PORTER S J0UR3.AL; 



149 



rines. The heavy-rowing boats occasioned considerable 

 delay to the whole, as I had given the most positive orders 

 that the boats should be brought into action all together, 

 and that no officer should take advantage of the fleetness 

 of his boat to proceed ahead of the rest, believing that 

 some of them, from their extreme anxiety to join with the 

 «enemy, might be so imprudent as to do so. At two o'clock, 

 the boats were about a miie from me vessels, (which were 

 about a quarter of a mile apart,) when they hoisted Eng- 

 lish colours, and tired several guns. The boats now form- 

 ed in one division, and pulled for the largest ship, which^ 

 as they approached, kept her guns ti-ained on them. The 

 signal was made for boarding; and, when lieutenant 

 Downes arrived within a few yards of her gangway, and 

 directed them to surrender, the colours were hauled down* 

 They now proceeded for the other vessel, after leaving aa 

 officer and some men on board, and as soon as she was hail- 

 ed, she followed the example of the first by striking her co- 

 lours. Shortly afterwards a breeze sprung up, the prizes 

 bore down for us, and we welcomed the safe return of our 

 shipmates with three hearty cheers. The captured vessels 

 proved to be, as I had expected, the Georgiana, captain 

 Pitts, of two hundred and eighty tons, and the Policy, of 

 two hundred and seventy-five tons ; and these three'ves- 

 sels, which we had taken with so little trouble, were esti- 

 mated to be worth in England upwards of half a million of 

 dollars. The ease with which the last vessels were taken 

 by our open boats, gave us but a poor opinion of British va- 

 lour; and the satisfaction which the possession of these 

 valuable vessels gave us, made us forget for a moment the 

 hardships of Cape Horn, and the time we had spent with- 

 out seeing an enemy. It also afforded us a useful lesson, 

 as it convinced us we ought not to despair of success under 

 any circumstances, however unfortunate they may appear ; 

 and that, although the patient and persevering may for a 

 time meet with disappointments, fortune will at length most 

 commonly make amends. Slight murmurings had on one 

 or two occasions been heard from some of the crew, occa- 

 sioned by our want of success heretofore, and with a view 

 of preventing it in future, I considered it adviseable to in- 

 culcate this maxim by the following note : 



