTTING OUT THE TAPAGEUSE. Gl 
 
 vettes were at anchor in the river, Lord Cochraue 
 came to the resolution of attempting to cut out two 
 of the number with the boats. The Pallas accord- 
 ingly anchored near the Corduaa shoal; and just 
 after dark the boats started on this perilous service. 
 "With the exception of Lord Cochrane and forty men, 
 who remained in the Pallas, the whole crew embarked 
 in the boats, under the command of Lieutenant John 
 Haswell, assisted by Mr. James Sutherland, master, 
 and Messrs. Edward Perky ns, John Crawford, and 
 "W. A. Thompson, midshipmen. A hard pull: of 
 twenty miles was before them, as the two corvettes 
 were at anchor a long way above the shoals. 
 
 It was not until 3 A.M. on the 6th that the boats 
 arrived up with one of the objects of their search this 
 was the national brig Tapageuse, mounting fourteen 
 long 8-pounders, and having a crew of ninety-five 
 men. The struggle was severe ; but the boarding 
 party, having taken her at different points, the Trench 
 were eventually overpowered. The tide ebbing 
 strongly, it was found impossible to ascend the 
 river further, to attack the other vessel; and being, 
 therefore, obliged to content themselves with their 
 one prize, the Tapageuse was got under sail, and at 
 daybreak was on her way to join the Pallas. But 
 the consort of the captured brig got under way and 
 opened fire upon the British prize. A running action 
 was therefore sustained until the Tapageuse reached 
 an anchorage outside the river. So ably had this 
 gallant and desperate service been conducted, that 
 only three British seamen were wounded.
 
 62 THREE TO ONE. 
 
 In the mean while the Pallas was in no small danger. 
 Three strange sail made their appearance in the offing, 
 standing in for the river. The private signal was 
 made ; but as it remained unanswered, Lord Cochrane 
 was convinced that the strangers were enemies. Forty 
 hands were all that remained in the Pallas, but Coch- 
 rane had recourse to a trick in order to make the 
 enemy believe he had a full complement on board. 
 He sent men aloft to cast loose the gaskets and stop 
 the sails with single rope yarns, and was thus able to 
 let fall the sails together, giving an idea of a numerous 
 crew to those who did not notice the slow process 
 of sheeting home the topsails. The Pallas then 
 weighed anchor and made sail for the largest ship ; 
 which had scarcely received half a dozen shots w r hen 
 she ran ashore, and was dismasted by the shock. 
 The crew took to the boats ; and, fortunately for the 
 Pallas, pulled for the shore, for had they been bold 
 enough to board the frigate, they would have encoun- 
 tered a feeble opposition. 
 
 The two other ships now appeared standing towards 
 the frigate ; and after firing a few broadsides into the 
 grounded ship, to prevent her from being extricated, 
 the Pallas again made sail to close the strangers. 
 "When within shot of the nearest, the frigate opened 
 fire from the bow guns, when the second vessel, fol- 
 lowing the example of the corvette, bore up and ran 
 upon the rocks. The shock, as in the former case, 
 caused the masts to fall over the side ; and this crew 
 also abandoned their vessel. The third corvette met 
 with a similar fate ; for after attempting to enter the
 
 BEPOETS HIS SUCCESS. 63 
 
 Garonne, the efforts made by the Pallas to intercept 
 her occasioned her running on shore. Thus three fine 
 vessels, each a match for the Pallas with her reduced 
 crew of forty men, were driven on shore and eventually 
 destroyed. 
 
 The following is a copy of Lord Cochrane's letter 
 to Vice-Admiral Thornborough, narrating the par- 
 ticulars of these captures, dated off Chasseron, 8th 
 April, 1806 : 
 
 " Having received information, which proved cor- 
 rect, of the situation of the corvettes in the river of 
 Bourdeaux, a little after dark on the evening of the 
 5th the Pallas was anchored close to the shoal of 
 Cordouan ; and it gives me satisfaction to state that 
 about 3 o'clock on the following morning the French 
 national corvette of fourteen long 12-pounders * and 
 ninety-five men, who had the guard, was boarded, 
 carried, and cut out about twenty miles above the 
 shoal, and within range of two heavy batteries, in 
 spite of all the resistance, by the first lieutenant of the 
 Pallas, Mr. Haswell ; the master, Mr. Sutherland ; 
 Messrs. Perkyns, Crawford, and Thompson, together 
 with the quarter-masters, and such of the seamen and 
 crew as were fortunate enough to find places in the 
 boats. 
 
 " The tide of flood ran strong at daylight. La 
 Tapageuse made sail. A general alarm was given. 
 A sloop of war followed, and an action continued, 
 
 * This was an error, as no French brig mounted anything, 
 heavier than 8-pounders, equal to English long nines.
 
 64 HIS DESPATCH. 
 
 often within hail, till, by the same bravery by winch 
 the Tapageuse was carried, the sloop of war which 
 before had been saved by the rapidity of the current 
 alone, was compelled to sheer off, having suffered as 
 much in the hull as the Tapageuse in the rigging. 
 
 " The conduct of the officers and men will be justly 
 appreciated. AVith confidence I shall now beg leave 
 to recommend them to the notice of the Lords Com- 
 missioners of the Admiralty. 
 
 " It is necessary to add that the same morning, 
 when at anchor, waiting for the boats (which, by the 
 bye, did not return till this morning), three ships 
 were observed bearing down towards the Pallas, 
 making many signals, and were soon perceived to be 
 enemies. In a few minutes the anchor of the Pallas 
 was weighed, and with the remainder of the officers 
 and crew, we chased, drove on shore, and wrecked one 
 national 24-gun ship, one of 22 guns, and the Mali- 
 dense, a beautiful corvette of 18 guns. Their masts 
 went by the board, and they were involved in a sheet 
 of spray. 
 
 " All in the ship showed great zeal for his Majesty's 
 service. The warrant officers and Mr. Tatnall, mid- 
 shipman, supplied the place of commissioned officers. 
 The absence of Lieutenant Mapleton is much to be 
 regretted. He would have gloried in the expedition 
 with the boats. The assistance rendered by Mr. 
 Drummond, of the Eoyal Marines, was such as might 
 have been expected. Subjoined is a list of the 
 wounded, together with that of vessels captured and 
 <lestroved since the 2Gth ult."
 
 TAINT PBAI3E. 65 
 
 The foregoing letter was forwarded to Earl St. 
 Vincent, commander-in-chief of the Channel fleet, by 
 Admiral Thornborough, with a most complimentary 
 letter, in which particular attention was drawn to the 
 high state of discipline of the crew of the Pallas, in- 
 stanced in the humanity displayed by them in the 
 conflict ; and Lord St. Vincent forwarded the dis- 
 patches to the Admiralty, with a letter concluding 
 with the following paragraph: "The gallant and 
 successful exertions of the Pallas therein detailed 
 reflect very high honour on the captain, officers, and 
 crew, and call for my warmest approbation." 
 
 Lord Dundonald, in his autobiography, described 
 the praise bestowed by Lord St. Vincent in this letter 
 as " reluctant." and as intended to act " as a wet 
 blanket on the whole affair." It is hard, however, to 
 discover any strong ground for this assumption. 
 Cochrane often complained bitterly of the neglect 
 of his first lieutenant, Haswell, who commanded the 
 cutting-out expedition ; but it is to be feared that the 
 cause rested in some degree upon the letter of the 
 8th of April, which we have just reprinted from the 
 Gazette. Lord Cochrane, it is true, stated that the 
 boarding was conducted by Lieutenant Haswell ; but 
 nowhere mentioned that officer's services individually 
 with any praise. He wrote " the conduct of the 
 officers and men," &c., " will be justly appreciated ; " 
 and Lieutenant Haswell was allotted no particular 
 share of the credit ; in fact, there was, as it were, a 
 sinister intention manifested to give to Lieutenant 
 Mapleton, who was not present, the share of praise
 
 66 K02r-PBOMOII02f OF HASWELL. 
 
 \vliich belonged to Haswell. "What else was meant by 
 the passage " the absence of Lieutenant Mapleton is 
 much to be regretted : he would have gloried in the 
 expedition with the boats " ? Had the " He " been 
 italicized, there would have been no question as to 
 the intention. 
 
 Owing, no doubt, chiefly to the " reluctant praise " 
 of Lieutenant Haswell, that officer lost his promotion 
 for a time, and Cochraue subsequently made of this 
 neglect a rod with which to castigate the authorities. 
 
 On the 14th, the Pallas returned to the scene of 
 her actions with the corvettes, and after silencing a 
 battery which had been thrown up for the protection 
 of one of the grounded vessels, boarded and set her 
 on fire. Attempts were also made to destroy the two 
 other grounded vessels, but without effect, owing to 
 the badness of the weather. 
 
 The next service of the Pallas was a reconnaissance 
 of the French squadron at anchor under Isle d'Aix, 
 when Cochrane counted one three-decked ship, one of 
 80, three of 74 guns, five frigates, and three brigs. He 
 wrote a letter to Vice-Admiral Thornborough report- 
 ing this service, and after describing the force, added, 
 " The Calcutta * is not among them, neither are there 
 any corvettes. They are all very deep, more so than 
 vessels are in general for common voyages. They 
 
 * This ship, formerly an Indiaman, commanded by Captain. 
 D. Woodriff, mounting 54 guns, had been captured by the 
 Eochefort squadron on the 25th September, 1805, not off St. 
 Helena, as staled in the autobiography, but in lat. 49 30' X 
 long. 9 C W.
 
 FIEE-3HIP PROPOSITION. 67 
 
 may be easily burned, or they may be taken by send- 
 ing here 8,000 or 10,000 men, as if intended for the 
 Mediterranean. If people at home would hold their 
 tongues about it, possession might thus be gained of 
 the Isle d'Oleron, upon which all the enemy's vessels 
 may be driven by sending fire-ships to the eastward of 
 Isle d'Aix." 
 
 This proposition was never entertained ; but Lord 
 Cochrane, on many subsequent occasions, referred to 
 the fact of his having offered the very important and 
 feasible suggestion. 
 
 The following official despatches are sufficiently 
 explanatory of themselves to show the nature of the 
 service referred to, that of destroying signal-stations. 
 It was addressed to Yice-Admiral Thornborough, and 
 dated St. Martin's Eoad, Isle Ehe, May 10, 1806 : 
 
 " The French trade having been kept in port of 
 late, in a great measure by their knowledge of the 
 exact position of His Majesty's cruisers constantly 
 announced at the signal posts, it appeared to me to 
 be an object, as there was nothing better to do ; to 
 endeavour to stop this practice. 
 
 " Accordingly the two posts at Point de la Roche 
 were demolished ; next that of Caliola ; then two in 
 L'Anse de Eepos, one of which Lieutenant Haswell 
 and Mr. Hillier, the gunner, took in a neat style from 
 upwards of 100 militia. The marines and boats' 
 crews behaved exceedingly well. All the flags have 
 been brought off, and the houses built by government 
 burnt to the ground. 
 
 r 2
 
 68 DESTROYS SIGNAL STATIONS. 
 
 " Yesterday, too, the zeal of Lieutenant Norton, of 
 the Fi-isk cutter, and Lieutenant Gregory, of the 
 Contest gun-brig, induced them to volunteer to flank 
 the battery on point d'Equillon, whilst we should 
 attack in the rear by land ; but it was carried at once, 
 and one of fifty men, who were stationed to three 36- 
 pounders, was made prisoner, the rest having escaped. 
 The battery is laid in ruins, guns spiked, carriages 
 burnt, barrack and magazine blown up, and all the 
 shells thrown into the sea. The convoy got into a 
 river beyond our reach. Lieutenant Mapleton, Mr. 
 Sutherland, master, and Mr. Hillier, were with me ; 
 and as they do on all occasions, so they did at this 
 time whatever was in their power for His Majesty's 
 service. The petty officers, seamen, and marines, 
 failed not to justify the opinion that there was before 
 reason to form ; yet it would be inexcusable were not 
 the names of the quartermasters, Barden and Casey, 
 particularly mentioned, as men highly deserving an y 
 favour that can be shown in the line to which they 
 aspire." 
 
 But the fighting cruize of the Pallas was not yet 
 finished. On the 14th May, Lord Cochrane, pursuant 
 to orders, again stood close in towards the Isle d'Aix, 
 to renew the reconnaissance of the French squadron 
 under Alleraand. He found that they had moved 
 from their former anchorage, and were then lying at 
 the entrance to the Antioche passage. In Cochrane's 
 previous reconnaissance a black frigate and three 
 brigs had made a feint at coming out ; but could not
 
 THE BLACK FBIGATr. 09 
 
 be drawn from under the shelter of the batteries. On 
 this occasion, however, the intention of engaging was 
 much more strongly manifested, and the gallant con- 
 test which ensued is very well described in Lord 
 Cochrane's public letter, dated off Oleron, May 15, 
 and addressed, as before, to the Yice-Adiniral. 
 
 " This morning when close off Isle d'Aix recon- 
 noitring the French squadron, it gave me great joy 
 to find oiir late opponent the black frigate, and her 
 companions the three brigs, getting under sail. "We 
 formed high expectations that the long-wished-for 
 opportunity had at last arrived. 
 
 " The Pallas remained under topsails by the wind 
 to await them. At 11 - 30 A.ii., a smart point-blank 
 tiring commenced on both sides, which was severely 
 felt by the enemy. The maintopsail-yard of one of 
 the brigs was cut through, and the frigate lost her 
 after-sails. The batteries on Isle d'Aix opened on the 
 Pallas, and a cannonade continued, interrupted on 
 our part only by the necessity we were under to 
 make various tacks to avoid the shoals, till one o'clock, 
 when our endeavour to gain the wind of the enemy, 
 aud get between him and the batteries, proved suc- 
 cessful. An effective distance was now chosen, a few 
 broadsides were poured in, and the enemy's fire 
 slackened. I ordered ours to cease, and directed 
 Mr. Sutherland, the master, to run the frigate on 
 board, with intention effectually to prevent her 
 retreat. 
 
 " The enemy's side thrust our guns back into the
 
 70 rBEXcii POLITENESS. 
 
 port, the whole were then discharged, aud the effect 
 and crash were dreadful. Three pistol-shots were the 
 unequal return. 
 
 " With confidence I say, that the frigate was lost 
 to France, had not the unequal collision torn away 
 our foretopmast, jibboom, fore and inaintopsail-yarcls, 
 spritsail-yard, bumpkin, cathead, chain plates, fore- 
 rigging, foresail, and bower-anchor, with which last I 
 intended to hook on ; but all proved insufficient. Sho 
 was yet lost to France, had not the French admiral, 
 seeing his frigate's foreyard gone, her rigging ruined, 
 and the danger she was in, sent two others to her 
 assistance.* 
 
 " The Pallas being nearly a wreck, we came out 
 with what sail could be set ; and his Majesty's sloop, 
 the Kingfisher, afterwards took us in tow. 
 
 " The officers and ship's company behaved as usual. 
 To the names of Lieutenants Haswell and Mapletou, 
 
 * " My gallant adversary in that frigate was Captain Collett, 
 who kept the deck after every one of his crew had been driven 
 below by our fire, which, as the Miner ve had taken the ground, 
 swept her decks. INIy gallant opponent, however, kept the 
 deck, or, rather, stood on a gun, with as much sang-froid as 
 though we had been firing a salute. On our becoming en- 
 tangled with the Minerre's rigging, he raised his hat with all 
 the politeness of a Frenchman of the old school, and bowed to 
 me, a compliment which I returned. Judge of my sui prise 
 when refused admission into the prison at Dartmoor, and 
 prowling about it? out-offices, at finding my gallant enemy 
 located in the stall of a stable, he h*ving been recently made 
 prisoner. I promised to use my best endeavour to get him 
 removed, and on my arrival in London did so, I believe with 
 effect." Autobiography of a Seaman.
 
 THE CHIVALEOFS ENCOTTNTEB. 71 
 
 whom I have mentioned on other occasions, I have 
 to add that of Lieutenant Thos. L. Kobins, who has 
 just joined." 
 
 This very gallant affair was attended with the loss 
 of one marine killed, and Mr. "William Andrews, mid- 
 shipman (very badly), and four seamen, wounded. 
 
 It was afterwards ascertained that the " black 
 frigate" was the Minerve, a fine ship of 1,100 tons, 
 nearly double the size of the Pallas, and mounting 
 long 18-pounders ou her main deck, manned with a 
 crew of 330 men and boys, of whom seven were killed 
 and fourteen wounded. The three brigs were the 
 Lynx, SylpTie, and Pal inure. 
 
 There was an amount of heroism about this action, 
 scarcely ever equalled in the annals of the British 
 navy, and never surpassed. A cramped-up little ship 
 which the Pallas was, of less than 700 tons, delibe- 
 rately paraded herself before an enemy's squadron, 
 and courted a battle under their own batteries and 
 amidst their own shoals. Twice had Cochrane thus 
 thrown the gauntlet into the teeth of an enemy of 
 such superior magnitude, and when at length he was 
 able to grapple with the foe, nothing but the over 
 eagerness with which the ship was laid on board, 
 and the subsequent advance of two fresh ships to 
 the rescue, prevented him from achieving a triumph 
 never gained during the war, namely, the capture of 
 an 18-pounder by a - 12-pounder frigate. 
 
 Being pretty well mauled by this time, the Pallas 
 was ordered to proceed to Plymouth to refit, having
 
 72 TIGHT OX THE ETSTIXGS. 
 
 under convoy a fleet of transports, and where she 
 arrived on the 27th. 
 
 THE NAVAL M.P. 
 
 While the Pallas was refitting in Plymouth har- 
 bour, Cochrane was preparing for a campaign of 
 another sort an electioneering one. On his arrival 
 home from his " golden cruise," he had been induced to 
 stand for the borough of Honiton ; but having failed 
 to apply the "palm-oil," without which there could be 
 no return, he suffered defeat. Never was there such 
 a man for expedients. Beaten though he was, he 
 managed to make his overthrow the stepping-stone 
 for a future victory. He had not bribed, so he said, 
 before the election ; but when the struggle was over, 
 he set the town-crier to work to announce that all 
 those who had recorded their votes in his, Lord Coch- 
 rane' s, favour, might receive the sum of ten guineas on 
 application to his agent. A new election was on foot 
 just as the Pallas arrived, and Cochrane, in a coach 
 drawn by six horses, accompanied by several carriages- 
 and-four filled with officers and seamen of the Pallas, 
 drove into Honiton, thereby making an imposing 
 display. 
 
 Cochrane was looked upon as a millionaire. The 
 story of the galleons and golden candlesticks, when 
 duly magnified by rumoiir, had a great effect, and his 
 triumphant return for the corrupt borough of Honiton 
 resulted as a matter of course.
 
 DIAilOKD CUT DIAMOND. 73 
 
 And now the excited voters crowded round him 
 with open hands itching for the customary fee. The 
 candidate who could give ten guineas to those who 
 voted for him when defeated, would not certainly be 
 so shabby as not to at least double the present. Dire 
 was their disappointment however. Cochrane was 
 returned, and returned by a good majority, and with- 
 out having bribed, and he coolly told his deluded 
 supporters that he had not the slightest intention of 
 paying them for their venality. 
 
 Cochrane was inexorable, and the votes could not 
 be recalled, but it was now their turn to cajole. 
 " Tour lordship wont refuse to give us a public 
 supper ?" He could not refuse so moderate a request, 
 and did not think it necessary to limit the expense. 
 The supper was given, but it was preceded by a ball, 
 and shortly afterwards the bill was sent to Lord Coch- 
 rane, amounting to the sum of 1,200. This he at first 
 refused to pay, but was ultimately obliged to liquidate. 
 
 The first use made of his position as a member of 
 the House of Commons, was that of applying for the 
 promotion of his neglected first lieutenants in the 
 Speedy and Pallas. The application was at first met 
 with half-promises, but either the threat or the fear 
 of having the gross injustice instanced in the non- 
 promotion of those officers brought before the House, 
 had the effect of obtaining that which ought to have 
 been freely conceded long before. 
 
 The neglect of Haswell might possibly have resulted 
 from the ambiguous and dubious terms in which Lord 
 Cochrane had mentioned his name in his official letter ;
 
 74 ADHIEALTY TEST TOE YALOTJB. 
 
 and Parker was the innocent victim of bis captain's 
 ill-judged letter-writing. 
 
 Lieutenant Haswell was promoted, but his com- 
 mander's commission was dated eleven days later than 
 that of Lieutenant Sibley, who cut out the 16-gun 
 brig Cesar from Yerdon roads on the 15th July, suc- 
 ceeding the capture of the Tapageuse. Lord Cochrane 
 claimed for the capture of the Tapagev.se equal merit 
 with that of the cutting out the Cesar ; and when the 
 two exploits are fairly viewed, he will be thought right. 
 The Cesar was, it is true, more powerfully protected, 
 and better prepared to resist the assailants ; but the 
 attacking force comprised twelve boats, contributed 
 by a squadron of sir sail of the line and two frigates. 
 The resistance was most determined, and one lieu- 
 tenant, one mate, and seven seamen were killed ; and 
 four lieutenants, one mate, and thirty-four men 
 wounded ; irrespective of which, one midshipman and 
 nineteen men were made prisoners, their boat having 
 been struck by a shot, and sunk. The Tapageuse was 
 captured by a portion of the ship's company of one 
 small frigate, in a narrow river, defended by batteries, 
 and in the presence of another French vessel of the 
 same strength as the prize, and only three men were 
 wounded in effecting it. Tested by the standard of 
 " killed and wounded," the capture of the Cesar was 
 infinitely superior to the cutting out of the Tapageuse; 
 but by that of "common sense" the result is the re- 
 verse. The object which Cochrane invariably kept 
 steadily in view, was to avoid loss to his own crew ; 
 and this we take to have been his greatest merit. By
 
 WROXG PERPETUATED. 75 
 
 the exercise of the faculty of foresight, he was able 
 to avoid many defeats and casualties into which mere 
 bull-dog courage might have plunged him and his fol- 
 lowers ; but an absurd rule existed at the Admiralty, 
 which defined the "butcher's bill" as the criterion o:' 
 gallantry. 
 
 The delay in promoting Lieutenant Haswell entailed 
 upon those who were engaged with him in his perilous 
 exploit in the Garonne, the loss of the naval medal 
 granted in 1846. Xever was there a more unrighteous 
 decision than that which denied the medal to those 
 who served in an action which was not marked by 
 promotion. Cochrane's actions are direct cases in 
 point. It suited the caprice of the Admiralty, IP 
 1806, to withhold promotion justly due; and their 
 successors in office in 1846 punished gallant sur- 
 vivors in consequence, by denying them the grant 
 of a silver medal. 
 
 Xo one can be surprised that this studied neglect 
 of his officers and himself should have for ever after 
 rankled in Cochrane's mind. He had performed what 
 no other officer had had the good fortune of doing- 
 cut out with his boats one corvette, and driven on 
 shore and destroyed three others ; and the Adiniralty 
 had taken so little notice of it as to refuse to advancv 
 the senior promotable officer. In many cases, ships 
 destroyed under similar circumstances had been paid 
 for as captures ; but the Admiralty refused even to 
 purchase the handsome little vessel which was the 
 trophy of this victory. Truly Cochrane had good 
 reason to complain of this marked and cruel treat-
 
 76 QFAKEEL WITH CEOKEB. 
 
 meut, the more so, -when he sa\v a similar vessel, 
 which had been captured by the elite of a large 
 squadron, added to the British !Xavy. 
 
 Another slight, which was of less importance to 
 Cochrane than to the service, was the refusal of the 
 Admiralty to purchase a quantity of excellent claret 
 which he had captured, except at the price of small 
 beer. His agents refused to part with it upon such 
 terms, although, from the enormous duty levied upon 
 clarec at the custom-house, it would scarcely realize a 
 better price elsewhere. The Victualling Office might 
 have taken it duty free ; and it would have been a 
 treat to our sailors ; but, as they offered a sum so 
 ridiculously beneath the proper value, the captors had 
 the bungs of the casks knocked in, and the wine 
 started into the sea, rather than submit to such 
 terms. 
 
 A curious incident is connected with this wine ; 
 and as the late earl attributed most of his after mis- 
 fortunes to it, we think it right to advert to it at some 
 length. One of his friends at this period was the 
 late Eight Hon. John Wilson Croker, who for very 
 many years held the post of Secretary to the Admi- 
 ralty. This gentleman, who was on terms of great 
 intimacy, was dining with Lord Cochrane, when some 
 of the claret for which the Victualling Office had 
 offered small-beer price seven pipes of which had 
 been cleared at the custom-house by Lord Cochrane's 
 brother was produced. Croker called it " superb," 
 and Cochrane offered him as much as he pleased at 
 the cost of the duty, which offer he appeared disposed
 
 DOUBTFULLY EXPLAINED. 77 
 
 to accept thankfully. Croker shortly afterwards 
 became Secretary to the Admiralty, and from that 
 time was a stranger to Lord Cochrane's table : but, 
 meeting him in the street, Cochrane asked him why 
 lie had not sent for his wine ; to which Croker replied, 
 that his friends had already supplied him more 
 liberally than he required. Other similar observa- 
 tions passed, and the consequence was the dead cut. 
 
 Our readers will have some difficulty in placing auy 
 other construction upon this story as told than that 
 Croker expected the wine to be presented to him duty 
 paid, and was annoyed at the terms upon which Coch- 
 rane had offered to supply him. This is certainly not a 
 very charitable construction, neither is it very feasible; 
 for the offer might have been declined without any 
 compromise on either part. Had it been known that 
 the Admiralty Secretary accepted presents, there is no 
 doubt he would have been well supplied; and one is 
 disposed to look rather upon Croker's accession to office 
 as the real ground of the separation. Cochrane's 
 views differed very widely from those of the cautious 
 official ; and it is not surprising that he should have 
 availed himself of any excuse for declining future 
 intimacy ; but it is hardly possible to believe that so 
 paltry a disagreement should have converted a friend, 
 or even a common acquaintance, into the bitter and 
 implacable enemy and persecutor which he is repre- 
 sented to have been afterwards. 
 
 The bitter enmity which subsequently manifested 
 itself was most likely brought about by Cochrane's 
 unflinching speeches in Parliament. They invariably
 
 78 lilPERIEUSE, A SPANISH PKIZE. 
 
 sat on opposite benches, and what one said the other 
 felt it his duty to contradict. Croker was in posses- 
 sion of Cochrane's confidential opinions upon naval 
 subjects, and was, therefore, all the better able to 
 answer his objections to the then existing abuses. 
 
 But Cochrane had hardly had time to make him- 
 self known in the House when he received an ap- 
 pointment to another ship. 
 
 THE IMPEKIEUSE. 
 
 [1806-7.] 
 
 THE Pallas having received very severe treatment 
 in her last encounter with the Minerve, it was con- 
 sidered desirable to give Lord Cochrane another ship. 
 He was accordingly ordered to turn over with his 
 officers and crew to the 3S-gun frigate Imperieuse. 
 He accordingly commissioned this fresh ship on the 
 2nd September. 
 
 The ship of which Cochraue now found himself the 
 captain was one worthy of his pendant. She was 
 formerly the Spanish frigate 3Iedea, captured by Sir 
 Graham Moore's squadron on the 5th October, 1S04, 
 and her name changed to Imperieuse. She was built 
 in 1798, and measured 1,046 tons. Her armament 
 consisted of twenty-eight long 18-pounders on the 
 main deck, twelve 32-pounder carronades on the 
 quarter deck, and two 32-pounder carronades and 
 two long 9-pounders on the forecastle. Subse- 
 quently to the purchase of this ship, however, 
 it was found that extensive repairs were needed, 
 and when these were completed, she was more like
 
 liEADT TOE ACTIOX. 79 
 
 a new ship destitute of seagoing fittings than one 
 that had performed several voyages. 
 
 Before her fittings "were nearly completed, or even 
 her rudder hung, the Imptrieuse was ordered to put 
 to sea; and so urgent and peremptory were the 
 Admiralty mandates, that when at length, on the 17th 
 November, her rudder was hung and the rigging 
 temporarily set up, she put to sea, she did so with 
 lighters alongside discharging into her provisions, 
 stores, and ammunition. The guns were not secured, 
 and the carronades not fixed on their slides ; and 
 yet this ship was supposed to be in a condition to 
 encounter an enemy ! 
 
 This was what was termed " despatch." Possibly 
 there might have been in the case of the Imperieuse 
 a dash of the Croker enmity. The ship had been in 
 commission over six weeks, and having a full comple- 
 ment ought not to have been so long getting ready 
 for sea ; neither would she, had not the dockyard been 
 greatly overtaxed. A plea of that kind quietly urged 
 in the right quarter would have been certain to cause 
 imperative orders to be issued, and neither captain 
 nor port-admiral would have dared to dispute the 
 direction. In vain would it be said that the ship's 
 rudder was not hung, or that the hold was not stowed, 
 or provisions on board, the reply would have been, 
 " Then it ought to have been hung, the hold should 
 have been stowed, and you must proceed to sea 
 immediately, stowed or not." Such was authoritative 
 logic in 1S06, and for many years afterwards. 
 
 The Tniptrieuse having got in mid-channel, and
 
 80 ET7KS ON SHORE. 
 
 having divested herself of her attendant hoys, com- 
 menced restowing the after-hold, and clearing the 
 decks. But her lower rigging having been only tem- 
 porarily set up, the motion of the ship had caused it to 
 stretch so much that, had a gale come on, the ship must 
 have been dismasted. Fighting would have been out of 
 the question. ]S"ot a cartridge was filled, and hardly 
 a gun fitted ready for action. While employed in com- 
 pleting work that should have been done in harbour, 
 or, at any rate, in the Sound, the Imperieuse drifted 
 over to the French coast, and struck on some rocks off 
 Ushant. Luckily she sustained no injury, and was 
 extricated without difficulty, when she joined the 
 Channel fleet lying in Basque Koads, and on the 
 19th December captured two vessels off the Sables 
 d'Olonne. 
 
 On the 4th January, 1807, the Imperieuse chased 
 several vessels which made for Arcasson, and on the 
 5th the boats were sent away in chase of two of the 
 vessels which took shelter in a creek, under a battery 
 advantageously placed on a small island at its en- 
 trance. The frigate having anchored off the Cordouan, 
 the boats were sent away early on the morning of the 
 7th to attack the battery. This was successfully 
 performed. The guns, which comprised four 30- 
 pounders, two field-pieces, and a 13-inch mortar, were 
 spiked or destroyed, and the carriages burnt. Several 
 gun-boats at anchor in the rear of the island, together 
 with the vessels previously chased, were also burnt. 
 It was deemed imprudent to remain to get them 
 afloat, a general alarm having been given along the
 
 ILEHBEE FOE WESTMINSTER. 81 
 
 eoast. The Imperieuse was ordered to return] to 
 Plymouth shortly after this, at which port she arrived 
 in February. 
 
 RETURNED FOR WESTMINSTER. 
 
 [1307.] 
 
 A dissolution of Parliament having taken place, 
 Lord Cochrane, not wishing to face again his deluded 
 Honiton victims, was induced to aspire ^to the repre- 
 sentation of Westminster. Lord Cochrane's extreme 
 opinions made him an acceptable candidate. He was 
 an ultra-Whig, which, in those days, meant a great 
 deal. Cobbett was of the same way of thinking. 
 Sir Francis Burdett, who stood with Lord Cochrane. 
 was noted as one of the most unflinching disciples of 
 the Eeform school of politics ; and he found in Lord 
 Cochrane much congeniality of feeling upon most 
 political questions. The candidates, at starting, were 
 Brinsley Sheridan, Mr. Paul, and Lord Cochrane. 
 Sir Francis Burdett was unable to present himself in 
 person, in consequence of a wound which he had 
 received in a duel with Mr. Paul ; but he was, never- 
 theless, put in nomination. At the close of the first 
 day Lo'rd Cochraue was at the head of the poll, 
 Mr. Paul second, Sir Francis Burdett third, and 
 Sheridan fourth ; but at the final close Sir Francis 
 and Lord Cochrane were at the head, and conse- 
 quently elected. Cochrane probably considered him- 
 self fortunate ; but had he been able to peep into 
 futurity, he would have seen that his return for West- 
 minster was the most untoward event that could have
 
 82 VENALITY AND COEBTTPTION. 
 
 happened to him. His naturally impetuous disposi- 
 tion was stimulated by the strong-minded men whom 
 he met in Parliament. At no period, perhaps, was party 
 feeling stronger or more unscrupulous, and Cochrane 
 soon found, to his cost, that he had made enemies 
 much more to be dreaded than Frenchmen or Spa- 
 niards. In the House of Commons he waged war 
 against " venality and corruption," and received more 
 desperate wounds in the contest than he risked in his 
 most perilous action with the open and avowed ene- 
 mies of England. On the 7th July, he brought for- 
 ward the following motion : " That a committee be 
 appointed to inquire into and report upon all offices, 
 posts, places, sinecures, pensions, situations, fees, per- 
 quisites, and emoluments, of every description, paid 
 out of, or arising from, the public revenues or fees of 
 any courts of law, equity, admiralty, ecclesiastical, or 
 other courts, held or enjoyed by, or in trust for, any 
 member of this House, his wife, or any of his descend- 
 ants for him, or either of them, in reversion of any 
 present interest; with an account of the annual 
 amount of such, distinguishing whether the same 
 arises from a certain salary, or from an average 
 amount ; that this inquiry extend to the whole of his 
 Majesty's dominions, and that the said committee be 
 empowered to send for persons," *tc. 
 
 It was not to be expected that a motion of such a 
 character, conveying, as it did, whether justly or not, 
 an insinuation that members of Parliament were 
 acted upon by corrupt influences, would pass muster. 
 Various shifts and evasions were tried, and attempts
 
 NATAL ABUSES. 83 
 
 made to put the motion in another form ; but Coch- 
 rane insisted upon holding to the original, and pressed 
 it to a division. The motion was lost by a majority 
 of 29. 
 
 Encouraged rather than daunted at this defeat of 
 his ' ; little go," he determined to bring on his great 
 question of " Xaval Abuses." The following extract 
 from Hansard will show with what ill success his 
 motion was attended : 
 
 LORD COCHEA>*E rose and said, 
 
 " Sir, A wish to avert part of the impending dan- 
 gers of my country, has made me resolve to move for 
 certain papers relative to the naval service, not with 
 a retrospective view to blame individuals, but that 
 unnecessary hardships may cease to exist. I am 
 willing to believe that members of this House, whose 
 talents are capable to do justice to the cause, are 
 ignorant of circumstances which for years have em- 
 bittered the lives of seamen employed in his Majesty's 
 service ; and that as to the gentlemen of the naval 
 profession who have seats here, I suppose that the 
 diffidence occasioned by the awe which this House at 
 first inspires, has prevented them from performing 
 this important duty. I shall be as brief as possible, 
 but as the nature of some of the papers for which I 
 am about to move is unknown to many members of 
 this House, it will be necessary that I should give 
 some explanation. The first motion is, ' That there 
 be laid before this House copies of all letters or repre- 
 sentations made by the commanders of H.M's. sloop 
 Atalante and schooner Felix, addressed to Captain
 
 84 LOSS OF THE TELIS. 
 
 Keats (commanding off Bochefort), respecting the 
 state and condition of those vessels, and the sick 
 therein.' The object of this motion is to prove that 
 vessels under the present system, are kept at sea in a 
 dangerous state, and that the lives of many officers 
 and men are in constant peril. Lieutenant Cameron, 
 who commanded the Felix, and since lost in that 
 vessel, was one of the best and ablest officers I ever 
 knew. He found it incumbent on him to report that 
 the Felix ought to be sent into port to repair. I 
 shall read part of two letters from the surgeon, dated 
 three months before they all perished, and previous 
 to Lieutenant Cameron's being appointed to command 
 that vessel. The other dated eight days before that 
 melancholy event. On the 14th of November, he 
 says, ' Our noble commander has been very active iu 
 his endeavours to get confirmed to this vessel, much 
 more than I should be ; she sails worse and worse, 
 and I think the chances are against our ever bringing 
 her into an English port.' On the 14th of January, 
 1807, the surgeon says. ' Every endeavour has been 
 put in force by Cameron and myself to get her into 
 port, but without success. He attacked the com- 
 modore with most miserable epistles of distress 
 throughout, and I attacked him with a very formid- 
 able sick list, but all, my friend, would not do.' 
 
 " I may be told that there is danger in agitating" 
 such subjects ; but there can be none at any time in 
 bringing to the knowledge of the Legislature, for 
 redress, that which is notorious to those who have a 
 right to claim it. ISTo, Sir, let grievances be redressed
 
 EIGHT MONTHS' CEUISES. 85 
 
 in time, and complaints will cease. When the 
 Imjwrieuse, the ship I command, was about to leave 
 Bochefort, I was ordered to revictual the Atalante 
 for six weeks, though she had then been out eight 
 months a period sufficient to ruin the health, break 
 the energy, and weary the spirit of all employed in 
 such a vessel. The Atalante was hauled alongside, 
 the commander and several officers came on board, 
 and informed me of the bad condition of their sloop. 
 They said she was wholly unfit to keep the sea, and 
 that a gale of wind would cause her inevitable loss. 
 I think they said the foremast, and bowsprit, and 
 fore-yard, were all sprung ; besides, the vessel made 
 twenty inches of water per hour. I thought it well 
 to mention the circumstances, thus reported, to the 
 commanding officer off Rochefort for I well knew 
 that the minds of subordinate officers ordered to 
 survey, were impressed with terror, lest any vessel 
 surveyed should not be found, on arriving in port, 
 quite so bad as represented. Their usual plan there- 
 fore is, to say such a vessel can keep the sea a while 
 longer knowing that if any accident occurs it will 
 be ascribed to zeal for the good of his Majesty's 
 service ! So much impressed was I with the bad 
 state of this vessel, that I said to the builder of 
 Plymouth-yard, in the presence of Admiral Sutton, 
 on my arrival there, that the first news we should 
 have from Eochefort, if there should happen to be a 
 gale of wind, would be the loss of the Atalante. 
 Under the harassing system of eight or nine months' 
 cruises, men get tired of their lives, and even indif-
 
 86 pEOYisroMxa SHIPS. 
 
 ferent as to the choice between a French prison and 
 their present misery. The nest document I pro- 
 pose to more for is, 'An abstract of the weekly 
 accounts of H.M's. ships and frigates employed off 
 Brest and Eochefort. from the 1st of March, 1806, 
 until the 1st of March, 1807.' From this the number 
 of men employed, the number of sick, the time the 
 ships have been kept at sea, and the time they have 
 been allowed in harbour to refit the vessels and recruit 
 the crews will appear. The Plantagenet, for instance. 
 was eight months within four hours' sail of England. 
 She was then forced, by stress of weather, into Fal- 
 inouth, where she remained twelve days wind-bound ; 
 but an order existed (which I shall presently make 
 the subject of a motion), by which neither officer nor 
 man could stretch his legs on the gravel beach within 
 fifty yards of the ship ! In order to show how little 
 benefit has been derived from supplies at sea, as a sub- 
 stitute for refreshments and recreation which the crews 
 were formerly suffered to enjoy, I shall next move. 
 ' That there be laid before this House an account of 
 the quantity of fresh provisions, expressed in days' 
 allowance, received at sea by each of H.M's. ships off 
 Eochefort and Brest, from the 1st of March. 1806. to 
 the 1st of March. 1807.' Formerly when the four 
 months' provisions were expended, the return of a 
 ship to port was a matter of course ; but now they 
 are victualled and re-victualled at sea; so that an 
 East-India voyage is performed with more refresh- 
 ment than a Channel cruise. Lime-juice is the 
 substitute for fresh provisions, a. debilitating antidote
 
 LHATE OF AB5E2.CZ. 87 
 
 to the scurvy unfit to re-establish the strength 
 of the body impaired by the constant use of salt 
 provisions. The nest motion (which I shall propose) 
 is, ' That there be laid before this House all orders 
 issued and acted on between the 1st of March. 1806, 
 and March, 1807, respecting leave to be granted or 
 withheld from officers or men, distinguishing who was 
 commander-in-chief at the times of issuing such 
 orders.' It is a hard case that in harbour neither 
 officer nor ineii shall be permitted to go on shore. 
 These orders I do not hesitate to condemn ; and the 
 injustice appears the more striking, when it is 
 remembered that the commander-in-chief resided in 
 London, enjoying not only the salary of his office, but 
 claiming the emolument of prize-money gained by the 
 toil of those in active service. I shall not be surprised 
 to find the office of commander-ia-chief bestowed 
 on some favourite as a sinecure by some future 
 minister. 
 
 With respect to the sick, I feel it necessary to 
 say a few words, but I shall first read niy motion on 
 that subject. ' That there be laid before this House 
 all orders issued and acted on between the 1st of 
 March, ISOo, and the 1st of March, 1S07, by, or by the 
 authority of the commander-in-chief of H.M's. ships 
 and vessels in the Channel, allowing or restraining 
 commanding officers from sending men to the naval 
 hospitals, or restricting their admission to such hos- 
 pitals.' In consequence of regulations established 
 in these institutions, men are frequently refused 
 admittance. !s"o man. whatever may be his state of
 
 88 TREATMENT OF THE SICK. 
 
 health, can be sent to an hospital from any of the 
 ships in the Channel fleet, unless previously examined 
 by the surgeon of the commander-in-chief. Deaths, 
 amputations, and total loss of health, were the con- 
 sequences of the impossibility of this officer going 
 from ship to ship in bad weather, when opportunity 
 offered to convey the sick to port. So pertinaciously 
 were such regulations adhered to, that although I 
 sent a sick lieutenant and a man ruptured to the 
 hospital, they were not admitted. The disease of the 
 one (who was under salivation) was declared to be 
 contrary to the order regulating admission, and he 
 was returned through sleet and rain ; the other was 
 refused because everything possible had not been 
 done to reduce the rupture, as he had not been hung 
 up by the heels, in a rolling sea, which might have 
 proved his death ! The system of naval hospitals is 
 thoroughly bad. Mistaken economy has even reduced 
 the quantity of lint for the purpose of dressing wounds. 
 To the ships there is not half enough allowed. Un- 
 worthy savings have been unworthily made, endan- 
 gering the lives of officers and seamen. Indeed, the 
 grievances of the navy have been, and are so severe, 
 through rigour and mistaken economy, that I can see 
 nothing more meritorious than the patience with 
 which these grievances have been endured." 
 
 Sir Samuel Hood, Admiral Harvey, Admiral Mark- 
 ham, the Chancellor of the Exchequer, Mr. AVindham, 
 and others, spoke against the motion. 
 
 Lord Cochrane rose in reply, and said : " I dis- 
 claim, Sir, any motive whatever, except a regard for
 
 SHAEP riBLN'G. 89 
 
 the real interests of my country, though I confess 
 that I cannot help feeling, in common with, others, 
 the treatment received. Improper motives have been 
 imputed to me, and I might reply to one of those 
 gentlemen who has denied facts which I can prove, 
 that he was one of those who established this abomin- 
 able system.* What his abilities may be, in matters 
 not connected with the naval service, I know not ; 
 but it is a known fact that his noble patron, the Earl 
 of St. Vincent, sent the master of the Ville de Paris 
 to put his ship in some tolerable order. (Here there 
 was a cry of order, order, from Admiral Harvey and 
 others.) 
 
 With respect to the assertion made by the same 
 gentleman, that the health of the men is increased by 
 long cruises at sea, and that of the commander-in-chief 
 is improved by being on shore, he may reconcile that if 
 be can. I shall not follow the example of imputing 
 improper motives (looking at Captain Sir Samuel 
 Hood) ; but another complaint is, that under this 
 obnoxious system of favouritism, captains have been 
 appointed to large commands of six and seven sail of 
 the line, as many frigates, and as many sloops of war, 
 the right of admirals who have served, and can serve, 
 their country, and who have bled in its cause. But, 
 perhaps, for such times, their rank did not afford a 
 prospect of their being sufficiently subservient. This 
 House, I believe, need not be told that from this 
 
 * This arrow was aimed at Admiral Markham, who was one 
 of the Lords of the Admiralty in 1801 and for several years 
 subsequently.
 
 90 STATE OF THE IMPERIEUSE. 
 
 cause there are admirals of ability who have lingered 
 in neglect. (A cry of order, order, from Admiral 
 Harvey and others.) 
 
 " Sir, two parts of the statement of the honourable 
 knight are especially worthy of notice, so far as they 
 were meant as a reply to my statement. He said he 
 had a hundred men killed and wounded in his ship, 
 and no complaint, no inconvenience arose from want 
 of lint or anything else. First, this occurred when 
 surgeons supplied their own necessaries, and next, 
 the wounded men were sent on the day following to 
 Gibraltar Hospital. Now, Sir, with respect to the 
 blame said to be attributed by me to Lord St. Vincent 
 for the loss of the Felix and Atalante, I have to say, 
 that it is of the general system and its consequences 
 of which I complain of endless cruises, rendering 
 surveys at sea a substitute for a proper examination 
 of the state of ships in port. The honourable knight 
 is a little unfortunate in the comparison he has made, 
 saying that Lord St. Vincent was no more to blame 
 in the case of these vessels than for my getting the 
 Imperieuse on shore on the coast of France. Now, 
 since this subject has been touched on, I must state 
 that I made application for a court-martial on my 
 conduct, but it was not granted, because the blame 
 would have fallen where it ought on the person 
 whose repeated positive commands sent the ship to 
 sea in an unfit condition. The people of the yard 
 had not finished the work all was in confusion. 
 The quarter-deck guns lay unfitted ; forty tons of 
 ballast, besides provisions of all kinds, remained on
 
 DEFICIENT SUPPLIES TOE THE SICK. 91 
 
 deck. The powder (allowed to be taken on board 
 only when the ship is out of harbour) was received 
 when the ship was in that condition, and the Impe- 
 rieitse was hurried to sea without a cartridge filled or 
 a gun loaded. The order issued was to quit the port 
 the instant the ship would steer, regardless of every 
 other material circumstance. (Another cry of order, 
 order, from the same gentlemen. The Speaker said 
 the noble lord must confine himself to the motion 
 before the House.) 
 
 " Well, Sir, it is asserted that a profusion of oranges 
 is supplied to the fleet at Lisbon, in reply to my 
 statement that none are allowed in the hospitals at 
 home. I have not heard from any of those who have 
 so zealously spoken on the other side, a defence of 
 the obnoxious order to keep all officers and men on 
 board. All such grievances may seem slight and 
 matter of indifference to those who are here at their 
 ease ; but I view them in another light ; and if no one 
 better qualified will represent subjects of great com- 
 plaint, I will do so, independent of every personal 
 consideration. 
 
 " In the course of the debate it has been asserted 
 that I said lime-juice was a bad cure for the scurvy ; 
 no, it is a cure, and almost a certain cure, but debili- 
 tating : it destroys the disease, but ruins the consti- 
 tution. An hon. member (Mr. Sheridan) has said 
 that all this should have been represented to the 
 Admiralty, that this House is an improper place for 
 such discussions, aiid he has threatened to call for all 
 letters from me to the Board. To the first I answer,
 
 02 ilOTIOX NEGATIVED. 
 
 that Boards pay no attention to the representations 
 of individuals whom they consider under their com- 
 mand ; next, that if the right honourable gentleman 
 calls for my letters, he will find some that will not 
 suit his purpose. Sir, besides the public abuses, the 
 oppression and scandalous persecution of individuals, 
 often on anonymous information, has been, and is 
 matter of great complaint. Sir, if the present Admi- 
 ralty shall increase the sum allowed for the refresh- 
 ment of crews in port, instead of corrupting their 
 bodies by salt provisions, and then drenching them 
 with lime-juice, they will deserve the gratitude and 
 thanks of all employed. In the navy, we have had to 
 lament the system that makes the Admiralty an 
 appendage of the minister of the day, and that just 
 as a Board begin to see, and, perhaps, to plan 
 reform, they are removed from office. I trust, Sir, 
 that I shall not be denied the papers moved for, 
 and that my motion will not be got rid of by a blind 
 vote of confidence, or the subterfuge of ' the previous 
 question.' 5: 
 
 The motion was negatived without a division. 
 
 Although the government escaped from the effects 
 of this explosion, they rather desired to avoid any 
 similar experiments ; and with this object in view, 
 Lord Cochraue was ordered to proceed to sea without 
 delay. Some latent hope probably existed, that the 
 electors would thereupon call upon their represen- 
 tative to resign ; but so far from this being realized, 
 they gave him unlimited leave of absence.
 
 CAPTUKE OF A PIBATE. 93 
 
 SERVICES ON THE COAST OF SPAIN, ETC. 
 
 [1807-3.] 
 
 The Imperiense arrived at Malta on the 31st 
 October ; aud as Lord Collingwood was absent on a 
 cruise, Cochrane sailed on the 5th November, to fall 
 in with him. A public letter to the commander-in- 
 chief, dated off Corsica, November 14, details an un- 
 fortunate affair which happened during the passage : 
 
 "I am sorry to inform your Lordship of a circum- 
 stance which has already been fatal to two of our best 
 men, and I fear of thirteen others wounded, two will 
 not survive. These wounds they received in an 
 engagement with a set of desperate savages collected 
 in a privateer, said to be the King George, of Malta, 
 wherein the only subjects of his Majesty were three 
 Maltese boys, one Gibraltar man, and a naturalized 
 captain ; the others being renegadoes from all coun- 
 tries, and a great part of them belonging to nations 
 at war with England. 
 
 " This vessel was close to the Corsiean shore ; and 
 on the near approach of our boats, a union-jack was 
 hung over the gunwale. One of the three boats, 
 which had no gun, went within hail, and told them 
 we were English. The other boats then approached, 
 but when close alongside the colours of the stranger 
 were taken in, and a volley of grape and musketry 
 discharged in the most barbarous manner, their 
 muskets and blunderbusses being pointed from be- 
 neath the netting close to the peoples' breasts. The
 
 94 THE SPARTAN TRAGEDY. 
 
 rest of the officers and men then boarded, and carried 
 the vessel in the most gallant manner. The bravery 
 shown, and exertion used, were worthy of a better 
 cause." 
 
 l\ r e gather from the life of the late Vice- Admiral 
 Sir Jahleel Breuton, that the King George is identical 
 with the vessel which, on the 14th May previously, 
 beat off the Spartan's boats with frightful loss. On 
 that occasion the British boats, not apprehending any 
 serious opposition to -their boarding, ran alongside, 
 when the pirates opened a murderous fire upon them, 
 killing the first and second lieutenants, and twenty- 
 six men ; and wounding thirty-five. The boats were suf- 
 fered to sheer off, and with only seven men able to 
 pull, reached the ship with their melancholy tale. 
 One man only got on board the Polacre, this was 
 James Bodie, the captain's coxswain, who escaped 
 by hanging on to the rudder-chains, and who was 
 hauled on board after the boats had left. 
 
 Had the boats of the Imperieuse approached in 
 an unguarded manner, the chances are their crews 
 would have met the same reception. Fortunately for 
 these bloodthirsty villains, the Spartan tragedy was 
 not then known. Had the British party slaughtered 
 every man of the treacherous crew, no one could have 
 been surprised. 
 
 The secret of the opposition to the Spartan and 
 Imperieuse, however, afterwards transpired. The 
 King George was, in fact, a pirate, and 500 had 
 been offered for her capture; but after much liti- 
 gation she was condemned as a droit of Admiralty,
 
 JUDGE LTKCH WANTED. 95 
 
 and the promised reward of 500 was never paid. 
 More unfortunate still, the Malta Admiralty Court 
 condemned the captors to pay 500 double sequims 
 for having seized the vessel. Tartar prizes do not 
 always turn out very profitable ; but our sailors had 
 need be careful how they meddle with Malta prizes. 
 The supposition was, that certain officials connected 
 with the Maltese prize-court, had a personal interest 
 in the band of savages sailing in the King George 
 privateer. The absence of Judge Lynch on such an 
 occasion, was a misfortune. 
 
 After landing the wounded men at Malta, Cochrane 
 was directed to proceed to the Archipelago to relieve 
 the senior officer in command of a small squadron 
 stationed there. The captain of the squadron, how- 
 ever, not wishing to give up the command, repre- 
 sented Lord Cochrane to be unfit for the appoint- 
 ment ; and Lord Collingwood upon that represen- 
 tation, was induced to recall him. Cochrane attri- 
 buted this to his having intercepted off Corfu, a 
 number of the enemy's vessels, having passes illegally 
 issued by the captain he was about to supersede. 
 
 On receiving an unexpected letter of recall, Coch- 
 rane, unaware of the cause, at once obeyed the 
 mandate ; and was for a long time in ignorance of 
 the real cause. At length, however, it was revealed 
 to him, and he then related the story of the inter- 
 cepted passes.* "When an officer glosses over a 
 
 * The name of this officer will probably be no secret to old 
 Adriatic cruisers ; but as it is not mentioned in the autobio- 
 graphy, we think it advisable not to hazard any guesses.
 
 96 CEUISES OFF CAETnAGE>'A. 
 
 neglect of duty, he should endeavour to forget it alto- 
 gether. Cochrane, by covering this fraud for so long 
 a time, made himself a party to it. He did not make 
 Lord Collingwood acquainted with the fact until his 
 doing so had the appearance of revenge. 
 
 Rejoining Lord Collingwood in January, 1808, off 
 Corfu, Cochrane was despatched to Malta, and subse- 
 quently received instructions to repair to Gibraltar 
 and employ the ship under his command in harassing 
 the Trench and Spanish coasts as opportunity pre- 
 sented. On the 9th February, in pursuance of these 
 orders, he captured two vessels to the eastward of 
 Barcelona ; then, running down the coast of Valencia, 
 the Impcneuse arrived off Carthagena, near which 
 place she engaged four Russian gun-boats, captured 
 one armed with a long 32-pounder, a brass howitzer, 
 and two smaller guns ; and sank two others. The 
 fourth escaped into Carthagena ; and as there was a 
 Spanish squadron at anchor in that port, it was not 
 considered prudent to follow her. The Impei'ieuse at 
 the same time captured a brig valuably laden. 
 
 The next service in which the boats of the Impe- 
 riense were engaged was unhappily accompanied by the 
 loss of a promising young officer, Lieutenant Edward 
 Caulfield. Lord Cochrane. having learnt that a large 
 French ship, mounting 10 guns, laden with military 
 stores, was at anchor in the bay of Almeira. on the 
 coast of Granada, despatched the pinnace and barge, 
 on the morning of the 21st February, under the 
 command of that officer, to cut her out. The 
 service was gallantly and successfully performed, the
 
 DEATH OF LIEUTEX.O'T CATTLFIELD. 97 
 
 the vessel's cables cut, and sail made ; and two brigs 
 laden with stores also captured ; but the leader of the 
 expedition was shot as soon as he ascended the side 
 of the ship. 
 
 The Imptrieuse stood into the bay to the support 
 of the boats, and to assist in bringing out the prizes ; 
 but having got becalmed, was for a length of time in 
 great danger from the fire of the batteries. Fortu- 
 nately a breeze sprang up, which soon carried the 
 frigate and her prizes out of their range, or the whole 
 would have been sunk or captured. They had 
 scarcely got clear of the bay, when a Spanish line-of- 
 battle ship hove in sight to seaward ; but the Impe- 
 rieitse and her prizes, consisting of a ship mounting 
 10 guns, and two brigs laden with cordage, managed 
 to evade their pursuer, and reached Gibraltar on the 
 23rd. Lieutenant Caulfield was here landed and 
 buried with military honours. 
 
 After leaving Gibraltar, the Imperieuse nest paid 
 a visit to the Balearic Isles, in company with the 
 Hydra, to reconnoitre the Spanish fleet at anchor in 
 Port Mahon. Here she had several engagements with 
 the enemy's batteries. Having obtained a supply of 
 water near Cape Blanco, on the island of Majorca, 
 the Imptrieuse returned to the main land, and effected 
 numerous small captures. Lord Cochrane managed 
 to keep the whole coast in a state of continual alarm. 
 So erratic were his movements that they never knew 
 where lie would next turn up. The gun-boats and 
 batteries were continually on the q_ui five, and it was 
 ii
 
 98 CAPTURES GUN-BOATS. 
 
 surprising with what impunity the ship and her 
 gallant crew escaped. 
 
