giment to defend it from the threats of a pretended affault from the French coaft. A. D. 1760. The difpofition of his Majefty's navy, or fleet, The navy. confirms our good opinion of his wifdom and diligence. Seventeen fhips of the line were ftationed in the Indian ocean, to favour our operations by land, and to deftroy the enemy's ftrength and trade by fea. Admiral Holmes had twenty ships of the line under his command, to protect our Weft Indies, and to annoy the enemy in those feas. Admiral Saunders fhut up Toulon, and over-awed the potentates of the Levant with ten fail of the line: and Lord Colville was enabled, with twelve fhips of the line, to protect the Newfoundland fishery, and the North American coast, to scour those feas of the enemy's fhips, fhould they attempt to disturb the coaft, and to favour the operations against Montreal and Canada. Yet there were left at home, for the defence of our own coaft, and to infult the coafts of our enemies, near home, as circumftances might require, three men of war of 100 guns, fix of 90 guns, four of 80 guns, thirteen of 74 guns, five of 70, nine of 64, twelve of 60, and ten of 50 guns; which were not locked up in our ports, to eat the national bread in idleness; but fo ftationed, and appointed, that the enemy durft not appear at fea; and they that had inclination to join in their affiftance, had not courage to, declare their real intentions. Such part of this grand fleet, as was kept at home, and not in the lift for the intended 'expedition, infulted the French coaft in the chanVOL. V. D nel, 50 A. D., nel, under the command of Admiral Rodney, 1760. watchful nefs. who blockaded their ports fo narrowly, that nothing could escape his vigilance nor refift his ftrength. A trial was made with five flat-bottomed boats from Harfleur, loaded with cannon and shot, at noon-day, in the month of July, and in defiance of the English fquadron; to form a judgment of the dependance, that the enemy might put in those new-invented veffels, and whether they would be able to clear themselves from an English fquadron of men of war, in cafe they fhould be dif covered and chaced, in an attempt to land forces Admiral in England or Ireland. But the admiral giving Rodney's orders to his small veffels to cut off their retreat from the river Orme, while the large ships stood to the steep coast of Port Baffin, the flat-bottomed boats having no way to efcape, ran a-fhore at Port Baffin, and in their deftruction convinced the French miniftry, that they could never propose to make any figure in naval history by fuch a chimerical project of defeating the vigilance and ftrength of the navy of England, with a fleet of flat-bottomed boats. Confequently they ordered all the others, in number one hundred, then lying at Caen, to be unloaded, and fent to Rouen, to be laid up, as ufelefs. Which fervice, perboats de- formed by Admiral Rodney, and the deftruction he made of near forty veffels of confiderable burden, carrying on a confiderable fishery near Dieppe, did great honour to the commander, and reputation of thofe charged with the direction of the national affairs. · Flat bot tomed stroyed, &c. As 1760. As the revival of any attempt, though ever fo, A. D. feeble, to disturb our navigation, to alarm our Fleet in coafts, and to interrupt our ulterior operations the bay. against Canada, would have been attended with difagreeable effects; befides the vaft fums, that would have been entirely loft, by any means to protract the North American war to another campaign; nothing could be judged more advantageously for the intereft of our country, under fuch circumstances, than ftationing a fufficient squadron fo, as to block up the ports, from which the remains of their naval power could poffibly fail, upon any defperate enterprize. This was the alternate employment of the Admirals Hawke and Bofcawen; who relieved each other, and with a powerful fquadron, not only prevented any naval armaments failing from Breft, Rochefort, &c. but kept the whole coaft in fuch an alarm, as to oblige them to employ a number of forces, which might have done the allies much damage in Germany. I taken. The enemy kept clofe quarters: they were glad Two to hide themselves in any creek or rivulet, rather inlands than venture in the way of our fleet. But Mr. Bofcawen, impatient for want of an opportunity to drub the French fhips, took poffeffion of a fmall island near the river Vannes, and caufed it to be cultivated and planted with vegetables, as the best expedient for the relief and cure of men, who, by the fea air, want of exercife and living entirely upon falt provifion, fhould be infected with the scurvy. And in the month of Sep A. D. 1760. tember Sir Edward Hawke, fenfible of the dif ficulties, to which fo large a fleet is exposed, at fome feafons, in that ftation, for want of fresh water; and informed, that those difficulties might be removed by getting poffeffion of the Island of Dumet, which abounded with that neceffary of life; Lord Howe was ordered, by Sir Edward to perform that fervice, with the Magnanime, Prince Frederick and Bedford. This island, about three miles long and one broad, was defended by a fmall fort, that mounted nine cannon, and was garrifoned by one company of the regiment of Bourbon, who furrendered with little or no refiftance. Louifbourg for The bad effects of the restoration of Louisbourg, tifications by the treaty of Aix-la-Chapelle, which were seen demolift in all the proceedings of the French in North ed. America, and which might convince us, that they would never keep the faith of treaties, in regard to the fisheries and limits of territory in that quarter of the globe, fo long as they should remain poffeffed of that fortress; and further, that the French in any future negociation for a peace, might tenaciously infift upon its reftoration, in the ftate and condition it was in at its conqueft, did moft prudently advise, and the minifter had the good fortune to be fuffered to fend Capt. Byron, with ships and able bourg de engineers, to demolish the fortifications of Louifmolished. bourg; who reduced them to a heap of rubbish, Louif Befides it was never to be had without a very confiderable expence to the nation, by hiring transports to carry water for the ufe of the fquadron. A. D. filled up the ditches, levelled the glacis, and conveyed all the artillery, ammunition and imple- 1760. ments of war to Hallifax; nothing being left standing but the private houses, the hospital for the fick, and barracks capable of lodging 300 men, in cafe of neceffity. troops and Such was the spirit of gallantry, difperfid in Bravery of our fleets and armies, that every officer emulated the British the braveft actions; they were only afraid of not failors. meeting with an opportunity to merit the applaufe of their country; and the spirit of the officers was equally fupported by an uncommon exertion of courage in the men. Off Hifpa The detachments from the fquadrons in the Weft Indies, ftand the firft upon this record of niola. fame. The Hampfhire, Lively and Boreas fell in with eight fail of Frenchmen, from Cape François, on the Inland of Hifpaniola, for Europe, on the 17th of October 1759; but the wind being flack the Boreas could not come up with their commodore till near midnight. The French commodore ship was the Sirenne, commanded by Captain Mac Cartie, an Irish officer of good reputation; but he thought it most prudent to run, after a hot engagement of about twenty-five minutes. The Boreas was fo damaged in her rigging, that he was obliged to lie by and repair, for fome time. Which being done with the utmost expedition, the failed in queft of the Sirenne, and came up with her next day, about two o'clock in the afternoon, off the east end of Cuba, and forced Mac Cartie to ftrike, after a ftout action D 3 |