TI.MELY ARRIVAL 27 



met a watery grave. His loss was sincerely lamented by 

 captain, officers, and crew. I was not a spectator of this 

 sharp and successful encounter ; but it was as the lieu- 

 tenant in command related it to me. At parting, I had 

 exchano-ed seals with this amiable vouth, and in doino; so 

 we both fondly anticipated some future happy meeting, 

 but that was not to be in this world. ^ 



But this is anticipating my story. On casting anchor 

 in the harbour of Rio de Janeiro — then the principal 

 trading port in the Brazils, and subject to the Crown of 

 Portugal, now the capital of an extensive and rising 

 empire — we found three line-of-battle-ships and a frigate, 

 with the flag of Admiral Hartsinck, belonging to the 

 Batavian Republic, who had, at the bidding of the French 

 Government, recently declared war against us. About 

 three days after our arrival we were joined by two 

 new seventy-fours, the Albion and the Sceptre from 

 England, sent out to reinforce the squadron in the East 

 Indies, under Admiral Rainier. This was considered a 

 very timely arrival for us, as, unless we had been rein- 

 forced, we must have remained there — for, although three 

 days must elapse between the sailing of two hostile fleets 

 from a neutral port, we could not have left without the 

 certainty of being overtaken by the enemy, as several of 

 our convoy were very dull sailers. As it was, we now 

 considered ourselves quite a match for them, and, should 



1 He was Luke Burgh. — Some few years afterwards I read, with 

 much gratification the advancement of a mihtary officer of the same 

 name, Sir Ulysses Burgh, whom I took to be his elder brother, to 

 the peerage of the United Kingdom, by the title of Lord Downes. 

 He had served on the staff of the great Duke throughout his 

 campaigns in the Peninsula. 



