82 Naval War of 1812 



dent and United States, 32-pounders on the Consti 

 tution. Each sailed with a crew of about 450 men 

 50 in excess of the regular complement. 22 



It may be as well to mention here the only other 

 class of vessels that we employed during the war. 

 This was composed of the ship-sloops built in 1813, 

 which got to sea in 1814. They were very fine 

 vessels, measuring 509 tons apiece, 23 with very thick 

 scantling and stout masts and spars. Each carried 

 twenty 32-pound carronades and two long I2's, with 

 a crew nominally of 160 men, but with usually a 

 few supernumeraries. 24 



' M The President when in action with the Endymion had 

 450 men aboard, as sworn by Decatur ; the muster-roll of the 

 Constitution, a few days before her action with the Guerriere, 

 contains 464 names (including 51 marines); 8 men were ab 

 sent in a prize, so she had aboard in the action 456. Her 

 muster-roll just before the action with the Cyane and Levant 

 shows 461 names. 



23 The dimensions were 117 feet n inches upon the gun- 

 deck, 97 feet 6 inches keel for tonnage, measuring from one 

 foot before the forward perpendicular and along the base 

 line to the front of the rabbet of the port, deducting \ of the 

 moulded breadth of the beam, which is 31 feet 6 inches; mak 

 ing 50911 tons. (See in Navy Archives, "Contracts," Vol. 



II, P- I37-) 



24 The Peacock had 166 men, as we learn from her com 

 mander, Warrington's, letter of June ist (Letter No. 140 in 

 "Masters-Commandant's Letters," 1814, Vol. I). The Frolic 

 took aboard "10 or 12 men beyond her regular complement." 

 (See letter of Joseph Bainbridge, No. 51, in same Vol.) Ac 

 cordingly, wjien she was captured by the Orpheus, the com 

 mander of the latter, Captain Hugh Pigot, reported the 

 number of men aboard to be 171. The Wasp left port with 

 173 men, with which she fought her first action; she had a 

 much smaller number aboard in her second. 



