GENERAL HISTORY 



[173 



oF the Eurotas was 20 killed, aud 

 8U wounded. 



On Rlarch 26th, the Hannibal, 

 of 74 guns, Captain Sir M. Sey- 

 mour, and the Hebrus frigate, 

 Captain Palmer, gave chase to two 

 French frigates near the coast of 

 France, one of which, the Sultan, 

 of 44 guns, was soon captured by 

 the Hannibal off the isle of Bas, 

 and was brought into Portsmouth 

 on the 28th. The other was pur- 

 sued during the whole day by the 

 Hebrus, and at midnight had 

 reached the race of AlderneJ^ She 

 then rounded Point Joubourg to 

 get into the bay of La Hogue, 

 where, about one or two on the 

 following morning, the Hebrus, 

 running in between her and the 

 shore, brought her to close action. 

 After an obstinate combat of two 

 hours and a quarter, the ships al- 

 most touching, she struck her co- 

 Jours. It was necessary imme- 

 diately to put the heads of both 

 ships off shore, as well through 

 apprehension of grounding, as in 

 order to get clear of a battery on 

 shore, which had been firing at 

 both, not being able to distinguish 

 one from the other. The prize 

 was L'Etoile, of 44 guns and 320 

 men, commanded by by M. Philli- 

 bert, who was returning with La 

 Sultane from a four month's cruise 

 to the westward. She had 40 

 killed, and upwards of 70 wound- 

 ed, in the action, and the loss in 

 the Hebrus was considerable, a- 

 mounting to 13 killed and 25 

 wounded. 



The American frigate Essex, 

 Captain Porter, which had been 

 long cruizing on the coasts of 

 South America, and had made 

 many captures, especially among 

 the English south-whalers, was at 

 length taken off Valparaiso in 



Chili, by the Phoebe frigate, Cap- 

 tain Hillyar, in company with the 

 Cherub sloop. Captain Tucker. 

 Captain Hillyar, in his letter dat- 

 ed Valparaiso Hay, March 30th, 

 informs the Secretary of the Ad- 

 miialty, that on the afternoon of 

 the 28th inst. after nearly five 

 months anxious search, and six 

 weeks more anxious look-out for 

 the Essex and her companion, (a 

 corvette of 20 guns), to quit the 

 })ort of Valparaiso, he saw her 

 under weigh, and immediately, 

 accompanied by the Cherub, made 

 sail to close with her. On round- 

 ing the point of the bay, the Essex 

 lost her main-top-mast ; and not be- 

 ing able to regain the limits of the 

 neutral port, bore up and anchor- 

 ed very near to the shore a few 

 miles to the leeward of it. After 

 some distant firing, the Phoebe 

 closed with the Essex at 35 mi- 

 nutes past five in the afternoon, 

 when a very serious, and, indeed, 

 unequal conflict ensued, the Che- 

 rub much contributing to the an- 

 noyance of the enemy. The de- 

 fence of the Essex (says Captain 

 Hillyar) did honour to her brave 

 defenders, and fully evinced the 

 courage of Captain Porter and 

 those under his command. She 

 was twice on fire, and did not 

 strike her colours till her loss of 

 men was so great, and her condi- 

 tion so bad, that farther resistance 

 was manifestly unavailing. The 

 . engagement ceased at 20 minutes 

 past six. The loss on the part of 

 the victors was not very consider- 

 able. A very detailed account of 

 this affair was transmitted to the 

 American government by Captain 

 Porter, written in an ostentatious 

 and evidently partial manner, and 

 diflering in several respects from 

 the plain narrative of Captain Hil- 



