CAPTURE OF THE PRESIDENT FRIGATE. Copy of a letter from Commodore Decatur to the Secretary of the Navy, dated his Britannic majesty's ship Endymion, at sea, January 18, 1815. SIR, THE painful duty of detailing to you the particular causes which preceded and led to the capture of the late United States' frigate President, by a squadron of his Britannic majesty's ships (as per margin), has devolved upon me. In my communication of the 14th, I made known to you my intention of proceeding to sea on that evening. Owing to some mistake of the pilots, the ship, in going out, grounded on the bar, where she continued to strike heavily for an hour and a half; although she had broken several of her rudder braces, and had received such other material injury as to render her return into port desirable, I was unable to do so from the strong westerly wind which was then blowing. It being now high water, it became necessary to force her over the bar before the tide fell. In this we succeeded by 10 o'clock, when we shaped our course along the shore of Long Island for fifty miles, and then steered S. E. by E. At 5 o'clock, three ships were discovered a head: we immediately hauled up the ship, and passed two miles to the northward of them. At daylight we discovered four ships in chase, one on each quarter, and two astern-the leading ship of the enemy a razee. She commenced a fire upon us; but without effect. At meridian, the wind became light and baffling: we had increased our distance from the razee, but the next ship astern, which was also a large ship, had gained, and continued to gain upon us considerably. We immediately occupied all hands to lighten ship, by starting water, cutting away the anchors, throwing overboard provisions, cables, spare spars, boats, and every article that could be got at, keeping the sails wet from the royals down. At 3, we had the wind quite light: the enemy, who had now been joined by a brig, had a strong breeze, and were coming up with us rapidly. The Endymion (mounting 50 guns, twenty-four-pounders on the main-deck) had now approached us within gun-shot, and had commenced a fire with her bow guns, which we returned from our stern. At 5 o'clock, she had obtained a position on our starboard quarter, within half point blank shot, on which neither our stern nor quarter guns would bear. We were now steering E. by N. the wind N. W. I remained with her in this position for half an hour, in the hope that she would close with us on our broadside; in which case I had prepared my crew to board; but, from his continuing to yaw his ship to maintain his position, it became evident that to close was not his intention. Every fire now cut some of our sails or rigging. To have continued our course, under these circumstances, would have been placing it in his power to cripple us, without being subject to injury himself, and to have hauled up more to the northward, to bring our stern guns to bear, would have exposed us to his raking fire. It was now dusk, when I determined to alter my course south, for the purpose of bringing the enemy abeam; and, although their ships astern were drawing up fast, I felt satisfied I should be enabled to throw him out of the combat before they could come up, and was not without hopes, if the night proved dark (of which there was every appearance), that I might still be enabled to effect my escape, Our opponent kept off at the same instant we did, and sur fire commenced at the same time. We continued engaged, steering south, with steeringsails set, two hours and a half, when we completely succeeded in dismantling her. Previously to her dropping entirely out of the action, there were intervals of minutes when the ships were broadside and broadside, in which she did not fire a gun. At this period (half past eight o'clock), although dark, the other ships of the squadron were in sight, and almost within gun-shot. We were of course compelled to abandon her. In resuming our former course, for the purpose of avoiding the squadron, we were compelled to present our stern to our antago nist; but such was his state, though we were thus exposed, and within range of his guns, for half an hour, that he did not avail himself of this favourable opportunity of raking us. We continued this course until 11 o'clock, when two fresh ships of the enemy (the Pomona and Tenedos) had come up. The Pomona had opened her fire on the larboard bow, within musket-shot; the other about two cables' length astern, taking a raking position on our quarter; and the rest (with the exception of the Endymion) within gun-shot. Thus situated, with about one-fifth of my crew killed and wounded, my ship crippled, and a more than four-fold force opposed to me, without a chance of escape left, I deemed it my duty to surrender. It is with emotions of pride I bear testimony to the gallantry and steadiness of every officer and man I had the honour to command on this occasion; and I feel satisfied that the fact of their having beaten a force equal to