CAPTAIN MACNAMARA. 61 



more of our nautical novelists, it may 

 not be considered out of course re- 

 peated here, as it was related to me 

 by an old shipmate of mine, who 

 was, I believe, an eye-witness, not many 

 months after it happened I allude to 

 a duel that took place between Captain 

 Stackpole of the " Statira" frigate, and 

 a lieutenant of another of H. M. ships 

 on the same station, named " Cecil." 

 The captain was considered a dead shot, 

 having sailed as a lieutenant with that 

 celebrated duellist, Captain Macnamara, 

 who, it may be remembered by some 

 of the oldest of my readers, killed 

 Colonel Montgomery ; and though him- 

 self wounded, was tried with his se- 

 cond at the Old Bailey for that af- 

 fair. 



It was their custom, when at sea, to 

 practise pistol-shooting, by putting a soli- 

 tary fowl in a hen-coop, placed promi- 

 nently before the others on the spars 



