tle ships perceiving that only two of our frigates were sent
against their four, hove-to at about the same distance from their
frigates, as our line-of-battle ships and other frigates were from us.
In the meantime our main fleet continued to work in shore under a press
of sail, and the French main fleet also gradually approached the
detached ships. The whole scene reminded me of the tournaments I had
read of; it was a challenge in the lists, only that the enemy were two
to one; a fair acknowledgment on their parts of our superiority. In
about an hour we closed so near, that the French frigates made sail and
commenced firing. We reserved our fire until within a quarter of a mile,
when we poured our broadside into the headmost frigate, exchanging with
her on opposite tacks. The _Sea-horse_, who followed, also gave her a
broadside. In this way we exchanged broadsides with the whole four, and
we had the best of it, for they could not load so fast as we could. We
were both ready again for the frigates as they passed us, but they were
not ready with their broadside for the _Sea-horse_, who followed us very
closely, so that they had two broadsides each, and we had only four in
the _Diomede_, the _Sea-horse_ not having one. Our rigging was cut up a
great deal, and we had six or seven men wounded, but none killed. The
French frigates suffered more, and their admiral perceiving that they
were cut up a good deal, made a signal of recall. In the meantime we had
both tacked, and were ranging up on the weather quarter of the sternmost
frigate: the line-of-battle ships perceiving this, ran down with the
wind, two points free, to support their frigates, and our in-shore
squadron made all sail to support us, nearly laying up for where we
were. But the wind was what is called at sea a soldier's wind, that is,
blowing so that the ships could lie either way, so as to run out or into
the harbour, and the French frigates, in obedience to their orders, made
sail for their fleet in-shore, the line-of-battle ships coming out to
support them. But our captain would not give it up, although we all
continued to near the French line-of-battle ships every minute--we ran
in with the frigates, exchanging broadsides with them as fast as we
could. One of them lost her foretopmast, and dropped astern, and we
hoped to cut her off, but the others shortened sail to support her. This
continued for about twenty minutes, when the French line-of-battle ships
were