up to the
main-royal masthead. Then a hush fell upon the water as the two fleets
drew together. A few minutes before noon the engagement began, Perry
heading straight for the flagship of the enemy, and drawing the fire of
practically the whole British squadron by running ahead of the other
ships, which, owing to the light breeze, could not get within range. For
two hours, he fought against these hopeless odds, and almost without
support, until his ship was reduced to a wreck and only one of her guns
could be worked, while of her crew of 103, only twenty were left on
their feet. Every nook and corner of the brig was occupied by some
wounded and dying wretch seeking vainly to find shelter from the British
fire. Even the cockpit, where the wounded were carried for treatment,
was not safe, for some of the men were killed while under the surgeon's
hands. No fewer than six cannon balls passed through the cockpit, while
two went through the magazine, which, by some miracle, did not explode.
The ship was so disabled, at last, that it drifted out of action, and
Perry, taking his pennant and the blue flag bearing the words "Don't
give up the ship!" under his arm, got into a boat with four seamen, and
started for the Niagara, his other brig.

The British saw the little boat dancing over the waves, and after a
moment of dazed astonishment at a manoeuvre unheard of in naval warfare
and daring almost to madness, concentrated their fire on it. One cannon
ball penetrated the boat, but Perry, stripping off his coat, stuffed it
into the hole and so kept the boat afloat until the Niagara was reached.
Clambering on board, Perry ran up his flags, reformed his line, closed
with the enemy, raked them, engaged them at close quarters, where their
long guns gave them no advantage, and conducted an onslaught so terrific
that, twenty minutes later, the entire British squadron had hauled down
their flags.

Perry at once rowed back to the Lawrence, and upon her splintered and
bloodstained deck, received the surrender of the British officers. Then,
using his cap for a desk, he wrote with a pencil on the back of an old
letter the famous message announcing the victory: "We have met the enemy
and they are ours--two ships, two brigs, two schooners and one sloop."
More than that was ours, for the victory, and the prompt advance of
General Harrison which followed it, compelled the British to evacuate
Detroit and Michigan, and to abandon forever the attemp