44 



FORTER^S JOURNAL. 



ing her very leaky, and from that circumstance, as weii a& 

 others, of which Mr. Clarke, the officer in charge of her, 

 will give you information, I have found it necessary to send 

 her to Rio Janeiro ; and I beg, sir, that you will do in this 

 case what you may deem most to tlie advantage of the 

 United States. 



Excuse the haste with which I have been under the ne- 

 cessity of addressing you, and accept assurances of the 

 highest respect and consideration. 



I have the honour to be your obedient servant, 



(Signed) ^ DAVID PORTER. 



Thomas Swnpter. Esq, American Ministey^ 



at the Court of Brazils^ Rio Janeiro, 



I also gave him the two letters of Mr. lieyworth to deliver, 

 if the minister should consider it adviseable to do so. I re- 

 commended to Mr. Clarke to put into one of the by-ports 

 along the coast, to examine into the state of the leaks, and 

 endeavour to stop them without going to Rio. I then made 

 all sail to the eastward. 



On the morning of the 30th, discovered that our main- 

 topmast trussel-trees were carried away, and we expected 

 every moment that our topmast, rigging, and top-gallant- 

 mast, would come tumbling about our heads; but in my 

 anxiety to come up with the convoy, I determined that this 

 accident should not compel me to give up the pursuit. 1 

 therefore directed that the top-gailant-mast should be lash- 

 ed aloft to favour the mast as much as possible in carrying 

 sail. The winds, being to the westward, which enabled us 

 to carry studding-sails on both sides, our rate of sailing was 

 from four to six miles per hour, but against a heavy head 

 sea, that strained our masts and ringing excessively, and oc- 

 casioned our carrying away some of our light spars, which 

 were soon replaced. On the meridian of this day, I sup- 

 posed the convoy to be about thirty-five miles to the eastward 

 of us. Since the pursuit, i had regularly estimated their rate 

 of sailing by our own, proportioning theirs to ours as 5 to 7 ; 

 and as I had possession of the logbook of the prize, and as- 

 certained the point of their departure, it may be supposed, 

 that, as respected the distance made by them, I could not 

 be much out in my calculation. The greatest embarrass- 

 ment was as to the course they had steered. But knowing 



