504 THE SERVICES OF LIEUT.-COLONEL FRANCIS DOWNMAN, R.A. 
night and stood to the N.E. One of our vessels, a brig with horses, 
did not attend to the signals, and kept her course, finding herself at 
daybreak in the midst of d'Estaing's fleet. This was a providential 
escape, and our not falling in with him during the whole passage was 
equally fortunate. The two commanders had not the smallest idea of 
one another's situation. Our arrival here at a happy moment of time, 
for had we been twelve hours later all had been lost—our landing in¬ 
stantly, our being well posted, our fleet being even in the readiness 
they were, our finding the French cannon so badly spiked and having 
them ready to make use of just by the time the French arrived, our 
finding ammunition, our repulsing their different attacks though so 
very superior in number to us, and the very trifling loss we sustained 
in those attacks are I think circumstances that very sufficiently evince 
we have a good angel attending upon us. 
{To be continued.) 
