Bainbridge arrived on the scene. Our Jersey sailor did not do any more
fighting, but he held high positions in our navy, and died an honored
commodore.

Years after the affair with the "Philadelphia," when war had begun
between the United States and Great Britain, there was a great chance
for America to show what she could do on the sea. Then the fighting men
in ships were more important to the country than the fighting men on
shore; and Captain Lawrence, our fighting sailor from Burlington, showed
himself among the foremost of our naval heroes.

Very early in the war he was in command of the "Hornet," a snappish
vessel with more stings than one, and while cruising in South American
waters he met the British man-of-war "Peacock." Now, when a hornet and
a peacock quarrel, lively times are likely to ensue, and so it happened
in this case.

The two vessels began by endeavoring to get into favorable positions,
each anxious to rake the deck of the other. The "Peacock" did not spread
her tail, but she spread her sail, and the "Hornet" buzzed this way and
that, with her stings ready for action as soon as the proper moment
should arrive. When at last they actually began to fight, the battle was
a terrible one, such as was possible only in those days of wooden ships.
But a short distance apart, they poured into each other heavy shot and
small shot; musketry and cannon cracked and roared, while the clouds of
smoke nearly hid the vessels from each other. This tremendous
bombardment lasted about a quarter of an hour, and at the end of that
time the "Peacock" struck her colors and surrendered. The captain and a
good many of the crew had been killed, and the vessel was in such a
demolished condition that there was not time to get all the prisoners
and the wounded on board the "Hornet." The officers and men of the
American vessel labored hard to save those on board their unfortunate
enemy; but the "Peacock" sank before this could be entirely
accomplished, and several of the British sailors, with three of those
from the "Hornet," sank with her.

Captain Lawrence was not only a brave man, but he was a very kind one.
He treated the officers and crew of the "Peacock" so well, even
providing them with clothes (for they had no time to bring anything from
their own vessel), that when the prisoners reached New York, the
officers publicly thanked him in a paper which they drew up and signed.
This victory, following our other brilliant exp