o were jealous
of the appointment of a junior officer to conduct so important a
service. Lord Cochrane remarks that two only, Rear-Admiral Stafford and
Sir Harry Neale, received him in a friendly manner. Lord Cochrane was
not a man to be disconcerted by such conduct, and felt thoroughly
convinced that the plan he proposed would succeed. The French, aware of
the danger of their position, had done their utmost to fortify it. The
defences on Ile d'Aix were strengthened, and works were commenced on the
Boyart Shoal on the opposite side of the entrance to the roads, while a
boom half-a-mile in length, composed of spars and cables, had been laid
down and secured by heavy anchors. This boom, forming an obtuse angle,
occupied a deep channel between Ile d'Aix and the Boyart Shoal, and it
was supposed would prove effectual against the passage of fire-ships.
The French fleet was drawn up in two lines inside the boom, with three
frigates in line ahead of them. The ships thus placed, aided by the
batteries on shore, would have been sufficient to sink the British fleet
had it attempted to force a passage. Besides the fire-ships, Lord
Cochrane had constructed two explosion vessels. The largest contained
1500 barrels of powder, formed into a solid mass by wedges and wet sand
rammed hard between the casks. On the top of this mass of gunpowder
were 400 live shells with short fusees, together with as many hundreds
of hand grenades and rockets.

The night of the 11th of April was fixed on for the enterprise. The
fire-ships were ready, but one mortar-vessel, the _Etna_, alone had
arrived. The _Imperieuse_, from whence operations were to be directed,
anchored close to the inner end of the Boyart Shoal. The _Aigle,
Unicorn_, and _Pallas_ frigates, brought up in a line to the northward
of her, in order to receive the crews of the fire-ships and support the
boats of the fleet, while the _Etna_ anchored off the north-east point
of Ile d'Aix, covered by the _Emerald_ frigate and four gun brigs. Two
others, with screened lights hoisted, were to act as pointers for the
guidance of the fire-ships. They were to pass between the two light
vessels, and then shape a course for the boom. A strong wind from the
north-west enabled the fire-ships to run about two points free for the
boom. At 8:30 p.m. Lord Cochrane, accompanied by Lieutenant Bissell,
embarked on board the largest of the explosion vessels, on the perilous
undertaking, the oth