themselves, in the presence, and almost under the guns of so vastly a superior force, when, too, it was almost self-evident, that, whatever their exertions might be, they must ultimately be captured, will be taken as evidence of what they would have performed, had the force opposed to them been in any degree equal. It is with extreme pain I have to inform you, that lieutenants Babbit, Hamilton, and Howell, fell in the action. They have left no officers of superior merit behind them. If, sir, the issue of this affair had been fortunate, I should have felt it my duty to have recommended to your attention lieutenants Shubrick and Gallagher. They maintained throughout the day the reputation they had acquired in former actions. Lieutenant Twiggs, of the marines, displayed great zeal; his men were well supplied, and their fire incomparable, so long as the enemy contipued within musket-range. Midshipman Randolph, who had charge of the forecastle division, managed it to my entire satisfaction. From Mr. Robinson, who was serving as a volunteer, I received essential aid, particularly after I was deprived of the services of the master, and the severe loss I had sustained in my officers on the quarter-deck. Of our loss in killed and wounded, I am unable at present to give you a correct statement; the attention of the surgeon being so entirely occupied with the wounded, that he was unable to make out a correct return when I left the President, nor shall I be able to make it until our arrival in port, we having parted company with the squadron yesterday. The inclosed list, with the exception I fear of its being short of the number, will be found correct. For twenty-four hours after the action it was nearly calm, and the squadron were occupied in repairing the crippled ships. Such of the crew of the President as were not badly wounded, were put on board the different ships: myself and a part of my crew were put on board this ship. On the 17th we had a gale from the eastward, in which this ship lost her bowsprit, fore and mainmasts, and mizen-topmast, all of which were badly wounded, and was, in consequence of her disabled condition, obliged to throw overboard all her upper-deck guns. Her loss in killed and wounded must have been very great. I have not been able to ascertain the extent. Ten were buried after I came on board (36 hours after the action). The badly wounded, such as are obliged to keep their cots, occupy the starboard side of the gun-deck, from the cabin bulk-head to the main mast. From the crippled state of the President's spars, I feel satisfied she could not have saved her masts; and I feel serious apprehensions for the safety of our wounded left on board. It is due to captain Hope to state, that every attention has been paid by him to myself and officers that have been placed on board his ship, that delicacy and humanity could dictate. I have the honour to be, With much respect, sir, Your obedient servant, STEPHEN DECATUR. Hon. Benjamin W. Crowninshield, Secretary of the Navy. British squadron referred to in the letter. Majestic razee; Endymion, Pomone and Tenedos frigates; and the Dispatch brig. List of killed and wounded on board the United States' frigate President, Killed-24. Wounded-55. Extract of a letter from Commodore Stephen Decatur to the Secretary of the Navy, dated New York, March 6th, 1815. In my official letter of the 18th January, I omitted to state, that a considerable number of my killed and wounded was from the fire of the Pomone, and that the Endymion had on board, in addition to her own crew, one lieutenant, onc master's mate, and 50 men, belonging to the Saturn, and, when the action ceased, was left motionless and unmanageable until she bent new sails, rove new rigging, and fished her spars; nor did she join the squadron for six hours after the action, and three hours after the surrender of the President. My sword was delivered to captain Hays, of the Majestic, the senior officer of the squadron, on his quarterdeck; which he with great politeness immediately returned. I have the honour to inclose you my parole, by which you will perceive the British admit that the President was captured by the squadron. I should have deemed it unnecessary to have drawn your attention to this document, had not the fact been stated differently by the Bermuda Gazette, on our arrival there; which statement, however, the editor was compelled to retract, through the interference of the governor, and some of the British officers of the squadron. The great assiduity of Dr. Trevett, and surgeon's mates, Dix and Wickes, to the wounded, merit the highest approbation. The only officer badly wounded is midshipman Richard Dale, who lost a leg-a circumstance to be particularly regretted, as he is a young man possessed of every quality to make a distinguished officer,' EXTRACTS. De l'Etat présent de l'Europe, et de l'accord entre la Légitimité et la Systeme Représentatif. Par M. CHARLES THEREMIN.