their High Mightinesses; as he had
it in his power to have done infinite mischief to our fleet,
coming down in that unofficer-like manner. Having suffered
Admiral Parker to place himself as he pleased, he calmly
waited till the signal was hoisted on board the _Fortitude_,
and at the same time we saw the signal going up on board
Admiral Zutman's ship."

The British, thus unmolested, rounded-to just to windward of the
enemy. A pilot who was on board their leading ship was for some reason
told to assist in laying her close to her opponent. "By close," he
asked, "do you mean about a ship's breadth?" "Not a gun was fired
on either side," says the official British report, "until within the
distance of half musket-shot." Parker, whom an on-looker describes as
full of life and spirits, here made a mistake, of a routine character,
which somewhat dislocated his order. It was a matter of tradition for
flagship to seek flagship, just as it was to signal a general chase,
and to bear down together, each ship for its opposite, well extended
with the enemy. Now Parker, as was usual, was in the centre of
his line, the fourth ship; but Zoutman was for some reason in the
fifth. Parker therefore placed his fourth by the enemy's fifth. In
consequence, the rear British ship overlapped the enemy, and for a
time had no opponent; while the second and third found themselves
engaged with three of the Dutch. At 8 A.M. the signal for the line
was hauled down, and that for close action hoisted,--thus avoiding a
mistake often made.

All the vessels were soon satisfactorily and hotly at work, and the
action continued with varying phases till 11.35 A.M. The leading two
ships in both orders got well to leeward of the lines, the British two
having to tack to regain their places to windward. Towards the middle
of the engagement the Dutch convoy bore away, back to the Texel, as
the British had steered for England before it began; the difference
being that the voyage was abandoned by the Dutch and completed by
the British. At eleven o'clock Parker made sail, and passed with the
flagship between the enemy and the _Buffalo_, his next ahead and third
in the British order; the three rear ships following close in his
wake, in obedience to the signal for line ahead, which had been
rehoisted at 10.43.[104] A heavy cannonade attended this evolution,
the Dutch fighting gloriously to the last. When it was completed, the
British fleet wore