36 Naval War of 1812 



a Swedish vessel, were taken out of her by the 

 Wasp, Captain Blakely, and were lost with the rest 

 of the crew of that vessel. The others reached New 

 York in safety. Of the prizes made by the Essex, 

 some were burnt or sunk by the Americans, and 

 some retaken by the British. And so, after nearly 

 two years' uninterrupted success, the career of the 

 Essex terminated amid disasters of all kinds. But 

 at least her officers and crew could reflect that they 

 had afforded an example of courage in adversity 

 that it would be difficult to match elsewhere. 



The first of the new heavy sloops of war that 

 got to sea was the Frolic, Master-Commandant 

 Joseph Bainbf idge, which put out early in February. 

 Shortly afterward she encountered a large Cartha 

 ginian privateer, which refused to surrender and 

 was sunk by a broadside, nearly a hundred of her 

 crew being drowned. Before daylight on the 2Oth 

 of April, lat. 24 12' N., long. 81 25' W., she fell 

 in with the British 36-gun frigate Orpheus, Capt. 

 Pigot, and the 12-gun schooner Shelburne, Lieut. 

 Hope, both to leeward. The schooner soon weath 

 ered the Frolic, but of course was afraid to close, 

 and the American sloop continued beating to wind 

 ward, in the effort to escape, for nearly 13 hours; 

 the water was started, the anchors cut away, and 

 finally the guns thrown overboard a measure by 



