tenant Ludlow and a few faithful hearts, whom the anxiety of that young officer had rallied, and who now stood with a contempt of death to resent the insult offered their flag, and die combatting on the deck of their own ship, rather than survive the dishonour of her surrender: this handful of intrepid warriors fell overwhelmed by numbers, with their youthful and gallant leader at their head; who, in his end, has made the glory of his name immortal. On the forecastle there appeared only Lieutenant Budd and a few seamen, who were in the act of getting on board the fore tack to shoot the ship clear of her adversary; this group was quickly dispersed, and their officer thrown down wounded on the main-deck. The Chesapeake was now irretrievably gone, for the only remaining lieutenant had suffered himself to be influenced by sentiments unlike those of a gallant spirit in a pressing emergency. With a sympathy preposterous at such a juncture, he had withdrawn his example and presence from the division of men that he commanded on the main-deck, to assist his wounded commander down into the cockpit; his inglorious disappearance and long absence, at a time when he had other points to carry, were much resented by the sailors. The Court of Inquiry glance severely at the behaviour of Lieutenant Cox; but his counsel, if versed in the history of ancient wars, might plead the usage of antiquity. We are told with great naïveté by Homer, that Hector took himself off in the heat of the battle between the Greeks and Trojans on the Xanthus; not, probably, relishing the idea of coming athwart the hawse of Ajax. But the resemblance holds good between Lieute

nant Cox and Hector in other features of their conduct. When Hector was diverging from the field, he exclaimed to his troops:

my friends, be men;

Rouse all your fire and force, while, ent'ring Troy,

I offer vows and hecatombs to heav'n.

And Lieutenant Cox, as he shoved his boat off, very seriously urged the seamen to a vigorous prosecution of the war.*

* See the Report of the Court.

A TABLE

Missing at the boarding.

The assailants led on to the charge of the enemy by Captain Broke were followed by Lieutenant Falkiner at the head of the main-deck-boarders, and by the lieutenants Johns and Laws, animating by their spirit and conduct their respective divisions of marines. There were at this time upwards of three hundred American sailors on the next deck below, in the vigour of youth, health and strength, who, without an officer to give union and efficacy to their resources, made no effort to assert their colours, or defend their ship; but heard with little or no emotion the trampling of the boarders above their heads, more ready to accuse, than to remedy, the evil, which they imputed to the privation of all authority at such a crisis to kindle and direct their courage. When the Americans on the forecastle had submitted, Captain Broke placed a sailor to stand centinel over them, and sent most of the rest of his party aft. A daring discharge of musketry was still kept up from the Chesapeake's main-top, and he was in the act of directing his marines to answer it, when the centinel called out for him to beware; and, on turning round, he found himself assailed by three of the Americans whom he had left in the custody of the sailor, and who had armed themselves afresh with some disregarded weapons. "Captain "Broke parried the middle fellow's pike, and wounded "him in the face with his sword; but instantly received "from the man on the pikeman's right a blow with the "butt-end of a musket, which bared his skull, and "nearly stunned him. Bent on finishing the British "commander, the third man cut him down with his

"broad-sword; and, at that very instant, was himself "cut down by an English sailor who had run to his "captain's assistance. Captain Broke and his treache "rous foe now lay side by side; each, although nearly "powerless, striving to regain his sword, when a marine "who had advanced to the spot, dispatched the American "with his bayonet." ?? In the mean while Midshipman Smith, who commanded in the fore-top of the Shannon, stormed with his top-men, about five in number, the Chesapeake's fore-top from the fore-yard-arm, and with irresistible fury put all the Americans stationed there to the sword, except a boy named John White, who glided down a backstay with all the precipitation that terror could inspire, and lighting on the deck close by Captain Broke, who sat bleeding from his wound supported by the Shannon's seamen, embraced with tears the feet of his foe, and implored his protection. There was every thing in the boy's appearance to make him an object of interest. His fine, flexible figure acquired new grace from his attitude of supplication. His little naval hat, tarred but glossy, and encircled at the crown with a blue broad ribbon inscribed in gilt letters with FREE TRADE AND SAILORS' RIGHTS, gallantly set off the flaxen ringlets of his luxuriant hair, and heightened the anxiety of his light blue eye. As he finished his prayer of entreaty, he pressed with one hand to his eyes, as he held the captain with the other, the curving ends

* James's Naval Occurrences, page 218.