etter.

While the "Alliance" dropped astern, the foremost British frigate
shortened sail and would not come near the "Alliance."

Later the two British came up fast. Captain Barry, "confident within"
himself that the "Alliance" "would have fallen a sacrifice" if he
remained with the "Lauzun," signaled Captain Greene to heave his guns
overboard so as to get clear of the enemy by lightening his ship. By
this time one of the British was within gun-shot of the "Lauzun." They
fired several shots at one another but at too great a distance for
either to do damage. In the morning a strange ship had been seen to the
southward, but sailing away from the "Alliance." In the afternoon after
the "Lauzun" had exchanged shots with the enemy pursuing her, this
"strange sail" stood for the Americans. Barry had "all the reason in the
world to suppose she was a stranger to the enemy also," as at that time
the "Lauzun" was firing "stern chasers" at her pursuer. Barry then ran
down between the "Lauzun" and the enemy in order to give Captain Greene
a chance to get off by bringing the enemy into action, which Barry did
"close on board for forty-five minutes, when the enemy sheered off."
During the action the "Alliance" had ten wounded--one dying later. The
"spars and rigging were hurt a little but not so much but they would all
do again." Captains Barry and Greene then sailed towards the strange
ship. It proved to be a French gun ship of 60 guns, which had sailed
from Havana two days before Barry and Greene. It had half a million
dollars on board and was bound to one of the French islands.

Kessler relates that Captain Barry expected the French gunship to assist
the "Alliance"; that two of the British kept "at a distance as if
waiting to ascertain about the French ship." But though she "approached
the Americans fast," she did not join in the encounter. When Captain
Barry afterwards "asked them why they did not come down during the
action, they answered they thought they might have been taken, and the
signal known; that the action was only 'a sham to decoy him.'"

"His foolish action," records Kessler, "thus, perhaps, lost us the three
frigates, for Captain Barry commenced the action in the full expectation
of the French ship joining and thereby not only be able to cope but to
subdue part, if not the whole of them."

The French proposed to give chase. This was done, but the French ship
could not keep up with the "Alliance" or the slower "La