— Liberi sensi in simplici parole. Paris, chez Plancher, Editeur; et Delaunay, Palais-Royal, 1816. 8vo. pp. 214. [From the Critical Review.] THE French have always shown themselves the best theoretical, and the worst practical statesmen; the history of their writers affords a long list of most able and eminent men, who have enlarged upon the general principles of government, in a subdued spirit of liberty, and a pure spirit of wisdom: while the history of their country, on the other hand, supplies still more numerous examples of the abandonment, or rather of the disregard, of the plainest maxims of justice and prudence. It cannot, certainly, be said, that this mal-administration of public affairs has been the consequence of the admirable rules laid down, though it may, perhaps, be truly asserted, that these admirable rules have resulted from the mal-administration: that they have not hitherto been carried into effect, is to be attributed to several causes; but the very circumstance of the absence of enlightened principles, in the executive departments, and the inconveniences and suffering produced by that absence, naturally led the minds of reflecting men to the consideration of the best means by which they might be avoided, or remedied, in a different state of things. It has been a common remark, that the best writers upon the British constitution, have not been found among those who were in the tranquil enjoyment of its shelter and blessings; but among those, who, viewing the structure at a distance, were better able to contemplate it in the wholeness of its beauty, and to estimate the accordance of its parts, and the harmony of its proportions. The theoretical excellence of which we have spoken, in a considerable degree, applies to the work of M. Theremin; the title of which, "The Agreement between Legitimacy and Representation," will be perfectly understood in this country, where the benefits of this union have happily long been experienced, but will not be quite as comprehensible in France; where, for a protracted series of years, legitimacy and despotism were nearly synonimous. The King of France has now no easy task to per form in practically establishing, for the first time, the admitted distinction. In the preface to the work before us, the author is extremely anxious to impress upon his readers, that though a native of France, he writes as a citizen of the world: that he has thrown off the amour propre, (an individual term, which the French nation, exclusively, has applied nationally,) which his countrymen almost proverbially feel;-that he writes" dans un esprit Européen," as a friend to the rational liberty of the people, and an equal friend to the rights of sovereigns. If M. Theremin really believes that, in the course of his work, he has proceeded upon this enlarged plan, he labours under one of those self-deceptions to which the amour propre was likely to lead him; for, as before the French Revolution, legitimacy and despotism were synonimous, so now, after the expulsion of Buonaparte, we apprehend that royalty and impartiality are to be understood in France in the same signification. Even if the author could persuade himself that he has been impartial, he must know that in the present state of his country, with the restrictions and visitations the press is liable to, it would be next to impossible that any work should be printed, which did not tend to promote the cause of the legitimacy of the sovereign, as contra-distinguished from the cause of the representation of the subject. Upon this point we well recollect the language of Mr. Whitbread, only a few days before his melancholy end:-" That these were dangerous times for the liberties of nations;-that by the military power of legitimate sovereigns, the will of a whole people had been stifled and overcome, and that the only chance for continental freedom was the establishment of a free press." We register these as the dying words of a man who, though sometimes hurried too far by a generous impetuosity, was, indeed, the true friend of royalty, by being the true friend of liberty; and, until his prayers upon this subject are accomplished in France, we shall constantly see published there, books like the present, written by a man of talents, and of a comprehensive mind, but intended, under the appearance of impartiality, to accomplish only the purposes of a particular set of individuals. The Emperor Alexander Severus is reported to have wisely said, that he more dreaded one able writer, than an army of soldiers; for, independently of the immediate influence of the pen, it inflicted an incurable wound, even in the memory of kings. The same apprehension is felt by Louis XVIII. but he takes a far different method to avoid the censure, and to prevent the advice of his subjects. How admirably does one of our great unknown poets speak upon the importance of this wise and free counsel to a sovereign, who wishes to remain securely on his throne. 66 -I have found that counsels More digg'd and under-eaten than may warrant |