ned at once to attack, and hauled round the east point of
the bay in column, the two seventy-fours at the head, his own ship,
the _Heros_, leading with the signal for battle (line ab). Passing
through, or along, the disordered enemy until he reached the only
seventy-four among them, he there luffed to the wind, anchoring five
hundred feet from the starboard beam of this vessel (f) which by an
odd coincidence bore the same name--_Hero_. From this position he at
once opened fire from both broadsides. His next astern, the _Annibal_
(b), brought up immediately ahead of him, but so close that the
_Heros_ had to veer cable and drop astern (a), which brought her on
the beam of the _Monmouth_, 64[140] (m). The captain of the _Annibal_
had thought the order for battle merely precautionary, and had not
cleared for action. He was therefore taken unawares, and his ship did
no service proportionate to her force. The third French vessel (c)
reached her station, but her captain was struck dead just when about
to anchor, and in the confusion the anchor was not let go. The ship
drifted foul of a British East Indiaman, which she carried out to sea
(c' c"). The two remaining French (d, e) simply cannonaded as they
passed across the bay's mouth, failing through mishap or awkwardness
to reach an effective position.

[Illustration]

The attack thus became a mere rough and tumble, in which the two
seventy-fours alone sustained the French side. After three quarters
of an hour, Suffren, seeing that the attempt had failed, slipped his
cable and put to sea. The _Annibal_ followed, but she had been so
damaged that all her masts went overboard; fortunately, not until her
head was pointed out of the harbour. Johnstone, thus luckily escaping
the consequences of his neglect, now called his captains together to
learn the condition of their ships, and then ordered them to cut their
cables and pursue. All obeyed except Captain Sutton of the _Isis_, who
represented that the spars and rigging of his ship could not bear sail
at once. Johnstone then ordered him to come out anyhow, which he did,
and his fore topmast shortly went overboard. The disability of this
ship so weighed upon the Commodore that his pursuit was exceedingly
sluggish; and the French kept drawing him away to leeward, the
_Annibal_ having got a bit of canvas on a jury foremast. Night,
therefore, was falling as Johnstone came near them; the _Isis_ and
_Monmouth_ were two or three miles ast