 On the 21st of May, being off Cape Palos, the Im- 
 perieuse engaged a flotilla of twelve gun-boats, w r hich 
 had been sent out to drive her away. During the 
 action the Imperieuse grounded when in stays, but 
 fortunately got afloat again immediately, or her de- 
 struction would have been more than probable. Two 
 of the gun-boats were captured, but subsequently set 
 on fire and abandoned, together with a large vessel, 
 the state of the weather compelling Lord Cochrane to 
 look to the safety of his own ship. The flotilla and 
 convoy thus intercepted consisted of heavily-armed 
 gun-boats, each mounting one long gun in the bow, 
 and two abaft, with a crew of fifty men. The Impe- 
 rieuse returned to Gibraltar on the 31st of May, with 
 several prizes. 
 
 Spain having in June declared war against France, 
 our former enemies became objects for our pro- 
 tection ; and instead of harassing the Spaniards, 
 Lord Cochrane received orders from Lord Colling- 
 wood, then off Cadiz, to co-operate with them against 
 the common foe. In pursuance of these instructions, 
 the Imperieuse sailed from Gibraltar on the 23rd of 
 June, and proceeded to Carthagena, where Lord 
 Cochrane landed to pay a visit to the Governor. His 
 reception, though at first constrained, soon turned 
 into a hearty welcome ; but it was hardly to be sup- 
 posed that the captain who had so often defied and 
 annoyed them should be very cordially received. 
 
 Cochrane next visited Majorca, at which island he
 
 CO-OPERATES WITH THE SPANIARDS. 99 
 
 found two of his midshipmen, the late Lord Xapier 
 and Mr. Harrison who had been captured in prizes ; 
 and on the 5th of July stood over to Barcelona, 
 hoisted Spanish colours, and fired a salute of twenty- 
 one guns. Barcelona was then in possession of the 
 French, who returned the salute with shotted guns, 
 but which did no damage. The Imperieiise then ran 
 along the coast of Catalonia, but everywhere, except 
 at Gerona, which was besieged, the French were in 
 possession. 
 
 SPANISH CO-OPERATIOX. 
 
 [1808.] 
 
 On the 19th July the Spanish government em- 
 barked all the available troops in the island of Minorca, 
 in six sail of the line, for Catalonia. Lord Cochrane 
 and the marines of his ship did a great deal towards 
 impeding the advance of the French towards Gerona, 
 by breaking up the roads. Cochrane had turned 
 engineer and soldier. General Duqesme, having 
 been compelled to raise the siege of Gerona, divided 
 his forces, one portion making for Barcelona, and the 
 other for Figueras. Aware that, in order to reach 
 Barcelona with their heavy siege guns, it would be 
 necessary that they should pass the fortress of Mon- 
 gat, Cochrane determined, in conjunction witli the 
 Spanish militia, to endeavour to capture that place by 
 driving out the French who garrisoned it. On the 
 31st July, at 8 A.M., the Imperieiise got under 
 weigh and stood towards the castle. Observing this, 
 the Spaniards made a desperate attack upon and car- 
 H 2
 
 100 THE CASTLE Or MONGAT. 
 
 ried an outposfc. Lord Cochraue then landed at the 
 head of his marines, under Lieutenant Hore, and the 
 commandant surrendered, under a promise that he and 
 his garrison should be escorted off to the frigate. The 
 Spaniards would, most probably, have murdered even- 
 one of them in cold blood but for this interference, so 
 exasperated were they, and naturally so, at the enor- 
 mities practised by the French intruders upon their 
 territory. The castle was then blown up. Lord Coch- 
 raue wrote the following despatch, dated off Mongat, 
 July 31st, reporting this operation : 
 
 " The castle of Mongat, an important post, com- 
 pletely commanding a pass on the road from Gerona 
 to Barcelona, which the French are now besieging, and 
 the only post between these towns occupied by the 
 enemy, surrendered this morning to His Majesty's 
 ship under my command. Lieutenant Hore, of the 
 marines, took possession of the castle, which is now 
 levelled with the ground ; and the pending rocks are 
 blown into the road, which in many other places is 
 also rendered impassable to artillery without a very 
 heavy loss of men, if the French resolve to repair 
 them." 
 
 The Imperieuse then proceeded to St. Philou, to 
 water ; and here Lord Cochrane lauded, and, putting 
 himself in communication with the Catalans, gave 
 them instructions as to the best mode of strengthening 
 their position. From St. Philou he proceeded to the 
 Grulf of Eosas, where he found Captain West* in the 
 
 * Sir John West, now Admiral of the Fleet.
 
 DESTROYS TELEGEAPH STATIONS. 101 
 
 Excellent, on board which ship was the late Spanish 
 governor of the fortress of Figueras, taking refuge 
 from his countrymen, who were exasperated at his 
 pusillanimous surrender of that important stronghold. 
 
 There being no further services to be done on the 
 coast of Catalonia, Lord Cochrane passed into the 
 Gulf of Lyons, determined to see what could be 
 effected on the French coast. On the 15th August 
 the Imperieuse anchored off the mouth of the Ehone. 
 A gun-boat tender was then sent in chase of a small 
 vessel, which was captured and burnt ; and it then 
 occurred to Lord Cochrane that much facility would 
 be afforded him in his cruising if he could destroy the 
 telegraph-stations by means of which his approach was 
 announced along the coast. The design was no sooner 
 conceived than acted upon. The first destroyed was 
 at the mouth of the Ehone. On the 17th he attacked 
 the station at Boni. A party, numbering ninety, 
 was landed, and, after securing the signal-flags, the 
 station was blown up. Xot many hours afterwards 
 another station was observed at Montpelier, which was 
 destroyed with difficulty, the approaches to it being 
 across two small rivers. The stations of La Pinede 
 and Dumet were next doomed, and at the latter place 
 four houses connected with the station were burnt. 
 
 On the 21st, while at anchor in the Gulf of 
 Dumet, the boats were sent away at 3 A.M. to destroy 
 the custom-house. After burning that building, the 
 party were about to destroy another signal-station, 
 when a large body of troops were observed from the 
 frigate to be approaching, and the boats were recalled.
 
 102 STOEMS A B.VTTEET. 
 
 Two signal stations in the Bay of Perpiguau, one 
 called Canet, the other at St. Maguire, were next 
 destroyed. The latter service was most skilfully exe- 
 cuted. The boats landed, under the command of Lord 
 Cochrane in person, at 4'30 A.M. on the 24th, it being 
 still dark. Two heavy guns were discharged at them, 
 but without doing any damage. " Fearing an ambus- 
 cade," wrote his lordship, "we pulled out of reach of 
 musketry ; but, calculating that the French would not 
 venture far in the dark, my favourite time for attacks 
 of any kind, instead of returning to the ship, we 
 made direct for the signal-station, and blew it up 
 amidst a dropping fire of musketry, which, as we could 
 not be distinguished, did no harm. Having completed 
 this work, we marched along the beach towards a 
 battery observed on the previous evening. On storm- 
 ing the battery, with the usual British cheer, the 
 enemy rushed out in an opposite direction, firing as 
 they went, but without effect. We then took pos- 
 session of two brass twenty-four pounders ; but, while 
 making preparation for getting them off, were alarmed 
 by recall guns from the frigate, from the masthead of 
 which, as day was now beginning to break, a force of 
 cavalry had been seen making for us over the crest of 
 a hill." 
 
 The storming party had had a very narrow escape. 
 On taking possession of the battery it was found that 
 preparations had been made for blowing it up, in- 
 cluding, of course, the British storming party. The 
 match, however, owing to the sudden approach of the 
 British, had not been ignited. The train was now
 
 CIIAEACTEEISTIC ANECDOTE. 103 
 
 made useful, and before Cochrane and his daring 
 companions evacuated it, the match was lighted, and 
 they were barely out of reach of the explosion when 
 the magazine and battery were in fragments. The 
 only casualty attending this hazardous service was 
 the burning of the seaman who fired the train. He 
 had incautiously kept his cartouch - box buckled 
 around him while lighting the match, and, the fire 
 having communicated with the ammunition, he was 
 blown up. 
 
 The following characteristic anecdote, with refe- 
 rence to one of these exploits, appeared many years 
 ago in the Naval Chronicle : " This brave man, after 
 having for some time kept the coast of France in a 
 state of constant alarm, sent the boats to destroy a 
 battery then in view i'rom his ship. They soon after- 
 wards returned, the object being declared impractica- 
 ble. Lord Cochrane, on being informed that the boats 
 were alongside, came to the gangway, and, addressing 
 the coxwain of the cutter (a gallant fellow who had 
 always accompanied his lordship on the most despe- 
 rate occasions), said : ' Well, Jack, do you think it 
 impossible to blow up the battery ? ' ']S~o, my lord,' 
 answered the coxwaiu, and twenty other voices, ' 'tis 
 not impossible ; we can do it if you will go.' His 
 lordship instantly sprang into the cutter, and at the 
 head of his brave party carried the battery in a 
 moment. Jack, the coxwaiu, attended with a small 
 barrel of powder on his shoulder, and the signal- 
 station was blown to pieces." 
 
 Having thus carried out his orders, Cochraue joined
 
 104 THE MOLE OF CIOTAT. 
 
 Lord Collingwood off Toulon ; but he bad done his 
 work so well hitherto that the commander-in-chief 
 considered he could not be better engaged than in 
 continuing his operations. 
 
 The spirited co-operation of a single frigate had 
 inspired the Catalans with such confidence, that the 
 French, though in great force about Figueras and 
 Rosas, hesitated to advance into their country. 
 
 On the morning of the 3rd September, being close- 
 in with Ciotat, a town lying between Toulon and Mar- 
 seilles, Cochraue despatched his boats to cut oft' a gun- 
 boat which had separated from a flotilla lying under 
 the land. Observing, however, that a heavy fire was 
 being opened upon them from a battery, the boats 
 were recalled. A squadron of six sail of the line was 
 at this time seen coming out of Toulon ; but as the 
 ships were to leeward, their distant presence did not 
 prevent Cochrane from making an attack upon the 
 town and mole of Ciotat. 
 
 An hour before noon the Impericuse anchored under 
 a small island which sheltered her from the fire of the 
 battery, upon which the enemy threw shells at her, 
 but without effect. The boats were then again sent 
 away, provided with rockets, and succeeded in twice 
 setting fire to the town. The ship then got under- 
 way, and standing closer in, commenced firing with, 
 effect upon the fort. Cochrane persevered in his 
 attack as long as possible, but was at length obliged 
 to consult his own safety, and make sail, as the 
 advanced frigate of the Toulon squadron was within 
 a few miles.
 
 SPAETAK AND IMPEKIErSE. 105 
 
 On the^Gth the Imperieuse anchored in the Bay of 
 Marseilles, to the evident consternation of the inha- 
 bitants, and next day was joined by the Spartan, under 
 the command of Captain Jahleel Brenton. The latter 
 being the senior officer, Cochrane put himself under 
 his orders, and the two ships on the following day 
 stood into the gulf of Foz. This service having been 
 ably described in the .memoirs of that distinguished 
 officer the late Vice- Admiral Sir Jahleel Breuton, 
 Bart. to which we have already adverted, it is due to 
 Lord Cochrane to give that version of it : 
 
 " In the beginning of September, the Spartan was 
 ordered to cruise in the Gulf of Eosas, to prevent the 
 enemy's vessels from collecting on the coast between 
 Cape Creux and Cape Couronne. On the 7th, 
 Captain Brenton fell in with the Imperieuse, com- 
 manded by Lord Cochrane, and joined him in an 
 attack he was making upon some merchant-vessels 
 near Cape Mejean ; one of -which they burnt,, and 
 captured two ; which, not being worth sending into 
 port for adjudication, they destroyed. The Imptrieitsc 
 had one man killed upon this occasion, and the 
 Spartan one wounded. 
 
 " On the 8th, the boats of the two ships landed and 
 destroyed the signal-post and telegraph in the Bay of 
 Saintes Maries ; from thence they proceeded to attack 
 three batteries upon the isthmus of Leucate, where a 
 number of vessels were lying hauled up on the beach. 
 Lord Cochrane had reconnoitred this part of the coast 
 some days previously, and had landed and spiked one 
 of the guns on the southern battery. On the 10th, at
 
 106 A SKILFUL EVOLUTION. 
 
 daylight, the boats landed and completed the destruc- 
 tion of that batterjr, whilst the ships protected them 
 by their fire from the troops which were assembled. 
 At 1 P.M. the boats were formed in two divisions, 
 the first of which made a feint* of landing near the 
 village of Caunet, by which means the troops were all 
 drawn to that point, and the ships, running in, attacked 
 the centre battery near the village of Lauren. The 
 second division of boats, in the mean while, proceeded 
 under cover of the Imperieuse and carried the north- 
 ernmost battery." 
 
 The biographer of Sir Jahleel has seized this oppor- 
 tunity of paying a well-merited tribute to the great 
 professional skill of Lord Cochrane. 
 
 " A beautiful instance," he writes, " of ready sea- 
 manship was displayed by Lord Cochrane on this 
 occasion. Having already reconnoitred the coast, he 
 requested he might be permitted to lead upon this 
 occasion. The Spartan was following the Imperieuse, 
 at less than a cable's length distance, the ships going 
 about three knots ; when the Imperieuse was observed 
 suddenly to swing round with much more rapidity 
 than any action of the helm could have produced. 
 The fact was, that Lord Cochrane from the mast-head 
 saw a squadron of the enemy's cavalry galloping 
 towards a gorge on the coast, which, had they 
 passed, would have cut off the retreat of our people, 
 
 * In his autobiography Lord Dundonald states that both 
 Spartan and Imperieuse manned their small boats and the rocket- 
 boats with ship's boys, dressed in marines' scarlet jackets, in 
 order to make the feint more effective.
 
 OPINION OF COCIIKASE. 107 
 
 who vrere employed in spiking the guns. His lord- 
 ship immediately ordered the anchor to be let go ; 
 and the swinging round brought the frigate's star- 
 board broadside to enfilade this gorge, by which means 
 the cavalrv were instantly turned. The boats were 
 then again despatched, when one vessel was blown up 
 and another burnt, the others considerably injured by 
 the fire from the frigates ; but the enemy having 
 collected in considerable force, with field-pieces, the 
 boats were recalled to the Spartan." 
 
 Further on, the editor of that work pays a general 
 tribute to the character of Cochrane, and states that 
 he has " frequently heard Sir Jahleel Brenton men- 
 tion that he admired nothing more in Lord Cochrane 
 than the care he took of the preservation of his 
 people. Bold and adventurous as he was, no unneces- 
 sary exposure of life was ever permitted under his 
 command. Every circumstance was anticipated, every 
 precaution against surprise was taken, every provision 
 for success was made ; and in this way he was enabled 
 to accomplish the most daring enterprises with com- 
 paratively little danger, and still less of actual loss. 
 The public, who heard of his unceasing activity arid 
 dauntless courage, regarded him as one only ambitious 
 of the character of a successful commander; and little 
 knew that he never risked an attack of which he had 
 not calculated all the probable contingencies, and 
 compared most zealously the loss he might himself 
 sustain with the injury to be done to the enemy." 
 
 We have frequently had occasion to draw the atten- 
 tion of our readers to this important feature of Lord
 
 108 BESTTLTS OF THE JOIST CRUISE. 
 
 Cochrane's character, and are particularly happy in 
 having the testimony of so deservedly distinguished 
 an officer as the late Sir Jahleel Brenton in support 
 of our view. 
 
 On the llth the two ships anchored off Cette, and 
 endeavoured to burn the shipping in the harbour by 
 means of congreve rockets, but without effect, owing 
 to the faulty construction of the missiles. Xext day, 
 the boats were again sent away, and the crews having 
 landed, they burnt a custom-house, near Mont Julien, 
 two pontoons on the canal, and some guard-houses, 
 bringing away a quantity of small arras. 
 
 The joint cruise was most effective, for on the 13th 
 the frigates chased nine sail of merchant-ships off 
 Point de Tigne, and captured six of them, comprising 
 one ship, three brigs, a xebec, and a bombard. These 
 vessels had run on shore, and the frigates having 
 anchored near them, had succeeded in getting them 
 all, with the exception of one brig, afloat, when it 
 came on to blow directly on shore. This detained them 
 at their anchors till the 16th, every day expecting that 
 the enemy would bring down guns and attack them, 
 as they were within range of the beach. 
 
 Captain Brenton, in his official letter reporting 
 these operations, states that the conduct of Lord 
 Cochrane "was above all praise; and that it was 
 throughout an animating example of intrepidity, zeal, 
 and professional skill and resources, which he trusted 
 would be treasured up in the memory of all who 
 witnessed it. 
 
 The gallant captains parted company next day, we
 
 LOBD COLLLS'GTVOOD'S EEPOBT. 109 
 
 may fancy with some regret, as there was niuc'.i 
 kindred feeling betwen them, the Spartan making sail 
 to rejoin Lord Collingwood, arid the Imperieuse for 
 Rosas, with one of the prize brigs in tow, where she 
 anchored on the 18th. The brig had received much 
 damage on the rocks, but having been patched up, 
 was despatched to Gibraltar, under charge of the first 
 lieutenant. 
 
 The Imperieuse then returned to the Gulf of Foz, 
 and completely destroyed another signal-station, in 
 the presence of a body of troops assembled for its 
 protection. The troops were kept at bay by the fire 
 of the frigate. 
 
 The following official despatches from Lord Col- 
 lingwood, addressed to the Hon. "Wellesley Pole, 
 Secretary of the Admiralty, dated 19th Oct., 1808, 
 relate to the foregoing services : 
 
 " I enclose a letter which I have just received from 
 the Eight Hon. Lord Cochrane, captain of the Impe- 
 rieuse, stating the services in which he has been 
 employed on the coast of Languedoc. Nothing can 
 excel the zeal and activity with which his lordship 
 pursues the enemy. The success which attends his 
 enterprises clearly indicates with what skill and ability 
 they are conducted; besides keeping the coast in 
 constant alarm, causing a general suspension of the 
 trade, and harassing a body of troops employed in 
 opposing him. He has probably prevented these troops, 
 which were intended for Figueras from advancing 
 into Spain, by giving them employment in the defence 
 of their own coasts."
 
 110 OFFICERS AXD HEN ENGAGED. 
 
 The letter enclosed was dated 28th Sept., 1808 : 
 
 " With varying opposition, but with unvaried suc- 
 cess, the newly-constructed semaphoric telegraphs, 
 which are of the utmost consequence to the safety of 
 the numerous convoys that pass along the coast of 
 France, at Bourdique, La Pinede, St. Maguire, Fron- 
 tignan, Canet, and Fay, have been blown up, and 
 completely demolished, together with their telegraph- 
 houses, fourteen barracks of gendarmes, one battery, 
 and the strong tower on the Lake of Frontignan. 
 
 " Mr. David Mapleton, first lieutenant, had com- 
 mand of these expeditions. Lieutenant Urry Johnson 
 had charge of the field-pieces, and Lieutenant Hore, 
 of the Royal Marines. To them and to Mr. George 
 Gilbert, assistant-surgeon, Mr. Burney, gunner, 
 Messrs. Houston Stewart* and Stovin, midshipmen, 
 is due whatever credit may arise from such mischief, 
 and for having, with so small a force, drawn about 
 2,000 troops from the important fortress of Figueras, 
 in Spain, for the defence of their own coasts. The 
 conduct of Lieutenants Mapleton, Johnson, and 
 Hore, deserves my praise, as well as that of the other 
 officers, Royal Marines, and seamen." 
 
 The casualties attending these exploits are returned 
 as " one man singed in blowing up the battery." 
 
 * The present Vice- Admiral Sir Houston Stewart, K.C.B.
 
 DEFENCE OF EOSAS. Ill 
 
 OPERATIONS OX THE COAST OF CATALONIA. 
 
 [1808-9.] 
 
 The Impcrieuse, standing in need of some repairs, 
 proceeded to Gibraltar to refit ; but the 12th of 
 November found her again off Barcelona, which place 
 was still in the occupation of the French. Cochrane 
 then recommenced his harassing system, the effect 
 of which was soon observable, every battery being 
 constantly in a state of excitement. The Impcrieuse, 
 accompanied by the Cambrian, frequently engaged the 
 batteries, but fortunately escaped loss. A singular 
 accident was mentioned by Lord Cochrane. One of 
 the enemy's shot entered the muzzle of a brass 32- 
 pounder on the forecastle of the Imperieuse, which 
 was at the instant in the act of being discharged. 
 The shots met, and the gun burst in the middle, This 
 harassing work gave the Spanish patriots many advan- 
 tages ; but the French were still too strong for them. 
 
 Information now reached Lord Cochraue that the 
 French had invested Rosas ; and in furtherance of 
 Lord Collingwood's general instructions he considered 
 it his duty to repair thither without delay. He there- 
 fore left the Cambrian at Barcelona, and on the 20th 
 of November anchored in the bay. A heavy can- 
 nonade was then going on between the citadel and 
 some French batteries thrown up on the cliff above 
 Fort Trinidad. To ascertain how he could most 
 effectually take part in the defence, Lord Cochraue 
 landed at the town, and communicated with the
 
 112 DEFENCE OF FOKT TRINIDAD. 
 
 Spanish troops. He then got the frigate as close in 
 as he could with safety, in a position to enfilade the 
 besiegers. On the 22nd he again went on shore to 
 the citadel, into which the French were continually 
 throwing shells ; but owing to the construction of the 
 place they did little damage. Having ascertained the 
 position of the enemy's entrenchments, he was able 
 to give directions for the more effectual attacks upon 
 them. His co-operation soon drew upon the frigate 
 rather too much notice, for the attention of the 
 besiegers of the citadel was drawn to this new annoy- 
 ance. The result was a combined fire of shot and 
 shell, which made it necessary for her to withdraw 
 out of range. 
 
 Fort Trinidad, up to this time, had been garrisoned 
 by the marines of the Fame ; but as the place had 
 been breached, Captain Bennett, deeming it imprudent 
 to keep his men there any longer, withdrew. Coch- 
 rane, however, unwilling to leave the Spaniards to 
 themselves, earnestly requested the governor not to 
 abandon the place until he had tried what he could 
 do, and that he would himself land and assist the gar- 
 rison. The governor, having reluctantly consented, 
 Cochrane disembarked and took command of the 
 damaged fort. Among the volunteers who accom- 
 panied Lord Cochrane in this hazardous service was 
 the late Captain Frederick Marryat, then a midship- 
 man of the Imperieuse, but who subsequently made 
 his name immortal by his naval romances. Under 
 the nom de plume of "Frank Mildmay," he has given 
 one of the most lucid, and possibly truthful, narratives
 
 MILDMAY'S STORY. 113 
 
 of this particular service extant ; and as our volume 
 would be incomplete without this well told story, we 
 republish the chapter as " an Episode." The sober 
 account given by his lordship, differs in no essential 
 particular from the sketch of the lively author from 
 whose work we are about to quote ; but it is neces- 
 sary that two or three preliminary facts should be 
 correctly laid down. 
 
 The castle of Trinidad stood on the side of a steep 
 hill, but was commanded by precipitous cliffs which 
 would have rendered its occupation impossible, had it 
 not been for the peculiar construction of the fastness. 
 The walls were of immense thickness. Xext to the 
 sea was a fort, the walls of which were fifty feet in 
 height ; and in the rear of this was a tower, rising 
 thirty feet above it, with its back to the cliff. The 
 defensive character of these three fortifications was 
 very great, but unfortunately they had very little 
 offensive power. 
 
 The French had managed to effect a partial breach 
 in the tower, just over a bomb-proof interior arch, 
 which arch was fifty feet high, and was easily con- 
 verted into a serious obstacle to a storming party, 
 by simply breaking in the crown of it, and thereby 
 forming a deep chasm inside the outer wall. In this 
 tower Cochraue and his band of heroes were located, 
 and holding out against the French besiegers. Here 
 it was that Lord Cochrane placed his cleverly-con- 
 structed man-trap. Let us, however, now turn to 
 Frank Mild may's account.
 
 Ill A MIDSHIPMAN'S TARN. 
 
 AN EPISODE. 
 
 The shout 
 
 Of battle now began, and rushing sound 
 Of onset ..... 
 Twixt host and host but narrow space was left. 
 
 Mn/TOBT. 
 
 From the deservedly high character borne by the 
 captain of the frigate which I was ordered to join, he 
 was employed by Lord Collingwood on the most con- 
 fidential services ; and we were sent to assist the 
 Spaniards in their defence of the important fortress 
 of Bosas, in Catalonia. It has already been observed, 
 that the French general, St. Cyr, had entered that 
 country, and, having taken Figueras and Gerona, was 
 looking with a wistful eye on the castle of Trinity, on 
 the south-east side, the capture of which would be a 
 certain prelude to the fall of Rosas. 
 
 My captain determined to defend it, although it 
 had just been abandoned by another British naval 
 officer as untenable. I volunteered, though a super- 
 numerary, to be one of the party, and was sent : nor 
 can I but acknowledge that the officer who had 
 abandoned the place had shown more than a sound 
 discretion. Every part of the castle was in ruins. 
 Heaps of crumbling stones and rubbish, broken gun- 
 carriages, and split guns, presented to my mind a 
 very unfavourable field of battle. The only advantage 
 we appeared to have over the assailants was, that the 
 breach which they had effected in the walls was steep 
 in its ascent, and the loose stones either fell down
 
 SHABP CAXNOITADiyG. 115 
 
 upon them, or gave way under their feet, while \ve 
 plied them with every kind of missile : this was our 
 only defence, and all we had to prevent the enemy 
 marching into the works, if works they could be 
 called. 
 
 There was another and a very serious disadvantage 
 attending our locality. The castle was situated very 
 near the summit of a steep hill, the upper part of 
 which was in possession of the enemy, who were, by 
 this means, nearly on a level with the top of the 
 castle, and, on that eminence, three hundred Swiss 
 sharpshooters had effected a lodgment, and thrown 
 up works within fifty yards of us, keeping up a con- 
 stant fire at the castle. If a head was seen above the 
 walls, twenty rifle bullets whizzed at it in a moment, 
 and the same unremitted attention was paid to our 
 boats as they landed. 
 
 On another hill, much to the northward, and con- 
 sequently farther inland, the French had erected a 
 battery of six 24-pounders ; this agreeable neighbour 
 was only 300 yards from us ; and allowing short in- 
 tervals for the guns to cool, this battery kept up a 
 constant fire upon us from daylight till dark. I never 
 could have supposed, in my boyish days, that the time 
 would arrive when I should envy a cock upon Shrove- 
 Tuesday ; yet such was my case when in this infernal 
 castle. It was certainly not giving us fair play ; we 
 had no chance against such a force ; but my captain 
 was a knight errant, and as I had volunteered, I had 
 no right to complain. Such was the precision of the 
 enemy's fire, that we could tell the stone that would 
 i 2
 
 116 TOO MUCH FIGHTING. 
 
 be hit by the next shot, merely from seeing where the 
 last had struck, and our men were frequently wounded 
 by the splinters of granite, with which the walls were 
 built, and others picked off like partridges, by the 
 Swiss corps on the hill close to us. 
 
 Our force in the castle consisted of 130 English 
 seamen and marines, one company of Spanish, and 
 another of Swiss troops in Spanish pay. JS"ever were 
 troops worse paid and fed, or better fired at. "\Ve all 
 pigged in together; dirty straw and fleas for our 
 beds ; our food on the same scale of luxury ; from the 
 captain downwards there was no distinction. Fight- 
 ing is sometimes a very agreeable pastime, but excess 
 " palls on the sense :" and here we had enough of it, 
 without what I always thought an indispensable ac- 
 companiment, namely, a good belly-full; nor did I 
 conceive how a man could perform his duty without 
 it ; but here I was forced, with many others, to make 
 the experiment, and when the boats could not land, 
 which was often the case, we piped to dinner pro 
 forma,, as our captain liked regularity, and drank cold 
 water to fill our stomachs. 
 
 I have often heard my poor old uncle say that no 
 man knows what he can do till he tries; and the 
 enemy gave us plenty of opportunities of displaying 
 our ingenuity, industry, watchfulness, and abstinence. 
 When poor Penelope wove her web, the poet says 
 
 The night unravell'd what the day began. 
 
 "With us it was precisely the reverse: the day de- 
 stroyed all the labours of- the night. The hours of
 
 MAN-TRAP. 117 
 
 darkness were employed by us in filling sand-bags, 
 and laying them in the breach, clearing away rubbish, 
 and preparing to receive the enemy's fire, which was 
 sure to recommence at daylight. These avocations, 
 together with a constant and most vigilant watch 
 against surprise, took up so much of our time, that 
 little was left for repose, and our meals required still 
 less. 
 
 There was some originality in one of our modes of 
 defence, and which, not being secundum artem, might 
 have provoked the smile of an engineer. The captain 
 contrived to make a shoot of smooth deal boards, 
 which he received from the ship ; these he placed in a 
 slanting direction in the breach, and caused them to 
 be well greased with cook's slush ; so that the enemies, 
 who wished to come into our hold, must have jumped 
 down upon them, and would in an instant be precipi- 
 tated into the ditch below, a very considerable depth, 
 where they might either have remained till the doctor 
 came to them, or, if they were able, begin their 
 labours de novo. This was a very good bug-trap ; for, 
 at that time, I thought just as little of killing a 
 Frenchman as I did of destroying the filthy little 
 nightly depredator just mentioned. 
 
 Besides this slippery trick, which we played them 
 with great success, we served them another. "\Ve 
 happened to have on board the frigate a large quantity 
 of fish-hooks : these we planted not only on the greasy 
 boards, but in every part where the intruders were 
 likely to place their hands or feet. The breach itself 
 was mined, and loaded with shells and hand-grenades ;
 
 118 STOBMING THE BREACH. 
 
 masked guns, charged up to the muzzle with musket- 
 balls, enfiladed the spot in every direction. Such were 
 our defences ; and, considering that we had been three 
 weeks in the castle, opposed to such mighty odds, it 
 is surprising that we only lost twenty men. The crisis 
 was now approaching. 
 
 One morning, very early, I happened to have the 
 look-out. The streak of fog which during the night 
 hangs between the hills in that country, and presses 
 down into the valleys, had just begun to rise, and the 
 stars to grow more dim above our heads, when I was 
 looking over the castle walls towards the breach. The 
 captain came out and asked me what I was looking 
 at. I told him I hardly knew ; but there did appear 
 something unusual in the valley, immediately below 
 the breach. He listened a moment, looked attentively 
 with his night-glass, and exclaimed, in his firm voice, 
 but in an uudertoned manner, " To arms ! they are 
 coming! " 
 
 In three minutes every man was at his post ; and 
 though all were quick, there was no time to spare, for 
 by this time the black column of the enemy was dis- 
 tinctly visible, curling along the valley like a great 
 centipede ; and, with the daring enterprise so common 
 among the troops of Napoleon, had begun in silence 
 to mount the breach. It was an awful and eventful 
 moment ; but the coolness and determination of the 
 little garrison was equal to the occasion. 
 
 The word was given to take good aim, and a volley 
 from the masked guns and musketry was poured 
 into the thick of them. They paused deep groans
 
 A GALLANT LEADEH. 119 
 
 ascended ! They retreated a few paces in confusion, 
 then rallied, and again advanced to the attack ; and 
 now the fire on both sides was kept up without inter- 
 mission. The great guns from the hill fort, and the 
 Swiss sharpshooters still nearer, poured copious 
 vollies upon us, and with loud shouts cheered on their 
 comrades to the assault. As they approached and 
 covered our mine, the train was fired, and up they 
 went in the air, and down they fell buried in the 
 ruins ! Groans, screams, confusion, French yells, 
 British hurras, rent the sky! The hills resounded 
 with the shouts of victory ! We sent them hand- 
 grenades in abundance, and broke their skins in 
 glorious style ! I must say that the French behaved 
 nobly, though many a tall grenadier and pioneer fell 
 by the symbol in front of his warlike cap. I cried 
 with rage and excitement; and we all fought like 
 bull-dogs, for we knew there was no quarter to be 
 given. 
 
 Ten minutes had elapsed since the firing began, and 
 in that time many a brave fellow had bit the dust. 
 The head of their attacking column had been de- 
 stroyed by the explosion of our mine. Still they had 
 re-formed, and were again half-way up the breach when 
 the day began to dawn ; and we saw a chosen body of 
 one thousand men, led on by their colonel, and advan- 
 cing over the dead which had just fallen. 
 
 The gallant leader appeared to be as cool and com- 
 posed as if he were at breakfast ; with his drawn 
 sword he pointed to the breach, and we heard him 
 exclaim, " Suivez-moi ! " I felt jealous of this brave
 
 120 AN OUNCE OF LEAD. 
 
 fellow jealous of his being a Frenchman ; and I 
 threw a lighted hand-grenade between his feet he 
 picked up, and threw it from him to a considerable 
 distance. 
 
 " Cool chap enough that," said the captain, who 
 stood close to me ; " I'll give him another ;" which he 
 did, but this the officer kicked away with equal sang 
 /rozWand dignity. " Nothing will cure that fellow," 
 resumed the captain, "but an ounce of lead on an 
 empty stomach. It's a pity, too, to kill so fine a 
 fellow but there is no help for it." 
 
 So saying, he took a musket out of my hand, which 
 I had just loaded aimed, fired the colonel stag- 
 gered, clapped his hand to his breast, and fell back 
 into the arms of some of his men, who threw down 
 their muskets, and took him on their shoulders, either 
 unconscious or perfectly regardless of the death-work 
 which was going on around them. The firing re- 
 doubled from our musketry on this little group, every 
 man of whom was either killed or wounded. The 
 colonel, again left to himself, tottered a few paces 
 farther, till he reached a small bush, not ten yards 
 from the spot where he received his mortal wound. 
 Here he fell ; his sword, which he still grasped in his 
 right hand/ resting on the boughs, and pointed up- 
 wards to the sky, as if directing the road to the spirit 
 of its gallant master.* 
 
 * Lord Dundonald gives a different version of this affair : 
 " They were gallantly led, two of the officers attracting my 
 especial attention. The first was dropped by a shot, which 
 precipitated him from the walls ; but whether he was killed, or
 
 BEPT7LSE OP THE FRENCH. 121 
 
 "With the life of the colonel, ended the hopes of the 
 French for that day. The officers, we could perceive, 
 did their duty cheered, encouraged, and drove on 
 their men, but all in vain ! "We saw them pass their 
 swords through the bodies of the fugitives ; but the 
 men did not even mind that they would only be killed 
 in their own way they had had fighting enough for 
 one breakfast. The first impulse, the fiery onset, had 
 been checked by the fall of their brave leader, and 
 sauve qui peut, whether coming from the officers or 
 drummers, no matter which, terminated the affair, and 
 we were left a little time to breathe, and to count the 
 number of our dead. 
 
 The moment the French perceived from their bat- 
 teries that the attempt had failed, and that the leader 
 of the enterprise was dead, they poured in an angry 
 fire* upon us. I stuck my hat on the bayonet of my 
 musket, and just showed it above the wall. A dozen of 
 bullets were through it in a minute : very fortunately 
 my head was not in it. 
 
 only wounded, I do not know, probably wounded only, as his 
 body was not seen by us among the dead. The other was the 
 last man to quit the walls, and before he could do so, I had 
 covered him with my musket. Finding escape impossible, he 
 stood like a hero to receive the bullet, without condescending 
 to lower his sword in token of surrender. I never saw a better 
 or a prouder man. Lowering my musket, I paid him the 
 compliment of remarking that so fine a fellow was not born to 
 be shot down like a dog, and that so far as I was concerned he 
 was at liberty to make the best of his way down the ladder ; 
 upon which intimation he bowed, as politely as though on 
 parade, and retired just as leisurely." Autobiography of a Sea- 
 man, vol. i. p. 311.
 
 122 PEACEFUL SOBTIE 
 
 The fire of the batteries having ceased, which it 
 generally did at stated periods, we had an opportu- 
 dity of examining the point of attack. Scaling ladders 
 and dead bodies lay in profusion. All the wounded 
 had been removed ; but what magnificent " food for 
 powder " were the bodies which lay before us ! all, 
 it would seem, picked men ; not one less than six 
 feet, and some more ; they were clad in their grey 
 capots, to render their appearance more sombre, and 
 less discernible in the twilight of the morning ; and 
 as the weather was cold during the nights, I secretly 
 determined to have one of these great coats as a 
 cliere amie to keep me warm in night-watches. I 
 also resolved to have the colonel's sword to present 
 to my captain ; and as soon as it was dark, I walked 
 down the breach, brought up one of the scaling 
 ladders, which I deposited in the castle ; and, having 
 done so much for the king, I set out to do something 
 for myself. 
 
 It was pitch-dark. I stumbled on ; the wind blew 
 a hurricane, and the dust and mortar almost blinded 
 me ; but I knew my way pretty well. Tet there was 
 something very jackal-like, in wandering among dead 
 bodies in the night-time, and I really felt a horror at 
 my situation. There was a dreadful stillness between 
 the blasts, which the pitch-darkness made peculiarly 
 awful to an unfortified mind. It is for this reason 
 that I would ever discourage night-attacks, unless 
 you can rely on your men. They generally fail: 
 because the man of common bravery, who would 
 acquit himself fairly in broad daylight, will hang back
 
 IN SEAECH OF A GEEAT-COAT. 123 
 
 during the night. Fear and Darkness have always 
 been firm allies, and are inseparably playing into 
 each other's hands. Darkness conceals Fear, and 
 therefore Fear loves Darkness, because it saves the 
 coward from shame ; and when the fear of shame is 
 the only stimulus to fight, daylight is essentially 
 necessary. 
 
 I crept cautiously along, feeling for the dead bodies. 
 The first I laid my hand on made my blood curdle. It 
 was the lacerated thigh of a grenadier, whose flesh had 
 been torn off by a hand-grenade. " Friend," said I, 
 " if I may judge from the nature of your wound, your 
 great'Coat is not worth having." The next subject I 
 handled had been better killed. A musket-ball through 
 his head had settled all his tradesmen's bills ; and I 
 hesitated not in becoming residuary legatee, as I was 
 sure the assets would more than discharge the under- 
 taker's bill ; but the body was cold and stiff, and did 
 not readily yield its garment. 
 
 I, however, succeeded in obtaining my object, in 
 which I arrayed myself, and went on in search of the 
 colonel's sword ; but here I had been anticipated by a 
 Frenchman. The colonel, indeed, lay there stiff enough, 
 but his sword was gone. I was preparing to return, 
 when I encountered, not a dead, but a living enemy. 
 
 " Qui vive? " said a low voice. 
 
 "Anglais, bete!" answered I, in a low tone; and 
 added, " mats les corsairs ne se lattent pas." 
 
 " C'est vrai" said he ; and growling " Son soir" he 
 was soon out of sight. I scrambled back to the castle, 
 gave the countersign to the sentinel, and showed my
 
 124 BURYING THE DEAD. 
 
 new great-coat with a vast deal of glee and satisfac- 
 tion. Some of my comrades went on the same sort 
 of expedition, and were rewarded with more or less 
 success. 
 
 In a few days the dead bodies on the beach were 
 nearly denuded by nightly visitors ; but that of the 
 colonel lay respected and untouched. The heat of the 
 day had blackened it, and it was now deprived of all 
 its manly beauty, and nothing remained but a loath- 
 some corpse. The rules of war, as well as of humanity, 
 demanded the honourable interment of the remains of 
 this hero ; and our captain, who was the very flower of 
 chivalry, desired me to stick a white handkerchief on 
 a pike, as a flag of truce, and bury the bodies, if the 
 enemy would permit us. 
 
 I went out accordingly with a spade and a pickaxe ; 
 but the tirailleurs on the hill began with their rifles, 
 and wounded one of my men. I looked at the cap- 
 tain, as much as to say, "Am I to proceed?" He 
 motioned with his hand to go on, and then I began 
 digging a hole by the side of a dead body, and the 
 enemy, seeing my intention, desisted from firing. I 
 had buried several, when the captain came out and 
 joined me, with a view of reconnoitring the position 
 of the enemy. He was seen from the fort, and 
 recognized; and his intention pretty accurately 
 guessed at. 
 
 We were near the body of the colonel, which we 
 were going to inter, when the captain, observing a 
 diamond ring on the finger of the corpse, said to 
 one of the sailors, " You may just as well take
 
 A WAENING SHOT. 125 
 
 that off; it can be of no use to him now." The 
 man tried to get off, but the rigidity of the muscle 
 after death prevented his moving it. " He won't feel 
 your knife, poor fellow," said the captain ; " and a 
 finger more or less is no great matter to him now : 
 off with it." 
 
 The sailor began to saw the finger-joint with his 
 knife, when down came a twenty-four pound shot, and 
 with such a good direction, that it took the shoe off 
 the man's foot and the shovel out of the hand of 
 another man. 
 
 " In with him, and cover him up ! " said the 
 captain. 
 
 We did so ; when another shot, not quite so well 
 directed as the first, threw the dirt in our faces and 
 ploughed the ground at our feet. The captain then 
 ordered his men to run into the castle, which they 
 instantly obeyed ; while he himself walked leisurely 
 along through a shower of musket-balls from those 
 cursed Swiss dogs, whom I most fervently wished at 
 the devil, because, as an aide-de-camp, I felt bound iu 
 honour as well as duty to walk by the side of my cap- 
 tain, fully expecting every moment that a rifle-ball 
 would have hit me where I should have been ashamed 
 to show the scar. I thought this funeral pace, after 
 the funeral was over, confounded nonsense ; but my 
 fire-eating captain never had run away from a French- 
 man, and did not intend to begin then. 
 
 I was behind him, making these reflections ; and as 
 the shot began to fly very thick, I stepped up along- 
 side of him, and, by degrees, brought him between me
 
 126 AGE BEFOBE HONESTY. 
 
 and the fire. " Sir," said I, " as I am only a midship- 
 man, I don't care so much about honour as you do ; 
 and, therefore, if it makes no difference to you, I'll 
 take the liberty of getting under your lee." He 
 laughed, and said, " I did not know you were here, 
 for I meant you should have gone with the others ; 
 but, since you are out of your station, Mr. Mildmay, 
 I will make that use of you which you so ingeniously 
 proposed to make of me. My life may be of some 
 importance here, but yours very little, and another 
 midshipman can be had from the ship only for asking ; 
 so just drop astern, if you please, and do duty as a 
 breastwork for me ! " 
 
 " Certainly, sir," said I; "by all means." And I 
 took my station accordingly. 
 
 " Now," said the captain, " if you are ' doubled up ' 
 I will take you on my shoulders! " 
 
 I expressed myself exceedingly obliged, not only for 
 the honour he had conferred on me, but also for that 
 which he intended; but hoped I should have no 
 occasion to trouble him. 
 
 Whether the enemy took pity on my youth and 
 innocence, or whether they purposely missed us, I 
 cannot say ; I only know I was very happy when I 
 found myself inside the castle with a whole skin, and 
 should very readily have reconciled myself to any 
 measure which would have restored me even to the 
 comforts and conveniences of a man-of-war's cockpit. 
 All human enjoyment is comparative; and nothing 
 ever convinced me of it so much and so forcibly as 
 what took place at this memorable siege.
 
 COCHBANE "WOUNDED. 127 
 
 Fortune, and the well-known cowardice of the 
 Spaniards, released me from this jeopardy. They 
 surrendered the citadel ; after which the castle was of 
 no use, and we ran down to our boats as fast as we 
 could ; and notwithstanding the very assiduous fire of 
 the watchful tirailleurs on the hill, we all got on board 
 without accident. 
 
 In addition to their other lines, the French had 
 thrown up a battery on the cliff, by means of which 
 the breach was soon considerably widened. The 
 garrison did all in their power to repair the damages, 
 and the stone dislodged by the enemy's guns rendered 
 this more easy. These splinters of stone, however, 
 were dangerous a fact of which Lord Cochrane had 
 personal proof. He was struck in the face, and his 
 nose driven back into the roof of his mouth. The 
 agony caused by this wound was intolerable ; but by 
 the great skill of his surgeon, Dr. Gruthrie, the injury 
 was, after a time, repaired, and the nose rendered 
 serviceable. 
 
 The French, having gained possession of the town 
 of Rosas, redoubled their fire upon the fortress, and 
 on the 30th had effected what they considered a prac- 
 ticable breach. 
 
 The following singular presentiment is related by 
 Lord Cochrane. " The dawn of the 30th might have 
 been our last but from the interposition of what some 
 persons may call presentiment. Long before daylight 
 I was awoke with an impression that the enemy were 
 in possession of the castle, though the stillness which
 
 128 FIBI2TG AT EA^'DOM. 
 
 prevailed showed this to be a delusion. Still I could 
 not recompose myself to sleep ; and after lying for 
 some time tossing about, I left my couch, and hastily 
 went on the esplanade of the fortress. All was per- 
 fectly still, and I felt half ashamed of having given 
 way to such fancies. 
 
 " A loaded mortar, however, stood before me, 
 pointed during the day in such a direction that the 
 shell should fall on the path over the hill which the 
 French must necessarily take whenever they might 
 make an attempt to storm. "Without other object 
 than that of divesting my mind of what had taken 
 possession of it, I fired the mortar. Before the echo 
 had died away, a volley of musketry from the advanc- 
 ing column of the enemy showed that the shell had 
 fallen amongst them just as they were on the point 
 of storming." 
 
 Finding that nothing more could be done, Lord 
 Cochrane determined on evacuating the fortress, and 
 leaving the Spaniards to their fate, having had three 
 of his men killed and five wounded. 
 
 The following is a copy of his official letter to Lord 
 Collingwood, dated Bay of Bosas, 5th December, 
 1808 : 
 
 " The fortress of Rosas being attacked by an 
 army of Italians in the service of France, in pursuance 
 of discretionary orders to assist the Spaniards when- 
 ever it could be done with effect, I hastened here. 
 The citadel, on the 22nd ult., was already half in- 
 vested, and the enemy was making his approaches
 
 OFFICIAL EEPOET. 129 
 
 towards the S.~W. bastion, -which was blown down last 
 war by the explosion of a magazine, and tumbled into 
 the ditch. A few thin planks, and dry stones, had 
 been put up by the Spanish engineers, perhaps to 
 hide the defect. All things were in a most deplorable 
 state without and within; even measures for their 
 powder, and saws for their fuses, were not to be had, 
 and mats and axes supplied their place. The castle 
 of Trinity, situated on an eminence, but commanded 
 by heights, was also invested. Three 24-pounders 
 battered in breach, to which a fourth was afterwards 
 added, and a passage through the wall to the lower 
 bomb-proof being nearly effected on the 23rd, the 
 marines of the Fame were withdrawn. 
 
 " I went to examine the state of the castle ; and as 
 the senior officer in the bay had not officially altered 
 the orders I received from your lordship, I thought 
 this a good opportunity, by occupying a post on which 
 the acknowledged safety of the citadel depended, to 
 render them an effectual service ; the remaining 
 garrison, consisting of about eighty Spaniards, who 
 were on the point of surrendering when I threw 
 myself into the fort with fifty seamen and thirty 
 marines of the Imperieuse. 
 
 " The arrangements I made need not be detailed 
 to your lordship : suffice it to say that about a thou- 
 sand bags made of old sails, besides palisades and 
 barrels, supplied the place of walls and ditches ; and 
 that the enemy, who assaulted the castle on the 30th 
 with 1,000 picked men, were repulsed, with the loss 
 of their commanding officer, storming equipage, and 
 K
 
 130 NAMES OF OITICEES ENGAGED. 
 
 .all who had attempted to mount the breach. The 
 Spanish garrison, having been changed, gave good 
 assistance. As to the officers, seamen, and marines 
 of this ship, the fatigues they underwent, and the 
 gallant manner in which they behaved, deserve every 
 praise. I must, however, particularly mention Lieute- 
 nant [Urry] Johnson, R.N. ; Lieutenant [James R.] 
 Hore, E.M. ; Mr. Burney, gunner ; Mr. Lodowick, 
 carpenter; and Messrs. [Houston] Stewart, Slovin, 
 and [Frederick] Marryat, midshipmen. 
 
 " Captain [Robert] Hall, of the Lucifer, at all 
 times, and in every way, gave his zealous assistance ; 
 and I feel also indebted to Captain [James] Collins, 
 of the Meteor, for his aid. 
 
 "The citadel of Rosas capitulated at twelve o'clock 
 this day ; and seeing further resistance in the Castle 
 of Trinity useless and impracticable against the whole 
 army, the attention of which had been naturally 
 turned to its reduction, we embarked in the boats of 
 the Magnificent, Imperieuse, and Fame, after firing 
 the trains for exploding the magazines." 
 
 Lord Colliugwood, upon the receipt of the despatch, 
 wrote to Mr. "Wellesley Pole, Secretary of the Admi- 
 ralty, as follows : 
 
 " Captain Lord Cochrane has maintained himself 
 in the possession of Trinity Castle with great ability 
 and heroism. Although the fort is laid open by the 
 breach in its works, he has sustained and repelled 
 several assaults, having formed a sort of rampart
 
 SPANISH EULOGIUM. 131 
 
 within the breach with his ship's hammock-cloths, 
 awnings, &c., filled \vith sand and rubbish. The zeal 
 and energy -with which he has maintained that fortress 
 excites the highest admiration. His resources for 
 every exigency have no end." 
 
 Writing again to the Admiralty, dated January 7. 
 1809, Lord Collingwood said : " The heroic spirit and 
 ability which have been evinced by Lord Cochrane in 
 defending this castle, although so shattered in its 
 works, against the repeated attacks of the enemy, is 
 an admirable instance of his lordship's zeal ; and the 
 distinguished conduct of Lieutenants Johnson* and 
 Hore, and the officers and men employed in this affair 
 under his lordship, will doubtless be very gratifying to 
 my Lords Commissioners of the Admiralty." 
 
 The Spanish press, also, were loud in the praises of 
 their heroic defender. The following is a concluding 
 paragraph of a high-flown eulogium : 
 
 " It is sufficient to mention that in the defence of 
 the castle of Trinidad, when the Spanish flag hoisted 
 on the wall fell into the ditch under a most dreadful 
 fire from the enemy, his lordship was the only person 
 who, regardless of the shower of bullets flying about 
 him, descended into the ditch, returned with the flag, 
 and happily succeeded in placing it where it was." 
 
 * This officer was made a commander 6th September, 1809; 
 but it does not appear that the promotion was given as an 
 especial reward for his gallantry on this occasion. 
 K 2
 
 132 LABOUK IN TAIN. 
 
 From all but one side Cochrane was justly 
 applauded. His comraander-in-chief, his equals, and 
 bis subordinates, were unanimous in bis praise ; but 
 be was the "Whig Radical Member for Westminster, 
 which, in the eyes of the reigning party, was enough 
 to render all his noble deeds valueless. For all the 
 fighting, which we have only briefly recorded, not a 
 promotion, and consequently not even a silver medal, 
 has ever been awarded. Can we wonder that a warm- 
 blooded, high-spirited man felt indignant at such 
 treatment, and that he carried with him to the grave 
 the remembrance of the injuries he then, as well as 
 before and subsequently, received ? 
 
 Once more he had to write a despatch, reporting a 
 service off Barcelona. His letter bore date Cartha- 
 gena, 2nd January, 1809 : 
 
 "Having received information of two French vessels 
 of war and a convoy of victuallers for Barcelona being 
 in this port, I have the honour to inform your lord- 
 ship that they are all, amounting to thirteen sail, in 
 our possession. The names of the prizes were, Z 
 Gauloise* cutter, 7 guns, 46 men, commanded by 
 M. Avanet, a member of the Legion of Honour ; 
 La Julie, lugger, 5 guns, 4 swivels, 44 men, and 
 eleven victuallers." 
 
 * This vessel was placed in charge of Lieutenant Harrison, 
 who was ordered to proceed to Gibraltar ; but when off Tarra- 
 gona he went on shore in a boat, with two hands, not knowing 
 that it was in the possession of the French, and was taken 
 prisoner. The cutter, however, made her escape, and proceeded 
 to Minorca.
 
 DESTRUCTION OF FRENCH BATTERIES. 133 
 
 This service was not accomplished without diffi- 
 culty. Having anchored in Caldagues bay, the 
 Impcrieuse opened fire on the vessels of war, two of 
 which sank, the crews escaping to the shore. The 
 frigate then warped close in shore for the purpose of 
 silencing the fire of a battery, and at the same time 
 -despatched the boats in two directions to attack the 
 enemy in flank and rear. Observing this movement, 
 the French, afraid of being cut off from the main 
 body, threw some of the guns over the cliff. The 
 remaining guns, four brass 18-pounders, were cap- 
 tured and brought off; and the magazine blown up. 
 The cutter and lugger were raised, and some other 
 brass guns recovered. 
 
 On the 9th January he destroyed another battery, 
 near Silva, throwing the guns into the sea. The 
 arrival of large reinforcements, however, induced the 
 French to regain possession of the coast ; but finding 
 their two batteries destroyed, and their guns gone, 
 they opened a heavy fire of musketry, and also com- 
 menced a smart fire from a battery lower down the 
 cliff, by which two men on board the Impcricuse were 
 wounded. After some further active co-operation, the 
 Impf'rieuse preceded to Minorca, and on the 30th 
 January joined the fleet under the command of Vice- 
 Adrniral Thoruborough. 
 
 Lord Cochrane, being anxious to bring under the 
 consideration of the House of Commons the extor- 
 tionate system pursued in the Admiralty Court at 
 Malta with respect to the prizes sent thither for adju- 
 dication, applied for leave of absence. He also wished
 
 134 WELCOME HOME ! 
 
 to put on record the marked neglect shown to his 
 officers who had so gallantly assisted him in his labo- 
 rious and hazardous exertions on the enemy's coasts, 
 as well as to revive his plan for seizing some of the 
 islands in the Bay of Biscay. Permission to return to 
 England having been accorded, he quitted the Medi- 
 terranean in the Imperieuse, and arrived at Plymouth 
 in the month of March. 
 
 THE AFFAIK IN BASQUE ROADS. 
 
 [1809.] 
 
 We now approach the last of Lord Cochrane's 
 services in the British navy. Hitherto he had worked 
 harder than any officer of his standing during the 
 most exciting period of the war. He had been, we 
 may say, constantly under fire, and had gained a 
 name for professional dash, combined with prudence, 
 which gave promise of his attaining the highest naval 
 honours. True, he had been grievously neglected 
 and persecuted ; but so transcendent had been the 
 skill evinced by him, that a little more would have 
 placed him far above the reach of the machinations of 
 his enemies. Shortly after his return to England, he 
 received a letter couched in the most complimentary 
 terms, from the second sea Lord of the Admiralty, 
 Captain "W". Johnstone Hope, acquainting him that 
 an undertaking of great moment was in contempla- 
 tion against Rochefort, and that the Board were of 
 opinion his local knowledge might be of the utmost 
 consequence. This letter was quickly followed by a 
 telegraphic summons to attend the Admiralty. Lord
 
 CONFIDENTIALLY CONSULTED. 135 
 
 Cochrane lost no time in obeying the mandate. 
 There will be no doubt in the minds of many readers, 
 that this seeming compliment was only a means re- 
 sorted to in order to deter him from again agitating 
 the House of Commons with his intended motions on 
 the navy. 
 
 On reaching the Admiralty, he was sent for by Lord 
 Mulgrave, the first lord, by whom he was confidentially 
 consulted as to the practicability of destroying the 
 Erench squadron lying in the Aix roads, then block- 
 aded by Admiral Lord Gambier, the commander-in- 
 chief of the Channel fleet. Great fears were enter- 
 tained that by some accident the French squadron 
 would effect its escape, and do considerable damage 
 among our "West-India islands, whither the squadron 
 was bound. 
 
 The proposition in agitation was, the possibility of 
 destroying these ships by means of fire-vessels ; but 
 which operation Lord Gambier appeared desirous to 
 set aside, deeming it "hazardous if not desperate." 
 Much conversation ensued on the occasion, and Lord 
 Cochrane demurred for a time to undertake a ser- 
 vice which the commander-in-chief had pronounced 
 against. It ended, however in Lord Mulgrave't 
 giving him Lord Gambier' s letter to read, containing 
 the following paragraph : " The enemy's ships lie 
 much exposed to the operation of fire-ships : it is a 
 horrible mode of warfare, and the attempt hazardous, 
 if not desperate ; but we should have plenty of 
 volunteers for the service." 
 
