APPENDIX TO CHRONICLE. 



159 



perceive to be armed. I determined 

 on forcing them to show their co- 

 lours (which they appeared to wish 

 to avoid), and for that purpose 

 stood directly for the headmost fri- 

 gate, when she shortened sail, and 

 brought to, for the other to close. 

 I now made all sail, in the hope of 

 being able to get alongside of her 

 before it could be effected ; but in 

 this I was foiled, by her wearing, 

 making sail, and joining the other, 

 and taking a station a-head and 

 a-stern, with the 20 gun ship and 

 a brig on the weather bow ; they 

 stood to the S. S. E. with larboard 

 studding sails, and all the sail that 

 could be carried ; the sternmost 

 hoisting French colours, at a quar- 

 ter of an hour past two o'clock ; 

 she opened a fire from the after- 

 most guns upon us at 3 o'clock, 

 being in a good position (going ten 

 knots an hour). I commenced 

 firing with considerable effect, the 

 shot going either through, or just 

 over the starboard quarter to the 

 forecastle, over the larboard bow ; 

 when, at forty-nine minutes past 

 four she struck her colours to his 

 Majesty's ship Majestic, under my 

 command. The wind increasing, 

 the prize in a state of great confu- 

 bion, and night fast approaching, 

 obliged me to stay by her, and to 

 suffer the other frigate, with the 

 ship and brig, to escape ; the sea 

 got up very fast, so that only one 

 Viundred of the prisoners could be 

 exchanged, and even in effecting 

 that, one boat was lost, and two 

 prisoners drowned : this, I hope. 

 Sir, will plead my apology Ifor 

 not bringing you the whole of 

 them. The captured ship is the 

 Terpsichore, of 44 guns, eighteen 

 and twenty-four pounders, and 320 

 men, Breton Franryois de Sire, Ca- 



pitaine de Frigate; the other was 

 the Atalante, sister ship, exactly of 

 the same force ; they sailed from 

 the Scheldt on the 20th of Octo- 

 ber, and went to L'Orient, from 

 whence they sailed again on the 

 8th of January, in company with 

 La Yade, a similar ship, which 

 parted from them in latitude 45, 

 and longitude 16. 40. The enemy 

 had only three men killed, six 

 wounded, and two drowned ; the 

 Majestic none. 



The officers and men I have the 

 honour to command conducted 

 themselves on this occasion, as I 

 expected they would do. 



WAR DEPARTMENT. 



Downing-street, March il. 

 A dispatch, of which the following 

 is an extract, has been this day 

 received at Earl Bath urst's office, 

 addressed to his Lordship by 

 Field Marshal the Marquis of 

 Wellington, dated 



St. Jean de Luz, Feb. 20; 

 In conformity with the intention 

 which I communicated to your 

 Lordship in my last dispatch, I 

 moved the right of the army un- 

 der Lieutenant General Sir R. 

 Hill, on the 14th ; he drove in the 

 enemy's picquets on the Joyeuse 

 river, and attacked their position at 

 Hellette, from which he obliged 

 General Harispe to retire, with 

 loss, towards St. Martin. I made 

 the detachment of General Mina's 

 troops, in the valley of Baston, ad- 

 vance on the same day upon Bay- 

 gorey and Biddarray ; and the di- 

 rect communication of the enemy 

 with St. Jean Pied de Port being 

 cut off by Lieutenant General Sir 



