In this enterprise, the British fully succeeded, although the vessel, which was the Alcide, of Bordeaux, pierced for 34 guns, and carrying, when at sea, a complement of 240 men, was moored close to the beach, under the protection of two batteries, that kept up an incessant fire until the ship was towed clear of their range. The British had the additional good fortune to execute the service without a casualty. We wish Captain Paget had entered a little more into the details, and acquainted us how many, and what nature of, guns the Alcide mounted, and how many men were on board of her, when thus, with such entire impunity, boarded, carried, and brought out of an enemy's harbour.

On the 13th of March, at 3 A.M., in latitude 26� 16' north, longitude 29� 25' west, as a British squadron, consisting of the 98-gun ship London, Captain Sir Harry Neale, 80-gun ship Foudroyant, Captain John Chambers White, bearing the flag of Vice-admiral Sir John Borlase Warren, and 38-gun frigate Amazon, Captain William Parker, was steering to the southeast, with the wind at west-south-west, two sail at a short distance in the north-east were discovered by the London, then astern and to windward of her companions. The London immediately wore in chase, and made signals to the admiral with false fires and blue lights. In a short time Sir Harry got near enough to open his fire upon the strangers, then on the larboard tack, under all sail, and who were no other than our old friends, the Marengo and Belle-Poule, returning to France from their long eastern cruise ; and from whom, it will be recollected, we parted in the preceding August, at the close of a third rather inglorious encounter with an enemy. *

We must be permitted to digress a little, to bring M. Linois to the point at which we now find him. After quitting the Blenheim and convoy, the French admiral repaired to Simon's bay, where he arrived on the 13th of September, and found the Bato Dutch 64, but quite in a dismantled state, and without a crew. While waiting at this anchorage repairing his damages, he was joined by the Atalante ; but which frigate soon afterwards perished on the coast. Quitting their anchorage on the 10th of November, the Marengo and Belle-Poule proceeded off Cape Negro ; thence towards Cape Lopez ; and, although he reconnoitred all the bays and anchorages along the African coast, M. Linois captured but one ship and one brig of trifling value. The two ships then steered for Prince's island, where they took in water, and afterwards cruised to leeward of Saint-Helena. Here on the 29th of January, 1806, M. Linois fell in with an American, who informed him of the capture of the Cape by the English. Learning, also, that the Indian seas were filling with British men of war, in search of himself and

*  See p 152

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