 Lord Mulgrave then observed that Lord Gambier
 
 136 APPOINTED TO COIEMAND FIEE-SHIPS. 
 
 had thus thrown the onus of failure upon the 
 Admiralty, and again, in effect, proposed to his lord- 
 ship to accept the unenviable risk of becoming the 
 scape-goat. Lord G-ambier had said in his private 
 letter, that the advanced work, between the isles of 
 Aix and Oleron, had been injured in its foundation, 
 and that consequently there would be no difficulty in 
 bombarding the French ships ; but was evidently 
 averse from the fire-ship proposition. Cochrane 
 did not at the time see the drift of all this. He 
 concurred with Lord G-atnbier, that fire-ships alone 
 would probably fail ; but he thought that fire-ships 
 and his explosion vessels, seconded by the fleet, would 
 be sure to succeed. The interview ended in Lord 
 Mulgrave's requesting him to put his plans in execu- 
 tion, to which he at length assented. 
 
 On the 25th March, a letter was addressed to Lord 
 G-ambier by the Board of Admiralty, acquainting the 
 admiral that they had thought fit to select Lord 
 Cochrane for the purpose of conducting, under his 
 orders, the squadron of fire-ships, intended to be 
 employed on this important service. 
 
 Let us now take a survey of the position of the 
 French ships, which numbered ten sail of the line, a 
 54-gun store-ship, and three frigates. To render this 
 clearer, we give a wood engraving taken from the most 
 correct French chart then extant, in which the posi- 
 tion of the ships is shown by dots, and also the 
 soundings and intricacies of the navigation. The 
 line of battle-ships were moored in a double line, so 
 arranged that the broadsides of the inner ships could
 
 % "r, ** * ^^^^r^Js.iZtrwJJ. 
 
 7 j a. ...-''/* .--: "KK : 
 
 SOUNDINGS IN FEET AT LOW WATER SPRINGS. 
 
 * 
 
 tfcaf* cf Xaatical Miles. 
 
 "Page 136.
 
 THE BOOM. 137 
 
 iire clear of the outer ships ; and each ship had the 
 power, by means of a spring on the outer anchor, to 
 present a clear broadside force sufficient to sink the 
 British fleet, had it attempted to force an entrance. 
 
 The following will show the positions occupied by 
 the French ships : 
 
 Indienne. Hortense. Pallas. 
 
 Foudroyant. Varsovie. Ocean. Rogulus. Cassard. Calcutta. 
 Tonnerre. Patriote. Jemmappes. Aquilon. Tourville. Elbe. 
 
 As a protection against the advance of fire-ships, 
 a boom, half a mile in length, had been laid down, 
 composed of spars, and cables of the largest dimen- 
 sions,* secured by 5-ton anchors. This boom, forming 
 an obtuse angle, occupied the deep-water channel 
 between the Isle d'Aix and the Boyart shoal. This 
 obstruction was something new, and one which would 
 have proved effectual against the passage of fire- 
 ships ; but not, as it was proved, to Cochrane's 
 explosion-vessels. 
 
 He had had two explosion vessels constructed, the 
 largest containing 1,500 barrels of powder, contained 
 in puncheons placed on end, and secured together by 
 stout hawsers, and formed into a solid mass by 
 wedges and wet sand rammed hard between the 
 
 * Mr. James (vol. v. p. 150) states that the cables were 314 
 English inches in diameter, but he has in this, we imagine, sub- 
 stituted "diameter" for "circumference," by which rope is 
 always measured. A cable 314 inches in diameter would be 
 termed a 94-t'n;7t calle !
 
 138 1IIS BECEPTIO>". 
 
 casks. On the top of this mass of gunpowder nearly 
 400 live shells, with short fuses, and some hundreds of 
 hand grenades and rockets were deposited. Twelve 
 fire-ships were assembled, but it does not appear that 
 these were placed entirely under Lord Cochrane's 
 control. 
 
 The Imperieuse arrived in Basque Roads on the 3rd 
 of April ; and Cochrane immediately reported himself 
 to Lord Gambier. His reception was civil, and the 
 admiral put him in possession of the order he had 
 received from the Admiralty. JSTot so, however, his 
 reception by others ; the appointment of a junior 
 officer to conduct the service was viewed, not 
 unnaturally, as a slur upon the captains and junior 
 flag-officers of the fleet. The captain of the flag-ship. 
 Sir Harry Xeale, and Bear- Admiral Stopford appear to 
 have been exceptions to this rule. Bear- Admiral Eliab 
 Harvey, who, in the Temeraire, so gloriously seconded 
 Lord Nelson at Trafalgar, was especially indignant, and 
 remonstrated in terms so vehement and insubordinate 
 as to lead to a court-martial, which dismissed him the 
 service. Of all this, however, Cochrane was innocent. 
 He had not sought the responsible position, and had 
 only obeyed orders in the matter. There is not, we 
 think, ground for concluding that this feeling operated 
 to any great extent against Lord Cochrane. All 
 differences of such a nature are pretty sure to vanish 
 before the smell of powder ; and we are inclined to 
 think more stress has been placed upon the fact that 
 his appointment was unpopular among the captains 
 than the results warranted.
 
 THE BATTEEIES OF AIX. 139 
 
 The fire-ships arrived on the 10th of April, arid 
 the admiral, Allemand, who commanded the French 
 fleet, made every disposition calculated to defeat the 
 operation which he then must have clearly seen was 
 intended. The launches and other boats of the fleet, 
 manned and armed to the number of seventy-three, 
 were assembled and formed into five divisions, and 
 stationed each night at theboom, ready to board any fire- 
 ships that might approach, and to engage any British 
 boats by which they were accompanied. The line-of- 
 battle ships got their topgallant-masts on deck, struck 
 topmasts and unbent sails. The three frigates were 
 alone kept ready for making sail. All the available 
 troops were put on shore to man the batteries on the 
 Isle d'Aix. 
 
 The strength of the defences on Isle d'Aix have 
 been variously estimated. Lord Cochrane considered 
 that they were of no importance; 'while Lord 
 Gambier's report was that they were very strong. 
 There can be no doubt that the French were alive to 
 the danger of their position, and that they had done 
 their best to strengthen their defences. Addi- 
 tional works were observed in progress on the 
 Boyart shoal some days previous to the arrival of 
 the Imperieuse, which Captain Irby, in the Amelia 
 frigate, had been ordered to attack, and which, by 
 means of his boats, he succeeded in destroying. The 
 strength of the Aix batteries has been variously 
 estimated at from 13 to 50 guns. The truth probably 
 lies in the mean ; but as these guns were all long 32- 
 pounders, placed low down, and as the forts were, in
 
 140 THE ATTACK. 
 
 addition, furnished with the heaviest mortars, they 
 were not to be despised. The troops by which they 
 were garrisoned numbered 2,000 ; but it has been 
 said they were chiefly conscripts. Three and a half 
 miles to the eastward of Aix were the Oleron gun 
 and mortar batteries. 
 
 Time was too precious to be lost. The fire-ships 
 were ready, and one mortar vessel, the Etna, out of 
 five that had been promised, had arrived. The night 
 of the llth was, accordingly, fixed for the operation. 
 The Impcrieuse anchored in deep water, close to the 
 inner end of the Boyart shoal. The frigates Aiyle, 
 Unicorn, and Pallas, anchored in line to the northward 
 of the Imperieuse, in order to receive the crews of the 
 fire-ships, and to support the boats of the fleet ; and 
 the Etna was anchored off the north-east point of the 
 Isle d'Aix, covered by the Emerald frigate, and 
 Beagle, Doterel, Conflict, and Growler, gun brigs. 
 The Redpole and Lyra, with screened lights hoisted, 
 were the pointers, one being close to the southern 
 end of the Boyart, and the other just out of range of 
 the Aix batteries. The fire-ships were to pass 
 between these two light-vessels, and then shape a 
 course for the boom. The wind was blowing strong 
 from north-west, which was about two points free to 
 the ships running for the boom. 
 
 Cochraue, accompanied by Lieutenant "William 
 Bissell, embarked on board the largest of the explo- 
 sion vessels at 8'30 P.M., and started on his perilous 
 undertaking. The Mediator and other fire-ships fol- 
 lowed him. He was accompanied by a boat's crew
 
 THE EXPLOSION VESSEL. 141 
 
 of four volunteers only, besides Lieutenant Bissell. 
 Having arrived as near to the boom as he thought 
 necessary, he ordered Lieutenant Bissell and the men 
 to get into the boat while he ignited the port-fires. 
 The fuses had been calculated to burn fifteen minutes, 
 by which time it was expected the boat would have been 
 well out of the range of the grenades ; but the boat 
 had not left more than five minutes ere the explosion 
 took place. The escape of the party was almost a 
 miracle. A mountain wave was thrown up, while 
 the grenades and rockets were darting round them 
 on all sides. The ignition of the powder had been 
 instantaneous, and the flight of shells and missiles of 
 every description perfectly frightful. 
 
 Had the explosion-vessel reached theboom, however? 
 Upon this point a great deal rested. Mr. Fairfax, 
 the master of the fleet, who was on board the Lyra, 
 a stout G-ambier partisan, stated that the vessel 
 exploded a mile from the boom ; but, from the position 
 laid down on his manufactured chart, it is evident the 
 explosion must have taken place within a very short 
 distance, if not when in actual contact. The Mediator, 
 an old Indiamau of 800 tons, was the first to enter 
 the opening which the explosion-vessel had caused, 
 and Commander James ~V\ r ooldridge was awarded the 
 merit of having directed his ship with the effect 
 necessary to accomplish this feat. The momentum 
 with which a ship of 800 tons would strike a floating 
 obstruction, moored by enormous anchors, would, 
 however, have been insufficient for such a purpose. 
 The boom, as we have already stated, formed an
 
 142 THE MEDIATOR. 
 
 obtuse angle, its apex being towards the Basque 
 Roads. A ship striking it would, therefore, have been 
 morally certain to glance off, -whereas it would have 
 succumbed to the enormous shock produced by the 
 explosion of 1,500 barrels of powder. It was, un- 
 doubtedly, the concussion of the exploding mass of 
 gunpowder which displaced the spars and cleared 
 away the obstruction. 
 
 Great credit was due to Commander "\Vooldridge, 
 for he remained at his post after the vessel was in 
 flames, and was blown out of the ship, together with 
 the gunner (who was killed), Lieutenants Clements 
 and Pearl, and one seaman. Six other fire-ships were 
 also well directed, and by their approach produced 
 the most terrible alarm. The captain of the French 
 frigate Indienne, which ship was at anchor just inside 
 the boom, was in a position to verify Lord Cochrane's 
 assertion, and to deny that of Mr. Fairfax. According 
 to the account kept on board that ship, the explosion 
 vessel blew up only about 120 yards distant from that 
 frigate; and covered her with a sheet of flame. 
 
 By the time the Jlediator broke the boom, which 
 was at 9h. 45m., the frigates were under way. The 
 Bt'ffuhis, 74, and Ocean, 120, were soon afterwards 
 grappled by fire-ships. The Ocean was in imminent 
 peril, and was obliged to cut her cables, so as to bring 
 the fire-ship to leeward. In doing this she fouled the 
 Tonnerre and Patriote, and their escape from destruc- 
 tion was miraculous. The Ocean took the ground on 
 the Palles shoal, and had another narrow escape from 
 a second fire-ship running down upon her ; and, had
 
 THE EFFECTS. 143 
 
 not the three-decker shot away the mainmast of the 
 blazing ship, she must have been fouled and destroyed. 
 She lost fifty men in freeing herself from her first 
 assailant. 
 
 The crews of the French ships became panic-stricken, 
 and all hands did their best to quit so dangerous a 
 roadstead. The darkness of the night rendered the 
 effect of the burning masses and repeated explosions 
 still more awful. The sky was illumined by the red 
 glare of the fire-ships, and, added to the flashes of 
 guns from the forts and the incessant flight of shells 
 and rockets, the scene was awfully sublime. The 
 strength of the wind, however, was such that the fleet 
 lying in Basque roads could not hear the reports of 
 the guns, or even of the explosion vessel. 
 
 Daylight on the 12th revealed the results of the 
 night's operation. The Ocean flag-ship was in the mud, 
 half a mile to the eastward of her former anchorage. 
 Owing to the quantity of provisions on board for the 
 supply of the colony whither she was bound, the Ocean 
 drew 28 feet water. She was consequently aground, not 
 on the shoal, but in what may be termed the edge of 
 the roadstead of Aix. About 500 yards to the south- 
 west of the Ocean, upon a patch of rocks called the 
 Charenton, the Varsovie and Aguilon were on shore ; 
 and close to these ships, but upon more even ground, 
 were the Regulus and Jemmappes. The Tonnerre, 
 with her head to the south-east, lay on a hard shoal, 
 200 yards to the eastward of the Pontra rock, near 
 the Isle Madame. The latter ship was bilged, and 
 had cut away her mainmast, and thrown the principal
 
 144 SIGNALS THE ADMIEAL. 
 
 part of her guns overboard. Some distance south- 
 west of the Tonnerre, on the extremity of the Palles 
 shoal, lay the Calcutta. The Patriots and Ton.rvUh 
 were in the mud, off Isle Madame, at no great distance 
 from the channel of the Charente. The four frigates 
 were also on shore : the Elle and Hortense upon the 
 Fonteuelles, the Pallas upon the mud off the Fort of 
 Barques, and the Indienne three-quarters of a mile to 
 the eastward of the Ocean. All the ships, but par- 
 ticularly the six on the hard part of the Palles, were 
 somewhat upon the heel, and most were in a very 
 dangerous position. 
 
 The explosion-vessel and fire-ships had therefore 
 not been employed in vain ; for, although no ships 
 except the Ocean and Hegulus had been actually in 
 contact with them, the effect in so confined an anchor- 
 age had been almost as detrimental as if each had 
 been grappled. The Imperieuse being nearest to the 
 scene of destruction, was the first to notify to the 
 admiral the position of the enemy. 
 
 It may be as well to remark here, that hardly two 
 ships' logs agree precisely as to the time at which any 
 particular signal was made. According to the log of 
 the (7/eJo??/a,Lord Gambler's flag-ship, the Imperieuse, 
 made the first signal " Half the fleet can destroy the 
 enemy " at oh. 48m. A.M.; but Lord Cochrane states 
 it was (: six o'clock ;" and as the Imperieuse made the 
 signal, the latter time should be adopted. According 
 to the latter authority, therefore, we find that at 
 7h. A.M., Cochrane again signalled " All the enemy's 
 ships, except two, are on shore." An hour and
 
 rLEET "WEIGHS ANCHOR. 145 
 
 a half later, not observing any movement on 
 board the fleet in Basque Eoads, Cochrane sig- 
 nalled " Half the fleet can destroy the enemy ;" 
 and, subsequently "The frigates alone can destroy 
 the enemy." Lord Cochrane's impatience 'was 
 natural : and had the commander-in-chief really 
 taken no other notice of his important intimations 
 than by hoisting the affirmative pendant, there would 
 have been good ground for dissatisfaction. Lord 
 Gambier, however, says that, on learning the position 
 of the French ships, he ordered the fleet to be imme- 
 diately unmoored ; but that as the wind \vas strong 
 from the north-west, and the tide at the last quarter 
 ebb, which rendered his getting the fleet under way a 
 useless proceeding, he annulled the signal. " Between 
 nine and ten o'clock," says Lord Gambier in his 
 defence (but the average time of the logs gives it an 
 hour later), " which was much before the flood had 
 sufficiently made to enable the fleet to get into 
 action," the ships weighed and made sail, until within 
 three miles of the Isle d'Aix, when the Caledonia 
 and most of the ships brought up. The 74-gun 
 ships Valiant, Bellona, and Revenge, with the frigates, 
 were, however, directed to anchor as near as possible 
 to the Boyart shoal, to be in readiness to proceed to 
 the attack when the depth of water was sufficient for 
 them to go in. 
 
 It must be obvious, that as the French ships had 
 gone on shore just before high-tide, they were, for the 
 most part, in a position to float as soon as there was 
 water for the attacking ships to go in. In other words,
 
 146 A COUNCIL OF WAS. 
 
 the water which would render the approach of the 
 British line-of-battle ships safe, would suffice to float 
 off most of the grounded ships. Lord Gambier, how- 
 ever, committed an inexcusable error in summoning 
 a council of war, to give him countenance in this 
 extremity. The bugbear responsibility evidently 
 weighed him down, and, in order to escape the in- 
 cubus, he made a signal for all captains to attend on 
 board the Caledonia, to hold a conference with him. 
 The facts were plain enough ; all but two of the 
 French line-of-battle ships were on shore. An attack 
 upon the Aix batteries, close to which was deep water, 
 and the near approach of four or five sail of the line, 
 with the frigates, at half-flood, would in all human 
 probability have had the effect of completing the 
 panic which the fire-ships had originated. On the 
 other hand, the anchoring of the fleet three miles 
 from the Aix batteries, was most injudicious, for it 
 reassured the stranded enemy, and gave their officers 
 and crews an opportunity to warp their ships off the 
 shoals. The risk of losing two or three British ships, 
 which was, at the greatest, only a remote one, was 
 set against the moral certainty of the destruction of 
 eleven sail of the line ; but Lord Gambier hesitated, 
 and, to give an excuse for his hesitation, summoned a 
 council of war ! 
 
 The result of this conference was just what might 
 have been expected. Lord Gambier thought, and, as 
 a matter of course, his opinion found his backers in 
 the majority, that, as the enemy were on shore, it 
 was unnecessary to run any risk, the object of their
 
 AGAIN AFLOAT. 147 
 
 destruction having been already obtained. As a proof, 
 however, of the effect which would have been produced 
 by a more determined front, it may be stated that the 
 Foudroyant and Cassard, who had been many hours 
 in getting up their topmasts and top-gallant masts, 
 deeming an attack probable, weighed anchor at about 
 three-quarter flood, and made for the Charente. 
 
 Ever since daylight, the Ocean had been making 
 great preparations for hauling off. Provisions and stores 
 were thrown overboard ; water started, and anchors 
 laid out. The other ships had followed the Admiral's 
 example, and by 2 P.M. the Patriote, Rtgulus, and 
 Jemmappes had extricated themselves, but only to 
 ground again in the mud off the Charente. The 
 Ocean floated a little before high water, and warped 
 about 700 yards from her former position, when she 
 again grounded. Observing the impunity with 
 which these attempts at extrication were at- 
 tended, the Calcutta, Aquilon, and Varsovie, were 
 resorting to the same expedients, and there seems 
 BO reasonable ground for doubt, that had not 
 Lord Cochrane shamed the fleet by his example, 
 every ship, with the exception of the bilged Tonnerre, 
 would have quietly made their exit from the scene of 
 their night's overthrow. 
 
 Xoou had passed away unimproved ; one o'clock 
 saw no change, except that the one mortar vessel, the 
 Etna, had run down for the purpose of throwing a 
 few harmless shells. Cochrane's patience was at an 
 end, and without waiting for those instructions which 
 he felt assured would never issue, he ordered the 
 L 2
 
 148 SETS A yOELE EXAMPLE 
 
 anchor of the Imperieuse to be tripped, and so dropped 
 down towards the enemy with the flowing tide. He 
 avoided making sail, fearing to be recalled ; but at 
 Ih. 30m. grew bolder, and ordering the top-sails 
 to be set, steered for the group of ships aground 
 on the Palles. He then made the signal, " the 
 enemy's ships are getting under sail," and ten minutes 
 afterwards, " enemy superior to chasing ship." As this 
 brought no immediate assistance, he resorted to the 
 expedient of making the signal that the ship was in 
 distress, and requiring assistance. Xot until two 
 o'clock, however, could Lord Gambier be aroused to 
 action. He then signalled the frigate Indefatigable, 
 to weigh, and proceed to the assistance of the Impe- 
 rieuse ; but the wind having dropped considerably 
 the Indefatigable, though under a crowd of sail, was 
 nearly an hour in arriving near the ship presumed to 
 be in distress. The Valiant and Revenge, got under 
 way at 2h. 30m. ; and the other frigates and smaller 
 vessels, one by one, followed Cochrane's noble example. 
 In the mean w r hile, however, the Imperieuse had not 
 been idle. The signal of distress had been thrown 
 out by way of spur, and not that the ship was in any 
 great danger. Her bow-guns were discharged with 
 effect into the stern of the Varsovie, but her broadside 
 was principally directed against the Calcutta ; and on 
 the near approach of the other frigates, the colours of 
 that ship were hauled down. The tide had now 
 reached its height, and all the British frigates, as well 
 as the two line-of-battle ships, were actively engaged. 
 At 3h. 20m., observing that the crew of the Calcutta
 
 WHICH IS FOLLOWED. 149 
 
 were abandoning the ship, Lord Cochrane sent a mid- 
 shipman and boat's cre\v to take possession ; but for 
 a time the boat was unable to approach, owing to the 
 fire stili kept up by other ships, who appeared ignorant 
 of the fact of her having surrendered. The prize was 
 at length boarded ; and the young officer, not knowing 
 what else to do with the now abandoned ship, set her 
 oil fire. 
 
 The Varsovie and Aquilon, at oh. 30m., each showed 
 a union-jack, to denote their surrender; for just at 
 that time the 74-guu ship TJieseus arrived, and 
 anchored between the Revenge and Valiant, which, it 
 may be presumed, destroyed any hopes those ships 
 might previously have entertained of escape. The 
 Tonnerre was also shortly afterwards abandoned, and 
 set on fire by her own crew. The destruction of the 
 Varsovie and Aquilon, was subsequently accomplished 
 under the orders of Captain Bligh, so that the result 
 of the night and day's work may be stated as 
 follows : 
 
 S4-gun ship Varsovie, and 74-guu ships Aquilon 
 and Tonnerre, 50-gun ship Calcutta, armee en flute, 
 taken and destroyed. 
 
 The only ship beside the Imperieuse that sustained 
 any loss, was the Revenge, which ship had three men 
 killed, and Lieutenant James Garland and fourteen 
 men wounded. The Revenge also sustained much 
 damage to her hull, all, however, from the batteries 
 of the Isle d'Aix, which Cochrane wrongly considered 
 as unimportant defences. The Imperieuse had three 
 seamen killed ; Mr. George Gilbert, assistant surgeon,
 
 150 DIFFICULTY rtf JfEABING THE ENE3IY. 
 
 Mr. Mark Marsden, purser, seven seamen, and two 
 marines, wounded. This loss was occasioned prin- 
 cipally by the fire of the Calcutta. The Indefatigable 
 and Beagle, received some damage to their spars, 
 rigging, and sails, but had no one injured. 
 
 The Trench loss, in killed and wounded, was never 
 ascertained. The Calcutta had only 230 men on 
 board, of whom twelve were badly wounded by the 
 fire of the Impe'rieuse, and the hull of the ship was 
 riddled by shot. The captain of the Aqidlon was 
 killed in the boat of the Imperieitse by the side of 
 Lord Cochrane, by a shot from the burning Tonnerre. 
 Her crew suffered very little ; but the Varsovie had 
 upwards of a hundred killed and wounded. 
 
 Five sail of the line were still aground and assailable, 
 although from the want of bomb-vessels, and ships of 
 a light draught of water, the difficulty in producing 
 any effect was great. The Ocean, Cassarcl, Regulus, 
 Jemmappes, Tourville, and frigate Inclienne, were all 
 aground off the entrance to the Charente ; but, 
 inasmuch as our line-of-battle ships drew more water 
 than the Trench ships, the latter having been light- 
 ened of provisions, water, and stores, the difficulty 
 was to get at them. 
 
 Uear-Admiral Stopford, in the Ccesar, who was 
 intrusted with this inshore service, caused three 
 transports to be hastily fitted as fire-ships, and, accom- 
 panied by the launches of the fleet, fitted to throw 
 congreve rockets, stood close in towards Aix Roads, 
 to further the exertions of the squadron already en- 
 gaged. The batteries on the Isle d'Aix, and also
 
 EEJTEWED PANIC. 151 
 
 upon Oleron, opened fire upon this force; but by 
 keeping close to the Boyart shoal the shot did not 
 reach. In endeavouring to avoid these opposite 
 dangers, however, the Caesar took the ground near the 
 extremity of the shoal, and did not float off until the 
 flood had made strong. The Valiant and Theseus had 
 taken the ground at 7 P.M., the former on the edge of 
 the Palles, but the Revenge remained afloat. The 
 Indefatigable and Imperieuse also grounded for a short 
 time, but sustained no damage. 
 
 At midnight the fire-ships were ready ; but the 
 wind having shifted to the south-west, rendered their 
 employment out of the question ; and the Caesar, 
 taking advantage of the fair wind out, weighed anchor 
 and proceeded to Little Basque Roads. Captain 
 Bligh, in the Valiant, being thus left senior officer, 
 removed the prisoners from the Varsovie and Aguilon, 
 and at 3 A.M. these ships were set on fire. 
 
 The effect of this was to revive the panic among the 
 French ships. The burning line-of-battle ships, though, 
 stationary, were taken for more fire-ships, and treated 
 accordingly by the Ocean, Tourmlle, Indienne, and 
 some others, who opened a fire upon the flaming 
 masses. The captain and crew of the Tourville, 
 moreover, were so alarmed that they took to their 
 boats in a state of the greatest trepidation, and landed 
 at Pointe des Barques ; but observing at daylight that 
 the Toi'.rville was unharmed by the supposed fire-ships, 
 lie returned with his crew, and resumed the command. 
 In the mean while, however, his ship, though not in 
 danger from a brulot, was very nearly being made a
 
 152 A^OTIIEE EFFOBT AT DESTRUCTION. 
 
 prize of by a British boat ; and but for the presence 
 of mind of a French quarter-master, who had been 
 left on board by accident, the Tourville would most 
 probably have been boarded and captured. 
 
 The morning of the 13th April found Cochrane 
 with the Impcrieuse, Pallas, and the gun-brigs, in the 
 inner road, but the frigates and line-of-battle ships 
 had all taken their departure. The Pallas would 
 have gone out with the others, but that Captain 
 Seymour, having ascertained Lord Cochrane's inten- 
 tion to remain, nobly decided on giving him all the 
 assistance in his power. Lord Cochrane had previ- 
 ously endeavoured to induce Captain Eodd, of the 
 Indefatigable, to join with him in an attack upon the 
 Ocean ; but the invitation was declined, Captain Eodd 
 giving as a reason that the Indefatigable drew too 
 much water, and had a wounded topmast ; and, fur- 
 ther, that he could not do so in the presence of 
 superior officers. 
 
 At 8 A.M. Lord Cochrane despatched the brigs and 
 mortar - vessel to attack the French ships still 
 aground. The Beagle most gallantly anchored in 
 sixteen-feet water upon the Ocean's quarter, and en- 
 gaged her for five hours, receiving in return the fire 
 from the French ship's 36-pounder poop-carronades. 
 The brig escaped without loss of men, and with very 
 little damage. The Etna, which vessel might have 
 rendered valuable service at this juncture, was dis- 
 abled, having split her mortar. The Ocean received 
 very little injury from the fire of the gun-brigs, and 
 at the top of the tide made some further progress
 
 COMPLIMENTED BY GAMBIEE. 153 
 
 towards the river. Had the Imperieuse and Pallas 
 been able to take part in the attack, much more might 
 have been done. But owing to the strong wind and 
 tide, it was deemed unsafe to lift the anchor. 
 
 At noon the Doterel, Foxhound, Redpole, and two 
 more rocket-vessels joined the Imperieuse. By one 
 of these vessels Lord Cochrane received two letters, 
 one public and the other private. The first contained 
 directions for him to attack the Ocean, but gave it as 
 his opinion that no good would result from it ; but 
 the private one was of a most complimentary descrip- 
 tion. The latter was as follows : 
 
 " Caledonia, \Wi April, 1809. 
 
 "Mr DEAR LORD, You have done your part so 
 admirably, that I will not suffer you to tarnish it by 
 attempting impossibilities, which I think, as well as 
 those captains who have come from you, any further 
 effort to destroy those ships would be. You must, 
 therefore, join as soon as you can, with the bombs, &c., 
 as I wish for some information which you allude to 
 before I close my despatches. 
 . " Yours, my dear Lord, most sincerely, 
 
 " GAMBIER." 
 
 The public letter was comprised in a " P.S " : " I 
 have ordered three brigs and two rocket-vessels to 
 join you, with which and the bomb you may make an 
 attempt on the ship that is aground on the Palles, or 
 towards Isle Madame ; but I do not think you will 
 succeed, and I am anxious that you should come to
 
 154 SUPERSEDED. 
 
 me, as I wish to send you to England as soon as pos- 
 sible. You must, therefore, come as soon as the tide 
 turns." 
 
 But Cochrane was impervious to hints. He pro- 
 fessed to treat the letter as one leaving him an option ; 
 and he therefore replied, " "We can destroy the ships 
 that are on shore, \vhich I hope your lordship will 
 approve of." The Imperieuse accordingly remained 
 until the 14th, and at daylight observed the French 
 ships as nearly as possible in the same position ; but 
 surrounded by cJiasse marees, which were receiving on 
 board the stores and guns of the line-of-battle ships. 
 Lord Cochrane felt convinced that it was not even 
 then too late to have destroyed more, if not all, of the 
 grounded ships, had the admiral permitted him to 
 follow them up, and given him the assistance of the 
 frigates. This, however, Lord Gambier would not 
 permit, and finding that Cochrane would not leave the 
 spot so long as the shadow of discretionary authority 
 remained, he resorted to the step of superseding him 
 in the command of the fire-ships. The following 
 letter of recall was, therefore, addressed to him, signals 
 having been disregarded: "My dear Lord, It is 
 necessary I should have some communication with 
 you before I close my despatches to the Admiralty. 
 I have, therefore, ordered Captain Wolfe to relieve 
 you in the service you are engaged in. I wish you to 
 join me as soon as possible, that you may convey Sir 
 Harry Neale to England, who will be charged with 
 my despatches ; or you may return to carry on the
 
 THE VOTE OE THANKS. 155 
 
 service where you are. I expect two bombs to arrive 
 every moment ; they will be useful in it." 
 
 As further delay would have been direct disobe- 
 dience of orders, the Imperieuse got under way, and 
 proceeded to Basque Roads. His interview with 
 Lord Gambier was anything but agreeable, and Lord 
 Gambier insinuated that in complaining of what had 
 been done, he was desirous to take all the merit of the 
 service to himself. They parted on unfriendly terms, 
 and the Imperieuse sailed for England with Sir Harry 
 Xeale, the bearer of the despatches. 
 
 THE COURT-MARTIAL. 
 
 THE affair in Basque Eoads was doomed to be more 
 than a nine days' wonder. Lord Cochrane took his 
 seat in Parliament, and it having become known to 
 him that a vote of thanks was about to be proposed, 
 he waited on the First Lord of the Admiralty, Lord 
 Mulgrave, and informed him that, as one of the 
 Members for "Westminster, it was his intention to 
 oppose the motion. Lord Mulgrave advised him to 
 desist from any such course, and gave him full credit 
 for his important share in the operations ; but his 
 advice, and the arguments by which it was supported, 
 failed in inducing Cochrane to change his mind. But 
 he endeavoured to draw the nice distinction, that he 
 should not oppose the vote of thanks as the captain of 
 the Imperieuse, but in his senatorial capacity. Lord 
 Mulgrave then tempted him with the offer to com- 
 mand a squadron of three frigates in the Mediterra-
 
 156 ATTEMPT TO BEIBE. 
 
 nean, with a carte llanclie ; but this he resisted. He 
 stood upon the loftier ground of duty to those who 
 had sent him to represent them in Parliament, and 
 steadily refused to accept anything as a bribe for 
 holding his tongue. And dearly he paid for his 
 patriotism. 
 
 Lord Mulgrave had now no option but to acquaint 
 Lord Gambier with Cochrane's determination, and at 
 the same time Lord Gambier was directed to write a 
 revised report of the operation, altogether ignoring 
 Cochrane's services. This was dated 10th May, 1809, 
 and written in London. In his first letter, which was 
 published in the London Gazette, Lord Gambier had 
 written : " I cannot speak in sufficient terms of admi- 
 ration and applause of the vigorous and gallant attack 
 made by Lord Cochrane upon the French line-of- 
 battle ships which were on shore, as well as of his 
 judicious manner of approaching them, and placing 
 his ship in a position most advantageous to annoy the 
 enemy, and preserve his own ship ; which could not 
 be exceeded by any feat of valour achieved by the 
 British navy." 
 
 Personally Cochrane had only to complain of the 
 inadvertence, as it might have been, of giving Com- 
 mander "Wooldridge the credit of breaking the boom, 
 and of leading the fire-ships. The fact that the explo- 
 sion vessel in advance of the Mediator dislodged the 
 boom, for which we were indebted to the French 
 officers, was not known to Lord Gambier; and his 
 lordship was probably misled by the master of the 
 fleet, Mr. Fairfax, who asserted that the explosion
 
 REQUESTED TO PREFER CHARGES. 157 
 
 took place a mile distant from the boom. This misre- 
 presentation Lord Gambier -would no doubt gladly 
 have corrected had Cochrane afforded him the neces- 
 sary data ; but he had put this out of the admiral's 
 power. 
 
 Lord Cochrane was now called upon to prefer 
 charges against his late commander-in-chief. The 
 request was conveyed to him in a letter dated 
 May 22nd, from Mr. TVellesley Pole, the Admiralty 
 secretary. After quoting Lord Mulgrave's statement 
 to the Board, he goes on to say " I am commanded by 
 their lordships to signify their directions that you 
 state fully to me, for their information, the grounds 
 on which your lordship objects to the vote of thanks 
 being moved to Lord Gambier, to the end that their 
 lordships may be enabled to judge how far your 
 lordship's objections may be of a nature to justify the 
 suspension of the intended motion in Parliament, or 
 to call for further investigation." 
 
 Cochrane's reply was dated May 30th, in which he 
 said : " I have to request, Sir, that you will submit 
 to their lordships that I shall at all times entertain 
 a due sense of the honour they will confer by any 
 directions they may be pleased to give me, that in 
 pursuing the object of those directions my exertions 
 will always go hand-in-hand with my duty, and that, 
 to satisfy their lordships' mind in the present instance 
 on the point of information regarding the late services 
 in Basque Roads, I beg leave to state that the log and 
 signal books of the fleet there employed at the period 
 alluded to contain the particulars of that service, and
 
 158 THE 1TEMBEES OF THE COURT. 
 
 furnish premises whence accurate conclusions may be 
 readily drawn," &c. 
 
 The court-martial assembled on board the Gladiator, 
 in Portsmouth harbour, on "Wednesday, the 26th of 
 July. The following admirals and captains composed 
 the tribunal : 
 
 Admiral Sir Eoger Curtis, Bart. 
 
 Admiral William Young. 
 Vice-Admiral Sir H. Stan- 
 hope. 
 
 Vice-Admiral Geo. Campbell. 
 Captain John Irwin. 
 Captain E. S. Dickson. 
 
 Vice-Admiral Sir J. T. Duck- 
 worth. 
 
 Vice-Admiral Billy Douglas. 
 Rear- Admiral John Sutton. 
 Captain Robert Hall. 
 Captain R. D. Dunn. 
 
 M. Greetham, Esq., Jun., Judge- Advocate. 
 
 The charge, if such it may be termed, was contained 
 in the Admiralty order for summoning the court- 
 martial as follows : 
 
 " And whereas, by the log-books and minutes of 
 signals of the Caledonia , Imptrieuse, and other ships 
 employed in that service, it appears to us that the 
 said Admiral Lord Gambier, on the 12th day of the 
 said mouth of April, the enemy's ships being then on 
 shore, and the signal having been made that they could 
 be destroyed, did for a considerable time neglect or 
 delay taking effectual measures for destroying them ; " 
 and" we do hereby direct you to try the said Admiral 
 Lord Gambier for his conduct in the instance herein- 
 before mentioned ; and also to inquire into his whole 
 conduct as commander-in-chief of the Channel fleet
 
 GAMBIEB'S DEFENCE. 159 
 
 employed in Basque Roads between the 17th of 
 March and 29th of April, 1809." 
 
 Having given in the foregoing pages a close and 
 impartial account of what was really done, it is not 
 necessary to enter into further detail. The master of 
 the Imperiewe, Mr. Spurling, satisfactorily answered 
 several questions relative to certain alterations in the 
 log of that ship made subsequent to the original 
 entries, and Lord Cochrane stated his case with great 
 clearness. 
 
 The only other witnesses called in support of the 
 charge were Hear- Admiral the Hon. B,. Stopford and 
 Captain Wolfe, whose evidence merely went to show 
 what steps had been actually taken, unaccompanied 
 by any opinion. 
 
 Lord Gambier was then called upon for his defence, 
 which, although very laboured, contained some strong 
 arguments tending to exculpate him as commander- 
 in-chief. 
 
 The following is a summary of his argument : 
 
 " It now only remains for me to request the atten- 
 tion of the Court to some conclusions which I think 
 may be drawn from the whole of the statements I 
 have submitted to the consideration of you, sir, and 
 the rest of the members of this honourable Court, 
 and by which, with the additional evidence I have to 
 adduce, it will, I flatter myself, distinctly appear : 
 
 " First, that during the whole of this service the 
 most unwearied attention was applied by me to its 
 main object, the destruction of the enemy's fleet.
 
 160 GAMBIER'S DEFENCE. 
 
 " Secondly, that in no part of the service was more 
 zeal and exertion shown than during the 12th of 
 April, when I had necessarily in view two objects, 
 the destruction of the enemy's fleet, and also the pre- 
 servation of that under my command ; for the extreme 
 difficulties in approaching an enemy closely surrounded 
 by shoals, and strongly defended by batteries, rendered 
 caution in my proceeding peculiarly necessary. 
 
 " Thirdly, that three out of the seven of the enemy's 
 ships aground on the Palles were, from their first being 
 on shore, totally out of reach of the guns of any ships 
 of the fleet that might have been sent in, and that at 
 no time whatever, either sooner or later, could they 
 have been attacked. 
 
 " Fourthly, that the other four of the eleven ships 
 of which the enemy's fleet consisted, were never in a 
 situation to be assailed after the fire-ships had failed 
 in their main object. 
 
 " These are the points on which I rest my justifica- 
 tion, trusting that it will appear to the Court, upon 
 their review of my whole case, that I did take the 
 most effectual measures for destroying the enemy's 
 fleet ; that neither neglect nor unnecessary delay did 
 take place in the execution of this service ; and on 
 the contrary, that it was owing to the time chosen by 
 me for sending a force in to make the attack, that the- 
 service was accomplished with so very inconsiderable 
 a loss. Had I pursued any of the measures deemed 
 practicable and proper in the judgment of Lord 
 Cochrane, I am firmly pursuaded the success attend- 
 ing this achievement would have proved more dearly
 
 GAMBLER'S DEFENCE. 161 
 
 bought than any yet recorded in our naval annals, 
 and, far from accomplishing the hopes of my country 
 or the expectations of the Admiralty, must have dis- 
 appointed both. If such, too, were the foundation of 
 his lordship's prospects, it is just they should vanish 
 before the superior considerations attending a service 
 involving the naval character and most important 
 interests of the nation. 
 
 " I conclude by observing, that the service actually 
 performed has been of great importance, as well in its 
 immediate effects as in its ultimate consequences ; for 
 the Brest fleet is so reduced as to be no longer effec- 
 tive. It was upon this fleet the enemy relied for the 
 succour and protection of their West-India colonies ; 
 and the destruction of their ships was effected in their 
 own harbour, in sight of thousands of the French ; 
 and I congratulate myself and my country that this 
 important service has been effected, under Providence, 
 with the loss only of 10 men killed, 35 wounded, and 
 1 missing ; and not even one of the smallest of our 
 vessels employed has been disabled from proceeding 
 on any service that might have become necessary. 
 The extent of difficulties and prospect of danger in 
 this enterprise were extreme, and the gallantry and 
 determined spirit of those engaged most conspicuous. 
 These merits and those difficulties ought not to be 
 depreciated on account of the inconsiderable loss sus- 
 tained on the occasion. I by no means seek to arro- 
 gate to myself any merit by these observations ; but I 
 make them as a tribute of praise due to the zealous 
 services of the brave officers and men under my com- 
 
 M
 
 162 WITNESSES FOE THE DEFENCE. 
 
 mand, and with a view of pointing out how justly they 
 are entitled to the gratitude of their country." 
 
 The reading of the defence having been finished, 
 Mr. Edward Fairfax, master of the fleet, gave the 
 following opinions. 
 
 Being asked if any ships of the line had been sent 
 into Aix Eoads, towards the entrance of the Charente, 
 any time of the morning of the 12th of April, to 
 attack the enemy's ships that were aground, at what 
 time was it possible for them to return under the cir- 
 cumstances of wind and tide ? he answered, " They 
 could not have shifted their situation till four o'clock 
 P.M. As for returning, I should think it impossible. 
 They would have been within range of shells and shot 
 from the enemy's batteries while they remained there. 
 "With the wind as it blew the whole of the day of the 
 12th of April, the ships must have taken advantage of 
 the ebb-tide to work out, to have got out at all. If 
 the wind had continued as it did the whole of that 
 day, and if those ships had been crippled, or lost a 
 mast, they must have remained under the fire of 
 the enemy's batteries until the wind should shift. 
 The probable fate of those ships would have been 
 destruction." 
 
 In reply to the question, had the fleet been un- 
 moored at the time Lord Cochrane made the_ signal 
 on the morning of the 12th, would it have tended to 
 promote the destruction of those two ships that were 
 left at anchor near the Isle of Aix ? he answered, 
 " It could not make any difference." 
 
 Mr. Stokes, master of the Caledonia, described the
 
 WITNESSES rOE THE DEFENCE. 1G3 
 
 situation of the French fleet on the morning of the 
 12th of April, and stated that, with the wind as it 
 blew the whole day, had, any ships of the line been 
 sent into Aix Roads towards the entrance of the 
 Charente, it would not have been possible for them 
 to return that night. They would have been within 
 half-range of shell and point-blank of shot. 
 
 Captain Bligh, of the Valiant, expressed his opinion 
 that had any of the line-of-battle ships been sent in, 
 they could never have returned, but must inevitably 
 have been destroyed. 
 
 Being further examined, he said he did not ob- 
 serve that any of the fortifications on the Isle d'Aix 
 had been blown up and destroyed. Lord G-ambier 
 having asked him if he heard Lord Cochrane express 
 to Captain Beresford, in Aix Roads, the probability of 
 three or four of our line-of-battle ships being lost in 
 attacking the enemy, and what passed on that subject, 
 he answered, " When Captain Beresford asked Lord 
 Cochrane his reason for making the telegraphic signal 
 that half the fleet could destroy the enemy in the 
 morning, he said he calculated on our losing three or 
 four of the ships, if the Commander-in-chief had sent 
 the squadron in." He thought that nothing further 
 could have been practicable, and that there had been 
 no neglect or delay on the part of Lord Gambier. 
 
 Captain Beresford, of the Theseus, thought that if 
 two of our ships had been placed as the two French 
 ships Cassard&nd Foudroi/a/it afloat were, we could 
 have defied an enemy's approach, for the approaching 
 ships must have been end on. His opinion as to 
 M 2
 
 -WITNESSES TOE THE DEFENCE. 
 
 the impracticability of the return of line-of-battle 
 ships, if crippled, was similar to that of Mr. Fairfax, 
 Mr. Stokes, and Captain Bligh, and he thought that 
 no blauie attached to the conduct of Lord Garubier. 
 
 Captain Kerr, of the Revenge, gave it as his firm 
 belief, that had any of the line-of-battle ships gone in 
 sooner than they did, they would have been crippled ; 
 by which means the Trench ships would have dis- 
 covered the strength of their position, and of course 
 remained instead of going up the river, and have pre- 
 vented the four ships that were afterward destroyed 
 from being so. 
 
 Captain Douglas, of the Bellona, and Captain God- 
 frey, of the Etna, deposed to the same effect. 
 
 Mr. Wilkinson (Secretary to Lord Gambier) stated, 
 that when Lord Cochrane canie on board the Cale- 
 donia, on the evening of the 14th of April, he told the 
 admiral, that if he had sent the ships agreeably to the 
 signal, he calculated upon three or four of them being 
 lost. He alluded to the signal ; " Half the fleet can 
 destroy the enemy." 
 
 Captain Hardiman, of the Unicorn, deposed that 
 there had been no neglect or delay on the part of the 
 commander-in-chief. 
 
 Captain Seymour, of the PaUas, thought that every- 
 thing practicable had been done for effecting the 
 destruction of the enemy's ships. "When the general 
 question was put, as to neglect, misconduct, or inat- 
 tention, his answer was in substance as follows : " I 
 conceive myself a very incompetent judge of the com- 
 mander-in-chief 's conduct: but I know no instance
 
 WITNESSES TOR THE DEFENCE. 165 
 
 of conduct to which any of those terms can be applied. 
 Erom the knowledge I have subsequently gained of 
 the proceedings of the ships on the 12th, I think the 
 line-of-battle ships might have floated in the last 
 half of the flood tide. This would have been at eleven 
 o'clock. The line-of-battle ships went in soon after 
 two. This opinion was formed from the depth of 
 water we found on going in, and from seeing the 
 Revenge going out at a corresponding time of tide on 
 the following day. Two ships of the line were an- 
 chored in a situation to annoy ships going in. At the 
 time I possessed no information of the strength of 
 Isle d'Aix, or the depth of the water, to allow me to 
 form a judgment. I have my doubts whether line- 
 of-battle ships would have succeeded iu doing good 
 by going in. There was water sufficient for the line- 
 of-battle ships to have gone in at eleven o'clock. It 
 was a point where the discretion of the comrnander- 
 in-chief might be fairly used. I confine myself to the 
 depth of water." 
 
 Captain Newcombe, of the Beagle, corroborated the 
 testimony of the former witnesses, and upon being 
 asked by the Court, whether he could state any one 
 instance of neglect or misconduct in the commander- 
 in-chief? he replied, none; save and except had the 
 commander-in-chief thought it proper in his situation 
 to have sent the vessels in earlier than they went, 
 although there might have been great risk in so 
 doing, there was a possibility of annoying the enemy 
 more than they were annoyed ; however, our ships 
 must have been subjected not only to the fire of
 
 166 "WITNESSES FOR THE DEFENCE. 
 
 the enemy's ships that remained at anchor, but also 
 to that of the batteries of the Isle d'Aix. The 
 risk, as the wind and tide were, was rather too 
 great ; and we had not a perfect knowledge of the 
 anchorage further to the southward, between the 
 Palles and Oleron. He thought that everything 
 had been done that was practicable to destroy the 
 enemy's ships, considering all the circumstances stated. 
 Being re-examined, he stated, that in his way out 
 of Aix Koads, to join the squadron in Basque Roads, 
 his ship was struck by the batteries from the Isle 
 d'Aix, on the morning of the 13th, the shells from 
 Oleron passing over her at the same time. On the 
 12th, the bowsprit was severely wounded, great part 
 of the running rigging and sails cut to pieces, five 
 planks of the quarter-deck cut through, and its beam 
 completely carried away, and a number of shots in 
 different parts of the hull ; three men killed and fifteen 
 wounded, two of whom afterwards died. The damages 
 in the hull, and killed and wounded, were from the 
 batteries of Isle d'Aix entirely, part of the running 
 rigging from the Aguilon and Varsovie. 
 
 Captain Pulteney Malcolm said : " Had it ap- 
 peared to me that there was no other chance of 
 destroying the enemy's ships but by an attack from 
 line-of-battle ships at noon, I certainly think it ought 
 to have been made ; but it was understood that the}' 
 must all again ground at the mouth of the Charente, 
 where it was the received opinion they could be 
 attacked by gun-vessels, bombs, and fire-vessels again, 
 without any risk ; and had we had a reserve of fire-
 
 WITNESSES FOE THE DEFENCE. 167 
 
 ships ready that morning, I think some of them vrould 
 Lave been destroyed on the flood tide of the 12th. 
 Had the French ships which got on shore upon the 
 Palles, on the night of the llth of April, been attacked 
 by the British ships, they could not have been warped 
 off, as it was necessary, in order so to do, to lay out 
 anchors. Those that were not aground, had always 
 the option of running farther up the Charente. If 
 our ships had risked against them in the attack, 
 there is no doubt they could not have warped off. The 
 moment that the two French ships quitted their 
 defensive position, the risk was small, and I would 
 have sent in. It was between the hours of one and 
 two ; soon after that time the bombs and brigs were 
 sent in ; the Imperieuse and Beagle very soon fol- 
 lowed, and in about twenty minutes all the frigates." 
 Being further questioned as to the actual delay which 
 took place, Captain Malcolm replied, " Certainly 
 there was not more than half-an-hour, or three-quarters 
 of an hour, from the time the two ships quitted the 
 defensive till ships were sent in by signal. This was 
 the only time that can possibly be called the delay. 
 Every practicable effort was made to destroy the 
 ships of the enemy that got into the entrance of the 
 Charente." 
 
 Captain Burlton, Captain Ball, and Captain New- 
 man, were not aware of any blame attaching to Lord 
 Gambier. 
 
 Captain Broughton, of the Illustrious, stated that 
 he was on board the Amelia when she was ordered to 
 dislodge the enemy from the Boyart shoal ; and being
 
 168 CAPTAIN BBOUGHTOS'S EVIDENCE. 
 
 above the enemy, ou the Isle d'Aix, be observed the 
 fortifications. They appeared in a very different 
 state from what he had observed them in two or 
 three years before, when he was with Sir Richard 
 Keats. He thought they were repairing the works 
 they were throwing up. He counted on a semi- 
 circular battery, which commanded the road where 
 the enemy lay, between fourteen and twenty guns. 
 There was a small battery lower down, nearer the sea. 
 He did not know the exact number of guns there 
 there might be six or nine. What he had before 
 taken for the block-house, above the semicircular 
 battery, seemed to have no guns whatever. It ap- 
 peared to be a barrack ; and he thought, from this 
 observation, that the fortifications of the island in 
 that part were not so strong as was supposed, and he 
 reported his opinion to Lord Gambier. He thought 
 it would have been more advantageous if the line-of- 
 battle ships, frigates, and small vessels had gone in at 
 half flood, between 11 and 12 o'clock. They would 
 have been exposed to the fire of the two ships that 
 remained at anchor, the French admiral's ship and 
 the batteries of the Isle d'Aix, at the same time ; but 
 they were partly panic-struck, and on the appearance 
 of a force coming in, might have cut their cables, and 
 tried to make their escape up the river. In the event 
 of their proving not to have been so panic-struck, the 
 British ships must have suffered; but ships, he 
 thought, might have been placed against the batteries 
 of Isle d'Aix, so as to take off their fire and silence 
 them. He thought, as the wind was X.W., they
 
 CAPTAIX KERB'S EVIDENCE. 169 
 
 might have found safe anchorage in what is called 
 in the French chart, Le Grand Trousse, \vhere there 
 is thirty or forty feet water, out of the range of shot 
 and shells in every direction. In reply to the ques- 
 tion, How many ships of the line he thought would 
 be sufficient to silence the batteries of the Isle d'Aix ? 
 be said,' two would be quite sufficient ; and that five 
 sail of the line, of the least draught of water, should 
 have been sent in to attack the line-of-battle ships. 
 He thought some ships might have been disabled by 
 the batteries, but that the discomfited French squad- 
 ron would have made very little resistance. 
 
 Captain Kerr was then recalled by Lord Gambier, 
 and asked, What from his experience of the effect 
 of the batteries on the Isle d'Aix, would have been 
 the fate of the Revenge, and any other 74-gun ships, 
 had they been placed within two or three cables' 
 length of those batteries, with a view of silencing 
 them? He replied, "I should certainly have expected, 
 from the heavy fire they kept up, both in coming in 
 and going out, that ships stationed there must have 
 been completely dismasted, and must have suffered 
 a severe loss of men. If dismasted, with the wind 
 blowing from the north, as it did on the 12th, they 
 must have been lost. The battery on the Isle d'Aix 
 was low enough to admit of its being destroyed by 
 the guns of ships on the south side, not on the south- 
 west side." 
 
 At ten o'clock on Friday morning (the ninth day 
 of the trial) the Court met, when the President, Sir 
 Eoger Curtis, Bart., stated his having received a letter
 
 170 THE SENTENCE OF ACQUITTAL. 
 
 from Lord Cochrane, purporting his wish to be ex- 
 amined on several points, particularly relating to the 
 conversation with Lord Gambier, after the action ; 
 but that the Court did not think proper to accede to 
 Lis request. 
 
 The Court was then cleared ; arid after the re- 
 admission of strangers, the following sentence was 
 pronounced : 
 
 " The Court agreed, that the charge ' That Admiral 
 the Eight Honourable Lord Gambier, on the l'2th of 
 April, the enemy's ships being then on shore, and the 
 signal having been made that they could be destroyed, 
 did, for a considerable time, neglect or delay taking 
 effectual measures for destroying them,' had not been 
 proved against the said Eight Honourable Lord Gam- 
 bier ; but that his lordship's conduct on that occasion, 
 as well as his general conduct and proceedings as 
 commander-in-chief of the Channel fleet, employed 
 in Basque Eoads, between the said 17th day of March, 
 and the 29th day of April, 1809, was marked by zeal, 
 judgment, and ability, and an anxious attention to 
 the welfare of his Majesty's service ; and did adjudge 
 him to be most honourably acquitted ; and the said 
 Admiral the Eight Honourable Lord Gambier is 
 hereby most honourably acquitted accordingly." 
 
 Sir Eoger Curtis then desired Lord Gainbier's 
 sword to be handed to him, which he returned to his 
 lordship, with the following address : 
 
 '' Admiral Lord Gambier, I have peculiar pleasure 
 in receiving the command of the Court to return you 
 your sword, in the fullest conviction that, as you have
 
 OBSERVATIONS THEEEON. 171 
 
 hitherto done, you will on all future occasions use it 
 for the honour and advantage of your country, and to 
 your own personal honour. Having so far obeyed the 
 command of the Court, I beg you will permit me, in 
 my individual capacity, to express to you the high 
 gratification I have upon this occasion." 
 
 Lord Gambier answered : 
 
 " I cannot sufficiently express the sense I feel of 
 the indulgence of the Court, and beg to return 
 thanks to you, sir, for the obliging manner in which 
 you have conveyed the sense of the Court.' ' 
 
 Thus ended this solemn farce. In those days few 
 naval officers of subordinate rank would venture to 
 declare their convictions upon a subject of so much 
 importance, and which admitted of so much latitude, 
 and no wonder. Lord Cochrane is an example of 
 the sad effects of having questioned the conduct of 
 his superior. Gifted in an extraordinary degree with 
 professional talent, he was, from the day of his an- 
 nouncing to Lord Mulgrave his intention to oppose 
 the vote of thanks, virtually a crushed and ruined 
 man. We have given all the opinions of the officers 
 examined upon the court-martial without reference to 
 Lord Cochrane's views, the object being to publish' to 
 the world an unbiassed and wholly disinterested view 
 of this important controversy. 
 
 With the exception of Captains Pulteney Malcolm, 
 and Broughton, the evidence, as we have seen, went 
 to acquit Lord Gambier of all blame ; and Captain 
 Malcolm charged him with the delay of half an hour
 
 172 TUE ACQUITTAL. 
 
 only on the 12th April; but can any one, notwith- 
 standing this weight of testimony in Lord Gatnbier's 
 favour, arrive at the conclusion that he was blame- 
 less ? AVe think not. There is the strong stubborn 
 fact to be overcome of his having anchored the bulk 
 of his fleet "three miles" from the enemy's batteries 
 when there was water close to them ; and the equally 
 damaging one of his having delayed for half an hour 
 sending in the two line-of-battle ships, and the 
 frigates, to second Lord Cochrane in his noble attack 
 upon the grounded ships. If the French had not been 
 panic stricken, they never would have deserted their 
 ships, as it is proved some of them did, for the odds 
 were in their favour. They were in a state of great 
 consternation ; and had Lord Gambier, with the bulk 
 of his fleet, moved down and attacked the batteries on 
 the Isle d'Aix at noon, or a little after, instead of 
 remaining three miles away from those defences, the 
 probability is, Admiral Allemand would have saved 
 him any further trouble by burning every one of his 
 ships. It was not the interest of any one to declare 
 this at the court-martial. An officer of high rank and 
 great political influence was on his trial ; and our 
 French neighbours were ready to join in the outcry 
 against the English for want of energy. Policy in- 
 duced- every one to make it appear the navy had 
 gained a great victory at Basque Roads ; and Cochrane 
 was sacrificed, because he abided by and openly 
 .asserted the plain, the naked truth. Lord Gambier 
 did not do, what might have been done destroy the 
 French ships ; and although " most honourably ac-
 
 OBSERVATIONS THEBEON. 173 
 
 quitted" by the court-martial, posterity -will never 
 affirm the verdict. There is one very remarkable 
 fact connected with this afiair. Although Lord 
 Cochraue had been iu command of the Imperieuse in 
 so many brilliant actions, the only one for which he 
 gained a bar to his Speedy medal, was for his partici- 
 pation in the Basque Boads affair. 
 
