8 Naval War of 1812 



8 P.M., when the night and thick squally weather 

 caused her to lose sight of the chase. Captain 

 Maitland had on board the prohibitory order issued 

 by the admiralty, 8 and acted correctly. His ship 

 was altogether too light for his antagonist. James, 

 however, is not satisfied with this, and wishes to 

 prove that both ships were desirous of avoiding the 

 combat. He says that Capt. Stewart came near 

 enough to count "13 ports and a bridle on the 

 Pique's main-deck," and "saw at once that she was 

 of a class inferior to the Guerriere or Java," but 

 "thought the Pique's i8's were 24*3, and therefore 

 did not make an effort to bring her to action." He 

 portrays very picturesquely the grief of the Pique's 

 crew when they find they are not going to engage; 

 how they come aft and request to be taken into 

 action; how Captain Maitland reads them his in 

 structions, but "fails to persuade them that there 

 had been any necessity of issuing them" ; and, finally, 

 how the sailors, overcome by woe and indignation, 

 refuse to take their supper-time grog, which was 

 certainly remarkable. As the Constitution had twice 

 captured British frigates "with impunity," according 

 to James himself, is it likely that she would now 

 shrink from an encounter with a ship which she 

 "saw at once was of an inferior class" to those 

 already conquered? Even such abject cowards as 



8 James, vi, 477. 



