140 Naval War of 1812 



went by the board the foremast about fifteen feet 

 above the deck, the other short off. Of her crew, 

 as already said, not twenty men had escaped unhurt. 

 Every officer was wounded; two of them, the first 

 lieutenant, Charles McKay, and master, John 

 Stephens, soon died. Her total loss was thus over 

 90 ; 51 about 30 of whom were killed outright or 

 died later. The Wasp suffered very severely in her 

 rigging and aloft generally, but only two or three 

 shots struck her hull; five of her men were killed 

 two in her mizzen-top and one in her maintop-mast 

 rigging and five wounded, chiefly while aloft. 



The two vessels were practically of equal force. 

 The loss of the Frolic's main-yard had merely con 

 verted her into a brigantine, and, as the roughness 

 of the sea made it necessary to fight under very 

 short canvas, her inferiority in men was fully com 

 pensated for by her superiority in metal. She had 

 been desperately defended; no men could have 

 fought more bravely than Captain Whinyates and 

 his crew. On the other hand, the Americans had 

 done their work with a coolness and skill that could 

 not be surpassed; the contest had been mainly one 

 of gunnery, and had been decided by the greatly 

 superior judgment and accuracy with which they 

 fired. Both officers and crew had behaved well; 

 Captain Jones particularly mentions Lieutenant 

 Claxton, who, though too ill to be of any service, 



51 Capt. Whinyates' official letter thus states it, and is, of 

 course, to be taken as authority ; the Bermuda account makes 

 it 69, and James only 62. 