 PROFESSIONAL RUIN. 
 
 [1809-10.] 
 
 Just as the court-martial had ended, a joint naval 
 and military expedition was projected for "Walcheren. 
 Sir Eichard Strachan was placed in command of the 
 fleet, and the Earl of Chatham in command of the 
 forces. Badly treated as Cochraue had been, his 
 ardour was unabated, and he made a proposition to 
 the Government to destroy the French fleet then in 
 the Scheldt, by means of explosion-vessels. His pro- 
 posal was coldly declined. Pending the court-martial, 
 the Imperieuse had been placed in command of the 
 Hon. Captain II. Duncan, and had been sent to the 
 Scheldt ; and when the court-martial was over, Coch- 
 rane wished to resume command while on that service, 
 but this was refused. He then asked to be allowed 
 to attend as a spectator at the siege of Flushing ; but 
 he received in reply a laconic note from LordJWul- 
 grave, acquainting him the Board of Admiralty had 
 decreed that " his request could not be complied 
 with." The Admiralty had, in fact, done with him ; 
 for he had committed what in their eyes was a heinous 
 offence, in questioning Lord Gambler's conduct. His
 
 174 THE VOTE OF THANES CABRIED. 
 
 craving after further service, therefore, was unap- 
 peased, and all that was left him was the bitter cud 
 of Admiralty wrath. 
 
 In the meanwhile the vote of thanks was brought 
 forward. The Chancellor of the Exchequer moved 
 the thanks of the House to Lord Gambier, " for his 
 eminent services in destroying the French fleet in 
 Basque Boads.'" to this was added, as if in mockery, 
 the following paragraph, " particularly marked by the 
 brilliant and unexampled success of the difficult and 
 perilous mode of attack by fire-ships, under the imme- 
 diate direction of Captain Lord Cochrane." After 
 an animated debate, the vote was carried by a large 
 majority 161 to 39. 
 
 In the House of Lords the vote was moved by Lord 
 Mulgrave; but no mention whatever was made of 
 Lord Cochrane, except in terms of implied censure. 
 The officer who might have had command of a frigate 
 squadron, and an opportunity of realising a large 
 fortune, only for holding his tongue, was shut out 
 from particular notice by Lord Mulgrave, because he 
 had been so imprudent as to drag truth to light. 
 
 But Lord Cochrane had not been wholly overlooked. 
 The king had conferred upon him the highest honour 
 he could bestow upon an officer of his rank the 
 Knighthood of the Bath. His Majesty had granted 
 him the same decoration as that given to Nelson for 
 his services in the battle of St. Vincent. But the 
 Admiralty had resolved that he should never again 
 hoist his pendant as a captain, and the resolve was 
 kept.
 
 VALUE OF LEGS A>'D ARMS. 175 
 
 Lord Cochrane now turned his attention to defeat 
 the system of corruption on shore, and endeavoured, 
 in particular, to correct naval abuses. On the llth 
 May, 1810, Mr. Croker brought forward a vote for 
 navy estimates ; and Lord Cochrane took this oppor- 
 tunity of moving an address for certain returns rela- 
 tive to pensions on the civil list, contrasting them 
 with pensions to naval officers. 
 
 In the course of his speech, he drew the following 
 somewhat humorous parallels. " A worn-out admiral 
 is superannuated at 410 a year, a captain at 210, 
 while a clerk of the ticket-office retires on 700 a 
 year. Four daughters of the gallant Captain Cour- 
 tenay (killed in action with the enemy when com- 
 manding the Boston} have 12. 10s. each. The 
 daughter of Admiral Sir A. Mitchell and of Admiral 
 Epworth have each 25 ; Admiral Keppel's daughter, 
 t'2 ; the daughter of Captain Mann, who was killed 
 in action, 25 ; and four children of Admiral Moriarty, 
 25 each. Thus, thirteen daughters of admirals and 
 captains, several of whose fathers fell in the service of 
 their country, receive from the gratitude of the nation 
 a sum in the aggregate less than Dame Mary Saxton, 
 the widow of a commissioner." 
 
 The pension-list presented the following features. 
 " Captain Johnstone received 45. 12s. for the loss 
 of an arm ; Lieutenants Arden and Ellison, 91. 5s. 
 each for a similar loss ; Lieutenant Campbell 40 for 
 the loss of a leg ; and Lieutenant Chambers, E.M., 
 80 for the loss of both legs ; whilst Sir A. Hamond 
 retires on a pension of 1.500 per annum/'
 
 176 ATTACK TJPOX SINECUEISTS. 
 
 His lordship also showed that 32 flag-officers, 
 
 22 captains. 50 lieutenants. ISO masters. 36 surgeons, 
 
 23 pursers, 390 warrant officers, and 41 cooks, cost 
 the country 4.02S less than the sinecures of Lords 
 Arden, Camden. and Buckingham : and that all the 
 superannuated admirals, captains, and lieutenants put 
 together, cost the country only 1.012 a year more 
 than the Earl Camden's sinecure! ''Should."' his 
 lordship pertinently asked, " 31 commissioners, com- 
 missioners' wives, and clerks, have 3,389 more than 
 all the wounded officers of the navy of England ? I 
 find," he continued. " that the "Wellesleys receive from 
 the public 34,730, a sum equal to 426 pairs of lieu- 
 tenants' legs, calculated at the rate of allowance of 
 Lieutenant Chambers's legs. Calculating for the 
 pension of Captain Johnstoue's arm, Lord Arden's 
 sinecure is equal to 1.022 captains' arms ; while the 
 Marquis of Buckingham's sinecure would maintain 
 the whole ordinary establishment of the Victualling 
 department at Chatham, Dover, Gibraltar, Sheerness, 
 Downs, Heligoland. Cork. Malta. Mediterranean, 
 Cape of G-ood Hope, and Rio de Janeiro, and leave 
 5,460 in the Treasury." 
 
 Mr. "W'ellesley Pole denied the accuracy of Lord 
 Cochrane's figures, being evidently very much averse 
 to this inconvenient line of argument. He hinted, 
 that if his lordship would desist from adopting " the 
 wild theories of others," he might still have an oppor- 
 tunity of adhering ' to the pursuits of his profession," 
 of which he was " so great an ornament." Had Coch- 
 rane consented to forsake his party, it was plain that
 
 VIRTUALLY EE3IGK3 HT3 COMilA^D. 17 
 
 the road was still open to him to return to the service. 
 As, however, he declined to avail himself of this hint, 
 he received an intimation that he was unjustifiably 
 absenting himself from the Imperieuse, which ship 
 had in the meanwhile returned to England, and that 
 he must join " within a week." 
 
 Mr. Torke, who had succeeded Lord Mulgrave as 
 First Lord of the Admiralty, requested to know " on 
 what day next week " it was his intention to rejoin 
 his ship. Lord Cochrane replied in a long letter, in 
 which several foreign topics were introduced ; but 
 Mr. Yorke cut the matter short, by stating that it 
 was " neither his public duty nor his inclination to be 
 drawn into any official controversy " with his lord- 
 ship, " either in his capacity of captain of a frigate or 
 of a member of Parliament," and requesting to be 
 informed whether or not it was his wish to join the 
 Imperieuse, " then under orders for foreign service, and 
 nearly ready for sea." Mr. Yorke added that, should 
 he receive an answer in the negative, he should con- 
 sider it tantamount to a wish to be superseded. 
 
 Lord Cochrane replied in a long and rambling 
 letter, concluding with the following : " But as the 
 Imperieuse is to proceed immediately, I fear it is im- 
 possible for me to be in readiness to join her within 
 the time specified." There can be no question, there- 
 fore, that Lord Cochrane's letter of the 14th June, 
 1810, was equivalent to a resignation of the command 
 of the Imperieuse. Had he asked for more time, and 
 his request been denied, he might have complained of 
 sharp practice ; but after reading his correspondence 
 H
 
 178 PREAK AT ITALIA. 
 
 with the First Lord of the Admiralty, we cannot 
 arrive at any other conclusion than that he. in effect, 
 resigned the command of his old frigate ; and that, al- 
 though Lord Mulgrave might have been, Mr. Torke's 
 board was not to blame for his non-employment. 
 
 THE MALTA PRIZE COURT. 
 
 [1811.] 
 
 In " The Autobiography of a Seaman," a very am us- 
 ing account is given of Lord Cochrane's proceedings at 
 Malta, in 1811, whither he bad gone, in a yacht, with 
 the intention of prosecuting some disputed, or delayed 
 prize claims. He entered the court when no business 
 was going on, to search for a table of fees, which ought 
 to have been hung up in the court-house for the in- 
 formation of parties having causes. Xot finding the 
 document in its proper place, he passed from one 
 room to another, and at length discovered the table 
 in the judge's closet. He took it away with him, 
 and gave it to the captain of a ship in harbour on 
 the point of sailing for Sicily. Lord Cochrane was 
 observed leaving the court, and the paper being 
 missed, it was concluded that he had taken it. The 
 court determined to prosecute him for contempt, and 
 after some delay eventually arrested him. He was 
 put in prison, but managed to live upon the fat of the 
 land, and kept a sort of open house for the captains 
 of the ships in port. At length, however, he thought 
 he had carried the joke far enough, and made his 
 escape by cutting away the bars of his prison and 
 lowering himself down from a three-story window.
 
 A LCXN'G BILL. 179 
 
 He was assisted in his escape by the captain of the 
 Eagle ; and embarking on board the packet, then on 
 the point of leaving for Xaples, he proceeded thither. 
 The whole affair, however, was pointless as it was 
 profitless, and apparently conceived in a wild spirit. 
 
 XAVAL DEBATES. 
 
 [1312-13.] 
 
 On his return from his yacht cruize and crusade 
 against the Maltese pirates, Lord Cochrane entered 
 again with spirit on his parliamentary duties and 
 brought under consideration their shameful and ex- 
 tortionate practices. He created a great sensation 
 by producing the copy of a proctor's bill, " long 
 enough to reach from one end of the house to the 
 other," and complained of the infamous charges con- 
 tained in it. Xo result, however, followed. He also 
 brought under consideration his arrest and imprison- 
 ment at Malta, but the motion founded thereon was 
 " negatived without a division." 
 
 We cannot undertake to follow Lord Cochrane in 
 his parliamentary career. He was an unflinching 
 supporter of extreme Whig opinions, and a staunch 
 ally of Sir Francis Burdett, Mr. S. Whitbread, and 
 others, who had raised the standard of opposition to 
 parliamentary and governmental abuses. He was, in 
 fact, a radical reformer. The following debate, how- 
 ever, is so purely professional that we cannot avoid 
 giving it at some length. On the 5th of July, 1813, he 
 made the following speech, the object of which was to 
 
 3T 2
 
 ISO XATAL GHIETAXCES. 
 
 increase the wages and limit the service of seamen 
 iutbe royal navy. 
 
 " I think it is my duty to lay before the House, 
 the reasons why our seamen prefer the merchant 
 foreign service to that of their own country, to enter 
 which they discover a very great reluctance. The 
 facts by which I mean to prove this, I have com- 
 pressed into one resolution, as I am anxious that when 
 the members of the House retire from their parlia- 
 mentary duties, they may consider these facts at their 
 leisure, and satisfy themselves of the correctness 
 of the statement, in order that when they meet 
 again, they may have no hesitation in adopting some 
 propositions, the object of which would be the redress 
 of those grievances which were the subject of it. 
 As I do not conceive that any objection can be made 
 to the mode of proceeding I have adopted, I will 
 not occupy the time of the House any longer than 
 by reading the resolution." The noble lord then 
 read the following resolution : 
 
 " That the honour of His Majesty's crown, the 
 glory and safety of the country, do, in a great degree, 
 depend on the maintenance, especially in time of war, 
 of an efficient naval establishment. 
 
 " That during the late and present war with France, 
 splendid victories have been gained by His Majesty's 
 fleets and vessels of war over a vast superiority in 
 the number of guns and men. and the weight of 
 inetal. 
 
 " That these victories, thus obtained, were acquired
 
 LAMENTABLE EFFECTS. 181 
 
 by the skill and intrepidity of the officers, and by the 
 energy, zeal, and valour of the crews. 
 
 " That during the present war with the United 
 States of America, His Majesty's naval service has, 
 in several instances, experienced defeat in a manner, 
 and to a degree, unexpected by this House, by the 
 Admiralty, and by the country at large. 
 
 " That the cause of this lamentable effect is not 
 any superiority possessed by the enemy either in 
 skill or valour, nor the well-known difference in the 
 weight of metal, which heretofore has been deemed 
 unimportant ; but arises chiefly from the decayed and 
 heartless state of the crews of His Majesty's ships of 
 war, compared with their former energy and zeal, and 
 compared, on the other hand, with the freshness and 
 vigour of the crews of the enemy. 
 
 " That it is an indisputable fact, that long and 
 unlimited confinement to a ship, as well as to any 
 other particular spot, and especially when accom- 
 panied with the diet necessarily that of ships of war, 
 and a deprivation of the usual recreations of man, 
 seldom fails to produce a rapid decay of the physical 
 powers, the natural parent, in such cases, of despon- 
 dency of mind. 
 
 " That the late and present war against France (in- 
 cluding a short interval of peace, in which the navy 
 was not paid off), have lasted upwards of twenty 
 years, and that a new naval war has recently com- 
 menced. 
 
 " That the duration of the term of service in His 
 .Majesty's navy is absolutely without any limitation ;
 
 182 HABBOUE-DUTY 
 
 and that there is no mode provided for by law, for 
 the fair and impartial discharging of men therefrom ; 
 and that, according to the present practice, decay, 
 disease, incurable wounds, or death, can alone pro- 
 cure the release of any seaman, of whatever age or 
 whatever length of service. 
 
 " That seamen, who have become wholly unfit for 
 active service, are in place of being discharged 
 and rewarded according to their merits and their 
 sufferings, tranferred to ships on harbour - duty, 
 where they are placed under officers -wholly unac- 
 quainted -with their character and former conduct, 
 who have no other means to estimate them but by 
 the scale of their remaining activity and bodily 
 strength ; where there is no distictiou made between 
 the former petty officers and the common seamen ; 
 between youth and age ; and where those worn-out 
 and wounded seamen, who have spent the best part 
 of their lives, or have lost their health in the service 
 of their country, have to perform a duty more labo- 
 rious than that of the convict felons in the dockyards, 
 and with this remarkable distinction, that the labours 
 of the latter have a known termination. 
 
 " That, though the seamen thus transferred and thus 
 employed have all been invalided, they are permitted to 
 re-enter ships of war on actual service ; and that such 
 is the nature of the harbour-duty, that many, in order 
 to escape from it, do so re-enter, there being no limita- 
 tion as to the number of times of their being invalided, 
 or that of their re-entering. 
 
 "That to obtain a discharge from the navy by
 
 UNLIMITED SEBVICE. 183 
 
 purchase, the sum of 80 sterling is required by 
 the Admiralty, which, together with other expenses, 
 amounts to twenty times the original bounty, and 
 is equal to all that a seaman can save, with the most 
 rigid economy, during the average period in which he 
 is capable of service ; that this sum is demanded alike 
 from men of all ages, and of all lengths of servitude, 
 from those pensioned for wounds, and also from those 
 invalided for harbour-duty ; thus converting the funds 
 of Greenwich, and the reward of former services, into 
 a means of recruiting the navy. 
 
 " That such is the horror which seamen have of this 
 useless prolongation of their captivity, that those who 
 are able, in order to escape from it, actually return 
 into the hands of Government all those fruits of their 
 toil which, formerly, they looked to as the means of 
 some little comfort in their old age. 
 
 " That, besides these capital grievances, tending to 
 perpetuate the impress service, there are others worthy 
 the serious attention of this House : that the petty- 
 officers and seamen on board of his Majesty's ships 
 and vessels of war, though absent on foreign stations 
 for many years, receive no wages until their return 
 home, and are, of course, deprived of the comforts 
 which those wages, paid at short intervals, would pro- 
 cure them : that it is now more severely felt, owing to 
 the recent practice of postponing declarations of war 
 until long after the war has been actually begun ; by 
 which means the navy is deprived, under the name of 
 droits, of the first-fruits and greatest proportion of 
 the prize-money to which they have heretofore been
 
 184 DELATED PATilESTS. 
 
 entitled ; and thus, and by the exactions of the Courts 
 of Admiralty, the proportion of captures which at last 
 devolves to the navy is much too small to produce 
 those effects which formerly were so beneficial to the 
 country. 
 
 " That while their wages are withheld from them 
 abroad, when paid at home, which, to prevent deser- 
 tion, usually takes place on the day before they sail 
 out again, having no opportunity to go on shore, they 
 are compelled to buy slops of Jews on board, or to 
 receive them from Government at 15 per cent, higher 
 than their acknowledged value ; and, being paid in 
 bank-notes, they are naturally induced to exchange 
 them for money in other countries, and which it is 
 notorious they do at an enormous loss. 
 
 " That the recovery of the pay and prize-money by 
 the widows, children, or relatives of seamen, is ren- 
 dered as difficult as possible ; and. finally, the regu- 
 lations with regard to passing of the examination 
 requisite, previous to an admission to the benefits of 
 Greenwich Hospital, subject the disabled seaman to 
 so many difficulties, and to such long delays, that, in 
 numerous cases, he is compelled to beg his way in the 
 pursuit of a boon, the amount of which, even in the 
 event of the loss of both eyes or both arms, does 
 not equal that of the common board-wages of a 
 footman. 
 
 "That one of the best and strongest motives to 
 meritorious conduct in military and naval men is the 
 prospect of promotion, while such promotion is, at 
 the same time, free of additional expense to the
 
 BOEOTTGH INTEBEST PREDOMINANT. 185 
 
 nation ; but that, in the British naval service, this 
 powerful and honourable incitement has ceased 
 to exist, seeing that the means of rewarding merit 
 has been almost wholly withdrawn from naval com- 
 manders-in-chief, under whose inspection services are 
 performed ; in fact, it is a matter of perfect notoriety 
 that it has become next to impossible for a meritorious 
 subordinate petty-officer or seaman to rise to the rank 
 of lieutenant; that, in scarcely any instance, promo- 
 tion or employment is now to be obtained in the navy 
 through any other means than what is called Parlia- 
 mentary interest, that is to say, the corrupt interest 
 of boroughs. 
 
 "That, owing to these causes chiefly, the crews of his 
 Majesty's ships of war have, in general, become in a 
 very considerable degree worn-out and disheartened, 
 .and inadequate to the performance, with their wonted 
 energy and effect, of those arduous duties which belong 
 to the naval service ; and that hence has arisen, by 
 slow and imperceptible degrees, the enormous aug- 
 mentation of our ships and men, while the naval force 
 of our enemies is actually much less than in former 
 years. 
 
 " That, as a remedy for this alarming national evil, 
 it is absolutely necessary that the grievances of the 
 navy, some of which only have been recited above, 
 should be redressed ; that a limitation of the duration 
 of service should be adopted, accompanied with the 
 certainty of a suitable reward, not subject to any of 
 the effects of partiality; and that measures should be 
 taken to cause the comfortable situations in the ordi-
 
 186 IXQUIET ASKED TOE. 
 
 nary, of the dockyards, the places of porters, mes- 
 sengers, &c., &c., in and about the offices belonging 
 to the sea-service, the under-wardens of the naval 
 forests, &c., to be bestowed on meritorious decayed 
 petty-officers and seamen, instead of being, as they 
 now generally are, the wages of corruption in borough 
 elections. 
 
 "That this House, convinced that a decrease of 
 energy of character cannot be compensated by an 
 augmentation of the number of ships, guns, and 
 men, which is, at the same time, a grievous pecu- 
 niary burden to the country, will, at an early period 
 next session, institute an inquiry by special com- 
 mittee, or otherwise, into the matters above stated, 
 and particularly with a view to dispensing suitable 
 rewards to seamen ; that they will investigate the 
 state of the funds of Greenwich Hospital, and ascer- 
 tain whether it is necessary to apply the droits of the 
 Admiralty and the droits of the Crown as the natural 
 first means of compensation to those who have 
 acquired them by their valour, their privations, and 
 their sufferings." 
 
 Sir Francis Burdett seconded the resolution. 
 
 Mr. Croker opposed it in a long and angry speech. 
 The noble lord had stated that seamen were obliged 
 to purchase their discharge by no less a sum than 
 SO, no matter what was the condition of the in- 
 dividual. Now, he had to state most positively that 
 this was not the case. The sum specified might, 
 indeed, be required from able seamen, who wished for 
 their discharge ; but the sum of 40 only was re-
 
 MB. CROKEE'S EEPLV. 187 
 
 quired from ordinary seamen ; from ordinary seamen 
 transferred to harbour-duty only 30 ; from persons 
 -who were originally landsmen, not more than 20. 
 And he had to state further that many persons trans- 
 ferred to harbour-duty, and considered unfit for ser- 
 vice, were discharged without any consideration what- 
 soever. The noble lord had stated formerly in the 
 House the case of a harbour-duty man, who had been 
 obliged to pay 80 for his discharge. 
 
 "When the noble lord had thought proper to make 
 that statement, he had answered in his place that he 
 could not take upon him to vouch for the individual 
 case. He had, however, subsequently been at con- 
 siderable pains to discover the particular case alluded 
 to by the noble lord, and had examined every docu- 
 ment in which he thought it could be traced, but in 
 vain he could find nothing of the kind ; he had then 
 applied to the member for Bedford to procure for him 
 the name of the man from the noble lord, but this 
 had not been done, and he had never had the pleasure 
 of seeing the noble lord since. iN'ow. he thought that 
 under such circumstances the noble lord should have 
 abstained from receiving the statement, unless he was 
 disposed to give the name of the individual, and thus 
 supply the means of confuting it. 
 
 The noble lord's resolution asserted fliat there 
 was no fair system of promotion in the navy, that 
 everything was conducted upon a principle of cor- 
 ruption. "Was. then, the commission of the noble 
 lord himself given him upon such a principle ? Did 
 he obtain the red ribbon, which was. before him, never
 
 188 MERITED PEOMOTICXNS. 
 
 given to an individual of his rank, through corruption ? 
 "Was it through corruption that a relative of the 
 noble lord's had made his way to the top of his pro- 
 fession, and had been appointed governor of Guada- 
 loupe ? "Was it through corruption that the influence 
 of the noble lord had had considerable weight in 
 effecting the promotion of those persons on whose 
 behalf he had used it ? He was aware that an answer 
 to this last question in the affirmative might be 
 grounded upon the assumption that the naval ac- 
 quaintances of the noble lord were persons of little 
 worth, and such as could owe their promotion to 
 nothing but corruption. But he who well knew the 
 reverse would not allow him even this miserable 
 refuge. Was the promotion of Captain Duncan the 
 effect of corruption ? Were the honours which that 
 gallant officer's father had obtained the result of cor- 
 ruption ? The friends of the noble lord had felt the 
 benefit of his interference, and much was it to be 
 wished that it had been confined to promote their 
 wishes, and through them the interest of the country, 
 and had never been mischievously exercised on such 
 occasions as the present. Did not the noble lord 
 recollect, when he had left his ship, that he had been 
 consulted as to who was the fittest to succeed him, 
 and that his recommendation had been acted upon ? 
 If, indeed, he had never left that ship, it would have 
 been well for his own reputation, as it would have 
 been well for the interests of his country. Most 
 heartily did he wish the noble lord had stayed in her 
 to be serviceable to the public instead of coming here
 
 OPPOSITION TO THE MOTION. 189 
 
 to be the reverse. The noble lord loved to deal in 
 generals. He talked loud about corruption, but he 
 wished him to state who paid, and who received, the 
 wages of corruption. 
 
 " I must express my sanguine hope that the House 
 will not, by adopting such motions as those moved by 
 the noble lord, sanction the gross libels which they 
 contain against the navy, against Parliament, and 
 against the country. I wish to lay aside all little 
 considerations to suppose that the resolutions are not 
 meant to apply more to the persons now engaged in 
 the management of our naval affairs than their pre- 
 decessors ; but if it be otherwise, still I wish to sink 
 any feeling that might be supposed to arise in my 
 mind in consequence, and to answer the noble lord 
 only as defender of that gallant body of men who have 
 stood so long forward as our firmest bulwark against 
 the vileness of our foe, and who are well entitled to 
 the warmest feelings of gratitude we can cherish 
 toward them. I hope, therefore, that if the noble 
 lord does dare to push the House to a division, 
 that he will be left in a minority, such as will 
 not merely mark their sense, but also their indigna- 
 tion." 
 
 Sir F. Burdett said that the honourable secretary 
 had indulged in a warmth and a severity of animad- 
 version which the occasion by no means justified. His 
 noble friend had asserted much, and the honourable 
 gentleman had denied much, and that on a very im- 
 portant subject ; but it remained to be seen who was 
 in the error. The honourable member had taxed hia
 
 190 LORD COCIIBAXE'S EEJOIXDEIJ. 
 
 noble friend with exaggeration ; but it was impossible 
 to conceive anything more exaggerated than the whole 
 of the honourable gentleman's speech. He had stated 
 his noble friend to have described our seamen as having 
 wholly lost the energy and valour which had once dis- 
 tinguished them. !Xow, his noble friend had never so 
 described them : he had stated that their spirits were 
 depressed by long confinement and various other hard- 
 ships, but he had never stated that their hearts were 
 subdued, or that, when brought into action, they 
 did not forget everything but that they had their 
 own character and .the character of their country 
 to support. 
 
 Lord Cochrane replied. He said he was not dis- 
 pleased at the warmth with which his proposition had 
 been met. It certainly would be injurious to no one, 
 except to the feelings of certain members of that House. 
 The honourable secretary had met his statements with 
 individual instances of gallantry. The existence of 
 these he did not deny ; but he asserted that the phy- 
 sical power of our seamen was decreasing, partly from 
 the length of the war, and partly the system of harbour- 
 duty, established in 1803, from which service decayed 
 seamen re-entered the navy. He had heard that the 
 system was about to be changed, and he should be 
 happy to learn from the honourable secretary that 
 such was the fact. The honourable secretary had 
 challenged him to show an instance of a petty officer 
 having purchased his discharge from such service. 
 He would name a William Ford, who had served with 
 him in the Imperie use, who had done so ; Lord Nelson's
 
 DEGENERATION OF SEAMEX. 191 
 
 coxswain, a person of the name of Farley, who 
 had been returned to him, and died on board, com- 
 pletely worn out iu the service. These were facts 
 which he was prepared to prove at the bar, as he was 
 all those which had been denied with so much warmth 
 by the honourable secretary. To show further that 
 the crews of British ships of war were unequal to 
 themselves heretofore, he would relate what was the 
 opinion of a person not at all likely to be disaffected 
 to the order of things ; he was the son of a bishop, 
 who had taken an American privateer, the crew of 
 which consisted of only 130 men, and he had declared 
 publicly that he would rather have them than the 
 whole of his own crew, consisting of 240. If the 
 honourable secretary doubted this fact he might in- 
 quire, and he would easily verify it. With respect to 
 parliamentary influence, the honourable secretary had 
 asked whether he had found it of service to himself in 
 his profession ? He certainly had not, because he had 
 never prostituted his vote for that purpose ; but he 
 knew others who had found that influence of great 
 avail. When he again, brought forward the subject, 
 he should prove all the facts he had adduced, and he 
 hoped so much ignorance of important facts would 
 not then be found to prevail. He had chosen the 
 present form of his motion in order to put his sen- 
 timents on record in a way not susceptible of mis- 
 representation. 
 
 The resolution was negatived without a division. 
 
 Being much dissatisfied with this unpropitious re-
 
 192 BEXETVED EITOBTS. 
 
 suit, Lord Cochrane sought opportunity to return to 
 the charge, and his colleague, Sir Francis Burdett, 
 accordingly gave him the opportunity he wished for, 
 by moving, on the 8th July following, for a return 
 respecting seamen's wages and prize-money. Mr. 
 Croker, according to his usual tactics, endeavoured to 
 show that Sir Francis had not made out a case to call 
 for the return. Then turning his fire upon Lord 
 Cochrane, he told him he could now " flatly contra- 
 dict " his assertions with regard to the sums paid by 
 Ford and others for their discharge from the service, 
 and charged his lordship with having falsified the 
 books of the Imperieuse in discharging a number of 
 men for their incapacity, as he stated he had done. 
 Mr. Croker concluded by asserting, that in his reso- 
 lutions of the previous debate, he had libelled the 
 heroic Broke, who commanded the Shannon at the 
 capture of the Chesapeake. 
 
 Lord Cochrane replied, admitting all that could be 
 said of the gallantry of our seamen, but maintained 
 that a great and rapid decay had been produced in 
 their physical powers by the causes to which he had 
 felt it his duty to call the attention of the House. 
 He said, he was pleased that he had done so in the 
 form of a resolution, which could neither be misrepre- 
 sented or misquoted without detection. It was in the 
 recollection of the House that he had not cast the 
 slightest reflection, either on officers or men, collec- 
 tively or individually, although the honourable secre- 
 tary (Mr. Croker) had chosen to defend them in both 
 cases. Such a line of conduct might be best calcu-
 
 "WILLIAM rOBD'ti CASE. 193 
 
 iated to excite a feeling of disapprobation towards 
 him (Lord Cochrane) in the minds of those who had 
 not attended to the subject, but it was not an honour- 
 able or candid mode of proceeding to put words in his 
 mouth and then argue to refute them. He had never 
 mentioned the name of Captain Broke, or alluded to 
 him in the slightest degree, although the secretary- 
 had spared no pains to defend him. Captain Broke 
 had done his duty, his men proved adequate to the 
 task imposed upon them ; but, if his (Lord Coch- 
 rane's) information was correct, the Shannon was the 
 only frigate on the American station in which a cap- 
 tain would have been justified in trusting to the phy- 
 sical strength of his crew. The honourable secretary 
 seemed to flatter himself, from the exulting manner in 
 which he had delivered his speech, that he had also 
 refuted those facts which he (Lord Cochraue) did 
 state. "Ford," says he, "did not pay 80 for his 
 discharge, or any other sum." But does not the 
 honourable secretary know that this man raised four 
 substitutes, and that he, "William Ford, could not pro- 
 cure them otherwise than by money ? Was not the 
 difficulty of getting seamen such, that the Admiralty 
 demanded four men for the discharge of one ? Under 
 such circumstances, it was obvious that the navy was 
 manned, not by the national bounty or the prospect of 
 reward from the service, but out of the funds of those 
 vrho had long served their country. He pledged 
 himself to establish at the bar of the House every 
 circumstance stated in the resolutions which he had 
 moved on a former evening. Ford, he repeated, paid 
 o
 
 194 NELSON'S COXSWAIN. 
 
 90 for his discharge; a sum equal to all that he 
 could have saved during his eighteen years' service ! 
 No man of feeling could justify the continuance of 
 such a practice. As to the case of Farley, the honour- 
 able secretary assured the House that he was not 
 invalided for harbour-duty, neither did he die in the 
 service ; facts which will not be deemed important 
 when it is known (and it can be proved) that this 
 respectable petty-officer, who had been in thirteen 
 general actions, and thirty-two years in the navy, was 
 not invalided until within a few days of his death ; 
 and that, unable to return to his friends, he died on 
 board the Imperieuse. Ought not seamen to be en- 
 titled to their discharge before they are reduced to 
 this state ? Can ships be efficient whilst men so 
 debilitated form part of their crews ? It is impos- 
 sible. The honourable secretary laid particular em- 
 phasis on the case of Milton as above all the most 
 unfounded of his (Lord Cochrane's) unfounded asser- 
 tions. He had discovered that Milton had received 
 his pension through Gawler, perhaps this was the 
 easiest way; but he (Lord Cochrane) knew that 
 Milton deserved that pension, having been wounded 
 under his command : he was the first man who 
 boarded the Tapageuse, in the river Bordeaux, wlien 
 that ship-corvette was captured by the boats of the 
 Pallas alone. He pledged himself to prove to the 
 House the material fact that Milton had served 
 seventeen years, and had paid nearly 100 for his 
 discharge. Surely such length of service should en- 
 title seamen to some deduction from so oppressive an
 
 A SAILOR'S FAMILY. 195 
 
 expense. This was not the case, however ; neither 
 was there any period fixed to which they could look 
 forward as the termination of their compulsory con- 
 finement. He (Lord Cochrane) did not accuse the 
 present Admiralty of originating these abuses ; pos- 
 sibly they were even ignorant of their existence. 
 Boards never listened to individuals, and, therefore, 
 he had adopted the present mode of calling the atten- 
 tion of Parliament, and of the country, to the state of 
 the navy. Could any person have believed that the 
 Admiralty, instead of decreasing the sum to be paid 
 by meritorious seamen after long service, actually 
 increased the amount ! Lord Cochrane then read an 
 extract from a letter which, he said, he had received 
 that morning from a seaman's wife, the mother of a 
 family, and whose husband was compelled to pay 60 
 for a discharge, which left their children without bread. 
 She owed 7 to her doctor, who had written to Mr. 
 Croker, stating her extraordinary exertions for her 
 family's support as the cause of her illness. The hus- 
 band, after long service, had but 17 remaining, and 
 he was obliged to go down to Plymouth before he 
 could get his discharge. Was this a situation in 
 which a British sailor should be placed ? He was 
 in the judgment of the whole navy, and he would 
 prove his facts at the bar. If the honourable secre- 
 tary had any feelings, they ought to wring his breast, 
 and prevent him from daring to defend such abuses. 
 He would not detain the House longer than to say, 
 that the army was now a model on which to form the 
 navy, so much had circumstances changed. Their ser- 
 o 2
 
 196 CEOKEE'S CONTRADICTIONS. 
 
 vice was limited, and officers who did gallant acts were 
 rewarded by promotion and brevet. He named Lieu- 
 tenant Johnson, who served under his command in 
 Basque Koads, as an instance to prove the unwil- 
 lingness of the Admiralty to do justice unless by 
 favour. 
 
 Mr. Croker returned to the charge. He said he 
 would not permit the noble lord to lead the House 
 away by stating that his material facts had not been 
 disproved. He (Mr. C.) had contradicted his main 
 assertions. The noble lord had not got, rid of that ; 
 and if he would give him further opportunities, he 
 would give him an equally satisfactory answer. With 
 respect to Lieutenant Johnson, nothing irregular, ex- 
 cept in his promotion, had taken place. He left the 
 insinuations of personal enmity in the Admiralty against 
 the noble lord to what he thought it deserved the 
 contempt of the House. 
 
 Lord Cochrane admitted that the honourable secre- 
 tary had " contradicted" his assertions, but he defied 
 him to disprove them, or one word contained in his 
 j-esolution. As the feelings of his brother officers 
 anight be excited by the statement of the honourable 
 secretary, who had stood forward in their defence 
 though they had not been attacked, he would add 
 again, that he had not even thought disrespectfully 
 of any individual to whom the honourable secretary 
 had alluded. He admired the gallant conduct of Cap-- 
 tain Broke, and asserted that, if the Admiralty did 
 their duty, no 38-guu frigate of ours need shrink 
 from a contest with the Americans. He repelled,
 
 SIE PHILIP BROKE. 197 
 
 with contempt, the accusation made against him 
 of endeavouring to excite dissatisfaction in the 
 navy. 
 
 Sir Francis Burdett then rose, and complimented 
 his noble friend on his exertions to benefit a service 
 of which he was so bright an ornament. What he 
 had stated of abuses in the navy, he said, was done 
 with the hope that they would be corrected. The 
 seamen could not have a more proper advocate ; and 
 if his noble friend's advice was attended to, instead 
 of dissatisfaction, the result would be advantageous 
 to the navy. "What improper motive could possibly 
 be assigned to his noble friend ? Every man must 
 feel and acknowledge the importance of the services 
 of Captain Broke, particularly under the present 
 circumstances ; but, where all concurred in the same 
 feeling, it was not necessary for every person to 
 take up the time of the House in praising undisputed 
 merit. "When it was found that, after long service, the 
 seaman forgot everything but his duty to his country, 
 a strong reason was afforded for looking into his situa- 
 tion. It was inconsistent with the justice of the 
 country to dole out such miserable pittances to brave 
 men. There might be unmerited pensions and sine- 
 cures, the retaining of which prevented the just dis- 
 charge of well-founded obligations. It might be 
 impossible to reward the deserving while a corrupt 
 borough influence prevailed. Let that be stopped, 
 and some enlargement made for the sake of justice, 
 and the nation would reap the benefit. 
 
 Sir Francis Burdett'a motion met with the same
 
 198 OFFICIAL CORRUPTION. 
 
 fate as Lord rochrano's resolutions, and fell to the 
 ground without :i division. 
 
 DISGRACED AND DEGRADED. 
 
 [1814.] 
 
 In tin* year 181 1, oiVicial corruption had reached a 
 heii'Jit scarcely surpassed in any modern age. Un- 
 blushing jobbery prevailed in every department of 
 Cliuivh ami JSiale. The country was defrauded on all 
 sides by contractors, and there is only too much reason 
 to fear that purity did not thrive any more at "White- 
 hall than in less aristocratic regions. Promotion and 
 lucrative appointments openly awaited those who 
 could best help their party, no matter by what means. 
 In later times, favouritism and parliamentary interest 
 have ono a long way ; but we believe that at no 
 recent period had anything at all approaching to the 
 intrigue prevalent in 181 4< been suffered to exist. 
 Lord Cochrane had made himself particularly obnox- 
 ious, by stirring up strife among, and spoiling the 
 bargains of his political opponents ; and he found iu 
 Mr. Croker an unscrupulous and unrelenting foe. 
 The part actually taken by Mr. Croker in persecuting 
 and ruining his quondam friend, will never, perhaps, 
 come fully to light ; but the presumption is strong, 
 that he indirectly aided the conspiracy against Lord 
 Cochrane. AVe append a narrative of the circum- 
 stances attending this hitherto unparelleled scheme 
 for blasting the reputation of one of the most heroic 
 and talented of British officers. There is, however, 
 nothing in the explanation afforded, at all equal to
 
 STOCK EXCHANGE CONSPIRACY. 199 
 
 the solemn assertion contained in the Autobiography 
 of the deceased venerable peer. " But when," he 
 wrote, " an alleged offence was laid to my charge in 
 1814. in which, on the honour of a man now on the 
 brink of the grave, I had not the slightest participation, 
 and from ichich I never benefited, nor thought to benefit 
 one farthing, and when this allegation was, by poli- 
 tical rancour and legal chicanery, consummated in an 
 unmerited conviction, and an outrageous sentence, my 
 heart for the first time sank within me, as conscious 
 of a blow, the effect of which it has required all my 
 energies to sustain." 
 
 This solemn asseveration ought, of itself, to be 
 accepted as a proof of noncomplicity in the fraud 
 committed ; but since the Biography of the Earl of 
 Dundonald would be very incomplete without a full 
 narrative drawn from the pen of the victim, we give 
 the statement of the principal facts upon which it is 
 believed our late sailor-king, William IV., was pleased 
 to reinstate the sufferer in his naval rank. 
 
 "The crime to which I was accused of being a 
 party, occurred almost immediately after my appoint- 
 ment to the command of the Tonnant, in which I 
 expected shortly to proceed to join the British fleet 
 in America. While the ship was fitting out at Chat- 
 ham, I obtained leave to come to town to settle my 
 private affairs, and, among others, to complete the 
 specification to a patent for an improved lamp of 
 which I may here observe, that the light was so bril- 
 liant, that had it not been for the introduction of gas, 
 which took place about that period, it would, I have
 
 200 DE BERE^GER'S VISIT. 
 
 every reason to believe, have been very generally 
 adopted as a street light, as well as for other uses ; 
 and I anticipated that it would prove a discovery of 
 great public utility, as well as creditable and profitable 
 to myself. I had also adopted the principle of this 
 invention to the manufacture of ship-lanterns and 
 signal-lamps for use at sea, far superior to any thereto- 
 fore used, and I was anxious to take a supply with 
 me for the use of the Tonnant, and for conducting the 
 convoy which was to sail under her charge, and also 
 to take out a set for especial service in America ; and 
 during my leave of absence from the ship, I was daily 
 employed in superintending the construction of those 
 lamps, at the manufactory near Snow-hill, and was so 
 engaged on the 21st of February, when the visit of 
 De Berenger led to consequences which blasted all 
 my prospects. 
 
 "Independent of that /visit, and the circumstances 
 which attended it (which were truly and fully narrated 
 by myself, but foully and falsely misrepresented by 
 my prosecutors), the chief and indeed only fact of 
 any importance alleged against me, was my having afe 
 that period a time-speculation in the funds, and that 
 the stock which I held was sold at a profit on that 
 day. This was alleged to have been my first specu- 
 lation, and to have been made with a view to that 
 particular day ; but it was proved that in the course 
 of the four preceding months I had, by instructions- 
 to a broker, made many purchases and sales of stock 
 for time in the funds, and usually at a profit ; for 
 having had a favourable opinion of the state of public
 
 SPECULATIONS IX THE FUNDS. 201 
 
 affairs at that period, and of the success of the mili- 
 tary measures then in progress, I was convinced that 
 I had no more to do than to continue to hold such 
 purchases for a short time to become a gainer without 
 injury to anyone; and during that period of four 
 mouths, I had gained upwards of 4,000, by what was 
 admitted to be fair speculation. I had, therefore, a 
 sufficient inducement to renew my account in au 
 honest way, without any temptation to adopt any 
 dishonourable or dangerous expedient. Besides, it 
 so happened, that the amount of stock which I held 
 at the time of the fraud, instead of being larger than 
 on former occasions, was considerably smaller than 
 it had frequently been before, which would surely 
 not have been the case had I risked the commission 
 of a fraud with a view to excessive gain ; and the sale 
 of the stock on the day of the fraud, took place under 
 the general order which I had from the commence- 
 ment of those speculations given to the broker, to sell 
 out (without waiting for further directions) whenever 
 a profit of one per cent, could be made. It could 
 not, therefore, be otherwise than that my stock should 
 be sold on that day, when the prices enabled the 
 broker to act on the standing order I had long before 
 given. Had I anticipated any extraordinary rise on 
 that particular day, and had stooped to a fraud to 
 effect that rise, I should either have had a larger 
 amount for sale, or have aimed at more than one per 
 cent, profit ; and much more was obtained on that 
 day by many speculators who never were charged 
 with a knowledge of the fraud. It was proved that I
 
 202 TIME BAE GAINS. 
 
 did not myself attend the Stock-Exchange ou that 
 day, and that the whole of my stock was sold in the 
 morning at a gain on an average of one and a quarter 
 per cent., which was less than half the profit it might 
 have made, had it been held a few hours longer. I 
 have frequently been told by persons who best knew 
 me, that I stood fully acquitted in their opinion, not 
 only on the ground of their believing me incapable of 
 a base transaction, but because they felt confident, 
 that were it possible for me so to degrade myself, it 
 must have been with a large prize in view, and that 
 I should have been found to be the largest holder and 
 seller 'on that day, instead of being so to a compara- 
 tively small extent. The weight of this argument in 
 my favour the improbability of my suddenly becom- 
 ing a fraudulent knave for so small an object, was felt 
 at the trial and the judge had recourse to a singular 
 expedient to obviate it. He directed my amount of 
 stock, and the respective amounts of two others of the 
 accused parties, one of whom had held nearly three 
 times, and the other nearly four times the amount 
 that I held, to be added together, and directed the 
 omnium to be reduced into Consols, to increase the 
 numerical sum-total, and then exclaimed, ' Of that 
 amount of stock they were holders on that day ! ' 
 Thus assuming that there was a partnership, an actual 
 and equal partnership between me and two other 
 persons, and that I had an equal interest and respon- 
 sibility with them in their large accounts ; than which 
 a more unproved, unfounded, or injurious assumption 
 was never made in a court of justice.
 
 COLONEL DU BOUEG. 203 
 
 " It is, moreover, a fact, and a proved one (so far as 
 motives can be proved by conduct), that I never 
 anticipated the sale of my stock taking place on the 
 21st of February, in preference to any other day be- 
 tween that day and the final settling-day, which was 
 then at three weeks' distance. 
 
 " The rise in the price of the funds, on the 21st of 
 February, 1814, was attributed partly to the agency 
 of the individual who, in the scarlet uniform of an 
 aide-de-camp, presented himself at the ShipInn,Dover, 
 about one o'clock in the morning, under the assumed 
 name of Colonel Du Bourg, and in the false character 
 of the bearer of despatches from the allied armies, 
 with intelligence of a great victory ; and who, after 
 forwarding a letter with the false news to the Port- 
 Admiral at Deal, ordered a post-chaise and four, and 
 proceeded to London ; and partly to the agency of 
 three other persons (of whom I had never heard till 
 charged with being their co-conspirator), who arrived 
 in a Dartford chaise about noon, and made a sort of 
 triumphal entry into the city, announcing, or by such 
 display insinuating, similar false intelligence. The 
 former individual, the pretended Du Bourg, who was 
 afterwards proved to be De Berenger, arrived at the 
 Marsh Gate, Lambeth, about nine o'clock in the 
 morning, and immediately took a hackney coach, and 
 came to my house in Green-street, Grosvenor-square. 
 I had only recently become acquainted with him, but 
 under circumstances (stated hereafter) which afforded 
 him a pretence for coming to my house, and rendered 
 his visit to me perfectly natural, and in no way cal-
 
 204 UNEXPECTED VISIT. 
 
 culated to excite my suspicion that he had been 
 engaged in so nefarious a transaction, of which at that 
 time I neither knew nor suspected him to be capable. 
 He had taken care to divest himself of his scarlet 
 uniform before he came to me (though it was most 
 falsely alleged and sworn that he came to my door in 
 a red coat), and by means of his portmanteau had 
 substituted a green one. 
 
 " Not expecting any such visitor, I was not at home 
 when he arrived, but was engaged, as I daily was, at 
 the lamp - manufactory near Snow-hill, as before- 
 mentioned. On his finding that I was absent, and 
 being informed by my servant that I was probably at 
 such manufactory, he hastily wrote and sent a note to 
 me there, soliciting an interview. From whom the 
 note came I did not know, my servant, who brought 
 it, saying that he had never before seen the person 
 who sent it, and the signature was so indistinct that 
 I could not make it out ; but it requested me to return 
 home, and stated to the eifect that the writer had 
 something to communicate of an affecting nature. 
 This circumstance, and the servant's informing me 
 that the writer appeared to be an army officer, having 
 a sword, and wearing a military great coat, and 
 military cap, led me to fear that he was an officer 
 from Spain, with intelligence of the death of my 
 brother, Major Cochrane, whom I knew from a let- 
 ter received only three days before was dangerously 
 ill. 
 
 " Under this painful impression I hastened home, 
 and was agreeably surprised to find, instead of a
 
 ALLEGED CAUSE OF TISIT. 205 
 
 messenger of ill news from Spain, a person \vhom I 
 knew as Captain Berenger, who had been recom- 
 mended to Admiral Sir Alexander Cochrane and 
 myself as a person skilled in pyrotechnics, and qualified 
 to assist in the minor preparations for the execution, 
 of my then recently-discovered method of attacking 
 forts or fleets in a peculiar and irresistible manner, 
 a method which Sir Alexander intended to adopt 
 under my superintendence in America. With this 
 view he had applied for permission to take De Be- 
 reuger to America, but on account of his being a 
 foreigner the application had been refused. De Be- 
 renger was also reputed a master of the rifle, having 
 been adjutant to the Duke of Cumberland's rifle corps, 
 commanded by Lord Yarmouth ; and it was partly 
 and ostensibly for the purpose of employing him as a 
 teacher of sharpshooting, but principally for the 
 secret and more important object above-mentioned, 
 that Sir Alexander had applied for him. And though 
 De Berenger himself was not aware of the principal 
 motive for the application, yet he well knew that Sir 
 Alexander had requested leave to embark him as a 
 rifle-officer, and he came to me on the said 21st of 
 February in a sharpshooter's dress, and besought 
 rne to take him with me to America, and permit him 
 to go immediately on board the Tonnant, to instruct 
 the marines in the rifle exercise. He represented 
 himself as involved in debt, as having no hope of 
 paying his creditors while he remained in England ; 
 that he had left his lodgings in the rules of the King's 
 Bench, had equipped himself as well as he could, had
 
 206 DE BEKENGEB'S BEQUEST KEFUSED. 
 
 brought the sword Avith him that had been his 
 father's, and that to that and to Sir Alexander Coch- 
 rane he would trust for obtaining an honourable ap- 
 pointment. 
 
 " But although I felt compassion at his tale of dis- 
 tress, and although it was infinitely more agreeable to 
 see before me, instead of the expected messenger of 
 the news of a brother's death, the very individual who 
 had been recommended as peculiarly qualified to assist 
 in the preparations for executing my new plan of war ; 
 and though he came expressly to solicit me to take 
 him where I hoped shortly to be employed in carrying 
 that plan into execution, and thereby to render an 
 essential service to my country, and acquire honour- 
 able distinction for myself, yet I refused his request, 
 unless he could first obtain the sanction of the Board 
 of Admiralty ; and I contend that this refusal does of 
 itself refute the imputation that he came to me as his 
 accomplice in a crime. If I could, by one and the 
 same act, have aiforded an asylum to an agent in an 
 infamous transaction, and thereby have screened both 
 myself and him from its penal and degrading con- 
 sequences, and have secured the assistance of the 
 man, so as aforesaid recommended as competent to 
 facilitate the preparations for the peculiar service I 
 had in view in America, was it possible that I should 
 have been so scrupulous as to refuse to take him for 
 want of formal authority ? There was also another 
 proof that there was no criminal acquaintance between 
 him and me, for, on my refusing him permission to go 
 on board, he urged, as a claim to my favourable con-
 
 A. CHANGE OF CLOTHES. 207 
 
 sideratlon, the certificates* to his good conduct which 
 he had formerly shown me from Lord Yarmouth and 
 others, which he surely would not have thought it neces- 
 sary or relevant to do, had he been my agent in a fraud. 
 " This circumstance, however, led to another (my 
 giving him a coat and hat) which was turned to my 
 disadvantage at the trial, though most unjustly, seeing 
 that I myself had divulged it, which I need not have 
 done, and certainly should not have done, had it been 
 criminal. On his reminding me of the certificates, I 
 advised him to apply to Lord Yarmouth, and those 
 who had given him such certificates, or any other 
 friends, to exert their influence, in procuring him 
 leave from the Admiralty, for that I had none ; on 
 which he observed that he could not go to Lord Yar- 
 mouth, or any other of his friends, in that dress, nor 
 return to his lodgings, where it would excite suspicion ; 
 meaning, as I understood, suspicion that he had 
 absented himself from the rules without leave, or that 
 he was preparing to make a final escape ; and he 
 added that he must take a great liberty and request 
 me to lend him a hat to wear instead of his military 
 cap. I gave him a hat, and on his buttoning up his 
 great coat, and observing that the collar of his green 
 uniform appeared above that of his great coat, I 
 offered him a cast-off black coat which lay on a chair, 
 
 * Two of these certificates were from Lord Yarmouth aud 
 General Jenkinson, and had been obtained by De Berenger only 
 one month previous, for the express purpose of recommending 
 himself to Sir Alexander Cochrane and me as a fit person to be 
 employed under our command in the war with America.
 
 208 PUBLISHES THE KAME. 
 
 which he accepted ; and having put up his green coat 
 in a towel he went away, taking also with him a small 
 portmanteau which he had brought, and in which I 
 have no doubt he had concealed the scarlet coat in 
 which he had made his fraudulent appearance at 
 Dover that morning. 
 
 " Besides the obvious improbability of this man's 
 exposing himself to be traced and detected by pro- 
 ceeding at once without any intermediate conceal- 
 ment to the residence of an accomplice, there was also 
 the moral impossibility (supposing me to be sane) that 
 I should have voluntarily published his name and all 
 that occurred at the interview, the change of dress in- 
 cluded, had I been a partner in his guilt. Tet I was 
 not only the first to publish the name of my visitor, 
 together with all that passed between us (which none 
 but he or I could have published), but I did so with 
 the least possible delay after hearing the report that 
 the pretended Colonel Du Bourg had been at my 
 house. I did so fully and on oath, omitting only the 
 circumstance that the principal motive for the appli- 
 cation made in his behalf by Sir Alexander Cochrane 
 was his supposed capacity to be useful in the pre- 
 parations for carrying into effect my new method of 
 maritime warfare, conceiving that it would be un- 
 necessary and imprudent to make any public allusion 
 to that important secret. AVith this exception, I told 
 all I knew. I made no secret of the change of dress, 
 because, as far at least as I was concerned, it was an 
 innocent transaction. I was perfectly ignorant, at the 
 time of my interview with De Berenger, that he had
 
 DU BOTJRa AND DE BEKEXGEK. 209 
 
 appeared that morning at Dover in. a false character ; 
 I neither knew nor suspected that he had come any- 
 further than from his own lodgings, and had no know- 
 ledge whatever that any fraud on the funds had been 
 committed or contemplated. And on the llth of 
 March following, when I made the affidavit (which I 
 could not have made sooner, as has been fully proved 
 in former and more detailed statements), publishing 
 the name of my visitor and the circumstances of his 
 visit, in consequence of which he was found out and 
 brought to trial, I was still in ignorance that he was 
 the perpetrator of the fraud, and had no other reasons 
 for suspecting him to be so than the report that the 
 pretended Colonel Du Bourg had proceeded to my 
 house, and my having had no recollection of seeing 
 -any other officer than De Berenger, or person ap- 
 pearing to be an officer, on the day in question ; 
 while, on the other hand, his appearing before me, 
 not in a scarlet coat under a brown great-coat, as had 
 been described, but in a green coat under a gray 
 great-coat, strongly inclined me to believe that he 
 was not the person who had personated Du Bourg ; 
 and such belief was further strengthened ou its being 
 reported to me, previous to the trial, that he would 
 plead and prove an alibi. And it is a positive fact 
 (involving a monstrous injustice) that I had neither 
 knowledge nor belief of the identity of Du Bourg 
 with De Berenger, until that identity was proved in 
 court at that very trial in which I was convicted as 
 his accomplice ! 
 
 " When it is considered that there was only one wit- 
 p
 
 210 DEESS Or DTJ BOURG. 
 
 ness to swear that De Berenger entered my house in 
 a scarlet coat, and that he only professed to see it 
 underneath his great coat, which he described as 
 brown, though, in fact, it was gray ; and when it is 
 considered that this single, and, at best, inaccurate 
 witness, was the brutal hackney-coachman before 
 mentioned, who expected the whole, or a large part 
 of the advertised reward, and that even he deposed to 
 the important fact that De Berenger had with him a 
 small portmanteau, " big enough to wrap a coat up 
 in;" and when it is considered how easily he might, 
 by means of that portmanteau, have changed his scarlet 
 coat for his green one, either in the post-chaise that 
 brought him to the Marsh Gate, Lambeth, or in the 
 hackney-coach which brought him thence to my house 
 in Green-street, Grosvenor-square ; and when it is 
 considered that two persons, householders, residing 
 near the Marsh Gate, voluntarily came forward 
 (though, unfortunately, not until after the trial) and 
 deposed that they saw the person stated to have 
 brought the good news pass from the chaise to the 
 coach in a green coat under a gray great coat ; and 
 when it is further considered that I afterwards suc- 
 ceeded in ascertaining and proving that De Berenger's 
 first arrival at Dover was not in the scarlet uniform 
 in which he personated Du Bourg, but in a green 
 coat, and that he did not leave that green coat behind 
 him at Dover, but brought it back with him to London, 
 I think I have furnished as much corroborative evi- 
 dence as any reasonable man can desire of the truth 
 of my oath to the fact that he appeared before me,.
 
