disciplined a ship as the Superb, it must have been very severe, * The latter, accompanied by the Carlotta, Calpé ; and Louisa, remained with the Saint-Antoine, while the rest of the squadron stood on in chase.

During the latter part of the night it came on to blow very hard ; and on the 13th, at 4 a.m., the only ships in company with the Cæsar were, the Spencer far astern, the Venerable and Thames ahead, and the French 80-gun ship Formidable, at some distance from and upon the lee bow of the latter, standing towards the shoals of Conil, with a light air from off the land. Sail was immediately made by the Cæsar and her three consorts ; but the easterly wind soon afterwards failing, the Venerable and Thames, who were nearer in shore, were the only ships in a situation to chase with any prospect of success; and, as the Formidable had only jury topmasts, they came up with her fast. At 5 � A.M. the French ship hoisted her colours, and at 5 h. 15 m. commenced firing her stern-chase guns at the Venerable ; but the latter, for fear of retarding her progress, did not fire in return until five or six minutes afterwards, when the light and baffling airs threw the two ships broadside-to, within musket-shot of each other.

At 5 h. 30 m. the Venerable's mizen topmast was shot away ; and at 5 h. 45 m. the Thames, by signal, hauled up and poured a raking broadside into the Formidable; who fired from her stern-chasers in return, but without effect. At 6 h. 45 m., by which time the French 80 and British 74 had gradually approximated to a pistol-shot distance, the mainmast of the latter came down by the board. Her standing and running rigging being also cut to pieces, the Venerable fell from alongside her opponent. Profiting by the circumstance, the Formidable continued to stand on ; but owing to the almost calm state of the weather, increased her distance so slowly, as to give considerable annoyance to the Venerable by the fire from her sternchasers. At 7 h. 50 m. a.m. the Venerable's foremast fell over her side, and almost at the same instant the ship herself, driven by the strength of the current, struck upon the rocky shoals off San-Pedro, situated about 12 miles to the southward of Cadiz. Having thus effectually rid herself of this her principal opponent, the Formidable continued her course to the northward, under all the sail she could spread, in the hope to reach Cadiz before the enemy's two remaining line-of-battle ships in sight, the nearest of which, the Cæsar, was still at a

* Although when first fitted, and at this time (1825), carrying 24-pounders on her main deck, the Superb mounted only 18-pounders in her action with the Saint-Antoine, her previous commander, Captain John Sutton, from an idea that the ship was crank, having induced the admiralty to issue an order for the exchange.

� Misprinted "seven" in the Gazette.

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