The Battle of New Orleans 297 



This correction would be in favor of the British. 

 But in a more important particular I think I have 

 done injustice to the Americans. I should have 

 allowed for the short weight of American metal on 

 the lakes, taking off seven per cent from the nominal 

 broadsides of Perry and Macdonough ; for the Amer- 

 ican ordnance was of exactly the same quality as 

 that on the ocean vessels, while the British was 

 brought over from England, and must have shown 

 the same superiority that obtained on the sea-going 

 ships. 



Moreover, I am now inclined to believe that both 

 the Guerriere and the Java, which were originally 

 French ships, still carried French i8's on their 

 maindeck, and that, therefore, about 20 pounds 

 should be added to the broadside weight of metal 

 of each. The American accounts stated this to be 

 the case in both instances; but I paid no heed to 

 them until my attention was called to the fact that 

 the English had captured enormous quantities of 

 French cannon and shot and certainly used the 

 captured ordnance on some of their ships. 



In writing my history I have had to deal with 

 a mass of confused and contradictory testimony, 

 which it has sometimes been quite impossible to 

 reconcile, the difficulty being greatly enhanced by 

 the calculated mendacity of James and some others 

 of the earlier writers, both American and British. 