 WEAKS A GEEE^ COAT. 211 
 
 not in a scarlet coat, but a green one. And though 
 I may not have been able to show with certainty why 
 he remarked that he could not go to Lord Yarmouth, 
 or return to his lodgings in that dress, yet I conceive 
 that my answer to the question that was asked why 
 he could call on me in a dress in which he could not 
 call on Lord Yarmouth, was perfectly satisfactory; 
 for he came to me to solicit permission to go imme- 
 diately on board my ship to instruct the marines in 
 the rifle exercise, for which the dress he wore (a plain 
 green uniform) was perfectly suitable ; but as it was 
 neither the usual garb of a gentleman, nor the uni- 
 form of Lord Yarmouth's rifle-corps, which, as that 
 nobleman deposed, was a green waistcoat with a 
 crimson collar ; and as his military cap was totally 
 different from, the cap of that corps, it could not have 
 been a proper dress for an officer of that corps to 
 wear on a visit to his colonel. It does not need to 
 be proved, for it is obvious, that, if I did not know 
 what De Berenger had been about, there was nothing 
 in his exception to his dress that could reveal to me 
 that he had been engaged in a crime. 
 
 " One thing is certain and conclusive, that it was I, 
 and I alone, who voluntarily, and with no other neces- 
 sity than that which truth imposes on a conscientious 
 mind, divulged the fact of a change of dress ; it was a 
 private transaction between De Bereuger and myself, 
 no other person being present, and it was optional 
 with me either to relate it or conceal it. I could have 
 had no motive for telling it but the obligation to 
 truth. Had it been a guilty transaction, and in any 
 p 2
 
 212 SHAEP LAW rHACTICE. 
 
 respect other than such as I described it, I must have 
 felt both the facility and the necessity of not divulging 
 it at all. It \vas monstrous to hold, yet it was held 
 at the trial, that I had disclosed the truth as to the 
 change, and sworn falsely to the colour ; or, in other 
 words, that I had committed perjury, not in my own 
 defence, but to afford a handle to my prosecutors to 
 convict me at once both of perjury aud fraud. How 
 far it was legal to put in my own affidavit as evidence 
 against me, and to direct the jury to credit that part 
 which, taken separately, would admit of a criminative 
 inference, and to discredit that part which stood iu 
 connection with it, and was destructive of such in- 
 ference, I do not presume to decide; but I do know 
 that such over-sharp practice may be productive of the 
 most dreadful injustice, aud was so in my case. 
 
 "Of a piece with this injustice was the conduct of 
 the court in compelling my counsel to enter on the 
 defence at a late hour of the night, when they de- 
 clared themselves exhausted, and in delivering a 
 charge to the jury, unexampled in point of partiality 
 since the days of Judge Jeffreys ; and in refusing to 
 hear me in application for a new trial (under the 
 frivolous pretext before mentioned) until they were 
 about to pass their infamous sentence, and in reject- 
 ing the testimony which I then offered under pretence 
 of its legal inadmissibility. Had there not been a 
 pre-determiuatiou to make sure of the power to de- 
 grade and punish by means of the verdict obtained, 
 why refuse a new trial, which is so frequently granted 
 in cases of far less importance? The result could
 
 PERJURED WITNESSES. 213 
 
 only have been a confirmation of my guilt, if guiltv I 
 had been, and a justification of all the previous pro- 
 ceedings. It was not that the evidence I then offered 
 was not sufficient to justify the granting a new trial, 
 but the apprehension that it might prove effectual to 
 the rescuing my character and person out of their 
 merciless hands it was this which caused the court 
 to refuse what I, if guilty, could have had no induce- 
 ment to ask, and which they, if just, could have had 
 none to deny. 
 
 " It is a remarkable fact, that no evidence was pro- 
 duced at the trial of De Berenger and his alleged 
 accomplices of his outward journey to Dover ; but 
 the persons with whom he lodged in the rules of the 
 King's Bench (Lauucelot Davidson and his wife), 
 were brought forward to swear that he left their 
 house a little before eleven o'clock on Sunday morn- 
 ing, the 20th of February, which was sufficiently early 
 to admit of his arriving at Dover before the time at 
 which the pretended Du Bourg presented himself with 
 his false news at the ' Ship Inn ' there, at one in the 
 morning of ^Monday the 21st. Their evidence, how- 
 ever, was false ; for, in fact, as some friends of mine 
 afterwards ascertained, he set off from London by the 
 heavy Dover coach on Saturday night (the 19th), 
 arrived at the ' Eoyal Oak Inn ' there at ten o'clock 
 on Sunday morning, dressed in a green coat, and 
 having with him a portmanteau, considerably larger 
 than that with which he returned to London. I was 
 advised to indict Launcelot Davidson for perjury, and 
 I did so. not with any ill-feeling towards him, whom
 
 214 THE ARRIVAL AT DOVES. 
 
 I never saw, but for the purpose of proving in a court 
 of law the important fact (important as corroborative 
 of my veracity and innocence), that De Berenger had 
 with him, on his journey to Dover, and on his return, 
 the same description of dress as that which I had 
 sworn he appeared in before me ; and in this object I 
 completely succeeded ; for the people of the ' Eoyal 
 Oak ' deposed that he arrived there on Sunday morn- 
 ing in a green coat, and that m the course ot the 
 morning he changed it (by means of his portmanteau) 
 for a black coat, so that, so far from not having the 
 means of shifting himself, as alleged by the judge at 
 my trial, he had more than one change of dress. The 
 witnesses also proved that he passed the whole day at 
 Dover, and that he inquired his way to the residence 
 of an inhabitant of that town, and went out as if to 
 visit that individual and that he returned, and finally 
 left the ' Oak Inn ' at ten or eleven o'clock at night 
 (two or three hours before his appearance at the 
 ' Ship Inn ' in his fraudulent character as Colonel 
 Du Bourg). They also proved that he left a port- 
 manteau at the ' Oak Inn,' which was afterwards 
 applied for and delivered up to the port-collector of 
 Dover, who must have been authorized to demand it 
 by superior authority, and such as would not have 
 concealed its contents had they been unfavourable to 
 me and, therefore, the fact that he did not leave 
 his green coat behind him in that portmanteau is 
 certain ; because if he had, it would unquestionably 
 have been alleged and proved that he did so, in refu- 
 tation of mv assertion that he wore it when he
 
 DAVIDSON'S EYIDESCE. 215 
 
 appeared before me. Consequently, it was the 
 smaller portmanteau, ' big enough to wrap a coat up 
 in ' (which he was proved to have had with him on 
 his return to London), which contained that green 
 coat, until he exchanged its contents during the last 
 stage of his journey, for the purpose of concealing 
 his scarlet uniform and appearing before me in his 
 green one. Now, whether those who conducted the 
 prosecution in 1814 did, or did not, ascertain how or 
 when De Berenger went to Dover (though the pro- 
 bability is that they did ascertain it, and that it was 
 at their instigation that the portmanteau, left at the 
 ' Oak Ian,' was demanded by the port-collector), it 
 is quite clear that it must have been as easy for 
 them to have traced his outward journey, previous 
 to the trial, as it was for me or my friends to find 
 it out at a later period ; and, therefore, it is difficult 
 to conceive any other reason for their substituting 
 the false evidence of Davidson and his wife for the 
 true evidence of the Dover witnesses, than their 
 desire to suppress the evidence of the green coat. And 
 it has been pertinently asked, ' If they availed them- 
 selves of false evidence for the purpose of suppressing 
 the green coat at one end of the journey, what was 
 to hinder them from also having recourse to false 
 evidence as to the colour of the coat in which he 
 appeared at the other end of his journey ? ' It is 
 true that Davidson was acquitted of the perjury, be- 
 cause the judge declared that he might have mistaken 
 one Sunday for another though that was perfectly 
 impossible, as has been clearly demonstrated in an
 
 216 TTNFAIE SUMMING UP. 
 
 examination of the case formerly published. The 
 conduct of the judge in charging for an acquittal, 
 was, however, less atrocious than his attempt to 
 deprive me of the benefit of the evidence adduced. 
 He said, ' It is to my mind a very extraordinary 
 state of things which is now presented to you. "We 
 must assume that this prosecution is set on foot by 
 some one or more of the persons who were defendants 
 on that occasion, and yet the evidence which they 
 now allege and prove to be false, was evidence, though 
 not absolutely irrelevant, certainly much more favour- 
 able to them upon that occasion, than the evidence 
 which has now been given to prove that the former 
 evidence was false.' His lordship did not choose to 
 see that evidence corroborative of the guilt of one of 
 the defendants might tend to prove the innocence of 
 another. The new evidence would certainly have 
 been stronger against De Berenger than that false 
 evidence which was substituted for it at the former 
 trial ; but it was also evidence that the dress which 
 that individual wore on his arrival at Dover, was 
 similar to that which I had sworn that he wore when 
 I saw him at my house ; and the question of my 
 guilt or innocence turned entirely on the colour of 
 the dress in which I saw him. It has been well 
 observed, that ' The whole world may be defied to 
 produce a more extraordinary instance of the power 
 of prejudice than was exhibited at the trial of David- 
 son, when the judge himself persisted in linking Lord 
 Cochrane's case to that of De Berenger, after hearing 
 evidence, the object and effect of which was to sepa-
 
 REPORT OP THE TRIAL. 217 
 
 rate them, and which, if adduced at the former trial, 
 must have severed them for ever.' " 
 
 ACCOUNT OF THE TRIAL. 
 
 [1814.] 
 
 The following is a brief report of this momentous 
 trial, extracted from the Annual Register for 1814 : 
 
 " No trial in the present year so much interested 
 the public, as that of the persons concerned in the 
 fraud upon the Stock Exchange. The report of 
 the trial itself occupies a bulky volume : and we can 
 only allot for it a space sufficient for a very summary 
 view of the principal points of the evidence, and the 
 result of the whole. 
 
 " The persons tried were Charles Random de Be- 
 renger, Sir Thomas Cochrane, commonly called Lord 
 Cochrane, the Hon. Andrew Cochrane Johustone, 
 Richard Gathorne Butt, Ralph Sandon, Alexander 
 McRae, John Peter Holloway, and Henry Lyte. 
 The crime charged was a conspiracy for raising the 
 funds, and thereby injuring those who should become 
 purchasers in them. The Court was the King's 
 Bench, Guildhall, before Lord Ellenborough, on June 
 8th and 9th. The case for the prosecution having 
 been stated by Mr. Grurney, the first witness called 
 was John Marsh, master of the ' Packet Boat ' 
 public-house at Dover. His evidence went chiefly 
 to prove the fact of a gentleman, dressed in a grey 
 great-coat and a red uniform under it, with a star, 
 knocking at the door of the ' Ship Inn,' early in the
 
 218 THE EVIDENCE. 
 
 morning of February the 21st, whom he assisted to 
 get into the inn, and who said that he was the bearer 
 of very important despatches from France. He was 
 fully satisfied that Berenger was this person. 
 
 " This evidence was confirmed by that of Gourley, 
 a hatter, who was at that time in Marsh's house. 
 
 " Mr. St. John, who was then at the ' Ship Inn,' 
 as a traveller, deposed in like manner to the arrival of 
 a person who asked for a post-chaise, to his dress, 
 and to the identity of Berenger as this person. 
 
 " Admiral Foley was then called to prove the re- 
 ceipt of a letter, despatched to him as port-admiral at 
 Deal, by express from Dover, from a person at the 
 ' Ship Inn,' who signed himself E. Du Bourg, lieu- 
 tenant-colonel, and aide-de-camp to Lord Cathcart, 
 and which was proved to be the handwriting of 
 Berenger. The purport of the letter was to acquaint 
 the admiral that he was just arrived from Calais, with 
 the news of a great victory obtained by the allies 
 over Buonaparte, who was slain in his flight by the 
 Cossacks, and that the allied sovereigns were in Paris, 
 where the white cockade was universal. 
 
 " A post-chaise boy was then examined, who drove 
 a gentleman on that night from Dover to Canterbury, 
 and another from Canterbury to Sittingbourne, and a 
 third from thence to Eochester. They deposed to the 
 receiving of napoleons from him ; and the latter boy 
 to his dress agreeing with the former descriptions. 
 
 " Mr. Wright, of the ' Crown Inn,' at Eochester, 
 brother to "Wright, of the ' Ship,' at Dover (who 
 was prevented from appearing by illness), next gave
 
 FINDING THE RED COAT. 219 
 
 evidence to the person's coming to his bouse, of his 
 dress in the great-coat, red uniform, star, and rnilitary 
 cap, and of his conversation relative to the news 
 he brought ; and was positive that Berenger was 
 the man. 
 
 " Other innkeepers and drivers continued the chain 
 of evidence, to that of a Dartford chaise - driver, 
 Thomas Milling, who gave a very circumstantial 
 account of carrying Berenger to the Marsh Gate, 
 Lambeth, and there seeing him into a hackney-coach. 
 
 " The driver of this coach, "William Crane, then 
 deposed to the carrying him to ISTo. 13, Green-street, 
 Grosvenor-square, and there leaving him ; also of the 
 circumstance of his red uniform under a great coat, 
 and to his taking with hifo into the house a small 
 portmanteau. And thus was completed the process 
 of tracking Berenger from Dover to Lord Cochrane's 
 house in London. 
 
 " The next circumstance brought forward for the 
 prosecution, was that of fishing up by a waterman on 
 the Thames, of a bundle containing a coat cut to 
 pieces, a star, embroidery, &c., which was recognized 
 by a military-accoutrement maker, to be the same that 
 he sold on February the 19th, to a person who men- 
 tioned its being wanted for one who was to perform 
 the character of a foreign officer, and who also pur- 
 chased a military regimental coat, and a military cap. 
 
 " The person with whom Berenger lodged, deposed 
 that on the 20th he went out in a new greafc-coat. 
 
 ' ; With the main plot in which Berenger was the 
 chief actor, another was stated to be connected, in-
 
 220 THE EVIDENCE. 
 
 volving McBae, Saudon, Lyte, and Holloway. "With 
 respect to this, the first witness called was Thomas 
 Yince, an accountant, who deposed to having been 
 applied to by McRae for the purpose of engaging 
 to assist in a hoax upon the Stock-Exchange, by per- 
 sonating a French officer along with him, which he 
 refused to do. A female witness, a fellow-lodger 
 with McEae and his wife, deposed that Mcllae 
 brought home, on February 20, a parcel with two 
 coats, and two opera-hats, the coats being like those 
 of officers, with some white ribbon for cockades ; that 
 he said they were for the purpose of deceiving the flats, 
 and that he must go down to Gravesend ; that on the 
 next day she met him in London, apparently much 
 tired ; and that he brough't back a bundle containing- 
 one of the coats and hats and the cockades ; and that 
 he said he was to have 50 for what he had done. 
 
 " Mr. Foxall, master of the ' Hose Inn,' at Dartford, 
 then deposed as to receiving a note from Mr. Sandon, 
 dated from ISTorthfleet, on Monday, February 21, 
 desiring him to send a chaise-and-pair, and to have 
 ready four good horses to go to London with all expe- 
 dition ; that, in consequence, his chaise brought from 
 Xorthfleet Mr. Sandon and two gentlemen with white 
 cockades in their hats, who immediately proceeded for 
 London with the four horses. A driver deposed to 
 carrying these persons, the horses being decked with 
 laurels, over London Bridge, through Lombard-street 
 and Cheapside, and thence to Marsh Gate, Lambeth, 
 where they got out, having taken off their military 
 hats and put on round ones. It was then proved by
 
 3IK. COCHBAIfE JOHXSTOXE. 221 
 
 Mr. Francis Bailey that llolloway confessed, before 
 the committee of the Stock-Exchange, that he was a 
 contriver of this plot, and that Lyte confessed him- 
 self and McSae to have been the persons who accom- 
 panied Saudon in the post-chaise. 
 
 " The next body of evidence produced related to the 
 stock concerns of Mr. Butt, Mr. Cochraue Johustone, 
 and Lord Cochrane. The most material points went 
 to the close connection between these three persons, 
 to the vast amount of omnium which they held on 
 the morning of the day in which the fraud took place, 
 to the sale of the whole on that day, and to the cir- 
 cumstance of Mr. C. Johustone's having taken a new 
 office in a court adjoining the side-door of the Stock- 
 Exchange against that clay for Mr. JVarn, their prin- 
 cipal broker, without having previously acquainted 
 him with his intention. An affidavit by Lord Coch- 
 raue was then read, which admitted the coming of 
 Bercnger to his house on the 21st February, but 
 -stated that he was in a green uniform, which he put 
 off, putting on a black coat which his lordship gave 
 him for the purpose of waiting on Lord Yarmouth. 
 The affidavit further averred that Lord Cochrane had 
 no knowledge whatever of the imposition, and stated 
 that he had given instructions to his broker to sell 
 out the whole of his omnium at a rise of 1 per cent. 
 
 " Mr. Le Marchant was next examined with respect 
 to a conversation held with Berenger; and he de- 
 posed, that having asked him how he could go to 
 America under the command of Lord Cochrane (as he 
 said his intention was) with the embarrassments he lay
 
 222 THE EVIDENCE. 
 
 under, Berenger replied that he was easy on that score, 
 because, for the services he had rendered Lord Coch- 
 rane and Mr. C. Johnstone, whereby a large sum 
 might be realized in the funds or stocks, Lord Coch- 
 rane was his friend, and had told him he had kept a 
 private purse for him. The Hon. Alexander Murray, 
 a prisoner in the King's Bench, also deposed to a 
 great intimacy between Berenger and Mr. Cochrane 
 Johnstone. 
 
 "Another examination of witnesses to a considerable 
 length was consequent upon the capture of Berenger, 
 who had absconded, at Leith,when there was found in 
 his possession certain papers and bank-notes, which 
 last he was urgent to have restored to him, but which 
 were detained, others of corresponding value being 
 given to him. From an entry in his memorandum- 
 book he appeared to have received a sum of 540, 
 part of which he had expended, and the remainder, in 
 notes, was in his possession. All these notes, as well 
 as most of those he had paid away, were with great in- 
 dustry traced to Lord Cochrane, Mr. C. Johnstone, 
 and Mr. Butt. This closed the case for the pro- 
 secution. 
 
 "The business on the following day commenced 
 with the evidence for the defendants. Letters were 
 first adduced which passed between Le Marchant and 
 Lord Cochrane, and which went to contradict the 
 evidence he had given. 
 
 " Lord Melville was then called for the purpose of 
 proving that Admiral Sir A. Cochrane had made ap- 
 plication to be allowed the service of Berenger in his
 
 LOED COCHEA>~E'S AFFIDAVIT. 223 
 
 command on the Xorth-American station. Colonel 
 Torrens, secretary to the commander-in-chief, was 
 examined to the same point, as was Henry Goldburn, 
 Esq. The intention, in these examinations, was to 
 confirm Lord Cochrane's statement, and to show a 
 connection between the parties, independently of any 
 other transactions. King, a tin-plate worker, next 
 deposed to Lord Cochrane's being at his manufactory 
 in Cock-lane on the morning of the 21st, whence he 
 was called by a note brought to him by his servant. 
 Dewman, a servant of Lord Cochrane's, deposed 
 to a gentleman coming to their house in a hackney- 
 coach, and writing the note which he brought to his 
 lordship. 
 
 ' : Mr. Janourdin, solicitor to Berenger, was called 
 to prove that Mr. Cochrane Johnstone had employed 
 Berenger to make a plan for a projected building in 
 some premises belonging to him, and had paid him 
 money for it. Two receipts were produced for such 
 payment, signed by Berenger; the last for 200, 
 dated February 26th, 1814. This witness also abso- 
 lutely denied the letter sent to Admiral Foley, at 
 Deal, to be the handwriting of Berenger. The Earl 
 of Yarmouth spoke to Berenger's having been adju- 
 tant of the corps of Cumberland sharpshooters, and 
 thought the letter to Admiral Foley very unlike his 
 usual writing. Two other persons also deposed to 
 their belief that this letter was not of his writing. 
 
 " A series of evidence was then brought to prove 
 an alibi with respect to Berenger. The first of the 
 witnesses were "W. Smith, and his wife, who were his
 
 224 THE SENTENCE. 
 
 servants, and who swore to his sleeping at home on 
 the night of February 20th. Then followed an 
 ostler, of some livery stables at Chelsea, who swore 
 to Bereuger's being there on the evening of the 20th. 
 Other depositions were made to the same effect, which 
 it is not material to enumerate, since, from the rank 
 and character of the persons, no regard seems to have 
 been paid to their testimony. Here the case for the 
 defendants terminated. 
 
 " Lord Elleuborough summed up the evidence with 
 a great minuteness, making various observations on 
 different parts. He particularly dwelt upon the evi- 
 dence of the identity of the person taking a chaise 
 from Dover, and traced to Lord Cochrane's house, 
 with Berenger ; and of the disguise he wore, and the 
 colour of his uniform, which he seemed to think 
 proved in such a manner that no doubt could remain ; 
 and from these circumstances, and his subsequent 
 change of apparel, he drew a strong inference of Lord 
 Cochrane's privity to the plot. 
 
 "The jury retired at ten minutes after six in the 
 evening, and returned at twenty minutes before nine 
 with a verdict, finding all the defendants Guilty. 
 
 " Subsequent proceedings were taken relative to 
 Lord Cochrane's application for a new trial, and a 
 motion on his behalf was made in arrest of judg- 
 ment. It is sufficient here to mention that theso 
 attempts were void of effect, and that on June 21 all 
 the persons charged, with the exception of Mr. 
 Oochrane Johnstone, who had absconded, were 
 called up to receive sentence. This was pronounced
 
 FIXE AND IMPRISONMENT. 225 
 
 by Mr. Justice Le Blanc, and was to the following 
 effect : Lord Cochrane and E. Garthorne Butt were 
 condemned to pay the king a fine of a thousand 
 pounds each, and J. P. Holloway of five hundred : 
 and these three, together with De Berenger, Sandon, 
 and Lyte, were sentenced to imprisonment in the 
 Marshalsea for twelve calendar months. Further, 
 Lord Cochrane, De Berenger, and Butt were to stand 
 in the pillory for one hour before the Royal Exchange 
 once during their imprisonment. This last part of 
 their punishment was afterwards remitted." 
 
 IN THE KING'S BENCH PEISON. 
 
 [1814-16.] 
 
 His enemies had triumphed : Lord Cochrane was 
 condemned to lose the knightly spurs he had so 
 richly earned, to have his name erased from the Navy 
 List, to undergo a period of servitude in a common 
 jail, to forfeit 1,000, and to stand in the pillory ! 
 He who had so often fought his country's battles, 
 and upheld the honour of the British flag, had fallen 
 under the feet of rancorous foes, who rejoiced in 
 trampling upon their victim ! Nothing but a feeling 
 of conscious rectitude could have saved him from the 
 withering effects of this blow. But he was not with- 
 out sympathizers. The men of t Westminster, who 
 had returned him in his prosperity as their represen- 
 tative, scorned to take advantage of his downfall. 
 Though expelled the House of Commons by a con- 
 siderable majority 144 to 40 he was again elected 
 by the same large constituency. The civil law, ho\v- 
 Q
 
 226 PAYS THE 
 
 ever, was paramount, and Cochrane, the brave and 
 noble, was compelled to suffer within the walls of a 
 prison. 
 
 The portion of the sentence which condemned him 
 to stand in the pillory was cancelled ; but in all other 
 respects it was carried into full effect. The penalty 
 of a thousand pounds was paid with a bank-note of 
 that amount, endorsed with the following words : 
 
 " My health having suffered by long and close 
 confinement, and my oppressors being resolved to 
 deprive me of property or life, I submit to robbery 
 to protect myself from murder, in the hope that I 
 shall live to bring the delinquents to justice. 
 
 " COCHEAXE." 
 "KING'S BENCH PRISON, July 3rd, 1815." 
 
 This note is, we believe, still preserved in the Bank 
 of England. 
 
 There is no rational ground for believing that Lord 
 Cochrane was a guilty participator in the offence for 
 which he thus suffered degradation, fine, and imprison- 
 ment. The general belief is, that the real culprit 
 was Mr. Cochrane Johnstone, his cousin, who escaped 
 to the continent ; and that Lord Cochrane was art- 
 fully and unwittingly drawn into the snare, from 
 which his political foes took care he should not extri- 
 cate himself. The visit of De Berenger to his house, 
 and the change of raiment with winch he furnished 
 that swindling impostor, though given, no doubt, from 
 the purest motives, were facts which no argument could 
 satisfactorily explain away. They identified him with
 
 A SCAPEGOAT. 227 
 
 the transaction, just as an innocent person who har- 
 boured a murderer and supplied him with a change of 
 garments would be held in law an accessory after the 
 fact. He was made the scapegoat for the trans- 
 gressions of a stock-jobbing relative, and of one who 
 had not the common honesty to avow that he was the 
 principal, and that the clutches of the law had fastened 
 on the wrong person.
 
 228 LEAVES HIS COUNTRY. 
 
 SERVICES IN" CHILI AND PERU. 
 
 [1817-19.] 
 
 Xearly two years had elapsed from the time of the 
 release of Lord Cochrane from the incarceration to 
 which he had been so cruelly sentenced, ere a favour- 
 able opportunity offered to give him employment. 
 He was now in his forty-second year, healthy, vigorous, 
 daring, and craving for active service. The royal 
 navy was barred against him, and his persecutors in 
 full power ; but there were other lands besides the 
 one for which he had fought and bled ; and as the 
 exploits of Cochrane had made him known from pole 
 to pole, his sword was not likely to rust in its scab- 
 bard. Chili and Peru had thrown off their allegiance to 
 Spain and were making noble efforts to free themselves 
 from their hard task-masters ; and, in the summer of 
 1817, Don Jose Alvarez, the accredited agent of the 
 government of Chili, applied to Lord Cochrane to 
 undertake the organization of a naval force in that 
 country. He accepted the invitation, and agreed 
 to superintend the building and equipment of a war- 
 steamer then on the stocks in the Thames, and to 
 take her to Valparaiso when finished. 
 
 Subsequently, however, Alvarez received orders 
 from his Government to hasten the departure of Lord 
 Cochrane, the position of Chili being critical, as the 
 Spaniards were threatening Valparaiso by sea, and 
 still in possession of the continent from Conception 
 to Chiloe. Information, on which reliance could be
 
 KECEPTIOX AT VALPARAISO. 229 
 
 placed, had also been received relative to certain 
 efforts making by the Spanish Government at Madrid 
 to recover its lost possessions by a powerful rein- 
 forcement of its Pacific squadron. 
 
 The result was the speedy departure of Lord 
 Cochrane in the Hose merchant ship ; and towards 
 the end of November, 1818, he reached Valparaiso. 
 To the " Life of General Miller," who was the constant 
 companion of Cochrane during this portion of his 
 eventful life, we are indebted for many interesting 
 facts. The author of that work describes Lord Coch- 
 raue's reception, both from the authorities and the 
 people, as having been most enthusiastic. General 
 O'Higgins, the Supreme Director, arrived from the 
 seat of Government at Santiago, to welcome him. 
 The governor of Valparaiso gave a grand dinner on 
 the occasion, which, on St. Andrew's day, Lord Coch- 
 rane returned, presiding in the full costume of a 
 Scottish chief. The knowledge of his brilliant though 
 unfortunate career had preceded his arrival, and all, 
 except the old Spanish party, appeared filled with 
 delight at his coming. 
 
 These scenes were re-enacted at the capital, whither 
 General O'Higgins, the Supreme Director, insisted 
 on taking his lordship and Lady Cochrane ; and he 
 was at length obliged to remind his excellency, that 
 their purpose was fighting, and not feasting. 
 
 The Chilian squadron had just returned from a 
 successful cruise, under the command of Admiral 
 Blanco Encalada, having captured the Spanish 50-gun 
 frigate Maria Isabel, in the bay of Talcahuano.
 
 230 HIS SQUADKOK. 
 
 The squadron now placed under the flag of Lord 
 Cochrane was as follows : 
 
 Guns. 
 
 /v-rr. . ( Vice- Admiral Lord Cochrane. 
 
 U Miggins 50 . . 1 _ 
 
 I Captain Forster. 
 
 San Martin 56 .... Captain Wilkinson. 
 
 Lautaro 48 .... Captain Guise. 
 
 Chacabuco 20 .... Captain Carter. 
 
 The O'Higgins had been the Maria Isabel; the 
 San Martin and Lautaro were old Indiamen. In 
 addition to the above-named ships, the Chileno navy 
 consisted of the Galvarino, 18, recently the British 
 sloop of war Hecate ; and the Aracauno, 16 guns. 
 
 A commission had been issued, conferring upon 
 Lord Cochrane the title of " Vice-Admiral of Chili, 
 Admiral and Commander-in-Chief of the Naval Forces 
 of the Republic." Admiral Blanco, with patriotic 
 liberality, relinquished his position in Cochrane' s 
 favour ; paying him also the compliment of personally 
 acquaintiug officers and crews of the squadron with 
 the change which had been effected. 
 
 There was, however, a dark side to this picture, as 
 well as a bright one. The captains of the squadron 
 regarded their new admiral with jealousy, the more 
 so, as he had brought with him from England some 
 officers upon whom he could place reliance. Two of 
 the Chilian commanders, Guise and Spry, had shortly 
 before arrived from England with the Hecate, which 
 Lad been sold out of the British navy, and bought by 
 them on speculation. The Buenos Ayrean Govern- 
 ment having declined to purchase her, they had pro-
 
 A CABAL AGAINST HIM. 231 
 
 ceeded to Chili, where she was not only purchased, 
 but her former owners were taken into its service. 
 These officers, together with Captain Worcester, a 
 Xorth American, got up a cabal, the object of which 
 was to bring about a divided command. But as 
 Admiral Blanco would not listen to this, they induced 
 others whose jealousy was more easily aroused to 
 entertain the notion that it was dangerous to a 
 republican Government to allow a foreigner to com- 
 mand its navy. This unhappy schism was the cause 
 of much mischief ; and but for the patriotic dis- 
 interestedness of Admiral Blanco, who consented to 
 serve as second in command, the effect would have 
 been most alarming, if not fatal, to the cause. 
 
 The four ships just enumerated sailed from Val- 
 paraiso on the 14th January, 1819. 
 
 The squadron had hardly got out of port, when it 
 was considered desirable to send back the Cliacabuco 
 to Valparaiso, in consequence of the disorganized state 
 of her crew. Having apparently quieted the malcon- 
 tents, the Cliacabuco again put to sea, shortly after 
 which the crew, headed by the boatswain, took pos- 
 session of the ship. The officers were kept in close 
 confinement for several days ; but at length, owing 
 principally to the gallant efforts of Lieutenant Mor- 
 gell, of the Marines, they regained possession, but not 
 until the boatswain and two other mutineers had 
 been shot. Six of the ringleaders were afterwards 
 tried and executed at Coquimbo. 
 
 Before leaving port, Lord Cochrane received a 
 volunteer, in the person of his son a noble little
 
 232 A TOTJXG PATRIOT. 
 
 fellow then five years of age* who, mounted on the 
 shoulders of the flag lieutenant, waving his cap, and 
 crying "Viva la P atria /" had made his escape from 
 his mother. The child was not to be pacified other- 
 wise than by accompanying his father, and he from 
 thenceforth spent, the chief part of his time on board 
 the O'Higgins. 
 
 Hearing that the Spanish line-of-battle ship, 
 Antonio had left Callao for Cadiz, with a considerable 
 amount of treasure on board, the squadron cruised 
 just out of sight of the port till the 21st of February, 
 in the hope of intercepting her. As she did not 
 make her appearance, preparations were made to put 
 in execution an attack upon the Spanish shipping. 
 Cochrane had previously ascertained that the naval 
 force in the harbour consisted of the frigates Esme- 
 ralda and Venganza, a corvette, three brigs of war, a 
 schooner, a large flotilla of gun-boats, and six armed 
 merchant-ships; the whole being moored close in 
 under the batteries, which mounted upwards of 160 
 guns, whilst the aggregate force of the shipping was 
 350 guns. A direct attack with so small a force 
 seemed,* therefore, too hazardous a thing to be 
 attempted ; but, in its place, Cochrane had formed 
 the design to cut out the frigates during the carnival. 
 
 Knowing that two United States ships of war were 
 daily expected at Callao, it was arranged to take in 
 the CfHiggins and Lautaro, under American colours, 
 leaving the San Martin behind San Lorenzo, and if 
 the ruse were successful, to make a feint of sending a 
 * The present Earl of Dundonald.
 
 FIBST ATTACK ON CALLAO. 233 
 
 boat ashore with despatches, and iu the mean time to 
 dash at the frigates, and cut them out. The execu- 
 tion of this desperate design was frustrated by one of 
 those thick fogs, so common on the Peruvian coast, 
 in consequence of which the Lautaro parted company, 
 and did not rejoin the flag-ship for four days after- 
 wards, when, the carnival being at an end, the plan 
 was rendered abortive. 
 
 The fog lasted till the 29th, on which day heavy 
 firing was heard, and imagining that one of the ships 
 was engaged with the enemy, Lord Cochrane stood 
 into the bay. The other ships also simultaneously 
 steered in the direction of the firing, and when the 
 fog cleared for a moment, they discovered each other, 
 as well as a strange sail, which proved to be a Spanish 
 gun-boat, with a lieutenant and twenty men. A boat 
 from the O'Higgins took possession of this prize, and 
 the fog again coming on, suggested to the admiral 
 the possibility of a direct attack, which, if not success- 
 ful, would at least inspire the Spaniards with respect 
 for the Chilian squadron. 
 
 Maintaining their Yankee disguise, the O'Higgins 
 and Lautaro stood towards the batteries, but narrowly 
 escaped going ashore in the fog. 
 
 The viceroy, who was at the time inspecting the 
 squadron (the guns fired in honour of which occasion 
 first drew attention to the spot), having no doubt 
 witnessed the capture of the gun-boat, provided for 
 their reception, the garrison being at their guns, and 
 the crews of the ships of war at quarters. Xot with- 
 standing the great odds, the admiral determined to
 
 CAPTAIN GUISE WOUNDED. 
 
 persist iu an attack. The wind fell light, which 
 prevented Cochrane from laying the flag-ship and the 
 Lautaro alongside the Spanish frigates, as at first 
 intended, but they anchored, with springs on their 
 cables, abreast of the shipping. The Spanish squadron 
 was formed in two lines, the rear ships being judi- 
 ciously disposed so as to cover the intervals of the 
 ships in the front line. A dead calm succeeding, the 
 CfHiggins and Lautaro became exposed, for two 
 hours, to a heavy fire from the batteries, in addition 
 to that from the two frigates, the brigs Pezuela and 
 Maypeu, and seven or eight gun-boats. Notwith- 
 standing these fearful odds, the northern angle of one 
 of the principal forts was silenced by their fire. 
 
 A breeze springing up, the two ships weighed, and 
 ran down in front of the batteries, returning their 
 fire. Captain Guise was severely wounded, when the 
 Lautaro sheered off, and stood out of range of shot. 
 As neither the San Martin nor Chacabuco had been 
 able to reach the scene of action, and the Lautaro 
 had withdrawn, the flag-ship was left alone to continue 
 the action. Tinder such circumstances, Cochrane 
 was compelled to relinquish the attack, and withdraw- 
 to San Lorenzo, about three miles distant from the 
 forts, which the Spaniards allowed him to do unmo- 
 lested. 
 
 The Spanish naval force present on this occasion, 
 were the Esmeralda, 44 ; Venganza, 42 ; Sebastiana, 28 ; 
 Maypeu, 18 ; Pezuela, 22 ; Potrilla, 18 ; and another 
 of 18 guns ; making, with a schooner and the armed 
 merchant-ships, a total of fourteen vessels, ten of
 
 MAMMA'S BOY. 235 
 
 which were ready for sea, and twenty-seven gun- 
 boats. 
 
 "When the firing commenced, Lord Cochrane had 
 placed his boy-volunteer in the after-cabin, locking 
 the door upon him ; but not liking the confinement, 
 the child contrived to get out of the quarter-gallery 
 window, and joined his father on deck. He was 
 permitted to remain, and, attired in a miniature 
 midshipman's uniform, which the seamen had made 
 for him, endeavoured to make himself useful by hand- 
 ing powder to the men at the guns. 
 
 Whilst thus employed, a round-shot took off the 
 head of a marine close to him, scattering the unlucky 
 man's brains in his face. Instantly recovering his 
 self-possession, to his father's great relief, he ran up 
 to his agonized parent, who made sure the boy was 
 killed, exclaiming, " I am not hurt, papa ; the shot 
 did not touch me. Jack says the ball is not made 
 that can kill mamma's boy." 
 
 The Chilian loss in this affair was trifling, consider- 
 ing that the O'Siggins and Lautaro had been under 
 the fire of more than two hundred guns : the ships, 
 however, had been so admirably placed, that the 
 enemy's frigates lay between them and the fortress, 
 so that the shot of the latter only told upon their 
 rigging, which was considerably damaged. The action 
 having been commenced in a fog, the Spaniards ima- 
 gined that all the Chilian vessels were engaged, and 
 were not a little surprised, as it again cleared, to find 
 that the flag-ship, (yHiggins, was their only oppo- 
 nent. This attack so dispirited the Spaniards, that
 
 236 "EL DIABLO." 
 
 they dismantled their ships of war, their topmasts 
 and spars being formed into a double boom across 
 the anchorage so as to prevent approach. 
 
 The Spaniards were previously unaware of the pre- 
 sence of their old foe and friend Lord Cochrane ; 
 but when made acquainted with the fact, bestowed 
 upon him the not very complimentary title of " El 
 Diablo," by which nom de guerre he was generally 
 known afterwards. 
 
 Our readers will not fail to remark in this rencontre 
 a parallel to the daring conduct evinced by Lord Coch- 
 rane when in command of the Pallas and engaging 
 the Minerve in 1806 the same intrepidity and skill 
 which marked his conduct under the batteries of the 
 Isle d' Aix was observable in the harbour of Callao. On 
 the latter occasion, however, he laboured under much 
 greater disadvantages. "When in the Pallas, he was 
 surrounded by a devoted band of officers and men ; 
 but at Callao he knew that he was associated with 
 some who would only be too glad at his failure. The 
 mind was, however, superior to all these disadvan- 
 tages ; and he acted as if he had been confident of 
 the cordial co-operation of every one serving under 
 his flag. 
 
 Having repaired damages, the O'Higgins and 
 Lautaro went in next day and commenced a de- 
 structive fire upon the Spanish gunboats, the neutral 
 vessels in the harbour removing out of the line of 
 fire ; but as the gun-boats withdrew to a position 
 closer under the batteries, where they could make 
 little impression upon them without getting severely
 
 SPANISH CRUELTY. 237 
 
 punished by the fire of the fortress, Cochrane con- 
 tented himself with the demonstration he had made. 
 
 On the 1st of March, Captain Foster was sent 
 away with the gun-boat captured from the Spaniards, 
 and the launches of the CfHiggins and Lautaro, to 
 take possession of the island of San Lorenzo, when 
 an instance of Spanish cruelty presented itself in the 
 spectacle of thirty-seven Chilian soldiers taken pri- 
 soners eight years before. The unhappy men had ever 
 since been forced to work in chains under the super- 
 vision of a military guard, their sleeping-place during 
 the whole of the period being a filthy shed, in which 
 they were every night chained by the leg to an 
 iron bar. The joy of the poor wretches at their 
 deliverance, after all hope had fled, is not to be 
 described. 
 
 From the liberated patriots and the Spanish 
 prisoners Lord Cochrane learned that in Lima 
 there were a number of Chilian officers and sea- 
 men taken on board the Maypeu, whose condition 
 was even more deplorable^ than their own, the fetters 
 on their legs having worn their ancles to the bone ; 
 whilst their commander, by a refinement of cruelty, 
 had for more than a year been lying under sentence 
 of death as a rebel. Upon 'this, the admiral sent a 
 flag of truce to the viceroy, requesting him to permit 
 the prisoners to return to their families, in exchange 
 for the Spanish prisoners on board the squadron and 
 others in Chili. The request was rudely refused, the 
 viceroy concluding his reply with an expression of 
 surprise that a British nobleman should command the
 
 238 MAJOE MILLER BLOWN TIP. 
 
 maritime forces of a government " unacknowledged 
 by all the powers of the globe." To this latter observa- 
 tion, Lord Cochrane replied that a British nobleman 
 was a free man, and, therefore, had a right to adopt 
 any country which was endeavouring to re-establish 
 the rights of aggrieved humanity ; and that he had 
 adopted the cause of Chili with the same freedom of 
 judgment that he had previously exercised when re- 
 fusing the offer of an admiral's rank in Spain, made to 
 him not long before by the Spanish ambassador in 
 London, in the name of Ferdinand VII. 
 
 Cochrane, finding his original plan of attack im- 
 practicable with his slender means, resolved to fit 
 out fire-ships. A laboratory was formed on San 
 Lorenzo, under the superintendence of Major Miller. 
 On the 19th of March an accidental explosion took 
 place, which scorched the major and ten men in a 
 dreadful manner. The former lost the nails from 
 both hands ; and the injury was so severe that his 
 face was swelled to twice its natural dimensions: 
 scarcely a feature was discernible ; he was obliged 
 to be fed through a sort of plaster mask; he was 
 blind and delirious for some days, and was confined 
 to his cabin for six weeks. His fellow-sufferers on 
 this occasion evinced an extraordinary degree of 
 attachment, for in the midst of their sufferings 
 they refused to have their own burns dressed until 
 they were assured by the surgeon that their officer 
 had been attended to. 
 
 Three months were busily employed by Lord 
 Cochrane in the manufacture of rockets, and making
 
 SEIZES TEEASTJRE. 239 
 
 other preparations for a renewed attack upon the 
 shipping under the walls of Callao. 
 
 Leaving Admiral Blanco at Huacho with the San 
 Martin and Puyrredon, on the 4th of April Lord 
 Cochraue sailed for Supe, with the O'Higgins and 
 Gafaarino, having previously ascertained that a sum 
 of money, destined for the payment of Spanish troops, 
 was on its way from Lima to G-uambucho. On the 
 following day, a party of marines landed, and cap- 
 tured the treasure, amounting to 70,000 dollars, 
 together with a quantity of military stores. On the 
 7tb, having received further information that the 
 Philippine Company had placed other treasure on 
 board a French brig at Guambucho, he sailed for that 
 place, and, on the 10th, the seamen of the O'Higgins 
 examined her, and brought off an additional sum of 
 60,000 dollars. 
 
 The secret of his obtaining possession of these and 
 other convoys cf Spanish money along the coast was, 
 that Lord Cochrane paid the inhabitants for informa- 
 tion relative to its transmission. As the Chilian 
 ministry refused to allow him " secret service money," 
 these disbursements were actually made at his own 
 expense. 
 
 His object was to make friends with the Peruvians, 
 by adopting towards them a conciliatory course, and 
 by strict care that none but Spanish property should 
 be taken. Confidence was thus inspired, and the 
 universal dissatisfaction with Spanish colonial rule 
 speedily became changed into an earnest desire to be 
 freed from its shackles. Had it not been for this
 
 240 EECONNOITEES CALLAO. 
 
 good understanding with the inhabitants, Cochrane 
 would not have ventured to detach marines and sea- 
 men for operations at a distance into the country, as 
 he frequently did. 
 
 On the 13th April, the squadron arrived at Paita, 
 where the Spaniards had established a garrison. A 
 party of marines and seamen was again landed, on 
 which the enemy fled from the fort, and a quantity of 
 brass ordnance, spirits, and military stores was cap- 
 tured. 
 
 Contrary to strict orders, some marines stole a 
 number of valuable church ornaments ; but, on the 
 complaint of the authorities, the admiral caused them 
 to be restored, punishing the offenders, and at the 
 same time presenting the priests with a thousand 
 dollars to repair the damage done in their churches. 
 This latter act, though it failed in conciliating the 
 priests, added much to Cochrane's popularity amongst 
 the inhabitants. 
 
 On the 5th of May, the admiral, with the O'Higgins, 
 proceeded to reconnoitre Callao, having learned that 
 two of his ships had been chased off the port by 
 Spanish frigates. Finding that these were again 
 moored under shelter of the batteries, Cochrane re- 
 turned to Supe, convinced that his previous visit to 
 Callao had proved sufficient to deter them from put- 
 ting to sea for the protection of their own coasts. 
 This had been his chief reason for persisting in 
 attacks which could answer no other purpose; but 
 this alone was an advantage gained, as it enabled him 
 to communicate freely with the inhabitants on the 
 coast and ascertain their sentiments.
 
 SPANISH BOMBAST. 241 
 
 On the 8th, he returned to Supe, and having learned 
 that a Spanish force was in the vicinity, a detachment 
 of marines and seamen was, after dark, landed through 
 
 ' ' O 
 
 a heavy surf, in the hope of taking them by surprise. 
 But the enemy was on the alert, and on the following 
 morning the little party fell into an ambuscade, which 
 would have proved serious had not Major Miller, who 
 commanded the marines, promptly formed his men, 
 who, attacking in turn, soon put the enemy to flight 
 at the point of the bayonet, capturing their colours 
 and the greater portion of their arms. On the 13th, 
 a detachment of Spanish troops arrived under Major 
 Camba, who, notwithstanding his superiority of num- 
 bers, did not venture to attack Lord Cochrane's partv, 
 which withdrew to the ships with several head of 
 cattle taken from the Spaniards. Major Camba. in 
 writing to the viceroy, gave a glowing description of 
 his having " driven the enemy into the sea," and, in 
 consequence of his valour, was immediately promoted. 
 
 Being unable to purchase supplies from the natives, 
 Cochraue determined to return to Valparaiso, for the 
 purpose of victualling, and also of organizing a more 
 effective force. He reached that port in the middle 
 of June, where he found Admiral Blanco with the 
 tSan Martin and Cliacabuco. 
 
 Complimentary addresses from the Chilian people 
 were presented to the admiral iu profusion, and a 
 public panegyric was pronounced at the National In- 
 stitute of the capital upon the service he had ren- 
 dered. The people were not a little delighted with 
 the facts that had come to their knowledge, and to find
 
 242 LADl" COCHBANE ATTACKED. 
 
 that, whereas only a few months before theirs had 
 been the blockaded port, they were now able to beard 
 the enemy in his stronghold, till then believed, both 
 by Spaniards and Chilians, to be impregnable. 
 
 The manufacture of rockets was carried on under 
 the superintendence of Mr. Goldsack, an experienced 
 artist, who had been engaged in England for the 
 purpose ; but from a mistaken notion of parsimony, 
 the labour of constructing and filling them had been 
 allotted to a number of Spanish prisoners. In these 
 and other preparations two months were spent, in the 
 course of which an American-built corvette was added 
 to the squadron, and named by the Supreme Director 
 the Independencia. 
 
 In order to show the position which the admiral 
 occupied, it is only necessary to mention the following 
 cowardly attack made upon Lady Cochrane. 
 
 During his lordship's absence, Lady Cochrane re- 
 sided principally at Valparaiso, doing all in her power 
 to promote objects essential to the welfare of the 
 squadron ; but after a time she removed to a delight- 
 ful country residence at Quillota. It was here that 
 a ruffian in the interest of the Spanish faction, having 
 gained admission to her private apartment, threatened 
 her with instant death if she did not divulge the secret 
 orders which had been given to his lordship. On her 
 declaring firmly that she would not divulge anything, 
 a struggle took place for a paper which she picked off 
 a table, and before her attendants could come to her 
 assistance, she received a wound from a stiletto. The 
 assassin was secured, condemned, and ordered for
 
 MAJOB 3IILLEE. 243 
 
 execution, without the last offices of the Catholic 
 religion. 
 
 On the night preceding the day fixed for his exe- 
 cution, Lady Cochrane was awoke by loud lamenta- 
 tions beneath her window, uttered by the wretched 
 wife of the criminal, and imploring her ladyship's 
 intercession on behalf of her husband. Moved by 
 her importunity, Lady Cochrane, on the following 
 morning, used all her influence with the authorities, 
 and at length wrung from them a reluctant consent 
 to commute his punishment to banishment for life. 
 
 SECOND ATTACK ON CALLAO. 
 
 [1819.] 
 
 Although foiled in his first attack upon the ship- 
 ping at Callao, Cochrane was not disheartened, and 
 resolved to make up for it in a manner which should 
 astonish his Chilian friends. His heroic ally, Major 
 Miller,* though still suffering from his wounds, was 
 well enough to accompany the new expedition ; and 
 we are happy to be able to furnish a detailed account 
 of the operations, including also the grand feat at 
 Valdivia, given by the author of the biography of that 
 officer, and based upon his description. 
 
 On the 12th of September, the under-mentioned 
 men-of-war sailed from Valparaiso : 
 
 * This heroic gentleman, whose name will be repeatedly men- 
 tioned in these pages, was living in 1860, and a Field-Marshal 
 in the Chilian army. For many years he has held the appoint- 
 ment of Commissioner and Consul-General at Woahoo, Sandwich 
 Islands, but was recently at Callao in very bad health. 
 E 2
 
 244 EXPEDITION TO CALLAO. 
 
 Guns. 
 O'Higgins 50 .... Vice- Admiral Lord Cochrane. 
 
 ( Rear-Admiral Blanco. 
 
 San Martin 56 . . j ,-, , . -.TT-II 
 
 ( Captain Wilkinson. 
 
 Lautaro 48 .... Captain Guise. 
 
 Independencia 28 .... Captain Forster. 
 
 Puyrredon 14 .... Captain Prunier. 
 
 Also the Vitoria and Zerezana to be filled up as 
 fire-ships. The following joined subsequently : 
 
 Guns. 
 
 Galvarino 18 .... Captain Spry. 
 
 Aracauno 16 .... Captain Crosbie. 
 
 Four hundred soldiers were embarked to act as 
 marines. The portion distributed in the Chileno 
 vessels was above double the usual complement of 
 marines employed in ships of the same class in the 
 British navy. The Chileuo soldiers so embarked did 
 the duty of seamen, as well as marines. Lieutenant- 
 Colonel Charles, who had the superintendence of the 
 rocket department, was the commanding officer. 
 Major Miller re-embarked as second in command of 
 the troops. 
 
 On the 25th, the squadron entered the Bay of 
 Ccquimbo, and received some marines on board. 
 Coquiinbo is the principal city of the province of the 
 same name. The town is situated twenty miles 
 from the port, and at that time contained a popu- 
 lation of ten thousand souls. The inhabitants, with 
 a few foreign merchants, showed how highly they 
 appreciated the services of the marines embarked, 
 by raising, in a few hours, a subscription of four
 
 PLAN OI' ATTACK. 245 
 
 hundred dollars, to be laid out by Miller in the 
 purchase of what he considered they stood most in 
 need of. 
 
 On the 27th of September, the squadron sailed 
 for Callao, and on the 28th, the respective captains 
 repaired on board the flag-ship to learn the plan of 
 attack. 
 
 The O'Higyins was to lead ; the San Martin and 
 Lautaro to follow ; and all three were to anchor 
 in line parallel with the enemy's shipping. Miller, 
 on a raft with one mortar, was to take his station in 
 advance, on the extreme left, towards Boca TSTegra, 
 the mouth of the Eimae. Captain Hind, on a raft 
 with rockets, was to place himself between the mortar- 
 raft and the O'Hif/rjins. Charles, on another raft 
 with rockets, on the right of the Lautaro. The Gal- 
 varino and Aracauno, with the two fire-ships, were to 
 anchor off the north-east point of San Lorenzo. The 
 brigs were to weigh anchor on the attack com- 
 mencing, and, with the Independencia, to remove to 
 the outside of the patriot line, in order to be in 
 readiness to intercept any vessels that might attempt 
 to escape. 
 
 On the 30th the squadron stood into the Bay of 
 Callao. The 0' Higgins hoisted a flag of truce, 
 and Cochrane sent a boat ashore with a letter to the 
 viceroy, challenging him to send out as many ships as 
 he chose, and the admiral would fight them, ship for 
 ship, and gun for gun. This proposal, of very ques- 
 tionable propriety, met with the laconic answer which 
 might have been expected. The equally useless mea-
 
 240 THE ATTACK BEGINS. 
 
 sure of sending a rocket in the boat to exhibit to the 
 royalists, made an impression very different from what 
 was intended. 
 
 The squadron manoeuvred for several hours in the 
 bay, and then came to anchor off San Lorenzo, with 
 the exception of the Independencia, which continued 
 to cruise off the bay. 
 
 On the 1st and following day of October the rafts 
 were put together. Charles reconnoitred in a boat, 
 and tried some rockets, which were not found to 
 answer expectation. 
 
 A partial attack took place on the night of the 
 2nd. The Galvarino led the van, towing Miller's 
 mortar-raft, and, under a heavy fire, placed it within 
 800 yards of the enemy's batteries. The Puyrredon 
 followed, with the shells and magazine upon another 
 raft. The Aracauno, having Hind's rocket-raft in tow, 
 followed next. Charles, in the last raft, was towed by 
 the Independencia. The rest of the squadron remained 
 at anchor. 
 
 The persons employed upon the rafts were provided 
 with life-preservers, made of tin, in the shape of the 
 front-piece of a cuirass, and filled with air. The rafts 
 were formed of two tiers of large logs of timber, of the 
 dimensions of sleepers used in laying down platforms 
 in batteries. The upper tier was about a foot above 
 the surface of the water. Not more than one rocket in 
 six went off properly. Some burst from the badness 
 of the cylinders ; some took a wrong direction in con- 
 sequence of the sticks being made of knotty wood ; 
 and most of them fell short. The shells sunk a gun-
 
 DISASTEOUS FAILUEE. 247 
 
 boat, and did some execution iu the forts and among 
 the shipping. ; but the lashings of the mortar-bed gave 
 way, and it was with difficulty that the logs of which 
 the raft was composed could be kept together. A great 
 deal of time was lost iu repairing the defective state 
 of the fastening. Daylight began to appear ; and the 
 rockets having completely failed, the rafts were ordered 
 to retire, and were towed off by boats left in attend- 
 dance for that purpose, to their respective protecting 
 vessels, which again took them in charge and towed 
 them out of range. 
 
 Thus failed an attack from which so much had been 
 expected. The disappointment was extreme ; but the 
 loss of only about twenty in killed and wounded, was 
 considered small under the heavy fire. About forty shot 
 struck the Galvarino. Bed-hot shot were fired from 
 the batteries, but without much effect. These red 
 balls had an alarming appearance, for they were dis- 
 tinctly visible from the moment they issued from the 
 gun until they hissed in the water. All the men em- 
 ployed were volunteers ; yet such was the effect of 
 the heavy fire, that one man jumped from the raft 
 into the water from fear. Lieutenant Bayley, a very 
 brave young man, and a most active officer, was cut 
 in two by a 24-po under shot, which also took off the 
 head of a marine on the same mortar-raft. Twelve 
 men were much burnt by the bursting of some rockets. 
 Hind and several of the men were thrown into the 
 sea, but were prevented from sinking by the life- 
 preservers. 
 
 In the night of the 4th, much amusement was
 
 248 / 
 
 FIRE-SHIPS FAIL. 
 
 excited in the patriot squadron by the alarm on 
 shore caused by a tar-barrel being set ,on fire, and 
 carried by the tide to wards the Spanish shipping. 
 A tremendous fire opened upon it, which was kept 
 up for above an hour. 
 
 Disappointed by the total failure of the rocket 
 attack, the admiral determined to try what could be 
 done by means of fire-ships. Accordingly, one of 
 the explosion vessels being completed, Lieutenant 
 Morgell and a few men got her under way at 
 8 P.M. on the 5th, and stood in gallant style towards 
 the Spanish shipping ; but the wind dying away, the 
 vessel was shot through and through like a sieve. 
 The water gaining fast, the train was fired, and the 
 vessel abandoned. She exploded at too great a dis- 
 tance from the shipping to do any serious mischief. 
 The rocket-raft was again employed ; but the rockets 
 did as little execution as on the previous occasion. 
 The other fire-ship, in charge of Lieutenant Cobbett, 
 was kept in reserve for a future service. 
 
 TheAracauno, which had been sent on the 4th to 
 cruise outside the bay, returned on the 6th, and 
 reported that she had seen a strange sail six miles 
 to windward of Chorillos, which Captain Crosbie had 
 no doubt was a frigate. The squadron got under 
 way, and soon caught sight of the stranger ; but 
 Cochrane mistaking her for a Korth- American whaler, 
 returned to his former anchorage on the 7th. It was 
 afterwards ascertained that the strange ship was the 
 Prueba, Spanish frigate, of 50 guns, from Cadiz, 
 bound to Lima ; but seeing the patriot squadron,
 
 LANDING AT PISCO. 249 
 
 she made off, and escaped to Guayaquil. In the 
 almost momentary absence of the blockading squa- 
 dron, a Spanish ship, with a cargo valued at half a 
 million of dollars, entered Callao in safety. 
 
