xact position of the enemy, and at once the fleet sailed towards them. On
the morning of the 11th October, 1797, the admiral came in sight of the
enemy about nine miles from shore and nearly opposite the village of
Camperdown. The fleet, however, was greatly scattered owing to the
different speeds of the ships. De Winter, as soon as he saw the British
coming, got up his anchors and made for shore, hoping that he might be
able to get so close in among its shoals and sand-banks, which were much
better known to him than to his antagonists, as to deter Duncan from
pursuing him. He was, above all things, anxious to avoid action; not so
much because his fleet was slightly inferior to the British, as because
his instructions enjoined him to regard his junction with the French at
Brest as his chief object.

The British admiral, seeing his arrangements and divining his object,
pressed on, regardless of the scattered state of his fleet, and made the
signal for each ship to attack as she came up. Another signal intimated
that he should attempt to break the enemy's line, so as to get between it
and the land. But this signal was not generally seen by the fleet. It was,
however, seen and acted upon by the second in command, Admiral Onslow, in
the _Monarch_, who soon after led the larboard division through the Dutch
line, three ships from the rear, and then closely engaged the _Jupiter_.
Duncan's own ship, the _Venerable_, the leading ship of the starboard
division, marked out the _Vryhide_, De Winter's flagship, as his own
antagonist.

The Dutch ship _States-general_, the flagship of their rear-admiral,
seeing his design, pressed so close up to his chief that the British
admiral was compelled to change his course and pass astern of her; but as
he did so he poured so terrible a fire into her stern that she was glad to
fall back and leave the _Venerable_ free to attack the _Vryhide_. Others
of our ships followed the example of their chief, breaking the Dutch line
at several points. At one o'clock the battle became general, and was
carried on with unsurpassed courage on both sides. The two biggest Dutch
frigates, which carried as heavy guns as the British line-of-battle ships,
crept forward into the fight and fought gallantly, the _Mars_ raking the
_Venerable_ severely while she was engaged with no fewer than three Dutch
line-of-battle ships.

The crew of the _Venerable_ had been particularly anxious to fight, their
ship having been f