| | Naval history of Great Britain
by
William James |
| 1806 |
LIGHT SQUADRONS AND SINGLE SHIPS | 256 |
Lieutenant Lewis and the boats, which were now taken in tow by the Gracieuse.
After the schooner had cast them off, the boats pulled for the harbour, then about six miles distant ; and, in the face of a heavy but ill-directed fire of grape-shot from three batteries, and of musketry from the shore and from the brig and garda-costa at anchor, Lieutenant Lewis and his party boarded and carried both vessels without the slightest loss, their crews abandoning them as the British approached. The Spaniards, in the course of their preparations, had hauled the brig and schooner aground, stripped them of their sails and running rigging, and lashed them to the shore. Hence no exertions on the part of the British, although continued for ten hours and a half, could remove them. As the men were now falling fast under the incessant fire to which they had so long been exposed, Lieutenant Lewis quickly destroyed the two vessels and retreated to the offing. This he at length accomplished, but with so serious a loss, as one master's mate (Alfred Smith) and five seamen and marines killed, and himself (slightly), Lieutenant Nagle, the gunner, one midshipman (Samuel Marshall), and eight seamen and marines wounded.
On the 18th of August Lieutenant Andrew M'Culloch, with the barge of the British 18-pounder 32-gun frigate Galatea, Captain George Sayer, cruising off the Spanish main, pursued some miles up a river near Puerto-Caballo a Spanish schooner privateer, of three long 6 and 4 pounders, with swivels and musketoons on stocks ; and which, after an able resistance, in which her commander and one man fell, was carried. Finding it impracticable to bring away the schooner without danger of his retreat being cut off, Lieutenant M'Culloch removed the prisoners into his boat and blew her up. This gallant little enterprise was executed with so small a loss on the British side as one man slightly wounded.
On the 21st Lieutenant Harry Walker in the barge, without any loss whatever, drove on shore and completely destroyed, in the vicinity of the last exploit, another fine privateer-schooner, armed with swivels and small-arms.
On the 9th of October, cruising off Barcelona, Captain Sayer despatched three boats under the direction of Lieutenant Richard Gittins, first of the frigate, assisted by master's mate John Green and James Scanlan, the boatswain, to cut out some vessels at anchor in the above port. As the boats approached the harbour, a heavy fire of round and grape was simultaneously opened upon them from three batteries, accompanied by musketry from them and the beach, to which the three schooners to be carried were moored head and stern. In spite of these obstacles, the British succeeded in boarding and bringing out the vessels ; and, although exposed for an hour and a half to the fire above noticed,
^ back to top ^ |