 The admiral, considering that the Spanish shipping 
 could not be destroyed without risking the existence of 
 the patriot squadron, decided upon a different plan of 
 operations. On the evening of the 7th of October 
 the squadron weighed, with the intention of going to 
 Arica ; but some of the ships were such dull sailers, 
 that, after beating for three weeks to windward and 
 against the current, Cochrane determined upon land- 
 ing the marines at Pisco for the purpose of procuring 
 brandy for the use of the squadron. Three hundred 
 and fifty soldiers were distributed on board the Lautaro, 
 Galvarino, and a transport (late fire-ship). Cochrane 
 then proceeded to the north with the O'Higgins, San 
 Martin, Aracauno, and Puyrredon, leaving Captain 
 Guise in command to proceed to Pisco. 
 
 It was known that a strong detachment of regular 
 troops had been stationed at this place, at the request 
 of the royalist merchants and landowners, to protect 
 their property in depot there. The patriots intended 
 to land in the night and take the garrison by sur- 
 prise ; but, the wind failing, the ships could not get 
 near enough to disembark the troops until broad 
 daylight on the 7th of November. On lauding, 
 information was given that the Spanish garrison 
 amounted to 1,000 men. It might, therefore, have 
 been prudent for the patriots to have re-embarked, 
 especially as two-thirds of the marines were mere
 
 250 LIEITT.-COL. CHAKLES KILLED. 
 
 recruits, who had not even been taught the platoon 
 exercise; but the remembrance of the disappoint- 
 ments before Callao produced an unanimous desire to 
 attack. 
 
 The Spanish force, consisting of 600 infantry, 160 
 cavalry, and four field-pieces, under the command of 
 Lieutenant- General Gonzalez, were drawn up to 
 receive the assailants. The field artillery, supported 
 by their cavalry, occupied on their left a piece of 
 rising ground, which commanded the entrance of the 
 town, in the square of which the infantry was formed. 
 Their right was supported by a fort on the sea- 
 shore. 
 
 Charles, with twenty-five men, filed off to his right 
 to reconnoitre the enemy's left, whilst Miller pushed 
 on to the town with the rest of the marines. Hind, 
 with a rocket party, composed of seamen, occupied the 
 attention of the fort. The Spaniards kept up a brisk 
 fire from the field-pieces and from the artillery in the 
 fort, as well as from the infantry posted behind walls, 
 on the tops of houses, and on the tower of the 
 church. JS"ot a musket was fired, not a word spoken 
 in the patriot column, which marched with the cool- 
 ness and steadiness of veterans, in spite of the loss 
 it sustained at every step. The silence, rapidity, and 
 good order with which they advanced, struck a panic 
 into the Spaniards, who fled when the patriots 
 approached within fifteen yards of the bayonet. 
 
 The royalists were completely routed. The gallant 
 Charles was mortally wounded whilst charging four 
 times his own numbers outside the town. The lust
 
 MAJOR MILLEB WOUNDED. 251 
 
 volley of the Spaniards in the square brought down 
 Miller. A musket-ball wounded him in the ri<*ht 
 
 O 
 
 arm ; another permanently disabled his left hand ; a 
 third ball entered his chest, and, fracturing a rib, 
 passed out at the back. His recovery was despaired 
 of. Charles and Miller were conveyed on board the 
 Lautaro. The two friends, both apparently on the 
 brink of the grave, took leave of each other in the 
 most affectionate manner, as Charles was conveyed 
 aft through the fore-cabin, in which Miller was already 
 placed by the kindness of Captain Guise. In a few 
 hours, Charles expired. Cool and collected to the 
 last moment, the manner in which he died would 
 have done honour to any hero of ancient or modern 
 times. He was brave and talented ; and his gentle- 
 ness and suavity of manners had acquired for him 
 universal love and respect. 
 
 Captain Sowersby, who succeeded to the command 
 of the marines, remained on shore for four days 
 unmolested, in which time all that was required 
 for the ships was embarked. Two hundred thousand 
 dollars' worth of brandy, private property, lying upon 
 the beach, was wantonly destroyed by a party of 
 seamen. 
 
 No despatch of the affair of Pisco was ever pub- 
 blished. This was an act of injustice towards the 
 marines, especially as room was found in the gazettes 
 for the elaborate corespondence between Cochrane 
 and Pezuela relative to prisoners of war, and for vcry 
 minute details of naval operations before Callao. 
 
 On the 16th, the Lautaro and her consort with the
 
 252 THE CHAYALONGA. 
 
 transport joined Lord Cochrane off Santa, of which 
 a gallant young officer, Ensign Vidal, who had 
 remained with the marines not employed at Pisco, 
 had taken possession after defeating three times his 
 own number of Spaniards. 
 
 The whole squadron, having procured provisions and 
 water, now put to sea. On the 21st of November, the 
 O'Higyins, Lautaro, Galvarino, and Puyrredon, stood 
 to the northward. A sort of brain fever, called the cba- 
 valonga, broke out, and carried off five or six men 
 daily. The San Martin and Independencia, being in 
 a most sickly state, were ordered to make the best of 
 their way to Valparaiso. Hear- Admiral Blanco went 
 on board the Lautaro to offer Major Miller a passage 
 to Chili ; but, in his precarious condition, it was 
 considered dangerous then to remove him. On the 
 27th November, Cochrane entered the river Guaya- 
 quil, and, notwithstanding the danger of the naviga- 
 tion, on account of shifting sand-banks, he continued 
 to crowd all sail during the night, and captured next 
 morning, before the crews had time to run them 
 ashore, two ships, of 800 tons and twenty-eight guns 
 each, laden with planks. The Spanish frigate Prueba, 
 which so narrowly escaped from Callao, had been 
 hauled up the river five days before, and, being light- 
 ened of her guns, was moved into shallow water 
 under the protection of the batteries. 
 
 On the 13th December Major Miller was removed 
 in his cot from the Lautaro to the 0' Higgins, which 
 sailed from the river with the Lautaro and two prizes 
 in company. Each ship was ordered to make the
 
 THE O'HIGGTKS o>- SIIOKE. 253 
 
 best of her way to Valparaiso. The Galvarino and 
 Puyrredon were left behind to cruise. 
 
 STORMING OF VALDIVIA. 
 
 [1820.] 
 
 Lord Cochrane having conceived the daring plan of 
 carrying Yaldivia by a coup-de-main, employed all his 
 eloquence to induce Freyre to grant a small reinforce- 
 ment. The governor gave 250 men, commanded by 
 Major Beauchef. They embarked in the O'lUggins, 
 the Montezuma schooner, and the brig-of-war Intre- 
 pido, belonging to Buenos Ayres. All got under 
 way on the 25th January, at 5 P.M., with a light 
 contrary wind ; at night it fell calm. The officer of 
 the watch leaving the deck, gave the O'Higgins in 
 charge to a midshipman, who, falling asleep, neglected 
 to report when a breeze sprung up. Upon passing 
 the island of Quiriquina, the ship struck on the sharp 
 edge of a rock, and was suspended amidship on her 
 keel. She shook in a manner to produce the greatest 
 alarm ; for had the swell increased, she must have 
 gone to pieces. Cochrane, preserving his customary 
 sang froid, ordered out the kedges, superintended 
 everything himself, and at length got the ship oft'. 
 His skill and presence of mind on this occasion made 
 a deep impression on all who beheld it. When the 
 ship was out of danger, some of the officers suggested 
 that she should be examined ; a stern negative was 
 the answer of the admiral, who, turning round to 
 Miller, said, ""\\~ell, Major, Yaldivia we must take ; 
 sooner than put back, it would be better that we all
 
 254* A SINKING SHIP. 
 
 went to the bottom." In fact, his lordship felt keenly 
 his disappointments before Callao. He was aware 
 that his enemies in Chili would raise a clamour if he 
 returned without doing something decisive ; and he 
 had made up his mind to run every risk, in order to 
 grasp one redeeming laurel. 
 
 " Cool calculation," he observed to Miller, " would 
 make it appear that the attempt to take Valdivia is 
 madness. This is one reason why the Spaniards will 
 hardly believe us in earnest, even when we commence ; 
 and you will see that a bold onset, and a little per- 
 severance afterwards, will give a complete triumph; 
 for operations unexpected by the enemy, are, when 
 well executed, almost certain to succeed, whatever 
 may be the odds ; and success will preserve the enter- 
 prise from the imputation of rashness." 
 
 The officers participated in the same adventurous 
 spirit, and hailed with eager satisfaction a determina- 
 tion likely to retrieve the credit of the navy, and make 
 former discomfitures forgotten. The admiral was so 
 resolutely bent on pursuing his course that it was not 
 until sunset on the 26th, that he would receive the 
 first report of " five feet water in the hold." The 
 ship was then thirty miles from land. The pumps 
 were found to be so much out of order that they could 
 not be worked. At eight o'clock " seven feet " was 
 reported. The carpenter, who was a very indifferent 
 mechanic, failed in his efforts to put the pumps in. 
 order. The water, though bailed out with buckets, 
 still continued to gain on them. The powder-magazine 
 was inundated, and the ammunition of every descrip-
 
 THE ADMIRAL A CARPEXTEB. 255 
 
 tion rendered totally unserviceable, excepting the 
 cartridges in the cartouch-boxes of the soldiers. 
 
 Notwithstanding it was a dead calm, the swell was 
 considerable, and the brig and schooner were out of 
 sight. Of 600 men on board the frigate, not more 
 than 160 could have escaped in the boats. The in- 
 hospitable coast of Arauco was forty miles distant, 
 and to land there would have been worse than death. 
 The vindictive character of the Arauconians was well 
 known ; and to those who saw no hope of keeping the 
 ship afloat till morning, the alternative was terrific. 
 Alarm and despair were depicted in the countenances 
 of most on board. But Cochrane, still undismayed, 
 pulled off his coat, tucked up his shirt sleeves, and 
 succeeded by midnight in putting two of the pumps 
 into a serviceable state. By his indefatigable activity 
 and skill, the frigate was prevented from sinking ; and 
 by the serenity and firmness of his conduct, he checked 
 a general disposition to abandon the ship. The leak 
 was happily prevented from gaining. The schooner 
 and brig rejoined in the morning, and the vessels 
 arrived in the latitude of Valdivia on the 2nd of 
 February. 
 
 "When about thirty miles from land, the troops in 
 the frigate were removed in a high sea to the schooner 
 Jlontezuma, and the brig Intrepido. Miller attempted 
 to climb up the schooner's side, and caught hold of 
 the main chains, but not possessing sufficient strength 
 to lift himself, or, when the boat sank in the trough 
 of the sea, to sustain himself, he was on the point of 
 letting go his hold, when Lord Cochraue caught him
 
 250 DEFENCES OF TALDITIA. 
 
 and prevented bis falling under the counter of the 
 vessel. 
 
 The admiral, having shifted his flag to the schooner, 
 left the frigate to stand oif and on out of sight of 
 land, to avoid exciting the suspicions of the Spaniards 
 on shore. There \vas, however, so little wind that 
 all hopes of effecting a landing that night vanished. 
 The brig and the schooner made what way they could 
 for the port, in hope of taking the royalists by 
 surprise. 
 
 The noble harbour of Yaldivia forms a capacious 
 basin, bordered by a lofty and impenetrable forest, 
 extending to the water-edge. It is encircled by a 
 chain of forts, which are so placed as not only to 
 defend the entrance but enfilade every part of the 
 harbour. These forts are Jsiebla, on the east, and 
 Armagos, on the west, completely commanding the 
 entrance, which is only three-fourths of . a mile in 
 width ; Corral, Chorocomayo, San Carlos, and El 
 Tngles, on the west side ; Manzanera, on an island 
 near the southern extremity or bottom of the har- 
 bour, and El Piogo and Carbonero are on the east 
 side. 
 
 These different forts were mounted with 118 pieces 
 of ordnance 18 and 24-pounders; each fort with a deep 
 ditch and a rampart, where they were not washed by 
 the sea, excepting El Yngles, which had merely a 
 rampart faced with palisades. They were manned by 
 a force which, according to the muster-rolls of the 
 preceding month, consisted of 7SO regulars, and 829 
 militia. The greater part of the latter were stationed
 
 VALDIVIA 
 
 AND ITS FORTIFICATIONS ~4J| 4f : 
 
 4 
 
 s&r 
 
 >$ Carlos 1 6Ck* 
 
 aye 256.
 
 DIFFICULTIES OF THE COUKTKY. 257 
 
 at Osorno, thirty leagues towards the Straits of 
 Magellan, and the remainder at the town of Val- 
 divia, fourteen miles up the river. 
 
 So impervious was the forest, owing to the ravines 
 by which it was intersected, and from its entangled 
 underwood, that there was no land communication 
 between the forts, excepting by a narrow rugged path, 
 which, winding between the rocky beach and the 
 forest, scarcely at any point admitted of the passage 
 of more than one man at a time. Even this path, in 
 crossing a deep ravine between Fort Chorocomayo and 
 Corral, was enfiladed by three guns, situated on the 
 crest of the opposite acclivity. 
 
 About a quarter of a mile beyond the fort of 
 San Carlos, and outside of the harbour, is situated 
 the exterior fort of Yngles, and half a mile westward 
 of the fort is the caleta, or inlet, which forms a land- 
 ing-place, both of which communicate with each other, 
 and with San Carlos, by a path equally narrow, rugged, 
 and serpentine as between the other forts. 
 
 The schooner and brig, having hoisted Spanish 
 colours, anchored, on the 3rd of February, at 3 P.M., 
 under the guns of the fort of Tngles, opposite the 
 caleta, the only landing-place, and between the two. 
 "When hailed from the shore, Captain Basques, a 
 Spaniard by birth, who had embarked at Talcahuano 
 as a volunteer, was directed to answer, that they had 
 sailed from Cadiz under convoy of St. Elmo, of 
 74 guns ; that they had parted in a gale of wind off 
 Cape Horn ; and to request a pilot might be sent off. 
 At this time the swell was so great as to render
 
 258 THE YISIT UNDERSTOOD. 
 
 an immediate disembarkation impracticable, as the 
 launches would have drifted under the fort. Coch- 
 rane's object, therefore was to wait until the evening, 
 when the wind would have been abated, and the 
 swell subsided. The Spaniards, who had already 
 begun to entertain suspicions, ordered the vessels to 
 send a boat ashore ; to which it was answered, they 
 had lost them in the severe gales they had encoun- 
 tered. This, however, did not satisfy the garrison, 
 which immediately fired alarm guns, and expresses 
 were depatched to the governor at Yaldivia. The 
 garrisons of all the western forts united at Fort 
 Tngles. Fifty or sixty men were posted on the ram- 
 part commanding the approach from the caleta. The 
 rest, about 300, formed on a small esplanade at the 
 rear of the fort. 
 
 "Whilst this was passing, the vessels remained un- 
 molested ; but at four o'clock one of the launches, 
 which had been carefully concealed from those on 
 shore, by being kept close under the off side of the 
 vessel unfortunately drifted astern. Before it could 
 be hauled out of sight again, it was perceived by 
 the garrison, which, having no longer any doubts as 
 to the hostile nature of the visit, immediately opened 
 a fire upon the vessels, and sent a party of 75 men to 
 defend the landing-place. This detachment was accu- 
 rately counted by those on board as it proceeded one 
 by one along the narrow and difficult path to the 
 caleta. The first shots fired from the fort having 
 passed through the sides of the brig and killed two 
 men, the troops were ordered up from below and
 
 THE LANDING. 259 
 
 to land vrithout further delay. But the two launches 
 which constituted the only means of disembarkation 
 appeared very inadequate to the effectual performance 
 of such an attempt. Miller, with 44 marines, pushed 
 off in the first launch. After overcoming the diffi- 
 culties of the heavy swell, an accumulation of sea- 
 weed in comparatively smooth water loaded the oars 
 at every stroke and impeded the progress of the 
 assailants, who now began to suffer from the effects of 
 a brisk fire from the party stationed at the landing- 
 place. The launch was perforated with musket-balls 
 and the water rushed in. Four or five men were 
 wounded and two of the foreign seamen were daunted 
 and ceased to row, under pretence that it was im- 
 possible to make way through the seaweed. One of 
 the soldiers previously named to keep a watch upon 
 them in anticipation of some such occurrence, knocked 
 one of these fellows off his seat with the butt end of 
 his musket. No further difficulty was made. 
 
 Quarter-master Thompson of the O'Higgins, who 
 acted as coxwain, was shot through the shoulder, 
 upon which Miller took the helm. He seated himself 
 on a spare oar, but finding the seat inconvenient, he 
 had the oar removed, by which he somewhat lowered 
 his position. He had scarcely done so when a ball 
 passed through his hat, grazing the crown of his 
 head. He ordered a few of his party to fire, and 
 soon afterwards jumped on shore with his marines, 
 dislodged the royalists at the inlet, and made good 
 his footing ; but he was still so feeble that he was 
 unable to clamber over the rough rocks without 
 s 2
 
 200 THE ST011MING. 
 
 assistance. So soon as the landing \vas perceived to 
 have been effected, the party in the second launch 
 pushed off from the brig, and in less than an hour 
 350 patriot soldiers were disembarked. Shortly after 
 sunset they advanced in single files along the rocky 
 track leading to Tort Yngles, rendered slippery by 
 the spray of the surf, which dashed with deafening 
 noise upon the shore, which was rather favourable 
 than otherwise to the adventurous party. The 
 royalist detachment after being driven from the 
 landing-place, retreated along this path and entered 
 Port Yngles by a ladder which was drawn up, and 
 consequently the patriots found iiobody on the 
 outside to oppose their approach. The men advanced 
 gallantly to the attack, but from the nature of the 
 track in very extended order. The leading files were 
 soldiers whose courage had been before proved, and 
 who, enjoying among their comrades a degree of 
 deference and respect, claimed the foremost post in 
 danger. They advanced with firm but noiseless step, 
 while those who next followed cheered with cries of 
 adelante (onwards). Others still farther behind 
 raised clamorous shouts of Viva la patria ! and many 
 of them fired in the air. The path led to the salient 
 angle of the fort, which on one side was washed with 
 the sea and on the other flanked by the forest, the 
 boughs and branches of which overhung a considerable 
 space on the ramparts. 
 
 Favoured by the darkness of the night, by the inter- 
 mingling roar of artillery and musketry, by the 
 lashings of the surge, and by the clamour of the gar-
 
 CAPTURE OF FORT TNGLES. 261 
 
 rison itself, a few men, under the gallant Ensign 
 Vidal, crept from the inland flank of the fort, and 
 whilst the fire of the garrison was solely directed to 
 the vociferous patriots in the rear, those in advance 
 contrived, without being heard or perceived, to tear 
 up some loosened palisades, with which they con- 
 structed a rude scaling-ladder, one end of which 
 they placed against the rampart, and the other upon a 
 mound of earth which favoured the design. By the 
 assistance of this ladder Ensign Tidal and his party 
 mounted the rampart, got unperceived into the fort, 
 and formed under cover of the branches of the trees 
 which overhung that flank. The fifty or sixty men 
 who composed the garrison -were occupied in firing 
 upon those of the assailants still approaching in single 
 files. A volley from Vidal's party, which had thus 
 taken the Spaniards in flank, followed by a rush, and 
 accompanied by the terrific Indian yell, echoed by the 
 reverberating valleys of the mountains around, pro- 
 duced terror and immediate flight. The panic was 
 communicated to the column of three hundred men, 
 formed on an arena behind the fort, and the whole 
 body, with the exception of those who were bayoneted, 
 made the best of their way along the path that led to 
 the other forts, but which, in their confusion, they did 
 not attempt to occupy or defend. Upon arriving at 
 the gorge of a ravine, between Fort Chorocomayo and 
 the castle of Corral, about one hundred men escaped in 
 boats lying there, and rowed to Valdivia. The re- 
 mainder, about two hundred men, neglecting the three 
 guns on the height, which, if properly defended, would
 
 262 COMPLETE POSSESSION. 
 
 have effectually checked the advance of their pursuers, 
 retreated into the Corral. This castle, however, was 
 almost immediately stormed by the victorious patriots, 
 who, favoured by a part of the rampart, which had 
 crumbled down and partly filled up the ditch, rushed 
 forward, and thus obtained possession of all the western 
 side of the harbour. The royalists could retreat no 
 farther, for there the land communication ended. 
 One hundred Spaniards were bayoneted, and about the 
 same number, exclusive of officers, were made pri- 
 soners. Miller was unable to climb the ladder placed 
 against Port Tngles without assistance, and became so 
 exhausted in the subsequent pursuit, that he could not 
 keep pace with the troops until he made two of his 
 men carry him in their arms. Such was the rapidity 
 with which the patriots followed up their success, that 
 the royalists had not time to destroy their military 
 stores, or even to spike a gun. Daylight of the 4th 
 found the independents in possession of the five forts, 
 el Tngles, San Carlos, Amargos, Chorocomayo, and 
 Corral. So completely was attention absorbed during 
 the night by the rapid succession of exciting events, 
 that till an officer remarked the next morning that 
 Miller's hair was clotted with blood, he did not recol- 
 lect the scratch he had received previous to landing. 
 
 Amongst the prisoners taken in the castle of Corral 
 was Colonel Hoyos, commanding the regiment of 
 Cantrabia, who, in an agony of mind, produced by 
 reflecting on the loss of the forts, had drunk a quantity 
 of rum, and, when Miller appeared, broke out into 
 terms of outrageous abuse. It was with the utmost
 
 A SECOKD GIBBALTAE. 263 
 
 difficulty that the victorious soldiers could be restrained 
 from killing the colonel. The next morning Hoyos 
 said to Miller, " I thank you for having preserved my 
 life ; but, after what has happened, death would have 
 been a mercy." He added, "It is singular thaij I 
 should owe my life to you, whom I was in some mea- 
 sure instrumental in saving, by supporting the efforts 
 of Loriga in your favour at Talcahuano." About the 
 time Fort Tngles was carried Cochrane left the 
 Montezuma, and caused himself to be rowed as near 
 the scene of action as the surf would permit a boat to 
 approach. The patriot troops mistaking the boat for 
 an enemy's, fired upon it from Fort San Carlos, and 
 obliged it to sheer off. 
 
 On the morning of the 4th, the schooner and brig 
 entered the harbour, and anchored under the castle 
 of Corral, after receiving a few shots from the forts 
 on the eastern side, still in the possession of the 
 Spaniards. In order to dislodge them, two hundred 
 men embarked in the brig and schooner: the latter 
 ran aground in crossing the harbour, but soon got off 
 again. The Spaniards, however, alarmed at the move- 
 ment, abandoned the castle of lS"iebla, Fort Carbonero 
 Piojo, and Manzanera. The patriots, not less sur- 
 prised than pleased, found themselves, without further 
 opposition, masters of what may be called the Gibraltar 
 of South America. In the evening the O'Higgins 
 entered the port almost water-logged, and to keep her 
 from sinking, she was run aground on a muddy bank 
 for the purpose of undergoing a repair. 
 
 The following are extracts from Major Miller's
 
 264 OFFICIAL 
 
 official report to the admiral, written at the castle of 
 Corral on the morning of the 4th : 
 
 " Having disembarked with little opposition, at the 
 Aguada Tngles, on the north-west shore of the bay r 
 with the marines under my command, I continued my 
 march, united to the detachment of infantry under 
 the orders of Major Beauchef, to attack the enemy ou 
 that side. In his formidable position he considered 
 himself perfectly secure from any attack that could 
 be made ; and, indeed, if due weight be given to the 
 obstacles we had to contend with through narrow and 
 almost impenetrable tracks, it is not surprising that 
 such confidence should have existed on his part. But 
 the valour and intrepidity of our officers and soldiers 
 were irresistible, and the most complete success 
 crowned, if not one of the most arduous under- 
 takings ever attempted by such a handful of men, 
 one at least that will add new laurels to the gallant 
 sons of South America. 
 
 " It is impossible for me to give your lordship an 
 adequate idea of the valour and determined perse- 
 verance of our small but enthusiastic force. Xo 
 veterans could have surpassed them : few could have 
 done so much." 
 
 On the oth, Majors Beauchef and Miller proceeded 
 up the river with Lord Cochrane, who took posses- 
 sion of the town of Valdivia, at the head of two hun- 
 dred of the troops. The enemy, five hundred in. 
 number, had abandoned it in the morning, and had 
 fled toward Osorno to cross the water to Chiloe. 
 On deserting the town, the Spaniards plundered and
 
 THE SPOIL. 265 
 
 committed great disorders. The governor, Colonel 
 Montoya, was the first to make his escape. His age 
 and infirmities must have incapacitated him for com- 
 mand, or he ought to have made a stand against sucli 
 an inferior force. The admiral issued a proclamation, 
 which induced many of the inhabitants, who had fled 
 from the town on the approach of the patriots, to 
 return to their homes. 
 
 Amongst the public property taken at Yaldivia, 
 were some silver ornaments and vessels, of which 
 General Sanchez had stripped the churches of Con- 
 ception. There was, besides, a custodia inlaid with 
 gold and set with gems. A ship, called the Dolores, 
 anchored off the Corral, and taken by the soldiers 
 in the night of the 3rd, was sold by the prize 
 agent at Valparaiso. A quantity of sugar, spirits, 
 and other articles were taken and disposed of in like 
 manner. 
 
 The fortifications were so numerous, that at first it 
 was Lord Cochrane's intention to destroy them and 
 embark the artillery, as the Spaniards who had escaped 
 to Chiloe where another Spanish regiment was sta- 
 tioned might return after his departure and recover 
 them, the force which could be spared to garrison 
 them being insignificant when distributed amongst 
 fifteen forts ; but, on further reflection, he could not 
 make up his mind to destroy fortresses, the erection 
 of which had cost upwards of a million of dollars, and 
 which Chili would have been unable to replace. He 
 therefore determined on leaving them intact, with 
 their artillery and ammunition, intending, before his
 
 THE BOOTY. 
 
 return to Yalparaiso, to render the rout of the Spa- 
 niards who had escaped, yet more complete. 
 
 The booty which fell into the hands of the captors, 
 exclusive of the value of the forts and public build- 
 ingsj was considerable, Valdivia being the chief 
 military depot in the southern part of the continent. 
 Amongst the military stores, were upwards of 
 1,000 cwt. of gunpowder, 10,000 shot, 170,000 ball 
 cartridges, a large quantity of small arms, 128 guns, 
 of which 53 were brass. The Dolores, afterwards 
 sold at Valparaiso for 20,000 dollars ; public stores 
 also sold for the like amount ; and the plate, of which 
 Sanchez had previously stripped the churches of Con- 
 ception, realized 16.000 dollars. 
 
 From correspondence found in the archives of 
 Valdivia, it was plain that Quintanilla, the Governor 
 of Chiloe, had serious apprehensions of a revolt at 
 San Carlos, so that the admiral resolved to see what 
 could be effected there. The loss of the Intrepido 
 was a serious drawback to his means of transporting 
 troops, and the flag-ship would no longer float; as, 
 however, he had possession of the Dolores, it was 
 resolved to crowd into her and the Montezuma all 
 the troops that could be spared, leaving Major 
 Beauchef the whole of those brought from Con- 
 ception. 
 
 The news reached Valparaiso by means of a small 
 piragua, despatched by the admiral, and gave rise to 
 such an outburst of popular enthusiasm as had never 
 before been witnessed in Chili. Nothing could have 
 been more opportune than the arrival of these des-
 
 PLOTTING AT VALPARAISO. 267 
 
 patches, for just about the same time Captain 
 Cruise reached with the intention of magnifying the 
 failure at Callao, which he and his party attributed 
 to the admiral's want of skill in the use of the rockets ; 
 the inference desired to be established being his want 
 of capability to command a squadron. 
 
 In consequence of this alleged want of professional 
 skill on the part of Lord Cochrane, Zenteno, the 
 minister of marine, had drawn up an elaborate accu- 
 sation against him of disobedience to orders, in not 
 having returned according to his instructions ; the 
 whole party felicitating themselves on his probable 
 dismissal with disgrace. On hearing the news of the 
 victory, however, all this was immediately hushed up 
 the ministers, to retrieve their own credit, joined in 
 the popular enthusiasm, which it would have been 
 unavailing to thwart and poor Goldsack was over- 
 whelmed with reproach for the failure of his rockets, 
 though, in point of fact, the whole blame rested with 
 the Government contractor, for having employed 
 Spanish prisoners as his workmen. 
 
 After providing for the safety of the city and pro- 
 vince of Taldivia, by establishing a provisional go- 
 vernment, and leaving Major Beauchef with his own 
 troops to maintain order, the admiral sailed on the 
 15th of February, with the Montezuma, and his prize 
 the Dolores, for the island of Chiloe, taking with him 
 two hundred men, under the command of Major Miller, 
 his object being to wrest Chiloe from Spain, as he had 
 done Yaldivia. Unfortunately, the O'Higyins was 
 not sea-worthy without tedious repairs, for which
 
 268 GALLANT EETEESE. 
 
 there was no time, as success depended on attacking 1 
 Chiloe before the governor had leisure to prepare for 
 defence. Neither vessel being armed for fighting, Lord 
 Cochrane depended altogether upon Major Miller and 
 his handful of soldiers to oppose a thousand regular 
 troops, besides a numerous militia ; but having been 
 informed that the garrison was in a mutinous state, 
 he calculated that by judicious management, they 
 might be induced to join the patriot cause. 
 
 Unluckily, his design had got abroad, and the 
 Spanish Governor, Quintanilla, a judicious officer, had 
 managed to conciliate his garrison. On coming to 
 an anchor on the 17th, at Huechucucay, Cochrane 
 found a body of infantry and cavalry, with a field-piece, 
 ready to dispute the landing ; but drawing off their 
 attention by a feint upon a distant spot, and thus 
 dividing them into two parties, Major Miller got on 
 shore, and soon routed them, capturing their field- 
 piece. 
 
 A night attack being decided upon, the troops, 170 
 in number, moved on under the direction of a guide, 
 who, wilfully or treacherously, misled them, the men 
 thus wandering about in the dark throughout the 
 whole night. At dawn, they found their way to Fort 
 Corona, which, with a detached battery, was taken 
 without loss. Halting for a short time to refresh the 
 men, Major Miller, bravely, but too precipitately, 
 moved on Fort Aguy, in broad daylight. This fort 
 was the stronghold of the enemy, mounting twelve 
 guns, with others flanking the only accessible path by 
 which entrance could be gained, and was garrisoned
 
 MILLER, DESPEKATELY WOUNDED. 269 
 
 by three companies of regulars, t\vo companies of 
 militia, and a full proportion of artillerymen. The 
 fort stood on a hill, washed on one side by the sea, 
 and having on the other an impenetrable forest, the 
 only access being by a narrow path, whilst the means 
 of retreat for the garrison was by the same path, so 
 that the attack became for the latter a matter of life 
 and death, since, in case of defeat, there was no mode 
 of escape, as at Valdivia. 
 
 Notwithstanding these odds, and the spectacle of 
 two friars on the ramparts, urging on the garrison to 
 resist to the death the handful of aggressors, Miller, 
 instead of remaining in the forts he had taken till night 
 fall, when he would have been comparatively safe by 
 attacking in the dark, determined to advance. Choosing 
 out of his small band a forlorn hope of sixty men, he 
 perilled his own safety, upon which so much depended, 
 by leading them in person ; every gun and musket of 
 the enemy being concentrated on a particular angle of 
 the path which he must needs pass. 
 
 As the detachment reached the spot, a shower of 
 grape and musketry mowed down the whole, twenty 
 out of the sixty being killed outright, whilst nearly all 
 the rest were mortally wounded. Seeing their gallant 
 commander fall, the marines, who were waiting to 
 follow, dashed through the fire, and brought him off, 
 with a grape-shot through his thigh, and the bones of 
 his right foot crushed by a round shot. Another dash 
 by the force which remained brought off the whole of 
 the wounded, though adding fearfully to their numbers. 
 This having been accomplished, Captain ErescaijO,
 
 270 FIDELITY OF THE MARINES. 
 
 who succeeded to the command, ordered a retreat. 
 The Spaniards, animated by success, and urged 011 by 
 the friars, followed just within, musket-shot and 
 making three separate attacks, which were on each 
 occasion repelled, though, from the killed and wounded, 
 the pursuers were now fully six times their number. 
 Nevertheless one-half of the diminished band kept the 
 enemy at bay, whilst the other half spiked the guns, 
 broke up the gun-carriages, and destroyed the military 
 stores in the forts captured in the morning, wheu 
 they resumed their march to the beach, followed by 
 the Spaniards as before. 
 
 The marines who, with affectionate fidelity, had 
 borne off Major Miller, had been careful to protect 
 him from fire, though two out of the three who 
 carried him were wounded in the act ; and when, on 
 arriving at the beach, they were invited by him to 
 enter the boat, one of them, a gallant fellow named 
 Eoxas, honourably mentioned in Lord Cochrane's 
 despatches from Valdivia, on account of his distin- 
 guished bravery, refused, saying, " No, sir, I was the 
 first to land, and I mean to be the last to go on 
 board." The marine kept his word; for on his 
 commander being placed in safety, he hastened back 
 to the little band, now nearly cut tip, and took his 
 share in the retreat, being the last to get into the 
 boats. Such were the Chilenos. This same gallant 
 fellow was at the side of Lord Cochrane at the capture 
 of the Esmeralda. 
 
 His forces being now seriously diminished, Cochrane 
 decided on returning to Valdivia, where, finding that
 
 JOYFUL DEMONSTEATIOXS. 271 
 
 the Spaniards who had been dispersed in the neigh- 
 bourhood were committing excesses, he despatched 
 Major Beauchef with 100 men to Osorno to secure 
 that town, the relief being accepted with great joy 
 even by the Indians. The Spaniards being thus 
 driven from Osorno, the flag of Chili was, on the 26th 
 of February, hoisted on the castle by Major Beauclief, 
 who then returned to Yaldivia. 
 
 There being nothing further to require the admi- 
 ral's presence at Valdivia, Lord Cochrane placed the 
 O'Higgins under the orders of his secretary, to 
 superintend her repairs, and embarked in the Montc- 
 zuma, for Valparaiso. 
 
 EECEPTION AT VALPARAISO. 
 
 [1820.] 
 
 On the 27th of February the Montezuma, bearing 
 Lord Cochrane's flag, arrived at Valparaiso. The 
 populace were most lively in their demonstrations, 
 and warm expressions of gratitude emanated from the 
 Supreme Director. But his reception by the ministers 
 was wholly different. Zenteno, whose orders Lord 
 Cochrane had disregarded, declared that the conquest 
 of Valdivia was the act of a madman : that the admiral 
 deserved to have lost his life in the attempt; and 
 ought to lose his head for daring to attack such a 
 place without instructions, and for exposing the 
 patriot troops to such hazard. He afterwards set on 
 foot a series of intrigues, having for their object the 
 depreciation of the service which had been rendered ; 
 so that the admiral found himself exposed to the
 
 272 AN ESTATE CONFEKEED ON HIM. 
 
 greatest possible annoyance, and the eminent services 
 of his officers and men treated with official coldness. 
 
 The congratulatory addresses which poured in on 
 both the Supreme Director and the admiral from all 
 parts, in which the people declared their opinion, con- 
 trary to the assertions of Zenteno, that he had acted 
 from a conviction of national utility, and that by its 
 accomplishment the valour of the Chilenos had been 
 gloriously displayed, tended only to increase the 
 chagrin of Zenteno and his party. 
 
 In deference to the popular voice, the Government 
 was compelled to award medals to the captors, the 
 decree for this stating that the capture of Valdivia 
 was the happy result of the devising of an admirably 
 arranged plan, and of the most daring and valorous 
 execution. The decree further conferred on Lord 
 Cochrane an estate of 4,000 quadras from the con- 
 fiscated lauds of Conception, which he refused, as no 
 vote of thanks had been given by the Legislature. 
 This vote he, however, finally obtained, as an indem- 
 nification to himself for having exceeded his orders ; 
 which form was necessary after Zenteno's expressions 
 of ill-will towards him. 
 
 The resources of the province of Valdivia, together 
 with those of Conception, had contributed the means 
 whereby the Spaniards maintained their hold upon 
 the Chilian territory. Kot only were they deprived 
 of these resources now added to those of Chili but 
 a great saving was effected by relieving the He- 
 public from the necessity of maintaining a military 
 force in the southern provinces, as a check upon both
 
 TBEATMENT OF THE CAPTOES. 273 
 
 Spaniards and Indians, who, at the moment of the 
 conquest of Valdivia, were being let loose in all direc- 
 tions against the Chilian patriots. 
 
 Had it not been for this capture, the Spanish power 
 in Chili, aided by the Indians, would have found it 
 easy to maintain itself in such a country for a pro- 
 tracted period, despite any military force Chili was in 
 a condition to bring against it ; so that no effective 
 co-operation with the people of Peru could have been 
 undertaken. A further advantage was the successful 
 negotiation in England of a loan of one million ster- 
 ling, which was accomplished solely on account 01 
 what had been achieved, every attempt at this having 
 failed so long as the Spaniards were in possession of 
 the most important harbour and fortress in the 
 country, from which, as a basis, they might organize 
 future attempts to recover the revolted provinces. 
 
 Notwithstanding these advantages, no reward, 
 either for this or any previous service, was paid to 
 Lord Cochrane, the officers, or seamen, the Govern- 
 ment having appropriated the money arising from the 
 sale of the Dolores, and the stores with which she 
 was loaded, to other purposes. The guns and ammu- 
 nition left in the forts at Yaldivia, although taken by 
 the Government, were never paid for; while the men 
 who performed this achievement were in rags, and 
 destitute. The gallant admiral, who had risked his 
 own life in leading his men on this desperate enter- 
 prise, was treated with much scorn, and every en- 
 couragement held out to his officers to disobey his 
 orders.
 
 274 NO PAT NO PBIZE MONET. 
 
 Two whom he had marked for punishment, for 
 the following act of deliberate murder, -were actually 
 promoted. Ensign Vidal having captured two Spanish 
 officers in Fort Yngles, they surrendered their swords, 
 receiving the gallant youth's pledge of safety ; but 
 Captain Erescano coming up, immediately butchered 
 them. Ensign Latapia, -who had been left in com- 
 mand of the castle of Corral, after Lord Cochrane's 
 departure to Chiloe, ordered two of his prisoners to 
 be shot ; and four officers would have met the same 
 fate, had not Mr. Bennet, the admiral's secretary, 
 taken them on board the O^ Higgins. Latapia was 
 placed under arrest, the necessary declarations made 
 out for a court-martial, and he was conveyed as a 
 prisoner to Valparaiso. In place of being punished, 
 both Latapia and Erascano were taken into the 
 liberating army of General San Martin, and given 
 superior rank ! 
 
 The seamen, thus deprived of what they considered 
 their just due, were now becoming mutinous. They 
 could obtain neither pay iior prize-money. Promises. 
 were no sooner made than they were withdrawn or 
 broken ; and nothing but the admiral's assurance 
 that they should be paid prevented an outbreak. 
 Lord Cochrane, therefore, addressed a letter of ex- 
 postulation to the supreme director, recounting their 
 zealous services, and the ill-merited harshness to 
 which they were exposed at the hands of the minis- 
 ters in return, notwithstanding that, in addition to 
 their labours afloat, they had aided the Government 
 in the construction of wharfs and other conveniences
 
 TEXDEBS HIS RESIGNATION. 275 
 
 necessary for the embarkation of troops and stores for 
 Peru. 
 
 The truth was, however, the proceeds of the cap- 
 tures had been pocketed by the Government, and, 
 to avoid repayment, they declared that the conquest 
 of Valdivia was a restoration, although the place had 
 never been in possession of Chili ! On Lord Coch- 
 rane's refusal to allow the stores he had brought from 
 thence to be disembarked, unless as a compensation to 
 the seamen, it was alleged, that even if Valdivia had 
 not belonged to the Republic, Chili did not make war 
 on every section of America. It was, therefore, put 
 to his liberality and honourable character whether he 
 would not give up to the Government all that the 
 squadron had acquired. 
 
 Finding that he would surrender nothing, it was 
 next debated in the Council whether he ought not to 
 be brought to a court-martial for having delayed and 
 diverted the naval forces of Chili to the reduction of 
 Valdivia without the orders of Government ! 
 
 As nothing in the shape of justice could be obtained 
 for the squadron, Lord Cochrane tendered the resigna- 
 tion of his commission, stating that, by retaining it, 
 he felt that he should only bo instrumental in pro- 
 moting the ruin which must follow the conduct of the 
 Supreme Director's advisers. Lord Cochraue also told 
 his excellency the Supreme Director that he, Lord 
 Cochrane, had not accepted the command to have his 
 motives misconstrued, and his services degraded, as 
 they had been, for reasons which he was unable to 
 divine. 
 
 T 2
 
 276 ACCEPTS THE ESTATE. 
 
 This course was more than had been anticipated. 
 The ministers were brought for a time to their senses, 
 the justice of his complaints were acknowledged, and 
 every assurance given that for the future the Govern- 
 ment would observe good faith towards the squadron. 
 An estate had been offered him as a reward for his 
 services, which he had declined in the absence of a 
 vote. The offer was renewed, but again declined, as 
 nothing but promises were forthcoming to the service, 
 and the only hold upon the seamen was his personal 
 influence with them. In place, therefore, of accepting 
 the offer, he returned the document conveying the 
 grant, with a request that the estate might be sold, 
 and the proceeds applied to the payment of the 
 squadron. 
 
 Shamed by this offer, General San Martin, who had 
 been appointed to command the military portion of 
 the expedition to Peru, arrived at Valparaiso in June, 
 and on the 13th of July the men were paid wages in 
 part. But the admiral insisted on the whole being 
 liquidated, and this was done on the IGth ; but still 
 no prize-money. The admiral's share alone of the 
 captures made at and previous to the capture of Val- 
 divia was 67,000 dollars, and for this he received the 
 assurance of the Supreme Director that it should be 
 paid at the earliest possible moment. This done, he 
 accepted the estate which continued to be pressed 
 upon him, the grant expressing the purpose for which 
 it was given, adding, as a reason, that " his name 
 should never cease from the land." * 
 
 * This estate, situated at Rio Clara, was, after Lord Coch-
 
 MUTINOUS CAPTAINS. 277 
 
 A new source of annoyance now arose ; this was 
 the appointment of Captain Spry as the admiral's 
 flag-captain on board the 0' Higyins, which ship had 
 been repaired at Yaldivia, and had returned to Val- 
 paraiso. An order to this effect was sent to Lord 
 Cochrane, which he firmly refused to obey, adding 
 that Captain Spry should never tread the quarter- 
 deck as his flag-captain, and that if his privilege as 
 an admiral were not admitted, the Government might 
 consider his command at au end. The point was con- 
 ceded, and Captain Crosbie appointed flag-captain. 
 
 Encouraged by the annoyance given b^ Zenteno 
 and his party, one or two of the captains thought 
 themselves at liberty to manifest a disregard to autho- 
 rity, which Cochrane, as their admiral, did not choose 
 to tolerate. The foremost of these was Guise, who. 
 having been guilty of several acts of direct disobe- 
 dience and neglect of duty, was put under arrest, and 
 a demand made that the Government should institute 
 a court-martial for the investigation of his conduct. 
 This act greatly irritated Zenteno, who desired to 
 support the recreant captain, and refused consent 
 to the inquiry ; thereby establishing a precedent for 
 the captain of any ship to consider himself indepen- 
 dent of the admiral. 
 
 This open violation of discipline Cochrane con- 
 
 rane's departure, forcibly resumed possession of by the succeed- 
 ing government ; and the bailiff, whom he had placed upon it 
 for the purpose of seeing how it could be improved by culture 
 and the introduction of valuable European seeds, was forcibly 
 expelled from its supervision.
 
 278 OITICERS TENDER THEIR RESIGNATIONS. 
 
 sidered a personal insult, and he once more trans- 
 mitted to the Government his resignation, at the 
 same time demanding his passport to enable him to 
 quit the country, notifying to the officers of the 
 squadron that on the receipt of the same he should 
 cease to command. A meeting was immediately held 
 amongst the officers, and on the same day he received 
 not a valedictory address, as might have been ex- 
 pected but two letters, one signed by five captains, 
 and the other by twenty-three commissioned officers, 
 containing resolutions of abandoning the service also, 
 at the same time handing in their commissions. To 
 this proof of attachment, he replied, by requesting 
 they would not sacrifice their own positions on his 
 account, and recommended them not to make their 
 resolutions public till they had further considered 
 the matter. 
 
 Pending the settlement of this question, the equip- 
 ment of the squadron proceeded with alacrity. His 
 lordship, however, withheld the commissions which had 
 been enclosed to him by the officers of the squadron, 
 lest the measure should excite popular dissatisfaction, 
 and thus cause danger, for which the Government was 
 unprepared. 
 
 The only captains who did not sign the resolutions 
 were Guise and Spry, the former being under arrest, 
 and the latter offended on account of Cochrane's re- 
 fusal to accept him as flag-captain. It is supposed 
 that Guise communicated to Zenteno the resolutions of 
 the officers, for on the 20th the admiral received from 
 him a letter, dated July 20th, begging him, in the most
 
 EARNESTLY SOLICITED TO REMAIN. 279 
 
 abject and fulsome terms, not to take a course which 
 would involve the future operations of the arms of 
 liberty in the New World in certain ruin ; and, ulti- 
 mately, replace in Chili, " his adopted home," that 
 tyranny which his lordship abhorred, and to the 
 annihilation of which his heroism had so greatly con- 
 tributed. He added, " The Supreme Director com- 
 mands me to inform your lordship, that should you 
 persist in resigning the command of the squadron which 
 has been honoured by bearing your flag the cause of 
 terror and dismay to our enemies, and of glory to 
 all true Americans or should the Government un- 
 wisely admit it, it would indeed be a day of universal 
 mourning in the Xew World." " The Government, 
 therefore," he continued, " in the name of the nation, 
 returns you your commission, soliciting your re-ac- 
 ceptance of it, for the furtherance of that sacred 
 cause to which your whole soul is devoted." 
 
 With regard to Captain Guise, whom the admiral 
 had placed under arrest, the Supreme Director re- 
 quested that his trial might be postponed to the 
 first opportunity which did not interfere with the 
 service of the squadron. 
 
 In addition to this communication from Don Jose 
 Ignacio Zenteno, the Minister of Marine, the admiral 
 received private letters from the Supreme Director and 
 General San Martin, begging him to continue in 
 command of the naval forces, and assuring him that 
 there should be no further cause for complaint. 
 
 On receipt of these letters Cochrane withdrew his 
 resignation, and returned to the officers of the squa-
 
 280 SAN MAIITIN'S DUPLICITY. 
 
 dron their commissions, at the same time releasing 
 Captain Guise from his arrest, and reinstating him in 
 the command of his ship. 
 
 Lord Cochrane considered that he owed some of 
 his annoyance to General San Martin, and he accused 
 him of having assisted his enemies. He replied, 
 that he only wanted to see how far the Supreme 
 Director "would allow a party spirit to oppose the 
 welfare of the expedition ; and added, " IsTever mind, 
 my lord ; I am general of the army, and you shall be 
 admiral of the squadron." His allusion to the com- 
 plicity of the Supreme Director Cochrane knew to be 
 false, as his excellency was anxious to do all in his powe? 
 both for the squadron and his country, had not the 
 senate, on which he conferred such extraordinary 
 powers, thwarted all his endeavours. 
 
 CAPTURE OF THE ESMERALDA. 
 
 [1820.] 
 
 The equipment of the squadron and troops destined 
 for the liberation of Peru had been beset with diffi- 
 culties, the Government being without credit, whilst 
 its treasury had been completely exhausted by eftbrts 
 to organize an army a loan having been refused. 
 By Lord Cochraue's influence with the British mer- 
 chants, he succeeded in obtaining considerable quan- 
 tities of stores, and a subscription was set on foot, in 
 place of a forced loan, upon which the Government 
 hesitated to venture. 
 
 But the great difficulty was with regard to the 
 foreign seamen, who, disgusted at the bad faith shown
 
 PROMISED EEAVAttDS. 2S1 
 
 them, refused to re-enter. Upon this the Govern- 
 ment requested the admiral to resort to impressment, 
 which he declined, telling them, moreover, that the 
 captain of the British frigate then in port would not 
 permit his countrymen to be impressed. The alterna- 
 tive which he proposed was, that he should use his 
 influence with the men, by issuing a proclamation, 
 dictated by himself, which would render them de- 
 pendent for their pay and prize-money upon General 
 San Martin, and on the success of the expedition ; it 
 being evident that they would not place further con- 
 fidence in the promises of the Government. 
 
 A joint proclamation was therefore issued by San 
 Martin and the admiral, the signature of the latter 
 being added as a guarantee of good faith. The pro- 
 clamation contained a direct promise to pay to all 
 foreign seamen who voluntarily enlisted into the 
 Chilian service the whole arrears of their pay, and 
 one year's pay over and above the arrears, as a pre- 
 mium or reward for their services, if they continued to 
 fulfil their duty to the day of the surrender of the city 
 of Lima, and its occupation by the liberating forces. 
 
 The result was, that the crews of the ships were 
 immediately completed. 
 
 The Chilian force amounted to 4,200 men, General 
 San Martin being nominated Captain- General. 
 
 On the 21st of August, the squadron sailed from 
 Valparaiso amidst the enthusiastic plaudits of the 
 people; and on the 25th, hove to off" Coquimbo, 
 taking on board another battalion of troops. On the 
 26th they again sailed, when General San Martin
 
 282 LOST TIME. 
 
 made known to the admiral his intention of proceed- 
 ing with the main body of the army to Truxillo, a 
 place four degrees to leeward of Lima. 
 
 By representing to General San Martin that this 
 course would cause great dissatisfaction amongst the 
 Chileno officers and men, who expected to be landed 
 and led at once against Lima, for the immediate 
 conquest of which they were amply sufficient, he con- 
 sented to give up his plan of proceeding to Truxillo, 
 but firmly refused to disembark his men in the vicinity 
 of Lima. Cochrane's plan was to land the force at 
 Chilca, the nearest point to Callao, and forthwith to 
 obtain possession of the capital ; an object by no 
 means difficult of execution. 
 
 The admiral finding all his arguments unavailing, 
 sailed for Pisco, where the expedition arrived on the 
 7th of September, and on the 8th, to his great chagrin, 
 the troops were disembarked, and for fifty days re- 
 mained in total inaction, with the exception of de- 
 spatching Colonel Arenales into the interior with a 
 detachment, which defeated a body of Spaniards, and 
 took up a position to the eastward of Lima. 
 
 In the mean time, the squadron was necessarily kept 
 in inaction, having done nothing beyond capturing a 
 few merchantmen along the coast, and fruitlessly 
 chasing the Pnteba and Venganza, Spanish frigates, 
 which he did not follow up, as involving risk to the 
 transports during his absence. This delay was pro- 
 ductive of the worst disasters which could have be- 
 fallen the expedition. The people, not calculating on 
 such tardiness on the part of San Martin, were every-
 
 EECONSOITBES CALLAO. 283 
 
 where declaring in the favour of the liberators ; but 
 being unsupported, were fined, imprisoned, and sub- 
 jected to corporal punishment by the viceroy. 
 
 The fruits of the demonstration early became mani- 
 fest even amidst inaction. A vessel arrived on the 
 4th of October from Guayaquil with the intelligence 
 that on receiving news of the sailing of the expedi- 
 tion, that province had declared itself independent. 
 Upon the arrival of this welcome news, Lord Coch- 
 rane prevailed upon San Martin to re-embark the 
 troops, and on the 28th the expedition sailed from 
 Pisco, and on the following day anchored before 
 Callao. 
 
 After having reconnoitered the fortifications, Coch- 
 rane again urged on San Martin an immediate dis- 
 embarcation of the force, but to this he again strenu- 
 ously objected, insisting on going to Aucon, a place to 
 the northward of Callao. Having no control over the 
 disposition of the troops, the admiral was obliged to 
 submit ; and on the 30th, detached the San Martin, 
 Galvarino, and Araucano, to convoy the transports to 
 Ancou, retaining the 0' Higgins, Independencia, and 
 Lautaro, as if for the purpose of blockade. 
 
 Annoyed, in common with the whole expedition, 
 at this irresolution on the part of the general, 
 Cochrane determined that the means of Chili, fur- 
 nished with great difficulty, should not be wholly 
 wasted, and accordingly formed a plan of attack 
 with the three ships which he had previously kept 
 back. This design was to cut out the EsmeraUa 
 frigate from under the fortifications, and also to get
 
 284 PEEPAEES TO CUT OUT 
 
 possession of another ship, on board of which it was 
 stated that a million of dollars had been embarked 
 ready for flight. 
 
 The enterprise was hazardous, for since the former 
 visit of Lord Cochrane the enemy's position had been 
 much strengthened, no less than 300 pieces of artil- 
 lery being mounted on shore, whilst the Esmeraldx 
 was crowded with the best sailors and marines that 
 could be procured, these sleeping every night at 
 quarters. The frigate was., moreover, defended by a 
 strong boom with chain moorings, and by armed 
 blockships ; the whole being surrounded by twenty- 
 seven gun-boats, so that no ship could possibly get 
 at her. 
 
 Three days were occupied in preparations, still 
 keeping secret the purpose for which they were in- 
 tended. On the evening of the 5th of November, 
 however, the admiral issued the following proclama- 
 tion : 
 
 " To-morrow you will present yourselves proudly 
 before Callao, and all your comrades will envy your 
 good fortune. One hour of courage and resolution is 
 all that is required of you to triumph. Remember, 
 that you have conquered in Yaldivia, and be not 
 afraid of those who have hitherto fled from you. The 
 value of all the vessels captured in Callao will be 
 yours, and the same reward in money will be dis- 
 tributed amongst you as has been offered by the 
 Spaniards in Lima to those who should capture any 
 of the Chilian squadron. The moment of glory is 
 approaching, and I hope that the Chilenos will fight;
 
 THE ESMEKALDA. 285 
 
 as they have been accustomed to do, and that the 
 English will act as they have ever done at home and 
 abroad." 
 
 The proclamation would have done little, however, 
 had not Lord Cochrane stated his intention to lead 
 the attack in person, the result being that the whole 
 of the marines and seamen on board the three ships 
 offered to accompany him. A hundred and sixty sea- 
 men and eighty marines were selected, and in the 
 evening placed in fourteen boats alongside the flag- 
 ship, each man armed with cutlass and pistol, being, 
 for distinction's sake, dressed in white, with a blue 
 band on the left arm. Cochrane expected the 
 Spaniards would be off their guard, as, by way of 
 ruse, the other ships had been sent out of the bay 
 under the charge of Captain Poster, as though in 
 pursuit of some vessels in the offing so that the 
 Spaniards would naturally consider themselves safe 
 from attack for that night. 
 
 At ten o'clock all was in readiness, and the boats 
 formed in two divisions, the first commanded by 
 Captain Crosbie, and the second by Captain Guise, 
 Cochrane's boat leading. The strictest silence and 
 the exclusive use of cutlasses were enjoined ; the 
 oars were muffled and the night dark : so that the 
 enemy had not the least suspicion of the impending 
 attack. 
 
 About midnight the boats neared the small opening 
 left in the boom, their plan being well-nigh frustrated 
 by the vigilance of a guard-boat, but with which 
 Cochrane in the launch fortunately ft-ll in. The
 
 286 CUTTING OUT 
 
 challenge was given, upon which, in an under-tone, 
 Cochrane threatened the crew of the boat with instant 
 death if they made the least alarm. No reply was 
 made to the threat, and in a few minutes the heroic 
 fellows were alongside the frigate in line, boarding at 
 several points simultaneously. 
 
 With the exception of the sentries, all hands were 
 asleep at their quarters and great was the havoc 
 made amongst them by the Chileno cutlasses. He- 
 treating to the forecastle, they made a gallant stand, 
 and it was not until the third charge that they gave 
 way. The fight was renewed on the quarter-deck? 
 where the Spanish marines fell to a man, the rest of the 
 enemy leaping overboard, or into the hold, to escape 
 slaughter. 
 
 Cochrane boarded at the main chains, but was 
 knocked back by a blow from the butt end of the 
 sentry's musket, and falling on a thole pin of the 
 boat, it entered his back near the spine, inflicting a 
 severe injury. Eegaining his footing, he reascended 
 the side, and, when on deck, was shot through the 
 thigh, but binding a handkerchief tightly round the 
 wound, he managed, though with great difficulty, to 
 direct the contest to its close. 
 
