e American ship hove all
aback, and dropped on the quarter of the _Serapis_, evidently with the
intention of raking her. Filling again, she ran the _Serapis_ aboard on
the weather or larboard quarter, and an attempt was now made to board
her, but was at once repulsed. Captain Pearson now backed his yards to
enable him to get square with his antagonist, but gathering too much
stern-way, the _Richard_ was able to fill and stand across his bows.
Her mizen-shrouds, however, catching the jib-boom of the _Serapis_, and
the spar giving way, the ships dropped alongside each other head and
stern. Both ships were kept in this position in consequence of the
spare anchor of the _Serapis_ having entered the gallery of the
_Richard_, when a furious cannonade was carried on, the muzzles of the
guns touching each other. While in this position, the _Alliance_
frigate coming up, sailed round the combatants, pouring in a galling
fire on the _Serapis_, to which no return could be made. There could
have been little doubt that even thus Captain Pearson would have gained
the victory, had not some hand grenades been thrown on his deck, which
set the ship on fire several times, one of them igniting a cartridge of
powder, the flames of which communicated from cartridge to cartridge all
the way off, and blew up the whole of the people and several officers
who were quartered abaft the main-mast. By this time all the men on the
quarter and main-decks were killed or wounded. Notwithstanding this, so
furious had been the fire of the _Serapis_, that at ten the enemy called
for quarter; but on Captain Pearson hailing to inquire if they had
struck, and no answer being given, he ordered the boarders away. As,
however, they reached the deck of the enemy, they found a superior
number of men concealed with pikes in their hands ready to receive them.
On this the crew of the _Serapis_ retreated to their own ship, and
instantly returned to their guns; but at the same moment the frigate
again poured another broadside into her with such effect that the
main-mast fell, and Captain Pearson being unable to get a single gun to
bear on his antagonist, was compelled to strike his colours. He and his
first lieutenant were immediately escorted on board the _Bon Homme
Richard_. He found her condition to be even worse than his own; her
quarters and counter were entirely driven in; the whole of her
lower-deck guns dismounted, and she was also on fire in two places,