force." This means that Hood
for an adequate gain ran a great risk; that he thoroughly understood
both the advantages and the disadvantages of his situation; and that
he acted not only with great skill, but warily and boldly,--a rare
combination. The British loss in this affair was 39 killed, including
Captain Nott, of the _Centaur_, and 162 wounded. The French loss is
given by Chevalier as 18 killed and 56 wounded; by Beatson, as 119
killed and 150 wounded.

Rodney, having collected his fleet, proceeded south, and on the 18th
of May put into Barbados for water. Much anxiety had been felt at
first for Santa Lucia, which Hood's retreat had uncovered. As was
feared, the French had attacked it at once, their fleet, with the
exception of one or two ships, going there, and twelve hundred troops
landing at Gros Ilet Bay; but the batteries on Pigeon Island, which
Rodney had erected and manned, kept them at arms' length. The works
elsewhere being found too strong, the attempt was abandoned.

At the same time, two French ships of the line and thirteen hundred
troops had sailed from Martinique against Tobago. When de Grasse
returned from the failure at Santa Lucia, he learned that the British
were at sea, apparently bound for Barbados. Alarmed for his detachment
before Tobago, he again sailed with the fleet for that island on the
25th of May, accompanied by three thousand more troops. Rodney learned
at Barbados of the attempt on Tobago, and on the 29th dispatched a
squadron of six sail of the line, under Rear-Admiral Francis Samuel
Drake, to support the defence. On the 30th he heard that the French
main fleet had been seen to windward of Santa Lucia, steering south,
evidently for Tobago. On the same day Drake and de Grasse encountered
one another off the latter island, the French being to leeward,
nearest the land. Drake necessarily retired, and on the morning of
June 3d was again off Barbados, whereupon Rodney at once sailed for
Tobago with the whole fleet. On the 4th the island was sighted, and
next morning information was received that it had capitulated on the
2d.

The two fleets returning north were in presence of one another on the
9th; but no engagement took place. Rodney, who was to windward, having
twenty sail to twenty-three,[93] was unwilling to attack unless he
could get a clear sea. The strength of the currents, he said, would
throw his fleet too far to leeward, in case of reverse, into the foul
ground between S