 The aifair occupied a quarter of an hour, the 
 Chilian loss being eleven killed and thirty wounded, 
 whilst that of the Spaniards was 160, many of whom 
 fell under the cutlasses of the boarders before they 
 could stand to their arms. Greater bravery was 
 never displayed. Before boarding, the duties of all 
 had been appointed, and a party was told off to take
 
 THE ESMEKALDA. 287 
 
 possession of the tops. They had not been on deck a 
 minute, when Lord Cochrane hailed the foretop, and 
 was instantly answered by the men he had stationed 
 there, an equally prompt answer being returned from 
 the maintop. 
 
 The garrison, being by this time alarmed, opened 
 fire on their own frigate, taking it for granted that 
 she had been captured and not caring that their own 
 men would be the sufferers as well as the captors. 
 Captain Coig, of the Esmeralda, in fact, received a 
 severe contusion by a shot from his own party. 
 
 The Esmeralda would, in all probability, have been 
 sunk but for one of Cochrane's clever expedients. 
 There were two foreign ships of war present during 
 the contest the Macedonian and Hyperion; and 
 these ships as previously agreed on with the Spanish 
 authorities in case of a night attack hoisted coloured 
 lights as signals, to prevent being fired upon. As 
 soon as the fortress commenced its fire on the Esme- 
 ralda, Cochrane ordered lights similar to those on 
 board the British and United States frigates to be 
 hoisted, so that the garrison became puzzled which 
 vessel to fire at. The Hyperion and Macedonian 
 were consequently several times struck while the 
 Esmeralda was comparatively unharmed. To avoid 
 these awkward mistakes, the neutral frigates cut their 
 cables and moved away ; whilst Captain Guise, con- 
 trary to orders, cut the Esmeralda s cables also, so 
 that there was nothing to be done but to loose her 
 top-sails and follow, the fortress then ceasing its 
 fire.
 
 BASIL HALL'S VEKSIOX. 
 
 Cochrane's orders were to endeavour, after taking 
 the frigate, to capture the Maypu, a brig of war pre- 
 viously taken from Chili, and then to attack and cut 
 i-.drift every ship near, there being plenty of time in 
 which to accomplish this ; but on Coclirane being dis- 
 abled by his wounds, Guise, on whom the command 
 of the prize devolved, interposed his own judgment in 
 the matter. Cochrane considered this to have been a 
 great mistake, arguing, that if they could capture the 
 Esmeralda, with her picked and well-appointed crew, 
 there would have been little or no difficulty in cutting 
 the other ships adrift in succession. 
 
 In the cutting of the Esmeraldas cables not one of 
 these objects was effected. 
 
 The prize was ready for sea, with three months' 
 provisions on board, and with stores sufficient for two 
 years, and was, no doubt, intended to convoy the 
 treasure-ship. 
 
 The commander of the Macedonian evinced much 
 sympathy towards Cochrane's gallant band. He 
 ordered his sentinels not to hail the boats the officers 
 in an under-tone wishing them success. 
 
 Captain Basil Hall, who commanded the Con-way, 
 then in the Pacific, gave the following interesting 
 account of this affair : 
 
 " The inner harbour was guarded by an extensive 
 system of batteries, admirably constructed, and bear- 
 ing the general name of the ' Castles of Callao.' The 
 merchant-ships, as well as the men-of-war, consisting 
 of the Esmeralda, a large 40-gun frigate, and two 
 sloops-of-war, were moored under the guns of the
 
 STEALTHY APPEOACH. 2S9 
 
 castle, within a semicircle of fourteen gun-boats, and 
 a boom made of spars chained together. 
 
 " Lord Cochrane, having previously reconnoitred 
 these formidable defences in person, undertook the 
 desperate enterprise of cutting out the Spanish frigate, 
 although she was known to be fully prepared for an. 
 attack. His lordship proceeded in fourteen boats, 
 containing 240 men all volunteers from the different 
 ships of the squadron in two divisions, one under 
 the orders of Captain Crosbie, and the other under 
 Captain Guise, both officers commanding the Chileno 
 squadron. 
 
 " At midnight, the boats having forced their way 
 across the boom, Lord Cochraue, who was leading, 
 rowed alongside the first gun-boat, and taking the 
 officer by surprise, proposed to him, with a pistol at 
 his head, the alternative of silence or death. X 
 reply being made, the boats pushed on unobserved, 
 and Lord Cochrane, mounting the Esmeralda 1 s side, 
 was the first'to give the alarm. The sentinel on the 
 gangway levelled his piece and fired, but was instantly 
 cut down by the coxswain, and his lordship, though 
 wounded in the thigh, at the same moment stepped 
 on the deck, the frigate being boarded with no less 
 gallantry on the opposite side by Captain Guise, who 
 met Lord Cochrane midway on the quarter-deck, as 
 also Captain Crosbie, and the after-part of the ship 
 was soon carried, sword in hand. The Spaniards ral- 
 lied on the forecastle, where they made a desperate > 
 resistance, till overpowered by a fresh party of sea-: 
 men and marines, headed by Lord Cocbrane. A 
 
 T7
 
 290 DEATH-BLOW TO SPANIARDS. 
 
 gallant stand was again made on the main deck, but 
 before one o'clock the ship was captured, her cables 
 cut, and she was steered triumphantly out of the 
 harbour. 
 
 "This loss 1 was a death-blow to the Spanish naval 
 force in that quarter of the world ; for although there 
 were still two Spanish frigates and some smaller 
 vessels in the Pacific, they never afterwards ventured 
 to show themselves, but left Lord Cochrane undis- 
 puted master of the coast." 
 
 On the morning of the 6th, the market-boat of the 
 United States frigate was, as usual, sent for pro- 
 visions, when the mob took it into their heads that 
 the Esmeralda could not have been cut out without 
 the assistance of the Macedonian, and murdered the 
 whole boat's crew. 
 
 The wounded amongst the EsmeralJa's crew were 
 sent on shore under a flag of truce, with a letter to 
 the viceroy, proposing an exchange of prisoners. The 
 proposal was this time civilly acceded to, and the 
 whole sent on shore ; the Chilian prisoners, who had 
 long languished in the dungeons of the fortress, 
 being returned, and ordered to join the army of 
 General San Martin. 
 
 On transmitting the intelligence of his success to 
 San Martin, Lord Cochrane received an acknowledg- 
 ment. 
 
 " All those who participated in the risks and glory 
 of the deed," wrote the general, "also deserve well of 
 their countrymen, and I have the satisfaction to be the 
 medium of transmitting the sentiments of admiration
 
 SAX MARTIN'S PROMISES. 291 
 
 which such transcendent success lias excited in the 
 chiefs of the army under my command. Permit me 
 to express them to you, in order that they may be 
 communicated to the meritorious officers, seamen, 
 and marines of the squadron, to whom will be reli- 
 giously fulfilled the promises you made." 
 
 San Martin's expression of "religiously fulfilling 
 the promises" was an allusion to the proclamation 
 signed by himself, previous to the departure of the 
 squadron from Valparaiso. With the preceding letter 
 the general voluntarily sent another promise to the 
 captors, of 50,000 dollars, to be paid on gaining 
 possession of Lima. Neither the one promise nor the 
 other were ever fulfilled, nor did they ever obtain any 
 prize-money. 
 
 General San Martin wrote to the Administration 
 in Chili, stating it was impossible for him to eulogize 
 in proper language the daring enterprise of the 5th 
 of Xovember, by which Lord Cochrane had decided the 
 superiority of their naval forces augmented the splen- 
 dour and power of Chili and secured the success of 
 the campaign. 
 
 Shortly after his departure for Peru, Lady Cochrane 
 undertook a journey across the Cordillera, to Men- 
 doza, the passes being, at that season, often blocked 
 up with snow. Having been intrusted with some 
 despatches of importance, she pushed on rapidly, ami 
 on the 12th of October arrived at the celebrated 
 Ponte del Inca, 15,000 feet above the level of the 
 sea. Whilst proceeding on her mule up a precipitous 
 path in the vicinity, a royalist, who had intruded 
 r 2
 
 292 AEMT BETURXS TO HT7ACHO. 
 
 himself on the party, rode up in an opposite direction 
 and disputed the path with her, at a place where the 
 slightest false step would have precipitated her into 
 the abyss below. One of her attendants, a tried and 
 devoted soldier, named Pedro Flores, seeing the move- 
 ment, and guessing the man's intention, galloped up 
 to him at a critical moment, striking him a violent 
 blow across the face, and thus arresting his murderous 
 design. The ruffian, finding himself vigorously at- 
 tacked, made off, without resenting the blow, and 
 so, no doubt, another premeditated attempt on Lady 
 Cochrane's life was averted. 
 
 Lord Cochrane and his nobly-earned prize pro- 
 ceeded to Ancon, where he arrived on the 8th of 
 November, and was hailed with great enthusiasm by 
 the army. The Spanish naval force, it was considered, 
 had received the coup de grace ; and the army made 
 certain that it would be at once led against Lima, 
 before the authorities had time to recover from their 
 consternation. But they reckoned without their 
 host ; San Martin had no such intention ; and in 
 defiance of all argument, ordered the troops to re- 
 embark on board the transports and return to Huacho. 
 The O'Higgins and Esmeralda, abandoning the block- 
 ade, were instructed to convoy them. San Martin 
 was playing a very deep and selfish game, which was 
 soon made apparent. 
 
 By the 12th, the army was again landed at 
 Huacho, amidst evident signs of dissatisfaction on 
 the part of the officers, who were naturally jealous 
 of the achievements of the squadron, from being
 
 SA>- MARTIN'S FALSEHOOD. 203 
 
 themselves restrained from enterprise of any kind. 
 To allay this feeling, San Martin had recourse to 
 an almost incredible violation of truth, intended to 
 impress upon the Chilian people, that the army, and 
 not the squadron, had captured the Esmeralda ! and 
 declaring that the whole affair was the result of his 
 own plans, to which Lord Cochrane had agreed ! 
 
 The people of Chili were then told that the army 
 captured the frigate, and subsequently released the 
 prisoners. This announcement excited the astonish- 
 ment of the troops ; but as it contributed to their 
 self-love, they accepted it, whilst Cochrane thought 
 it beneath his dignity to refute a falsehood palpable to 
 the whole expedition. 
 
 PROVES HIS FIDELITY. 
 
 [1820-2.] 
 
 On the 15th November, the blockade of Callao was 
 resumed, beyond which nothing could be done ; though 
 even this was of importance, as, by cutting oil' supplies 
 from the capital, the inhabitants were subjected to 
 privations, which caused great uneasiness to the Vice- 
 regal Government. 
 
 Several attempts were made to entice the remaining 
 Spanish naval force from their shelter under the bat- 
 teries, by placing the EsmeralJa apparently within 
 reach, and the flag-ship in situations of some danger. 
 One day Lord Cochraue carried the O^IIigyins through 
 an intricate strait called the Boqueron, in which no- 
 thing beyond a 50-ton schooner had ever been seen. 
 The Spaniards, expecting every moment that the ship
 
 2S4 DESERTION OF SPANISH TROOPS. 
 
 would strike, manned their gun-boats, ready to attack 
 as soon as she was aground, of which, however, there 
 was little danger, as Cochrane had previously found, 
 and buoyed off with small bits of wood invisible to 
 the enemy, a channel through which the ship could 
 pass without great difficulty. 
 
 These successes caused great depression amongst 
 the Spanish troops ; and in December, the battalion of 
 Numantia, numbering 650 disciplined men, deserted, 
 and joined the Chilian forces. On the 8th, forty Spanish 
 officers followed their example ; and every day after- 
 wards, officers, privates, and civilians of respectability, 
 joined the patriot army, which thus became consider- 
 ably reinforced ; the defection of so large a portion of 
 his troops being a severe loss to his viceroy. 
 
 Notwithstanding this succession of favourable 
 events, San Martin still declined to march on Lima, 
 remaining inactive at Huacho, though, owing to the 
 unhealthy situation of the place, nearly one-third of 
 his troops died of intermittent fever during the many 
 months they remained there. In place of securing 
 the capital, where the army would have been wel- 
 comed, he proposed to send half to Guayaquil, iii 
 order to annex that province, this being the first 
 manifestation on the part of San Martin to found a 
 dominion of his o\vu ; for to nothing less did he after- 
 wards aspire. 
 
 Determined not to be idle, Cochraue prevailed upon 
 San Martin to give him a division of 600 troops, under 
 the command of Lieutenant-Colonel Miller. On the 
 13th of March, 1821, the expedition sailed for Pisco,
 
 IXSUBOUDINATE OFflCEliS. 295 
 
 of which, on its previous abandonment by the army, 
 the enemy had again taken possession. On the 20th 
 it was retaken, when it was found that the Spaniards 
 had severely punished the alleged defection of the 
 inhabitants for contributing to the supplies of the 
 patriot force during its stay. Xot expecting their 
 return, the Spanish proprietors of estates had brought 
 back their cattle, of which Cochrane captured about 
 500 head, besides 300 horses for the use of the Chilian 
 forces, the squadron thus supplying their wants instead 
 of remaining in total inaction. 
 
 By way of conciliating the admiral, San Martin 
 proposed to name the captured frigate the Cochrane, 
 as two vessels before had been named the San Martin 
 and O'Higgins; but to this he demurred, upon 
 which San Martin suggested Valdivia, to which the 
 admiral saw no objection. The Esmeralda conse- 
 quently became the Valdivia. 
 
 The command of the prize had been conferred upon 
 Captain Guise; and after her change of name, his 
 officers wrote a letter deprecating it, and alleging, 
 that as they had had nothing to do with the con- 
 quest of Valdivia, it ought to be withdrawn, and one 
 more consonant with their feelings substituted. This 
 letter was followed by marked personal disrespect 
 towards the admiral, from the officers who had signed 
 it, who made it no secret that the name of " Guise " 
 was the one sought to be substituted. 
 
 As the remarks made by these officers to others of 
 the squadron were of a derogatory nature as regarded 
 his character and authority, and likely to lead to
 
 296 THE PLOT THICKENS. 
 
 serious disorganization, Lord Cochraue brought the 
 whole of those who had signed the letter to a court- 
 martial, two of whom were dismissed the service, 
 and the remainder dismissed the ship, with a recom- 
 mendation to General San Martin for other appoint- 
 ments. 
 
 - During the time these officers were under arrest 
 Cochrane had made up his mind to attack the fortifica- 
 tions of Callao, intending to carry them by a coup dc 
 main, similar to that which had succeeded at Yaldivia, 
 and was convinced of the feasibility of the plan. , 
 
 On the 20th March, he notified this intention by 
 an order, stating that on the following day he should 
 make the attack with the boats of the squadron and the 
 San Martin, the crew of which received the order 
 with cheers, volunteers for the boats eagerly pressing- 
 forward from all quarters. But in place of preparing 
 to second the operations, Guise sent him a note 
 refusing to serve with any other but the ofllcers under 
 arrest stating that unless they were restored, he 
 would resign his command. The admiral's reply was, 
 that he would neither restore them nor accept his 
 resignation, without some better reason for it than the 
 one alleged. Guise answered, that his refusal to 
 restore his officers was a sufficient reason for his 
 resignation, whereupon the admiral ordered him to 
 weigh and proceed on a service of importance ; but 
 the order was disobeyed on the ground that he could 
 no longer act, having given over the command of the 
 ship to Lieutenant Shepherd. 
 . Seeing that a mutiny was being excited, and
 
 GUISE A>"D SPRY. 297 
 
 knowing that Captains Guise and Spry were at the 
 bottom of the mischief, Lord Cochrane ordered the 
 latter to proceed with the Galvarino to Chorillos, 
 when that officer also requested leave to resign, as his 
 friend Captain Guise had been compelled to do so. 
 Such was the state of mutiny on board the Galvariiio, 
 that the admiral deputed his flag-captain to restore 
 order, when Spry affected to consider himself super- 
 seded, and claimed exemption from martial law ; 
 upon which the admiral tried him by court-martial, 
 and he was dismissed from the ship. 
 
 The two captains immediately made their way to 
 head-quarters, and San Martin at once made Spry his 
 naval aide-de-camp, thus promoting him in the most 
 public manner for his disobedience to orders, and in 
 defiance of the sentence of the court-martial. 
 , Leaving the O'Higgins and Yaldivia at Pisco to 
 protect the troops, Cochrane shifted his flag to the 
 San Martin, and sailed for Callao, where he arrived 
 on the 2nd of April. On the 6th, he again attacked 
 the enemy's shipping under the batteries, and did 
 them considerable damage, but made no further 
 attempt to gain possession of them, the object being 
 to deter them from quitting their shelter. The San 
 Martin then returned to Pisco. 
 
 The general having given Cochrane discretionary 
 power to do what he pleased with the few troops 
 placed at his disposal, he determined on attacking 
 Arica. Abandoning Pisco, therefore, he re-embarked 
 the troops, and sailed on the 21st. On the 1st of 
 IMay he arrived off Arica, and sent a summons to the
 
 298 CA.PTUKE OF FOUJa BRIGS. 
 
 Governor to surrender, promising to respect persons 
 and personal property. This not being complied with, 
 an immediate bombardment took place, but without 
 any great effect. 
 
 After a careful survey, the San Martin was on the 
 6th May hauled nearer in shore, and some shells 
 were thrown over the town. As this had not the 
 desired effect, a portion of the troops landed at Sama, 
 to the northward of the town, being followed by 
 Colonel Miller with the remainder, and Captain Wil- 
 kinson with the marines of the San Martin ; when 
 the enemy fled, and the patriot flag was hoisted 
 on the batteries. A considerable quantity of stores, 
 and four Spanish brigs, besides the guns of the fort 
 and other artillery, was found here, besides a quan- 
 tity of European goods, belonging to the Spaniards 
 at Lima, all of which was seized and brought on board 
 the San Martin. 
 
 On the 14th Colonel Miller, with the troops and 
 marines, advanced to Tacna, and by the admiral's 
 directions took possession of the town, without oppo- 
 sition, two companies of infantry deserting the 
 royalist cause and joining the patriots. These were 
 ordered to form the nucleus of a new regiment, to be 
 called the " Tacna Independents." 
 
 Learning that the Spanish General Ramirez had 
 ordered three detachments from Arequipa, Puno, and 
 La Paz, to form a junction at Tacna, to carry into 
 effect the usual Spanish order to drive the insur- 
 gents into the sea Miller determined on attacking 
 them in detail. The Arequipa detachment, under
 
 TIIE SPANIARDS SUBDUED. 299 
 
 Colonel Hera, was fallen in with at Maribe, arid 
 immediately routed, the result being that nearly the 
 whole were killed or taken prisoners, together with 
 four hundred mules and their baggage. In this affair 
 the patriots lost a Mr. Welsh, an assistant surgeon, 
 who had volunteered to accompany the detachment. 
 
 Before this fight was over, the other detachments 
 from Puno and La Paz appeared in sight, and the 
 patriots had to face a fresh enemy. With his usual 
 promptness, Miller despatched Captain Hind, with a 
 rocket party, to oppose their passage of a river ; when, 
 finding that the Arequipa detachment had been de- 
 feated, they decamped. 
 
 The result of this and of the successive operations 
 was the complete submission of the Spaniards from 
 the sea to the Cordilleras, Arica forming the key to 
 the whole country. 
 
 General Kamirez was now actively engaged in 
 drawing men from distant garrisons to act against 
 this small force, which was suffering severely from 
 ague; but just at this juncture the governor of Are- 
 quipa informed the admiral that an armistice had 
 been ratified on the 23rd of May, for twenty days, 
 between San Martin and the viceroy Lacerna. 
 
 Being thus reduced to inaction, the admiral dropped 
 down to Molleudo, where he found a neutral vessel 
 shipping corn for Lima, which city had been reduced 
 to great straits owing to the rigorous blockade. Lima 
 was. in fact, on the point of being starved, whilst the 
 inhabitants foresaw that, although Sail Martin's army 
 was inactive, Cochrane's little band in the south
 
 300 E3TTEKS CALLAO. 
 
 would speedily overrun the provinces, which were 
 in favour of independence. On ascertaining this, 
 Cochrane wrote to the governor of Arequipa, express- 
 ing surprise that neutrals should be allowed to em- 
 bark provisions during an armistice. He received for 
 reply that the most positive orders should be given to 
 put a stop to it, upon which the admiral retired from 
 Mollendo, leaving an officer to watch. As the em- 
 barkation was continued, the admiral returned and 
 shipped all the wheat he could find on shore. In 
 consequence of which, Colonel La Hera, with 1,000 
 royalists, took possession of Moquega, on pretence 
 that the admiral had broken the armistice. 
 
 Convinced that there was something wrong at head- 
 quarters, Cochrane determined to proceed to Callao 
 for the purpose of learning the truth, leaving Colonel 
 Miller to return to Arica. 
 
 During Lord Cochrane's absence Lady Cochrane 
 had sailed for England, partly for the sake of her 
 health, but more for the purpose of obtaining justice 
 for her husband, who, in addition to the persecution 
 he had undergone, was now made subject to a 
 "Foreign Enlistment Bill," the enactments of which 
 were especially aimed at those who had engaged in a 
 service which had for its object the expulsion of Spain, 
 then in alliance with England, from her colonies in 
 the Pacific. 
 
 The interest excited in the welfare of this devoted 
 wife and heroic woman is thus recorded in the 
 ' Memoirs of General Miller ": ' 
 . " On the 25th, 600 infantry and 60 cavalry, all
 
 A HEROINE. 301 
 
 picked men, were placed under the command of 
 Lieutenant-Colonel Miller, who received directions to 
 embark on a secret service under the orders of Lord 
 Cochrane, and proceed to Huacho. On the day after 
 his arrival there, and whilst he was inspecting the 
 detachments in the Plaza, Lady Cochrance galloped 
 on to the parade to speak to him. The sudden 
 appearance of youth and beauty on a fiery horse, 
 managed with skill and elegance, absolutely electrified 
 the men, who had never before seen an English la.ly. 
 ' Que licrmosa! Que graciosa ! Quelinda! Que airosa ! 
 Es tin angel del cielo /' were exclamations which 
 escaped from one end of the line to the other. Colonel 
 Miller, not displeased at this involuntary homage to 
 the beauty of his countrywoman, said to the men, 
 'This is our generala ;' on which her ladyship, turn- 
 ing to the line, bowed to the troop?, who no longer 
 confining their expressions of admiration to suppressed 
 interjections, loud vivas burst from officers and men, 
 to which Lady Cochrane, smiling her acknowledg- 
 ments, cantered off the ground like a fairy." 
 
 The San Jfartin arrived at Callao on the 2nd of 
 Julv, when, learning that Lima was no longer tenable 
 from want of provisions, and that an intention existed 
 on the part of the viceroy to abandon the city, the 
 admiral withdrew to a distance from the port, awaiting 
 the result. 
 
 But having learnt on the 5th that an attempt wa* 
 being made by the viceroy to obtain a prolongation of 
 the armistice, he again entered the bny with the San 
 Jla/iin.
 
 302 EVACUATION OF LIMA. 
 
 On the 6th the viceroy quitted the city, retaining, 
 however, the fortresses at Callao, the garrison of 
 which was reinforced from the troops which had 
 evacuated Lima. 
 
 To the astonishment of all, no movement was made 
 by the liberating army to take possession of the 
 evacuated capital ; and as the Spanish troops were 
 withdrawn and no government existed, serious disor- 
 ders were anticipated. Under these circumstances, 
 application was made to Capt. Basil Hall, then in 
 command of the Comoay, for assistance to maintain 
 tranquillity and protect public and private property, 
 who immediately sent on shore a party of marines for 
 that purpose. 
 
 San Martin knew that the viceroy intended to 
 abandon the capital, and had entered the harbour in 
 the Schooner Sacramento, but gave no orders for its 
 occupation. On the 7th a detachment of cavalry, 
 without orders, entered Lima, and on the 8th were 
 followed by another detachment of infantry. 
 
 The forts at Callao being still in possession of 
 the enemy, Cochrane made preparations to attack 
 them, and destroy the shipping sheltered under them. 
 Aware of those intentions, the garrison, on the llth, 
 sank the San Sebastian, the only frigate left in the 
 harbour. On the following day, the O'Higgins, 
 Lautaro, Puyrredon, and Potrillo arrived, so that the 
 squadron was again complete. 
 
 The wheat which the admiral had shipped at 
 Mollendo being still on board the San Martin, and the 
 city in a state of famine, the general directed that it
 
 LOSS OF THE SAX MARTIX. * 303 
 
 should be landed at the Chorillos. As the ship 
 was deeply laden, the admiral objected to this from 
 the dangerous nature of the anchorage. His objec- 
 tion was, however, overruled, and the ship, as he 
 had anticipated, went ashore and became a total 
 wreck. 
 
 On the 17th, Lord Cochrane received an invitation 
 from the Cabildo to visit the city, and on landing he 
 found that preparations had been made to give the 
 visit the character of a public entry. Finding this to 
 be the case, he declined, especially as San Martin had 
 entered privately. He, however, held a levee at the 
 palace, where the compliments of the established 
 authorities and principal inhabitants were tendered 
 him. San Martin declined to attend this compli- 
 mentary manifestation. 
 
 On the 24th July Captain Crosbie, in obedience to 
 the admiral's orders, proceeded to Callao witli the 
 boats ; and on the following day brought out two 
 large merchantmen, and the sloop of war Resolution, 
 together with several launches ; burning, moreover, 
 two vessels within musket-shot of the batteries. 
 
 On the 27th, Cochrane received a written invitation 
 from the Cabildo, to be present at the proclamation of 
 the independence of Peru, couched in the following 
 terms : " Lima is about to solemnize the most august 
 act which has been performed for three centuries, or 
 since her foundation ; this is the proclamation of her 
 independence, and absolute exclusion from the Spanish 
 Government, as well as from that of any other foreign 
 potentate, and this Calildo, wishing the ceremony to
 
 304 INDEPENDENCE OF PERU. 
 
 be conducted with all possible decorum and solemnity, 
 considers it necessary that your excellency, who has 
 so gloriously co-operated in bringing about this 
 highly-desired object, will deign to assist at the act 
 with your illustrious officers, on Saturday, the 28th 
 instant." 
 
 Feeling, as he had an undoubted right to feel, that 
 himself and his officers had been mainly instrumental 
 in establishing the independence of Peru for the 
 captain-general had been deaf to every entreaty made 
 to him to move Cochrane's surprise and indignation 
 may be imagined when, at the ceremony, medals were 
 distributed, ascribing to General San Martin and tlie 
 army the whole credit of having accomplished that 
 which the squadron had achieved. 
 
 The inscription on the medals was as follows : 
 " Lima secured its independence on the 28th of 
 July, 1821, under the protection of General San 
 Martin and the liberating army." Ingratitude more 
 base can hardly be conceived, and the invitation 
 addressed to Cochrane and his officers under the cir- 
 cumstances was little better than a mockery. 
 
 The delight of the inhabitants of Lima at this 
 termination of centuries of Spanish misrule, and on 
 finding their independence fully recognized, as had 
 been stipulated, by Chili, was beyond description. As 
 a mark of gratitude, a deputation from the Calildo, 
 waited on San Martin, offering him, in the name of 
 the inhabitants of the capital, the first presidency of 
 their now independent state; but, to their surprise,' 
 they were curtly told that the general had already.
 
 PROTECTOR OF PERU. 305 
 
 taken the command, and intended to keep it as long 
 as he thought proper, whilst he would allow no 
 assemblies for the discussion of public matters. Thus 
 the first act of the freedom and independence so 
 ostentatiously paraded on the previous day was the 
 formation of a despotic government. 
 
 Lord Cochrane knew nothing of this assumption of 
 power, neither did he coincide in it ; but finding that 
 San Martin had dubbed himself Protector, he thought 
 it right to call upon him to redeem the promises he had 
 made to pay the squadron twelve months' wages and 
 50,000 dollars on his entering Lima. 
 
 The admiral accordingly landed on the 4th August, 
 and requested the general to devise means for liqui- 
 dating these debts. 
 
 San Martin answered, that " he would never pay 
 the Chilian squadron unless it was sold to Peru, 
 and then the payment should be considered part 
 of the purchase-money." Lord Cochraue replied, 
 that "by such a transaction the squadron of Chili 
 would be transferred to Peru by merely paying what 
 was due to the officers and crews for services done to 
 that state." San Martin now turned round to the 
 admiral, and said, " Are you aware, my lord, that I 
 am Protector of Peru?" "No," said his lordship. 
 ' I ordered my secretaries to inform you of it," re- 
 turned San Martin. " That is now unnecessary, for 
 you have personally informed me," said Cochrane. 
 " I hope that the friendship which has existed between 
 San Martin and myself will continue to exist between 
 the Protector of Peru and myself." San Martin then,
 
 306 TEMPTATION. 
 
 rubbing his^ hands, said, "I have only to say, that I 
 am Protector of Peru !" 
 
 The manner in which this last sentence was ex- 
 pressed roused the admiral, who said : " Then it be- 
 comes me, as senior officer of Chili, and, consequently, 
 the representative of the nation, to request the fulfil- 
 ment of all the promises made to Chili and the squadron; 
 but first and principally the squadron." San Martin 
 returned " Chili ! Chili ! I will never pay a single 
 real to Chili ! As to the squadron, you may take it 
 where you please, and go where you choose ; a couple 
 of schooners are quite enough for me." 
 
 San Martin paced the room for a short time, and, 
 turning to his lordship, said, " Forget, my lord, what 
 is past." The admiral replied, "I will, when I can," 
 and immediately left the palace.* 
 
 General San Martin, following him to the staircase, 
 had the temerity to propose to the admiral to imitate 
 his example, break faith with the Chilian Government, 
 and accept the higher grade of " First Admiral of 
 Peru." A proposition so base was declined in fitting 
 terms, when, in a tone of irritation, San Martin declared 
 that he would neither give the seamen their arrears 
 of pay, nor the gratuity he had promised. 
 
 On arriving on board the flagship, Cochrane found 
 an official communication, requesting him to fire a 
 salute in honour of San Martin's elevation to the 
 protectorate. 
 
 The request was complied with, in the hope that 
 quiet remonstrance might recall San Martin to a sense 
 * Stevenson's " Twenty Years' Residence in South America."
 
 DESTITUTION OF THE SQUADBON. 307 
 
 of duty to the Chilian Government, and on the 7th of 
 August Cochrane addressed him a letter couched in 
 friendly terms, and advising him to adopt a dignified 
 course of action, instead of usurping a power which 
 he could only wield at the expense of good faith. 
 
 To this letter, General San Martin replied eva- 
 sively on the 9th. He endeavoured therein to make it 
 appear that he had never guaranteed the payment of 
 any reward to the navy, except twelve months' pay, 
 and that he was employed in providing the means, and 
 also in endeavouring to collect the reward of 50,000 
 dollars which he, Lord Cochrane, offered to the sea- 
 men who should capture the Esmeralda, and that he 
 was not only disposed to pay these sums, but to 
 recompense valour displayed in the cause of the 
 country. 
 
 "But," said he, "you know, my lord, that the wages of 
 the crews do not come under these circumstances, and 
 that I, never having engaged to pay the amount, am 
 not obliged to do so ! That debt is due from Chili, 
 whose government engaged the seamen." 
 
 In this letter, San Martin attributed his usurpation 
 to a singular current of success, omitting to state that 
 he neither struck one blow nor devised one plan which 
 had led to it. He also repudiated all connection with 
 Chili, though he had sworn fidelity to the republic 
 as its captain-general. 
 
 In the mean while the squadron was in a state of 
 destitution. The provisions necessary for the sub- 
 sistence of the men were withheld, although the Pro- 
 tector had abundant means of supplying them. His 
 x 2
 
 308 EENEAVED TEMPTATION. 
 
 object, which soon became more apparent, was to 
 starve both officers and men into desertion, and thus 
 effect the dismemberment of the squadron which 
 Cochrane had refused to give up to his ambitious 
 views. 
 
 Concealing his resentment, and reflecting that the 
 forts of Callao were still in the hands of the Spaniards, 
 San Martin endeavoured to explain away the interview 
 with Lord Cochrane on the 4th of August, and 
 repeated, that the arrears due to the squadron should 
 be liquidated, as well as the rewards which had been 
 promised ; but as nothing of the kind was forth- 
 coming, the squadron began to show symptoms of 
 mutiny. 
 
 On the llth of August, Cochrane again wrote to 
 San Martin, apprising him of the increasing discontent 
 of the seamen, again requesting payment. To this 
 communication the Protector replied, on the 13th of 
 August, hinting that Lord Cochrane might reconsider 
 his refusal to accept the command of the contem- 
 plated Peruvian navy, and asserting that he was 
 unable to satisfy the claims of the seamen. This sub- 
 terfuge was too palpable, for it was well known lie had 
 money derived from the spoliation of the Spaniards. 
 
 Finding the admiral immovable, and determined 
 not to acknowledge his self-constituted authority, 
 and still less inclined to agree to measures which 
 would have robbed Chili of the navy, the " Protector " 
 issued a proclamation, again promising the payment 
 of arrears to the seamen, and a pension for life to the 
 officers who acknowledged themselves to be officers of
 
 OUTBIDDEN AT CALLAO. 309 
 
 Peru a direct invitation to the latter to desert from 
 the Chilian service. 
 
 But though he promised, not a penny of the arrears 
 and other emoluments was paid to the squadron. 
 
 The affairs of the squadron becoming every day 
 worse, and a mutinous spirit being excited from actual 
 destitution, Lord Cochrane endeavoured to obtain pos- 
 session of the castles of Callao by negotiation, offer- 
 ing the Spanisb commandant permission to depart with 
 two-thirds of the property contained in the fort, on 
 condition that the remainder, together with the forts, 
 should be given up to the Chilian squadron. His 
 object was to supply the crews with necessaries, which 
 the Protector continued to withhold. Large sums of 
 money and a vast amount of plate had been depo- 
 sited in the forts for security. A third of this would 
 have relieved the squadron from their embarrassments. 
 The vessels were in want of stores of every kind, 
 their crews unsupplied with animal food, clothing, or 
 spirits, and their only means of subsistence was upon 
 money obtained from the Spanish fugitives, whom the 
 admiral permitted to ransom themselves by surrender- 
 ing a third of their property. This appropriation,, 
 however, though absolutely necessary, was afterwards 
 trumped up as a charge against him. 
 
 As soon as this proposal to the Spanish commandant 
 became known to San Martin, he offered unlimited 
 and unconditional protection, both as to persons and 
 property, on purchase of letters of citizenship ! The 
 commandant, therefore, rejected Cochrane's proposal ; 
 and the hope of obtaining a sufficient sum for the pay-
 
 310 CAPTAIN BOBADIL 
 
 ment of the seamen and for refitting the ships was 
 at an end. 
 
 The Spanish army at Jauja, in the beginning of 
 September, spread an alarm in Lima. It appeared 
 that they were determined to attack the capital ; and 
 on the 5th of September a proclamation was issued at 
 head-quarters by the self-elected Protector, calling upon 
 the inhabitants of Lima to support his cause. 
 
 On the morning of the 10th, Lord Cochrane re- 
 ceived a letter from San Martin, informing him that 
 the enemy was approaching Lima, and requesting his 
 lordship to send the army every kind of portable arms 
 then on board the squadron, as well as the marines 
 and all volunteers, he, the Protector, being "determined 
 to bring the enemy to an action, and either conquer or 
 remain buried in the ruins of what was Lima." This 
 high-flown epistle was, however, accompanied by a 
 private one from Monteagudo, containing a request 
 that the boats of the vessels of war might be kept in 
 readiness to embark this Bobabil, and a look-out for 
 him to be placed on the beach of Boca Negra. 
 
 Lord Cochrane immediately landed, and pressed 
 forward to San Martin's camp, where, being recog- 
 nized, a murmur of congratulation was heard. General 
 Las Heras, acting as general-in-chief, saluting the 
 admiral, begged him to endeavour to persuade the 
 Protector to bring the enemy to action. His lord- 
 ship, on this, rode up to San Martin, and taking him 
 by the hand, in the most earnest manner entreated 
 him to attack the enemy without losing a single 
 moment.
 
 WON'T FIGHT. 311 
 
 The clamour of the officers at length roused San 
 Martin, who called for his horse and mounted. In a 
 moment all was bustle, and the anticipated glow of 
 victory shone in every countenance. The order to 
 arms was given, and instantly obeyed by the whole 
 army, amounting to about 12,000 men, including 
 guerillas, all anxious to begin the fight. 
 
 At this moment a peasant approached San Martin 
 on horseback, the general with most unparalleled com- 
 posure lending an attentive ear to his communications 
 as to where the enemy was the day before ! The 
 admiral, exasperated at so unnecessary a waste of 
 time, bade the peasant " begone," adding, " The gene- 
 ral's time is too important to be employed 'in listening 
 to your fooleries." At this interruption, San Martin 
 frowned on the admiral, and turning his horse, rode 
 up to the door of the house, where he alighted and 
 went in. 
 
 Lord Cochrane then requested a private conference 
 with San Martin which was the last time he ever 
 spoke to him and assured him that it was not even 
 then too late to attack the enemy, begging and en- 
 treating that the opportunity might not be lost, and 
 offering himself to lead the cavalry. But to this he 
 received the reply, " I alone am responsible for the 
 liberties of Peru." 
 
 On this the Protector retired to an inner apart- 
 ment of the house to enjoy his customary siesta, 
 which was disturbed by General Las Heras, who 
 came to receive orders, and recalled to the attention 
 of the Protector that the force was still under arms,
 
 312 EESULTS OF PUSILLANIMITY. 
 
 when San Martin ordered that the troops should 
 receive their rations ! 
 
 Thus General Cantarac, with 3,200 men, passed to 
 the southward of Lima within half- musket-shot of 
 the protecting array of Peru, composed of 12,000 
 entered the castles of Callao with a convoy of cattle 
 and provisions, where he refreshed and rested his 
 troops for six days, and then retired on the 15th, 
 taking with him the iclwle of tJie vast treasure depo- 
 sited therein by the Limenos, and leisurely retreating 
 on the north side of Lima. 
 
 Had not the Protector prevented the Spanish com- 
 mandant, La Mar, from accepting Lord Cochrane's 
 offer, a sum of not less than ten millions of dollars 
 would have been added to the resources of the re- 
 public. 
 
 Having failed in his endeavours to relieve the 
 necessities of the squadron, it was impossible to 
 keep the men any longer from mutiny ; for even the 
 officers began to desert to the Protectoral Govern- 
 ment. 
 
 Some short time previously Lord Cochrane had ou 
 board the flag-ship a portion of the money captured 
 at Arica, but as the Chilian Government, trusting to 
 Peru to supply the wants of the squadron, neither 
 sent funds nor provisions, he had been compelled to 
 expend the uncondemned portion of the prize-money 
 belonging to the seamen a necessity, which, no less 
 than their want of pay or reward, irritated them 
 beyond measure. In addition, he had been obliged 
 to disburse the uucondemned portion of other sums
 
 THE SEAMEX MUTINY. 313 
 
 taken on the coast, so that he was now destitute 
 of funds. 
 
 On the 2nd of September, Captain Delano, of the 
 Lautaro, wrote as follows : 
 
 " The officers as well as the men are dissatisfied, 
 having been a long time on the cruise, and at present 
 without any kind of meat or spirits, and without pay, 
 so that they are not able to provide for themselves 
 any longer, though, until starved, they have borne it 
 without a murmur. The ship's company have now 
 absolutely refused duty on account of short allowance. 
 The last cJiarqui (jerked beef) they got was rotten and 
 full of vermin. They are wholly destitute of clothing, 
 and persist in their resolution not to do duty till beef 
 and spirits are supplied, alleging that they have served 
 their time, with nothing but promises so frequently 
 broken that they will no longer be put oft'. 
 
 " The greater portion have gone ashore, so that, 
 under existing circumstances, and with the dissatis- 
 faction of the officers and the remainder of the ship's 
 company, I do not hold myself responsible for any 
 accident that may happen to the ship." 
 
 On Captain Delano sending his first lieutenant on 
 shore to persuade the men to return to the ship, that 
 officer was arrested by order of the Government and 
 put in prison, the Protector's object being to get all 
 the men to desert, thus furthering his views towards 
 the appropriation of the squadron. 
 
 The Galvarino being in a still worse condition, 
 the admiral addressed a letter to the ship's company, 
 begging them to continue at their duty till he could
 
 314 HELPS HIMSELT. 
 
 devise means for their relief ; notwithstanding which, 
 they persisted in their demands, and expressed their 
 determination not to proceed to sea. 
 
 On the 19th, the foreign seamen of the flag-ship 
 mutinied in a body, and wrote letters to Captain 
 Crosbie, expressing their determination not to lift an 
 anchor until their claims were settled. 
 
 Fortunately for Chili, an occurrence took place 
 which averted the threatened evil ; this was no other 
 than the shipment of large sums of money by the 
 Protector in his yacht Sacramento. This vessel had 
 discharged her ballast in order to enable her to stow 
 the silver. A merchant vessel in the harbour was 
 also similarly freighted, although the Lautaro frigate 
 was lying at the anchorage. This money had been 
 sent to Ancon, ostensibly for the purpose of placing 
 it in safety from any attack by the Spanish forces, 
 but, in fact, to secure it for the further purposes of 
 the Protector. The squadron having thus plain proof 
 that funds were in hand for the payment of the arrears, 
 the admiral, in order that the squadron should be no 
 longer defrauded and starved, proceeded to Ancon, 
 and seized the treasure in the presence of witnesses. 
 AH that professed to belong to private individuals, 
 and also the whole of that contained in the Protector's 
 yacht, considering it his private property, was re- 
 spected, although it could have been none other than 
 plunder wrested from the Limeiios. Besides the 
 silver, there were on board seven sacks of uncoined 
 gold, brought down on account by the Legate San 
 Martin. The admiral immediately made proclama-
 
 PAYMENT OF STAGES. 315 
 
 tion, that all private individuals, having the customary 
 documents, might receive their property upon applica- 
 tion, and considerable sums were thus given up. 
 Having returned all the money for which dockets were 
 produced, there remained 285,000 dollars, which was 
 applied to the payment of one year's arrears to every 
 individual of the squadron. Relying on the justice of 
 the Chilian Government, Cochrane took no part for 
 himself, but reserved the small surplus that remained 
 for the more pressing exigencies and re-equipment of 
 the squadron. 
 
 Accounts of the whole money seized were for- 
 warded to the minister of marine at Valparaiso, as 
 well as vouchers for its disbursement, and in due 
 course, Cochrane received the approbation of the 
 Chilian Government for the step he had taken. 
 
 San Martin entreated, in vain, for the restoration 
 of the treasure, promising the faithful fulfilment of 
 all his former engagements. Letter after letter was 
 sent, begging Lord Cochrane to save the credit of the 
 Government, and pretending that the money seized 
 was all the Government possessed for necessary daily 
 expenses. To this Cochrane replied, that had he been 
 aware the treasure spared in the Sacramento was the 
 property of Government, and not that of the pro- 
 tector, he would have seized it also, and retained it 
 till the debts due to the squadron had been liquidated. 
 Finding his arguments unavailing, San Martin had 
 the assurance to address a proclamation to the squad- 
 ron, confirming the distribution which was going on 
 by the admiral's orders, and writing to him that he
 
 316 PERUVIAN EMISSARIES. 
 
 might employ the money as he thought proper. Sub- 
 sequently, however, San Martin accused Lord Coch- 
 rane to the Chilian Government of seizing the whole 
 of the treasure, that in his yacht included ; and 
 asserted, that he had retained the whole belonging 
 to private individuals, all which charges he knew to 
 be most false. 
 
 Prior to distributing the money to the squadron, 
 Cochrane requested that a commissary of the Govern- 
 ment might be sent on board, to take part in the 
 payment of the crews; but this was not complied 
 with, under the expectation that his lordship would, 
 in case of refusal, place the money in his hands on 
 shore, when it doubtless would have been seized. 
 
 Annoyed beyond measure at his having taken 
 such steps to restore order in the squadron, the 
 Protector, on the 26th of September, sent on 
 board the ships of the squadron his two aides- 
 de-camp, Paroissien and Spry, with papers for dis- 
 tribution, stating that " the squadron of Chili was 
 under the command of the Protector of Peru, and 
 not under that of the admiral, who was an inferior 
 officer in the service ; and that it was consequently 
 the duty of the captains and commanders to obey the 
 orders of the Protector." One of these papers was 
 immediately brought to the admiral by Captain Simp- 
 son, of the Araucano, to whose ship's company it had 
 been delivered. These emissaries offered, in the name 
 of the Protector, commissions, honours, titles, and 
 estates to all such officers as might accept service 
 under the Government of Peru.
 
 TUB ADMIRAL HEEELS. 317 
 
 The envoys next proceeded to the Valdicia, where 
 similar papers \vere given to the men, and Captain 
 Cobbett \vas reminded of the preference which an 
 officer, for his own interests, ought to give to the 
 service of a rich state like Peru. Captain Cobbett 
 pertinently asked Spry whether, if his disobedience to 
 the admiral subjected him. to a court-martial, the 
 Protector's authority would ensure him an acquittal ? 
 
 Unfortunately for the emissaries, Captain Crosbie 
 was on board the Valdivia at this time, and on learn- 
 ing their errand, he pushed off to the flag-ship with 
 the intelligence. Observing this movement, the 
 envoys followed him, judging it more prudent to visit 
 Lord Cochrane voluntarily than to risk being com- 
 pelled. It is needless to say that the offers of the 
 emissaries made no impression upon the admiral, 
 except to confirm him in his resistance to San Mar- 
 tin's pretensions ; and that they retired, not a little 
 pleased at having escaped with liberty. 
 
 This, and other efforts, however, proved in the end 
 but too successful ; nearly all the officers abandoning 
 the Chilian service, together with the whole of the 
 foreign seamen, who were either driven by want, or 
 allured by promises of a year's additional pay, to 
 quit the ships, so that the squadron was half un- 
 manned. 
 
 It was now Lord Cochrane' s turn to mutiny. An 
 order was sent him to proceed to Chili ; but, as the 
 Protector had openly thrown off his allegiance to that 
 state, he felt he had no right to interfere with the 
 Chilian squadron. He was also instigated to the act
 
 318 SAILS FOE GUAYAQUIL. 
 
 by the circumstance that the Spanish frigates re- 
 mained at large, which rendered the object of his 
 mission incomplete. 
 
 Before going in quest of the latter, it was essen- 
 tial to repair and provision the ships, none of which 
 purposes could be effected in Peru, the Protector 
 not only having refused supplies, but having also 
 issued orders on the coast to withhold necessaries 
 of all kinds, even to wood and water. From want 
 of stores, none of the ships, the Valdivia not ex- 
 cepted, were fit for sea ; and, to complete her inef- 
 ficiency, the Protector refused to give up the anchors 
 which had been cut away from her bows at the time 
 of her capture. 
 
 Many of the officers had gone over to the service 
 of Peru, and the foreign seamen had been kept on 
 shore in such numbers, that there were not suffi- 
 cient left to perform the duties of navigating. The 
 admiral therefore resolved on sending part of the 
 squadron to Chili, and with the remainder proceed to 
 Guayaquil, to repair and refit. 
 
 The ships reached Guayaquil on the 18th of Octo- 
 ber, and were well received by the authorities. The 
 work of refitting occupied six weeks, the expenses, 
 which were heavy, being defrayed out of the uncon- 
 demned prize-money ; and to inspire the seamen with 
 the expectation that the Chilian Government would 
 reimburse them for their liberality, Lord Cochrane 
 added money of his own, on which they willingly con- 
 sented to the appropriation of that due to the squadron. 
 
 Before quitting the anchorage, Lord Cochrane was
 
 EOTTEX ASD LEAKY. 319 
 
 honoured with a public address, to which he replied 
 in a long letter, urging the patriots to persevere in 
 the good cause. 
 
 The necessity for pursuing the enemy's frigates, 
 precluded more than a temporary repair of the ships. 
 Nothing had been done to remedy the leak in the 
 hull of the 0' Higgins, as, from the rotten state of her 
 masts, it would have been unsafe to heave her down, so 
 that when she got in a sea-way she made six feet of 
 water a day. The patched-up ships quitted Guayaquil 
 on the 3rd of December, and coasted along the 
 shore. On the llth they reached Cocos Island, 
 where Lord Cochrane captured an English pirate, 
 and on the following day a felucca, the crew of which 
 had deserted from Callao. From the crew of the 
 latter Cochrane learned that, after his departure, San 
 Martin had refused to fulfil the promises by which he 
 had induced the foreign seamen to leave the Chilian 
 squadron, and that they had consequently been com- 
 pelled to seek their own living. As these men, though 
 clearly pirates, had committed no depredations, Lord 
 Cochrane suffered them to escape. 
 
 On the 14th the squadron made the coast of 
 Mexico, and on the 19th the G 1 Higgins anchored in 
 Fonseca Bay with five feet of water in the hold, the 
 chain pumps being so worn as to be useless. There 
 being no artificers on board to. repair the pumps, 
 the ship was only kept afloat by the greatest exer- 
 tions, and Lord Cochrane's manual skill in smith's 
 work was called into requisition to put the pumps in 
 order.
 
 320 DENOUNCED AS A PIHATE. 
 
 After three days' constant baling at tbe hatchways, 
 two pumps were obtained from the Taldivw ; but 
 these proving too short, Cochrane ordered holes to be 
 cut through the ship's sides, on a level with the berth- 
 deck, and thus managed to keep the ship clear till the 
 old pumps could be repaired. Xearly all the ammu- 
 nition was spoiled, and in order to preserve the dry 
 provisions, they were stowed in the hammock- 
 nettings. 
 
 A party of men from the other ships having been 
 transferred to the flag-ship to assist at the pumps, the 
 squadron quitted Fonseca Bay on the 2Sth, and on 
 the 6th of January, 1822, arrived at Tehuantepec. 
 
 On the 29th they anchored at Acapulco, at which 
 place they found the Araucano and Mercedes, the 
 latter having been sent on to gain intelligence of the 
 Spanish frigates. The Governor treated Cochrane's 
 squadron with civility, though not without fears that 
 an attempt would be made to seize some Spanish 
 merchantmen at anchor in the harbour. ' The fort 
 was consequently manned by a strong garrison, and 
 other preparations made in case of hostile demonstra- 
 tion. The fear was groundless, but it owed its origin 
 to false reports spread along the coast, to the effect 
 that Lord Cochrane had taken illegal possession of the 
 Chilian navy, and plundered vessels belonging to 
 Peru, and that he was then on a piratical cruise, 
 intending to ravage the coast of Mexico. 
 
 On the 2nd of February, a vessel arrived at 
 Acapulco, and reported the Spanish frigates to the 
 southward, whither, notwithstanding the unseawortby
 
 C-VPTUHES T1IE VE^GA^ZA. 321 
 
 state of the ships, Cochrane determined to proceed In 
 search of them. 
 
 Despatching the Independencia and Araucano to 
 California to purchase provisions, with instructions to 
 follow the other ships to Guayaquil, the O'Higgins 
 and consort ran down the coast, and when off 
 Tehuantepec, encountered a gale which threatened 
 their destruction. A sea struck the Valdicia and drove 
 in the timbers on her port side, so that she was only saved 
 from sinking by passing a sail over the damaged part. 
 
 On the 5th of March they anchored in the bay of 
 Tacames, and learned that the Spanish frigates had 
 some time before left for Guayaquil. On receipt of 
 this intelligence they pursued their voyage, and on 
 the 13th anchored off Guayaquil, where they found 
 one of the objects of their search, the Venganza. 
 
 Their reception was not so cordial as on the previous 
 occasion, two agents of San Martin having arrived 
 there in the mean, while, who, by promises, had gained 
 over the government to the Protector's interests. 
 Some attempts were made to annoy Lord Cochrane ; 
 but as, upon their manifestation, he laid the flag-ship 
 alongside the Venganza. civility was enforced. Th^ 
 Prueba and Venyanza, being short of provisions, had 
 been compelled, by his close pursuit, to put into 
 Guayaquil ; but the Prueba had again left for Callao 
 before Cochrane's arrival. Lord Cochrane then sent 
 Captain Crosbie on board the Venganza to take pos- 
 session of her, for Chili and Peru jointly. 
 
 His orders were to hoist the flag of Chili at the 
 peak of the Venganza. conjointly with that of Peru. 
 
 T
 
 322 HASTY EETEEAT. 
 
 This act gave great umbrage to the Guayaquil Govern- 
 ment. Gunboats were manned, breastworks erected, 
 and guns brought to the river-side ; the Spanish 
 sailors, who just before had sold their ship, from the 
 dread of having to fight, being extremely active in 
 these hostile demonstrations. 
 
 Upon this, the Valdivia was ordered to drop down 
 with the flood tide in the direction of the gunboats 
 which were filled with Spanish officers and seamen 
 upon which these heroes ran the boats ashore and 
 scampered off", not stopping till they had gained the 
 walls of the city. 
 
 The Junta, finding their warlike demonstration 
 treated with contempt, remonstrated with Cochrane 
 for taking possession of the Venganza, but without 
 effect. He, however, proposed such terms as were 
 most likely to be accepted and ratified by them. He 
 proposed that the Venganza should remain, as belong- 
 ing to the Government of Guayaquil, and hoist her 
 flag, which should be duly saluted, upon condition 
 that Guayaquil gave a bond to the Chilian squadron 
 of 40,000 dollars that the Venganza should not be 
 delivered to any government till those of Chili and 
 Peru had decided on what they esteemed most just. 
 The Government of Guayaquil was also bound to 
 destroy the Venganza rather than consent to her 
 serving any other state in the mean while. 
 
 This agreement having been signed, the Government 
 of Guayaquil addressed a letter to Lord Cochraue, 
 acknowledging the important services he had conferred 
 on the States of South America, and assuring him
 
 EETUENS TO CALLAO. 323 
 
 that Guayaquil would always be the first to honour 
 his name and the last to forget his unparalleled 
 achievements. Alas for their honesty ! no sooner 
 had he sailed from the port, than the Venganza was 
 given up to the agent of Peru, but the 40,000 dollars 
 were never paid. 
 
 On the 27th March they left the Guayaquil river, 
 and on the 29th fell in with Captain Simpson, of the 
 Araucano, whose crew had mutinied and taken the 
 ship from him. On the 12th of April they touched at 
 Guambucho for the purpose of watering, when, to 
 their surprise, the Alcalde produced a written order 
 from San Martin, telling him that if any vessel of war 
 belonging to Chili touched there, he was to deny 
 assistance of every kind ; but to this order no atten- 
 tion was paid. 
 
 The ships having taken on board whatever was re- 
 quired, and having repaired the Valdivia, sailed, on 
 the 16th, for Callao. They reached their port ou 
 the 25th of April, when Cochrane found the other 
 Spanish vessel, the Prueba, under Peruvian colours, 
 and commanded by the senior Chilian captain, who 
 had abandoned his squadron. The Prueba was imme- 
 diately hauled close under the batteries, with guns 
 housed, and ports closed, and so crammed with troops 
 that three died in one night from suffocation. These 
 steps had been taken to prevent her from sharing 
 the fate of the Esmeralda. To calm their fears, 
 Cochrane wrote to the Government that he had no 
 intention of taking her, otherwise he would have done 
 so at midday, in spite of all their precautions. 
 T 2
 
 324 OKDER, OF THE SU>~. 
 
 Lima was at this time in au extraordinary state, 
 there being no less than five different Peruvian flags 
 flying in the bay and on the batteries. The Protector 
 had issued a decree ordering that all Spaniards who 
 might quit the place should previously surrender half 
 their property to the public treasury, or the whole 
 should be confiscated, and the owners exiled. In the 
 midst of this national degradation, the Protector had 
 assumed the style of a Sovereign Prince, and had 
 established an order of nobility, under the title of 
 " The Institute of the Sun," the insignia being a 
 golden sun suspended from a white ribbon, the Chilian 
 officers who had abandoned the squadron coming in 
 for a full share as the reward of their compliance. 
 
 Those who had condemned Lord Cochraue's conduct; 
 in taking possession of the money at Ancon, now 
 admitted that he had adopted the only possible step 
 to preserve the squadron of Chili. The officers of the 
 liberating army told him deplorable stories of the state 
 of affairs; and the regiment of Xumautia, which had 
 deserted from the Spaniards soon after the capture of 
 the Esmemlda, sent an officer with a message, asking 
 him to receive them on board, and convey them to 
 Colombia, to which province they belonged. 
 
