by the British admiral purposely to reconnoitre the port. The Dutch ships steered to the northward, with the wind fresh at north-east, and, while the cutter hastened home with the intelligence, were followed by the Espiégle, until the succeeding day, the 24th ; when, being 40 leagues to the north-eastward of Yarmouth, Captain Roberts quitted them. In a day or two afterwards this squadron fell in with the 54-gun ship Glatton, Captain Henry Trollope, and three or four smaller vessels, belonging to Rear-admiral Pringle's division. The Dutch formed in line, but did not follow the Glatton on her making sail to get off. In a short time afterwards Admiral Duncan resumed his cruising-ground, and prevented any other Dutch squadron from quitting the Texel during the remainder of the year.

At the commencement of the present year the fleet, under Sir John Jervis, who, it will be recollected, had, at the close of the last, succeeded Admiral Hotham in the chief command upon the Mediterranean station, amounted to 18 sail of the line, exclusive of a very numerous train of frigates and sloops. The fleet in Toulon, now, we believe, under the command of Rear-admiral Mustache Brueys, amounted to 15 sail of the line, exclusive of three ships building ; one, an 80, nearly ready to be launched, and the remaining two, an 80 and a 74, in a very forward state. There was, at anchor in the port of Carthagena, a squadron of seven sail of the line, which, in the present equivocal state of Spanish politics, required also to have its motions occasionally watched.

In the latter end of February, or beginning of March, Sir John Jervis detached Vice-admiral the Honourable William Waldegrave, with the Barfleur 98, and four 74s, on a "particular mission" to Tunis ; or, in plain. words, to bring out, either by fair means or by foul, the late British 28-gun frigate Nemesis, and one of her captors, the French ship-corvette Sardine, which, with the French brig-corvette Postillon, had taken refuge in the harbour. On the night of the 9th of March the service was executed, with scarcely any opposition and no loss, by the boats of the squadron placed under the orders of Captain John Sutton of the Egmont, and covered in their approach by that ship and the Bombay-Castle. On the next day the vice-admiral quitted Tunis, and in a few days afterwards rejoined the commander-in-chief off Toulon.

Among the separate squadrons employed by Sir John Jervis, was one under Commodore Nelson, consisting of the Agamemnon and Diadem 64s, the latter commanded by Captain George Henry Towry, the 32-gun frigate Meleager, Captain George Cockburn, and ship-sloop Peterel, Captain John Temple, detached on the 23d of April, when the fleet was cruising off Vado, with orders to the commodore to harass the coast of Genoa, and blockade the port. On the 25th, in the afternoon,