 Cochrane's appearance in the port of Callao caused 
 serious, though, as far as he was concerned, unneces- 
 sary alarm to the Government. He, however, sent in 
 a fresh demand on behalf of the squadron, and ani- 
 madverted strongly on the events which had taken 
 place at Guayaquil. Without replying to this by 
 letter, Monteagudo came off" to the O'Higgins, lament-
 
 THE PROTECTOR'S REYENGE. 325 
 
 ing that the admiral should have resorted to such 
 intemperate expressions, as the Protector, before its 
 receipt, had written him a private letter begging for 
 an interview ; but that on the receipt of his note he 
 became so indignant as to place his health in danger. 
 Monteagudo further assured his lordship that in that 
 letter he had made him the offer of a large estate, and 
 the decoration of the "Sun" set in diamonds, if he 
 would consent to command the united navies of Chili 
 and Peru, in a contemplated expedition to capture the 
 Philippine Islands, by which he would make an im- 
 mense fortune. This disgraceful overture was treated 
 with the contempt it merited. 
 
 Finding he could make no impression, and not liking 
 the scowl on the countenances of those on board, the 
 minister retired, accompanied by his military escort. 
 
 UETURN TO VALPARAISO. 
 
 [1822.] 
 
 In consequence of Lord Cochraue's refusal to com- 
 ply with the wishes of the Protector, Colonel Parois- 
 sien and another were despatched to Chili with a long 
 string of the most preposterous accusations, in which 
 he was accused of committing every species of crime, 
 from piracy to petty robbery, and calling on the 
 Chilian Government to visit him with the severest 
 punishment. 
 
 On the 8th of May, the schooner Jfontezunuf, 
 which had been lent to General San Martin by the 
 Chilian Government, entered Callao under Peruvian 
 colours. This insolence was too great for the admi-
 
 326 ABKIVAL AT VALPAEAISO. 
 
 ral's forbearance. He compelled her to anchor, 
 though not before firing upon her, then turned all 
 the officers ashore, and took possession of her. The 
 Protectoral authorities, by way of reprisal, detained a 
 boat belonging to the flag-ship, and imprisoned the 
 men. Sightly calculating, however, the consequences 
 of such a step, they soon set the crew at liberty, and 
 the boat was, on the same night, permitted to return 
 to the ship. 
 
 Heartily sick and tired of this contention, Lord 
 Cochrane took his final leave of Callao, and made 
 sail for Valparaiso, where he arrived the middle of 
 June, after an absence of a year and nine months, 
 during which the objects of the expedition had been 
 fully accomplished. 
 
 Lord Cochrane found on reaching Valparaiso, that 
 San Martin's agents had presented the Protector's 
 accusations against him to the Government at San- 
 tiago, though without effect, as Cochrane had taken care 
 to keep the authorities apprised of everything which 
 had transpired, and had exercised the most scrupulous 
 care in furnishing accounts of moneys and stores 
 taken from the Spaniards. 
 
 He announced his return, and briefly reported the 
 results of the expedition, enumerating his captures 
 and destruction, of which the following is a summary: 
 Prueba, 50 guns ; Esmeralda, 44 ; Venganza, 44 ; Reso- 
 lution, 34 ; Sebastiana, 34 ; Pesuela, 18 ; Potrillo, 16 ; 
 Prosperina, 14 ; Araucana ; seventeen gunboats ; the 
 armed ships Aguila and Begonia; the block ships at 
 Callao ; and many merchantmen.
 
 PLEASING BECEPTIOy. 327 
 
 The inhabitants of Valparaiso greeted him with 
 every manifestation of delight, nearly every house in 
 the place being decorated vrith the patriot flag, whilst 
 other demonstrations of national joy showed the 
 importance which the Chilian people attached to the 
 services which had been achieved, in spite of the 
 obstacles they well knew had been opposed. 
 
 On the 4th of June, he received letters of thanks 
 from the Minister of Marine, couched in the most 
 gratifying terms ; and in addition to this acknow- 
 ledgment of the services of the squadron, a decree 
 was issued commanding a medal to be struck in com- 
 memoration thereof. 
 
 San Martin, on the occupation of Lima, had, as 
 before observed, caused a medal to be struck, claiming 
 the success of the expedition for the army, which had 
 done little or nothing towards it leaving out all 
 mention of the services of the squadron; the Chilian 
 Government, on the other hand, gave the credit to the 
 squadron and omitted all mention of the army, which 
 remained under the standard of the Protector. 
 
 The squadron had been almost self-supporting, for 
 Lord Cochrane had raised a considerable revenue, for 
 which he had scrupulously accounted, by granting 
 licenses to the commanders and supercargoes of Bri- 
 tish vessels trading with Spanish ports. The duties 
 thus collected were for the most part in contraband 
 of war, while the compromise was received as a boon 
 by the British merchants, and highly approved of by 
 the British naval authorities. 
 
 San Martin, however, and others interested in a
 
 328 EENDEllS HIS ACCOUNTS. 
 
 line of policy -which in its prosecution was inimical to 
 the true interests of Chili, afterwards charged these 
 proceedings against Cochrane as " acts of piracy." 
 But the Chilian Government was well satisfied with 
 all the steps he had taken for provisioning and main- 
 taining the squadron, as well as with the seizure and 
 disposal of the public money at Ancon. 
 
 As he had not, however, received any official acknow- 
 ledgment of the accounts of the squadron, beyond 
 the general expression of entire satisfaction on the 
 part of the Government, he applied to the Minister 
 of Marine for a more minute investigation into their 
 contents, as, from the charges made against him by 
 San Martin, he was desirous that the most rigid in- 
 quiry should be forthwith instituted. On the 14th of 
 June, the Minister replied, 
 
 " The accounts of moneys applied by your excel- 
 lency in the necessary requirements of the vessels of 
 war under your command, which you conveyed to me 
 in your two notes of the 25th of May last, have been 
 passed to the office of the Accountant-General, for 
 the purpose indicated by your excellency." 
 
 Aware of the dilatory habits of the departments of 
 state, he did not deem this satisfactory; and being 
 engaged in preparing a refutation of San Mar- 
 tin's charges, his lordship again urged on the 
 minister to investigate the accounts without further 
 delay, when, on the 19th of June, he acknowledged 
 the specific items; at the same time declaring his 
 high consideration for the manner in which he had 
 made the flag of Chili respected in the Pacific.
 
 HIS ILL TREATMENT. 329 
 
 This was satisfactory so far; but, notwithstanding 
 tliis full acquittal, the Government of Chili refrained 
 from conferring either upon himself or the squadron 
 the smallest pecuniary recompense, or returning the 
 prize-money due to the officers and seamen, part of 
 which the ministry had appropriated. On further 
 pressing these claims year after year subsequent to his 
 departure from Chili, Lord Cochrane was informed, 
 sixteen years afterwards, that his accounts required 
 explanation. 
 
 His refutation of San Martin's accusations was 
 drawn up in the most minute manner, replying to 
 every charge seriatim, and bringing to light a multi- 
 tude of nefarious practices on the part of the Protec- 
 tor's Government which had been previously kept back. 
 
 The remaining portions of Lord Cochrane's ser- 
 vices in Chili were of a political and desultory charac- 
 ter. It was not surprising that in a country like 
 Chili and Peru, then in a transition stage, and in 
 which every ambitious man was seeking his own ends, 
 careless who suffered, a stranger and foreigner should 
 have been made the butt for the shafts of malice and 
 detraction by one party, and worshipped as an idol 
 by another. Cochraue boldly faced his enemies, and 
 resisted falsehood in every shape. Had he chosen to 
 play false by the Chilian Government, he might have 
 enriched himself to any extent. General San Martin 
 wanted only such an ally in order to convert Peru 
 into a permanent empire, and establish himself as its 
 king. He tempted and tried him in every possible 
 way. But cajolery and menaces, open and covert
 
 330 EEPHOACHED AND ROBBED. 
 
 opposition, failed alike to move him. Cochrane was 
 true as steel. He had sworn to serve the republic 
 of Chili, and he did so, fearlessly and honestly. 
 
 But who that has had any experience of infant 
 states or republics, expects that virtue like Coch- 
 rane's was rewarded ? In all such communities, 
 San Martins and Zentenos are sure to abound ; 
 and although, in the long run, integrity may be duly 
 appreciated, intrigue and deceit will pay best for the 
 time. 
 
 There is no knowing to what lengths the perse- 
 cuting spirit of Cochrane's enemies would have carried 
 them, had not another struggling state solicited 
 his assistance, and so removed him out of the way 
 of their machinations. He listened to Brazilian 
 overtures, and quitted the country after the most 
 astonishing career of success that ever graced a 
 modern warrior, a poor man rudely and unjustly dis- 
 possessed of an estate conferred upon him as a reward 
 for his services his name a term of reproach among 
 unprincipled foes, and robbed of the pecuniary com- 
 pensation which had been sacredly promised. Had 
 he been like those about him avaricious and unscru- 
 pulous this would not have been. 
 
 The storming of Valdivia, and cutting out of the 
 Esmeralda, were feats of which Nelson would have 
 been proud. The first is to be likened only to the 
 capture of Banda by Sir Christopher Cole, the second 
 to the recapture of the Hermione by Sir Edward 
 Hamilton actions which are admitted on all hands 
 to be naval chefs (Tceuvre.
 
 LEAVES FOR BRAZIL. 331 
 
 Much was owing to his prestige ; but more to his 
 unsurpassed firmness and good judgment. "With 
 materials of a questionable character, he effected 
 services which have never been outdone by disciplined 
 troops and ships' companies. 
 
 His name, however, is now cherished in the country 
 which he was so mainly instrumental in liberating 
 from the galling Spanish yoke, as a household word ; 
 and, for many ages to come, will be venerated as a 
 type of unflinching bravery and unexampled skill and 
 integrity. 
 
 The seizure of public money at Ancon, one of the 
 greatest offences alleged against him, was not only 
 an authorized proceeding, but an imperative one ; it 
 was the only means he could command likely to 
 preserve the squadron under his protection, from the 
 rapacity and villany of San Martin. He passed 
 through this phase of his adventurous life with 
 honour ; but we shall seek in vain for Ins reward. 
 
 SERVICES IN BRAZIL. 
 
 [1823.] 
 
 The new struggle, in which Lord Cochrane was 
 called upon to take a prominent and, as it proved, 
 vital part, was the attempt to free Brazil from Portu- 
 guese domination. On the expulsion of the royal 
 family of Portugal by the French army, in 180S, Don 
 John VI., it will be remembered, proceeded to Rio de 
 Janeiro, and established there his seat of government ; 
 but in 1821 the king returned to Lisbon, leaving
 
 332 THE REGENT MADE EMPEROR. 
 
 his son and heir apparent, Don Pedro, as regent of 
 the Portuguese dominions in Sonth America. 
 
 The example of Chili and Peru, probably, had 
 something to do with the events which took place at 
 Rio. There was a Brazilian party desirous of throw- 
 ing off the Portuguese yoke, as well as a royalist 
 party anxious for its continuance ; and as Don Pedro 
 was suspected of siding with the Brazilian section, 
 the Cortes issued instructions to the municipal autho- 
 rities to disregard the authority of the regent, and to 
 attend only to such directions as they should receive 
 direct from the Cortes. Don Pedro was thus vir- 
 tually deposed ; and an endeavour made to govern an 
 immense territory, some thousands of miles distant 
 from the parent country, without any regal represen- 
 tative. The Cortes, sitting at Lisbon, supposed that 
 their edicts would be sufficient to reach and control 
 a tract of country stretching from the Biver Plate to 
 the Amazon. The consequence of this absurdity was 
 an open rupture. This was brought about by an 
 attempt on the part of the Cortes to annihilate the 
 nationality of the Brazilians altogether, by uniting 
 the native with the Portuguese army ; and ended in 
 the declaration of their independence. 
 
 Don Pedro was at the same time declared Emperor; 
 but he refused to give his consent to the proceeding* 
 and made preparations for quitting the country. His 
 intention was, however, frustrated. The popular 
 leaders held a meeting at midnight, and agreed to an. 
 address intimating that his departure would be the 
 signal for throwing off all allegiance to Portugal, and
 
 PROTECTOK ASD DEFENDED. 333 
 
 forming a republic ; and Pedro was at length, in- 
 duced to accept the title from the Brazilian repre- 
 sentatives, of " Perpetual Protector and Defender of 
 Brazil." 
 
 The Cortes endeavoured to crush this movement by 
 main force. Troops and ships of war were despatched 
 to compel obedience ; and by resorting to these means 
 cut oil' every hope of reconciliation. Don Pedro, 
 natui-ally desirous to retain the country for the crown, 
 to which he was heir apparent, instead of permitting 
 it to fall to pieces as a republic, used every means in 
 his power to reconcile the Cortes to the step he had felt 
 compelled to take. But finding all his attempts vain, 
 he suffered himself to be led a step further, and to 
 accept the title of " Constitutional Emperor of 
 Brazil." 
 
 It was now necessary to be prepared to resist force 
 by force. Portugal was about to send ships and 
 troops to overcome the so-called rebellion ; and Pedro, 
 in self-defence, collected the best squadron and troops 
 he was able, and called Lord Cochrane to assist him 
 by taking command of the former. Six months after 
 the declaration of independence, Lord Cochrane, toge- 
 ther with a number of valuable officers and seamen, 
 several of the former holding commissions in the 
 British navy, who had volunteered to accompany 
 him, arrived at Kio de Janeiro. 
 
 The imperial invitation to join the Brazilian service, 
 had been conveyed through the consul of Buenos 
 Ayres, at the request of Bonifacia de Audrado, prime 
 minister, and gave a distinct promise jthat Lord Coch-
 
 334 APPOINTED FIEST ADMIEAL. 
 
 raiie should receive a full equivalent for the Chilian 
 appointment which he then held. 
 
 On his arrival at Bio, however, on the 13th of 
 March, attempts were made to put him off with 
 an inferior rank and lower rate of pay, which he, of 
 course, resisted. 
 
 The point was eventually settled in his favour, and 
 Lord Cochrane became " First Admiral and Comman- 
 der-in-chief of the Brazilian squadron," with a salary 
 of 11,520 milreis per annum, at sea or on shore, and 
 5,720 milreis table-money, when embarked ; and 
 although attempts were subsequently made to render 
 his position contingent upon the duration of hostilities, 
 the original engagement was never really superseded. 
 
 The squadron of which he was appointed first 
 admiral, consisted of the Pedro Primeiro, dignified as 
 a 74-gun ship, but in fact a 64, on two decks, a 
 fine roomy ship, in reasonably good condition, vic- 
 tualled and stored for four months. 
 
 Another was the Maria da Gloria, of 32 guns, 
 24-pouuder carronades and short 18-pounders, built 
 in North America for the Chilian republic, who 
 failing to pay the price demanded, the builders sold 
 her to the Brazilians. 
 
 The Piranga was a fine frigate armed with long 
 24-pounders. Lord Cochrane hoisted his flag in the 
 Pedro Primeiro, his old flag-captain Crosbie accom- 
 panying him. The Piranga was commanded by Cap- 
 tain Jowett, and the Maria da Gloria by a French 
 officer, Captain Beaurepaire. Two or three other 
 vessels were subsequently added.
 
 ODDS AGAINST HIM. 335 
 
 "With the above - mentioned three ships, Lord 
 Cochrane sailed from Rio on the 4th April. It is 
 hardly necessary to say that the crews of the men-of- 
 war were of a very inferior description, composed of 
 men of all nations and colours, for they were very 
 badly paid when paid at all. 
 
 Cochraiie had 130 black marines, just emancipated 
 from slavery, on board his flagship, and 160 British 
 and American seamen upon whom he could aloue 
 place any dependence. 
 
 The Portuguese squadron with which he had to 
 contend comprised one liue-of-battle-ship, five frigates, 
 five corvettes, a brig, and schooner, and this force 
 Cochrane discovered, on his arrival off the coast of 
 Bahia, drawn up in line ready to receive him. The odds 
 against him were too great to warrant his bringing on 
 a regular action ; but he manoeuvred so as to cut off 
 the four rearmost ships, and would, no doubt, have cap- 
 tured some of them ; but after effecting the evolution of 
 breaking the line, he found himself alone ! The Pedro 
 had no one to share her glory, or, what might have 
 been of greater importance, render assistance. Sig- 
 nals were hoisted for them to come down, but the 
 flags might as well have remained in the signal-lockers. 
 The Pedro continued for a time blazing away with 
 evident effect at the frigates separated from the main 
 body, when suddenly the guns ceased firing. The 
 cause of the cessation was quickly inquired into, when 
 it was found that two Portuguese seamen, who had 
 been stationed to hand up powder, had withheld the 
 supply, and made prisoners of the powder-boys.
 
 336 WEETCHED EQUIPMENT. 
 
 Thus alone and among traitors, Cochrane felt that 
 he ought not to persist in following up the enemy, 
 but rather to consult his own safety, and therefore 
 hauled to the wind, and made sail to rejoin his recreant 
 consorts. He had in fact put to sea with ships 
 manned by men so disaffected that their commanders 
 could not induce them to obey orders, and had some 
 difficulty in preventing them from taking the ships 
 into Bahia. The cartridges were so dangerous to 
 use, owing to their casing, that the admiral was 
 obliged to cut up old flags to render them serviceable, 
 and the guns were without locks. The sails were 
 rotten ; every moderate breeze of wind caused heavy 
 work for the sail-maker ; in fact, no man ever had 
 worse materials to work with. The discipline was 
 upon a par with everything else. The marines knew 
 nothing of the gun exercise, and very little of the use 
 of small arms, yet had so lofty an opinion of their 
 importance, that they considered it beneath their 
 dignity to wash the decks. 
 
 Leaving the Piranqa and another ship to blockade 
 Bahia, Cochrane, taking with him the Maria da 
 Gloria and the worst of the ships, proceeded to Moro 
 San Paulo where he left the least efficient vessels to 
 be converted into fire-ships, taking the best of the 
 men into his own ship. He then resumed the 
 blockade of Bahia, and succeeded in cutting off all 
 their supplies. 
 
 On the 26th of May the Portuguese admiral again 
 made his appearance, but although his force was so 
 superior, evinced no desire to bring on an action.
 
 A NIGHT EECOyXAISSASCE. 337 
 
 Cochrane, knowing by experience the materials he had 
 to work with, did not feel justified in taking the 
 initiative, and after some fe\v menaces on the part of 
 the Portuguese admiral the squadron anchored in the 
 harbour of Bahia on the 2nd of June. This was what 
 Cochrane wanted. His fire-ships and an explosion- 
 vessel had been prepared, and he hoped soon to wit- 
 ness a repetition of the Aix Roads affair. He was, 
 however, rather startled at hearing that the fire-ships 
 preparing at Moro San Paulo were about to be attacked 
 by the Portuguese ; but tin's design, if it was ever 
 seriously intended, was soon abandoned. The next 
 report was that the Portuguese would not wait to be 
 burnt at Bahia, but that they would evacuate the port. 
 In the mean while, Cochraue determined to make a 
 night reconnoissance with the flag-ship alone ; and, 
 accordingly, on the 12th June, having previously 
 taken the bearings of the high lands at the entrance 
 to the river, he stood in shortly after dusk, and taking 
 the top of the flood-tide, arrived within hail of the 
 outermost ship. The wind failing, and the ebb-tide 
 beginning to make, Cochrane was unable to do as 
 much as he wished. He threaded the outermost 
 ships, and was repeatedly hailed, but answering " an 
 English vessel " he for the time lulled suspicion. 
 Having observed enough to convince him that there 
 would be no difficulty in destroying the Porti;. 
 ships, huddled together as they were, he suffered the 
 Pedro to drop down with the tide, checking her occa- 
 sionally with a stream anchor out abaft, and recrossed 
 vhe bar in safety.
 
 338 THE ALAKM SPEEADS. 
 
 j^ext day the fact of bis visit became known in 
 Bahia, and gave rise to a general panic. The admiral 
 on tbe 29tb, learnt tbat tbe consequent intention was 
 to embark the troops on board the squadron, and 
 proceed to Maranbam, thereby abandoning the city to 
 the Brazilians. 
 
 It is as well to state, in this place, that all the 
 southern provinces had already declared for the em- 
 peror ; but the northern districts, including Bahia, 
 Marauham, and Para, \vere still occupied by Por- 
 tuguese troops. If, therefore, this step were taken, 
 Murunham and Para, would alone remain in the direct 
 interest of the Cortes. 
 
 This proceeding was actually taken. On the 2nd 
 July the whole Portuguese force, naval and military, 
 quitted the river and stood out to sea, accompanied by 
 sixty or seventy armed transports and merchant ships, 
 in which a great number of Portuguese families with 
 their property had embarked. The ships of war num- 
 bered thirteen sail ; and as Cochrane, at the time, 
 had no other force beside his own ship and the Maria 
 da Gloria, he was not in a position to make a 
 regular attack ; but resolved, nevertheless, to harass 
 their rear. In order to prevent the merchant ships 
 from leaving the coast of Brazil, Cochrane resorted to 
 the plan of boarding them, and cutting away their 
 main and mizen masts, so that they should only be 
 able to sail before the wind. 
 
 On the 3rd, the admiral was joined by the Carolina, 
 Nitlierohy, and Colonel Allen, and leaving this rein- 
 forcement to deal with the merchant ships, Cochrane'
 
 HARASSES THE EXEMY. 339 
 
 in the Pedro followed the war-ships. This temerity 
 on his part greatly annoyed the Portuguese squadron ; 
 and, on the 4th, they angrily turned round upon their 
 pursuer, and endeavoured to hem her in with the 
 laud. But Cochrane was too good a seaman, and his 
 ship too well handled for his less accomplished foes. 
 He succeeded in weathering the Portuguese admiral, 
 and the ktter, finding himself foiled, gave up the pur- 
 suit and resumed his course, after wasting several 
 broadsides. The Pedro Primeiro did the same that 
 is, Cochrane resumed his chase of the thirteen war 
 ships ; and, moreover, the same night after dark? 
 made a dash in among them, firing both broadsides. 
 He then boarded some of the smaller ships, cut away 
 their topmasts, disabled their rigging, threw their arms 
 overboard, and compelled the officers to give their 
 parole not to serve against Brazil until regularly 
 exchanged. 
 
 On the night of the 5th the Gran Para, a Eussian 
 transport, was boarded and disabled in a similar 
 manner. Shortly afterwards six large ships detached 
 themselves from the convoy, and Cochraue being 
 desirous to know the reason, made sail after them. 
 Next morning he closed with the convoy, and singling 
 out a large frigate-built ship filled with troops, 
 opened fire upon her until she brought to. 
 
 The stranger was a large transport containing a 
 detachment, a part of several thousand troops bound 
 to Marauhain. Lieutenant G-renfell, who boarded the 
 transport, took possession of the private signals and 
 instructions given by the Portuguese admiral, by 
 z 2
 
 340 A PAETIXG SALUTE. 
 
 which Lord Cochrane learut that the transports were 
 bound to Maranbain ; and, as it was important to pre- 
 vent these troops from reaching their destination, lie 
 ordered their main and mizen masts to be cut away, 
 arms and ammunition to be thrown overboard, took 
 possession of the regimental flags, and compelled the 
 officers to give their parole not to serve against 
 Brazil. The remaining five transports were treated 
 in the same way, for it would have been madness to 
 have attempted to make so many men prisoners. 
 
 The Baliia, Captain llaydon, shortly afterwards 
 hove in sight, upon which the admiral ordered four of 
 the troop-ships to be seized, and taken to Pernambuco. 
 The Pedro then resumed her chase of the Portuguese 
 squadron, and continued to follow them to 5 degrees 
 north latitude; when having split the mainsail in 
 tacking, Lord Cochrane considered it prudent to 
 look to his own safety. On the 16th at 3 A.M., 
 however, he made one of his usual nocturnal visits, 
 and poured a parting broadside at half-musket shot 
 distance, into one of their frigates with evident effect. 
 
 Having thus chased the Portuguese squadron off 
 the coast, Lord Cochrane determined to proceed at 
 once to Maranham, where he arrived on the 26th. 
 The Portuguese admiral's instructions had made him 
 acquainted with the fact that reinforcements would be 
 expected at that port ; and Cochrane therefore hoisted 
 Portuguese colours. The authorities, completely 
 thrown off their guard by this ruse, sent off the Don 
 Miguel, a brig of war, to the Pedro Primeiro, with 
 despatches and congratulations upon the safe arrival
 
 RUSE DE GUERRE. 341 
 
 of the presumed friend, and the deceit was not dis- 
 covered until Captain Garcao, the Portuguese com- 
 mander, stood on the deck of Lord Cochrane's flag- 
 ship, and had delivered his message and letters. 
 The latter put Lord Cochrane in possession of the 
 plans and intentions of the enemy, and acquainted 
 him with the fact that some reinforcements had 
 already arrived. Garcao' s surprise and chagrin may 
 be conceived at finding himself trapped, but Lord 
 Cochrane offered to release him upon condition that 
 he would be the bearer of a sealed despatch to the 
 governor and junta of the city. Before leaving, Lord 
 Cochrane duly impressed upon the mind of the 
 Portuguese commander, that the flag-ship was the 
 precursor of a large squadron ; and that a fleet of 
 transports filled with troops which the flag-ship had 
 outsailed were in the offing, and would in a short 
 time land an army in the town. The Portuguese, 
 captain was fully convinced of the truth of this well- 
 told and perfectly excusable fable ; and was therefore 
 ready to confirm the statements similar to the above 
 which were embodied in Cochrane's sealed letter. 
 
 The effect was astounding. Already news had 
 reached of the evacuation of Bahia, and, considering 
 all lost, the Portuguese faction made conditional 
 proposals of capitulation. But as conditional pro- 
 posals would not suffice, they were returned; and the 
 Pedro Primeiro entered the narrow river Maranhao, 
 which had never before been navigated by a line-of- 
 battle ship, and anchored off the fort. 
 
 The next day. 27th July, the junta, accompanied by
 
 342 CAPTT7BE OP MAEANHAM. 
 
 the bishop, arrived on board Lord Cochrane's ship, 
 and gave in their unconditional adhesion to the 
 Brazilian empire. The hesitation at first manifested 
 was removed by a shot which Cochrane ordered to be 
 fired over the town, after which all his demands were 
 complied with, and the city, forts, and island, were all 
 surrendered. Lieutenant Grenfell then landed, took 
 possession of the fort, and substituted Brazilian for 
 Portuguese colours. A party of marines also landed 
 in the town for the preservation of order. 
 
 " Thus," wrote Lord Cochrane, " without military 
 force or bloodshed, was a second great province secured 
 to the empire, neither result being anticipated, nor 
 even contemplated, in the orders communicated to 
 me, which were to blockade the Portuguese in Bahia, 
 and capture or destroy all ships met with ; anything 
 beyond this not having entered the imagination of the 
 government." 
 
 Cochrane immediately issued instructions to the 
 civil authorities to make the necessary proclamations 
 of independence, and published, as the First Admiral 
 of Brazil, an address to the inhabitants of Maranham. 
 
 Liberty was with seeming liberality accorded to 
 the Portuguese garrison to remain or leave as they 
 pleased, with the honours of war, and the officers and 
 men belonging to the vessels taken possession of were 
 offered the option of entering the service of Pedro I., 
 or of leaving with the garrison. 
 
 The declaration of independence was accordingly 
 made on the 28th July, amidst the acclamations of the 
 populace generally those dissenting taking care to
 
 TILE EUSE SUSPECTED. 343 
 
 absent themselves from the ceremony. Xaturally so- 
 licitous to get the Portuguese troops away before the 
 ruse was found out, Cochrane hastened their embarka- 
 tion by providing ships for their reception. His 
 instructions succeeded, and some of the troops em- 
 barked ; but the 1st August having arrived, and none 
 of the promised Brazilian transports of troops, the 
 deception began to be suspected. Their unwilling- 
 ness to depart was, however, quickened by the 
 knowledge that the flag-ship's guns were pointed at 
 the transports, which by this time wore nearly full of 
 troops, and by the assurance that unless the terms of 
 the treaty were instantly fulfilled, they would be sunk. 
 Captain Crosbie at the same time landed with a party 
 of men and disarmed some troublesome militia. The 
 transports eventually put to sea on the 20th. 
 
 A large amount of government and public property 
 was seized in conformity with the proclamation ; and 
 the brig-of-war Don Miguel, a schooner, and eight 
 gun-boats were added to the Brazilian navy. The 
 merchant vessels appropriated to the conveyance of the 
 garrison to Lisbon were also prizes, but the captors 
 were never paid for them. 
 
 Lord Cochraue then [reported the result of his 
 almost incredible success to the Minister of Marine. 
 
 Para was now the only province under the authority 
 of Portugal, and before the prestige arising from his 
 acquisition of Maranham faded away, he commissioned 
 the Don Miguel under a new name of Maranhao, 
 gave the command of her to Lieutenant Grenfell with 
 the rank of captain, and despatched him to Para with
 
 3-44 EKEAKIKG FAITH. 
 
 a summons to the junta and garrison to surrender. 
 Grenfell was authorized to keep up the threat of the 
 large reinforcements winch were forthcoming, and was 
 directed, if possible, to obtain possession of a new 
 frigate just launched at that place intended for the 
 service of Portugal. 
 
 In the mean time, the First Admiral had some 
 difficulty to restrain the junta in order, which he had 
 restored to power. They instituted a claim to the 
 Portuguese property seized, demanding that it should 
 be placed at their disposal. This demand was, how- 
 ever, resisted ; but, as it was repeated, Cochrane 
 ordered the property in dispute to be placed aboard 
 two of the captured vessels, and taken to Rio for 
 adjudication. But as this course would upon recon- 
 sideration have weakened his force, already too much 
 reduced by manning the MaranJiao, he directed the 
 whole to be converted into money, and the amount 
 remitted to the imperial government. The aggregate 
 amount was several millions of dollars, all of which by 
 a decree of the llth December, 1822, promulgated 
 for the express purpose of inducing foreign seamen 
 to volunteer, as a matter of right belonged to the 
 captors ; but the stipulation, as the sequel shows, 
 was ruthlessly disregarded. 
 
 Captain Grenfell's mission was eminently success- 
 ful. The new frigate was in his possession, together 
 with another vessel of war; and he also captured 
 several merchant-vessels which he sent to Eio. He 
 had carried out his instructions admirably. The 
 phantom transports had been most effective; and
 
 MABQUIS OF MAHAXIIAJI. 345 
 
 Para also was added to the empire. The only blood 
 drawn was from Grenfell himself, who was stabbed by 
 a cowardly assassin on the discovery of the deceit 
 which had been practised. 
 
 Lord Cochrane now thought it time to return to 
 Eio de Janeiro ; but not wishing to allow the junta of 
 Maranham to know his destination, he gave out that 
 he should leave on the 9th September for Para. He 
 was, however, delayed by the misgovern ment of the 
 junta till the 20th, when he finally left the river. 
 
 HIS RETURN. 
 
 [1823 -5.] 
 
 The Pedro Primeiro, after her extraordinarily 
 eventful cruise, arrived at Rio de Janeiro on the 9th 
 November, after an absence of six months. The 
 news of Cochrane's wonderful successes had preceded 
 him, and honours had been awarded and complimen- 
 tary addresses without end composed on the occasion. 
 He was created Marquis of Maranham. On the 
 arrival of the ship the emperor went on board to 
 welcome the " First Admiral, " and his every act 
 received imperial approval. But a change had come 
 over the government, and Lord Cochrane found 
 himself under the direction of the party which, from 
 the outset, had been most hostile to his appointment. 
 Instead, therefore, of reaping the rewards and ob- 
 taining the prize-money guaranteed by royal procla- 
 mation, he found every opposition thrown in his path. 
 
 The proportion of the prize property captured at 
 Maranham due to the flag-ship alone was 121.1<>:i
 
 346 PEIZE TRIBUNAL. 
 
 sterling, exclusive of the captures made by the 
 squadron generally. The admiral requested that this 
 might be paid. The emperor gave directions that his 
 request should be complied with ; but the prize 
 tribunal appointed, consisting of thirteen Portuguese, 
 delayed and resisted the appeal. Overtures were 
 made to Cochrane, that if he would forego the claims 
 of those under his command, his personal share would 
 be paid. That they failed may be readily conceived. 
 The squadron up to that time had received no pay, 
 and the payment of three months' wages was offered 
 to them. This was refused. And now his enemies 
 attempted to subvert his authority, and trumped up 
 every sort of false accusation their fertile imagination 
 could conceive. The prize tribunal came to the deter- 
 mination to deprive the captors of their lawful due, by 
 declaring the ships of war droits to the crown, thereby 
 ignoring the proclamation of the 22ud December. 
 
 The Marquis of Maranham was made a privy coun- 
 cillor ; but what availed that distinction, while his 
 officers and men were penniless ? Disgusted and dis- 
 heartened by the faithless ingrates whom he had only 
 too well served, he was at length driven, in March, 
 1824, to tender his resignation. His offer was met by 
 explanations, promises, and evasions, but no money. 
 
 On the 24th May, Captain Grenfell arrived in the 
 new frigate, which he had so cleverly captured at 
 Para, and had named the Imperatrice. In place of 
 being thanked, a sum of 40,000 dollars, which he 
 had on board, was forcibly taken out of the ship by 
 the government during his absence, while reporting
 
 GRENFELL THREATENED WITH ARREST. 347 
 
 his arrival to Lord Cochrane. Grenfell was also 
 ordered to be placed in arrest, and the First Admiral 
 directed to do the work of a provost-marshal by 
 executing the warrant; which he, of course, indig- 
 nantly refused to undertake. The offence alleged 
 against this meritorious officer, who subsequently 
 became an admiral in the service,* arose out of his 
 firmness in repressing some seditious proceedings on 
 the part of the Portuguese faction at Para. Grenfell, 
 however, evaded his persecutors. 
 
 Pedro was powerless, though well disposed. He 
 was a mere tool in the hands of the reigning faction ; 
 and his decrees were waste paper. Insult of every 
 description was showered upon Cochrane, notwith- 
 standing the countenance and support given him by 
 the emperor. An attempt was even made to search 
 the flag-ship for certain treasure, which Lord Cochrane 
 was falsely reported to have concealed on board. 
 
 At length, the services of the squadron were again 
 in request to quell disturbances which had broken out 
 at Pernambuco. But the men could not be asked to 
 lift an anchor while their arrears were unpaid. The 
 emperor at this juncture offered 200,000 milreis in 
 paper currency, which was about a tenth part of the 
 prize-money clue. The admiral finding he could get 
 no more, consented to accept this instalment ; and 
 immediately issued a proclamation to the seamen, 
 acquainting them with the emperor's concession. 
 
 * This gallant officer, now Admiral Grenfell, as the Bra- 
 zilian minister, attended the funeral of the earl.
 
 34-8 BECOMES A PACIFICATOB. 
 
 The consequence \vas, the return of all who had not; 
 quitted the country in despair. The money was duly 
 distributed by the admiral and his officers ; and. on 
 the 2nd August, the imperial squadron sailed for 
 Pernnmbuco, where they arrived on the 19th. Under 
 the threat of a, bombardment the revolt was sup- 
 pressed and order restored, after which Cocbrane left 
 for Bahia, from whence he returned to Pernambuco. 
 He had now become the pacificator. Every province 
 was more or less disturbed ; but the appearance of the 
 squadron was the signal for quiet. 
 
 It is truly sickening to think that all this service 
 was unrequited, or requited only by insult and oppo- 
 sition. Xow and then reports that large expeditions 
 were on their way from Portugal to reconquer the 
 country, induced his persecutors and detractors to 
 forego their annoyance ; but no sooner did the danger 
 vanish, than they were as bad as before. " Mercenary" 
 and " robber" were common terms applied to him ; 
 although, had he been either, he would have had very 
 little difficulty in filling his own coffers, and in pro- 
 viding for the wants of those under his command. 
 His scrupulousness was his fault, in fact. The 
 National Assembly awarded him thanks in abundance, 
 and the emperor lost no opportunity of doing him 
 honour ; but he had enemies who were paramount, 
 and bent on his destruction. 
 
 He now determined, a second time, to relinquish a 
 position which was both onerous and unprofitable ; 
 and on the 1st January, 1825, placed his appointment 
 at the disposal of the emperor ; but the government
 
 11ETUBNS TO ENGLAND. 340 
 
 could not afford to lose services so valuable in the still 
 disturbed state of tbe provinces. He therefore again 
 visited the various parts of the disturbed districts, 
 until his health broke down under such continual 
 work and anxiety, aggravated by the ingratitude of his 
 employers. After disbursing a first instalment of prize- 
 money among the crews of the different ships, he 
 shifted his flag to the Piranga, despatched the Pedro 
 Primeiro to Eio, and sailed for a northern latitude for 
 the recovery of his strength. During his absence 
 from England a foreign enlistment bill especially 
 aimed at Lord Cochrane had been passed; but not- 
 withstanding its threatenings, the defects of the 
 Piranya and her want of provisions were such, that he 
 considered it necessary to proceed to Portsmouth, and 
 be accordingly anchored at Spithead on the 24th June, 
 in the hope of obtaining supplies. 
 
 Shortly after his arrival at that anchorage, which he 
 duly reported to the Brazilian envoy, he received a 
 letter from that functionary stating that a report was 
 iu circulation that he, Lord Cochraue, had accepted 
 the command of the Greek navy, and requesting to 
 know whether there was any truth in the rumour. 
 
 Lord Cochrane, in reply, acquainted the envoy that 
 that command had been offered him while in Brazil, 
 and that subsequently to his arrival in England the 
 offer had been renewed by the Greek Committee at 
 Portsmouth, but that it was not his intention to 
 accept it until his relations with Brazil were 
 honorably concluded. This reply was no doubt in- 
 tentionally misconstrued, for the envoy wrote again
 
 350 OEDEEED TO EETUBJT TO ETO. 
 
 expressing "his regret" at the circumstance of bis 
 having quitted the service of his august sovereign. 
 Lord Cochrane answered, stating that his previous 
 letter had been misunderstood ; when, acting on some 
 correspondence he had received from Rio, the 
 Chevalier Gameiro, the Brazilian envoy, gave him 
 peremptory directions to return immediately to Rio, 
 to give an account of some proceedings at Maranham. 
 Previously to this, however, the Chevalier had written 
 to the first lieutenant of the Piranga, Mr. Shepherd, 
 informing him officially, that Lord Cochrane " had 
 retired from the service. " 
 
 Lord Cochrane replied to the order of the envoy to 
 the effect that he would return to Rio as soon as the 
 Piranga had been fully equipped. Upon this the 
 envoy resorted to the extraordinary proceeding of 
 stopping the men's wages and provisions, in conse- 
 quence of which the men struck work. The fact at 
 the bottom of all this trickery was the desire to get 
 rid of Lord Cochrane, by summary dismissal, without 
 satisfying his claims upon the government ; for, as a 
 peace was then negotiating, there was no further need 
 of his services. 
 
 Peace was, in fact, concluded on the 3rd November, 
 in which the independence of Brazil was conceded ; 
 and as, by some chicanery, Lord Cochraue's appoint- 
 ment had been limited to the continuance of the war, 
 this opportunity was taken to break faith with him. 
 A letter was, therefore, addressed to Lieutenant 
 Shepherd, on the 7th ]S"ovember, 1825, acquainting 
 him, under the title of " Captain, commanding the
 
 BEAZILIAN GBATITUDE ! 351 
 
 Piranga" that lie was to place himself under the 
 orders of the legation, and cast off all subordination 
 to the Marquis of Maranhara. 
 
 Some months later Lord Cochrane received a letter 
 from, the Imperial Government, informing him that 
 all his pay and other claims had been suspended till 
 he should return to Eio de Janeiro, to justify himself 
 and give an account of his commission. In the 
 mean while, however, the Piranga had been taken 
 from under his orders, and had sailed on her return to 
 Brazil. 
 
 The result, therefore, of his service in Brazil was 
 loss in everything but renown. A commission was 
 subsequently appointed, and a report made in favour 
 of Lord Cochrane's claims for a pension, and it was 
 admitted that " he saved Brazil millions of dollars in 
 military and naval expeditions," by his speedy and 
 unexpected annexation of the Portuguese provinces ; 
 but he was excluded from sharing in the prize-money. 
 His claims were never satisfied to the hour of his 
 death ; and the independence of Brazil, to the eternal 
 disgrace of all who were in any way concerned in the 
 Government, or who have since held the reins, was 
 obtained mainly at the expense of the unrequited 
 mental vigour and inexhaustible resources of Lord 
 Cochrane. The title of " Marquis of Maranham," 
 to which were annexed insult, fraud, treachery, and 
 duplicity, almost beyond the power of conception, 
 and the cross of the Imperial Brazilian order of El 
 Cruzeiro subsequently conferred, can only be looked 
 upon as a mockery of his transcendent achievements.
 
 352 THE GREEK CAUSE. 
 
 SERVICES IN GREECE. 
 
 [1826-8.] 
 
 The overtures, which had been repeatedly made to 
 Lord Cochraue to form and command a navy to be 
 employee! in the liberation of Greece, were now 
 seriously entertained. If mercenary motives had 
 ever held sway over this extraordinary man, such 
 could not have been the case on the present occasion. 
 The cause in which he was now called upon to lend 
 his aid was languishing for want of money, and all 
 who embarked in it must have done so with only 
 the most remote prospect of ever receiving remunera- 
 tion. There were here, at least, no mines of gold, 
 nor chests of silver, to quicken cupidity ; and no in- 
 ducement to embark in such a service save that of 
 pure fondness for adventure, and an abstract love of 
 freedom. 
 
 On the abrupt termination of Lord Cochrane's 
 connection with Brazil, the Greek Committee, in Lon- 
 don, with the consent of the Greek deputies, Orlando 
 and Luriottis, entered into an engagement with him, 
 under which a fleet was to be created and placed 
 under his command. As the building of priames 
 and other vessels for war purposes had been strictly 
 prohibited by the Turkish Government in the Medi- 
 terranean, this fleet, which was to comprise steam- 
 boats and two large frigates, was ordered to be 
 built, the former in London, the latter in the 
 United States. Early in 1825 a loan of t\vo mil-
 
 FAILUBE CONTIU.CTS. 353 
 
 lions sterling had been negotiated in London, of 
 which one-tenth part had been remitted to Greece 
 in specie, and all trace of it lost in its transit, or 
 at least no accounts showing what became of it 
 could be obtained. A further portion of 155,000 
 had been remitted to New York, to pay for the two 
 frigates, each of which was to mount 60 guns ; and 
 the superintendence of the building was committed to 
 General Lallemande. Only one of the frigates, the 
 Hellas, was completed by the end of 1826, and then 
 found to be not worth half the sum she was stipulated 
 to cost. The building of the steamboats in London 
 proceeded equally tardily and unsatisfactorily. The 
 contract entered into specified that five vessels were 
 to be ready, by the latest, in two and a half months 
 from the 17th August, 1825, and were to have sailed 
 in the month of November following. These ships 
 were to cost another 155,000 of the loan. 
 
 The winter wore away, and May, 1826, had arrived 
 ere the first of these steamboats was ready to leave 
 the Thames. This vessel, named the Perseverance, 
 sailed shortly afterwards under the command of 
 Captain Hastings. Her machinery broke down 
 almost as soon as she left the river, and when 
 she reached Sardinia, which she did under canvas, 
 her engines had to be taken to pieces and rebuilt 
 before they were of the slightest use. She reached 
 Napoli di Eomania in November. Those which fol- 
 lowed were not a bit better. The contractor for the 
 engines had a son in the service of the Pasha ot 
 Egypt as an engineer, and it was conjectured that
 
 354 AHRIVAL AT POEOS. 
 
 there was a deliberate intention to do the work in 
 such a manner as to frustrate the end in view. The 
 grossest frauds in connection with the loan and its 
 expenditure were, in fact, practised, which were 
 exposed shortly afterwards, to the inexpressible 
 chagrin of the borrowers and lenders. 
 
 At length the admiral took his departure, and ar- 
 rived at Poros in February, 1827, only to find the 
 greatest disunion where unity was to be expected and 
 necessary. His course was immediately taken. In 
 a reply addressed to the deputation sent to him by 
 the government to welcome him on his arrival, he 
 said, "I was grieved from the first at seeing the 
 bravest and most renowned military chiefs of Greece 
 busying themselves about politics and the congress, 
 and losing their time in disputing about the place 
 of assembly, whilst the enemy is overrunning your 
 country without the least opposition, while they hold 
 three-fourths of the fortresses of Greece, and have 
 surrounded its metropolis. Athens is in danger of 
 falling into the hands of the enemies. The brave 
 Fabvier, with a handful of heroes, full of enthusiasm 
 for independence, has advanced to the assistance of 
 its generous defenders, whilst the chiefs of Greece are 
 disputing about politics." 
 
 Lord Cochrane advised them to read, " in full con- 
 gress," the first Philippic of Demosthenes, which, 
 with the change of names and dates, would apply 
 closely to the suicidal course they were taking. His 
 vigorous speech, added to a threat of immediate with- 
 drawal, had the effect of bringing about a compromise
 
 PATE10TISJI OE MIAULIS. 355 
 
 between the disputants. Count Capo d'Istrias was 
 appointed president of Greece for seven years, and 
 Lord Coclirane was named coramander-in-chief of the 
 Greek fleet, in lieu of Miaulis, an arrangement in 
 which, the latter fully concurred. The aged Miaulis, 
 moreover, used all his influence with the Hydriots to 
 induce them to submit to the authority of the com- 
 mander-in-cbief. " I," said he, " as well as all the 
 nation, have long founded my hopes on the arrival of 
 the great man, whose preceding splendid deeds pro- 
 mise our country a happy issue out of the long and 
 arduous struggle which it maintains. This man has 
 arrived, and I congratulate the government and the 
 whole nation upon it. The Greek marine may justly 
 expect everything from such a leader ; and I am the 
 first to declare myself ready again to combat, and with 
 all my might, under his command." 
 
 It was now resolved to make a joint and determined 
 effort for the relief of Athens, by a general attack 
 upon the intreuchments of the besieging Turkish 
 army. The fleet under Cochrane transported a large 
 body of Hydriots and Spezziots, and by the end of 
 April the flower of the Greek army was assembled 
 under the walls of Athens, numbering about ten 
 thousand men. Seraskier opposed the landing of 
 the troops brought in the fleet, and some fighting 
 was occasioned; but the Hydriots and Spezziots, 
 having landed at different points, drove him from his 
 positions, and the Greeks in the Piraeus advancing 
 from the other side to support their friends, the 
 Turks withdrew within their iutrenchments, and fl< ~ 
 2 A 2
 
 356 
 
 Greek leaders were left to form their own plans 
 unmolested. 
 
 But Lord Cochrane's good genius of success seemed 
 to have deserted him. He strove manfully, and 
 devised schemes in the hope of aiding the cause he 
 had espoused ; but they resulted in ruin. The army 
 landed at Cape Colias on the 6th of May, when the 
 Greeks were defeated, dispersed, or cut to pieces. 
 General Church, who, like Cochrane, had been endea- 
 vouring to aid the Greek cause, and with him had 
 superintended the disembarkation, had to escape to 
 the ships by jumping into the sea, and swimming for 
 their lives. 
 
 Lord Cochrane repaired to the Greek islands to 
 assemble his ships, but found his authority very 
 limited indeed. The captains, who were, for the most 
 part, owners of the ships, considered and calculated 
 before obeying his orders, or took the initiative and 
 got underway, as they thought proper, With his 
 flag on board the Hellas, and accompanied by a few 
 fire-ships, he sailed, however, and in the Gulf of 
 Chiarenza fell in with two Turkish corvettes, which, 
 after a short action, made their escape. On the 20th 
 of May he captured a brig laden with powder 'and 
 provisions, and then proceeded to Navarin to watch 
 the Turkish fleet. The cause was in extremis when 
 he took it up ; and his connection with the Greek 
 war of independence was made at too late a period. 
 
 He returned to England much disappointed, but 
 conscious of having done his best ; but not until the 
 germ of independence had taken deep root.
 
 IfAilE EEPLA.CED OK KAVY LIST. 357 
 
 FROM HIS RESTORATION TO THE SERVICE, 
 TO HIS DEATH. 
 
 [1832-60.] 
 
 On the death of Archibald, earl of Dundoiiald, 
 at Paris, in 1831, Lord Cochrane succeeded to the 
 title estates, unhappily, there were none to which 
 to succeed. "William IV., shortly after hig accession 
 to the throne, with a true sailor's feeling, considered 
 that the halo of glory which the naval exploits of the 
 earl had shed around the profession, apart from all 
 other considerations, imperatively called for his re- 
 storation to that service whose renown he had always 
 so gallantly upheld. This was done in May, 1832, 
 prior to which a free pardon under the great seal 
 had been granted him. The fire of persecution had 
 died out, and the act of placing the earl of Dun- 
 donald's name upon the list of flag-ofiicers was hailed 
 with pleasure throughout the country. 
 
 Many held that it ought to have been accompanied 
 by the grant of arrears of pay ; but as this concession 
 would have involved the necessity for similar payments 
 in innumerable instances, the proposition was 
 negatived. 
 
 In 1841 the earl was granted the good service 
 pension of 300 a year, and in 1848 was appointed 
 Commander-iu-Chief of the North-American and 
 "West-Indian Stations, upon which he was employed 
 three years. Subsequently, in 1854, he was made Rear- 
 Admiral of England, with a further additional salary
 
 358 HIS HONOTJES EESTOBED. 
 
 of 342. Every disposition was apparently shown to 
 repair the injustice from which he had suffered. The 
 Order of the Bath had been enlarged in 1815, and 
 divided into three grades. The highest order, Grand 
 Cross, was awarded to the earl in 1847, as an equiva- 
 lent to the K. B. previously enjoyed by him ; and 
 shortly before his mortal remains were committed to 
 their last resting-place in Westminster Abbey, the 
 Queen caused the banner which had been torn down 
 'from its place in Henry VII. 's chapel by the king-at- 
 arms, and the brass plate containing his lordship's 
 arms, with the helmet, crest, mantling, and sword, 
 which had been removed, to be replaced. 
 
 The earl married, in 1812, Miss Katherine Corbett 
 Barnes, 'a lady of good family in the Midland Counties. 
 The marriage displeased his uncle, the Hon. Basil 
 Cochraue, from whom he had great expectations, and 
 whose large fortune would have gone far towards 
 recovering the Duudonald estates. But the marriage, 
 like all his other engagements, was an affair of the 
 heart ; and, although tempted by offers of wealth, 
 had he chosen to ally himself to the only daughter 
 of an Admiralty official, he disdained all such over- 
 tures, and, happily for himself, consulted his affec- 
 tions. The amiable and heroic countess, who followed 
 her husband's fortunes, and often shared his perils, 
 died, leaving four sons, the eldest of whom succeeds 
 to the title, and the two youngest are serving in the 
 Boyal Navy one as a captain and C.B., the other as 
 a lieutenant. 
 
 The carl retained, very nearly to the last, his mental
 
 DEATH. 359 
 
 and physical powers. He was in possession of several 
 plans for the destruction of enemies' fleets, some of 
 which were investigated and favourably reported in 
 1847 by a select committee, comprising Sir Thomas 
 Hastings then principal storekeeper to the Ord- 
 nance Sir John Burgoyne, and Lieut.-Colonel Col- 
 quhoun, R.A. He inherited his father's inventive 
 genius and his misfortunes. His death took place 
 in London on the 30th of October, [18GO, he having 
 previously undergone two operations for lithotomy ; 
 and he was interred in Westminster Abbey on AY'ed- 
 nesday, the 14th of November, in the presence of a 
 large number of naval and military officers of rank 
 and a large concourse of sympathizing spectators. 
 
 A very distinguished naval officer of rank, who re- 
 cently served under the flag of the late Admiral, 
 says of him : 
 
 " I find it difficult to express the very high estima- 
 tion in which his lordship was regarded by all who 
 had the honour of serving under his command. 
 Though naturally reserved in his manner, his lordship 
 won the affection of those around him by his truly 
 amiable disposition and kind heart ; whilst, a]t the 
 same time, he commanded admiration and respect by 
 the superiority of his mind, and the fame of his 
 heroic deeds." 
 
 The pages of Punch, always abounding in pathos, 
 as well as wit, never contained lines more worthy
 
 SGO POETICAL TRIBUTE 
 
 of a poet's pen than the following tribute to our 
 hero's memory : 
 
 Ashes to Ashes ! Lay the hero down 
 
 Within the gray old Abbey's glorious shade. 
 In our Walhalla ne'er was worthier laid 
 
 Since martyr first won palm, or victor crown. 
 
 'Tis well the State he served no farthing pays 
 To grace with pomp and honour all too late 
 His grave, whom, living, Statesmen dogg'd with hate, 
 
 Denying justice, and withholding praise. 
 
 Let England hide her face above his tomb, 
 As much for shame as sorrow. Let her think 
 Upon the bitter cup he had to drink 
 
 Heroic soul, branded with felon's doom. 
 
 A Sea-King, whose fit place had been by Blake, 
 
 Or our own Nelson, had he been but free 
 
 To follow glory's quest upon the sea, 
 Leading the conquer'd navies in his wake 
 
 A Captain, whom it had been ours to cheer 
 From conquest on to conquest, had our land 
 But set its wisest, worthiest in command, 
 
 Not such as hated all the good revere. 
 
 We let them cage the Lion while the fire 
 
 In his high heart burnt clear and unsubdued ; 
 We let them stir that frank and forward mood 
 
 From greatness to the self-consuming ire, 
 
 The fret and chafe that wait on service scorn'd, 
 Justice denied, and truth to silence driven ; 
 From men we left him to appeal to Heaven, 
 
 'Gainst fraud set high, and evidence suborn'd ;
 
 TO 111S MEMORY. 361 
 
 We left him, with bound arms, to mark the sword, 
 Given to weak hands ; left him, with working brain, 
 To see rogues traffic, and fools rashly reign, 
 
 Where Strength should have been guide, and Honour lord ; 
 
 Left him to cry aloud, without support, 
 Against the creeping things that eat away 
 Our wooden walls, and boast as they betray, 
 
 The base supporters of a baser court, 
 
 The crawling worms that in corruption breed, 
 
 And on corruption batten, till at last 
 
 Mistaken honour the proud victim cast 
 Out to their spite, to writhe, and pant, and bleed 
 
 Under their stings and slime ; and bleed he did 
 For years, till hope into heart-sickness grew, 
 And he sought other seas and service new, 
 
 And his bright sword in alien laurels hid. 
 
 Nor even so found gratitude, but came 
 
 Back to his England, bankrupt, save of praise, 
 To eat his heart, through weary wishful days, 
 
 And shape his strength to bearing of his shame. 
 
 Till, slow but sure, drew on a better time, 
 
 And statesmen owned the check of public will ; 
 And, at the last, light pierced the shadow chill 
 
 That foul'd his honour with the taint of crime. 
 
 And then they gave him back the knightly spurs 
 Which he had never forfeited the rank 
 From which he ne'er by ill-deserving sank, 
 
 More than the lion sinks for yelp of curs. 
 
 Justice had linger'd on its road too long : 
 The lion was grown old ; the time gone by, 
 When for his aid we vainly raised a cry, 
 
 To save our flag from shame, our decks from wrong.
 
 362 POETICAL TRIBUTE. 
 
 The infamy is theirs, whose evil deed 
 Is past undoing ; 3 r et not guiltless we, 
 AVho penniless that brave old man could see, 
 
 JRestored to honour, but denied its meed. 
 
 A Belisarius, old and sad and poor, 
 
 To our shame, not to Ms so he lived on, 
 Till man's allotted fourscore years were gone, 
 
 And scarcely then had leave to 'stablish sure 
 
 Proofs of his innocence, and of their shame, 
 
 That had so wrong'd him ; and this done, came death, 
 To seal the assurance of his dying breath, 
 
 And wipe the last faint tarnish from his name. 
 
 At last his fame stands fair, and full of years 
 He seeks that judgment which his wronger.* all 
 Have sought before him and above his pall 
 
 His flag, replaced at length, waves with his peers. 
 
 He did not live to see it, but he knew 
 
 His country with one voice had set it high ; 
 And knowing this he was content to die, 
 
 And leave to gracious Heaven what might ensue. 
 
 Ashes to ashes ! Lay the hero down, 
 No nobler heart e'er knew the bitter lot 
 To be misjudged, malign'd, accused, forgot : 
 
 Twine martyr's palm among his victor's crown. 
 
 THE END. 
 
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