of the good direction of which the injury done to the materiel of the boats and prizes afforded proof, did not have a man hurt.

On the 12th of November, in the morning, the Galatea, cruising off the island of Guadaloupe, gave chase to a suspicious schooner in the north-west. After a few hours' chase, and when she was getting near to the schooner, the Galatea became becalmed. Captain Sayer now despatched in pursuit of the vessel the boats of the frigate, under the orders of Lieutenants Gittins and Walker. Just as the boats had got near enough to return the schooner's fire with their musketry, and were on the point of boarding her, the French colours came down. The prize proved to be the R�union, a fine copper-bottomed schooner of 10 guns, from La Guayra bound to Martinique ; and not a man in the boats received the slightest injury.

On the 23d of August, in the morning, the British 38-gun frigate Arethusa, Captain Charles Brisbane, and 44-gun frigate Anson, Captain Charles Lydiard, cruising off Havana, discovered to leeward of them, and within two miles of the Mona-castle, the Spanish 34-gun frigate Pomona, from Vera-Cruz, with specie and merchandise, using her utmost efforts, against a scant wind and a strong north-east current, to enter the harbour. Finding herself closely pushed by the frigates and driven to leeward of her port by the current, the Pomona bore up, and anchored in three and a half fathoms' water, within pistol-shot of a castle, mounting 11 long 36-pounders ; * and situated about two leagues to the eastward of the Moro. Here she was presently reinforced by 10 gun-boats � from Havana, each mounting a long 24-pounder, with 60 or 70 men ; and which immediately formed in line ahead of the frigate.

Observing, as they bore up in chase, that the Pomona had anchored, each of the two British frigates passed a cable through the stern-port, to be ready to do the same in a position for cannonading with effect. At 10 A.M., the Anson and Arethusa came to anchor, the first abreast of the line of Spanish gunboats, the other on her consort's starboard quarter, in only one foot water more than she drew, and close alongside of the Pomona. A warm action now commenced between the two British frigates on the one part, and, on the other, the Spanish frigate, the 10 gun-boats, and the battery on shore. In 35 minutes the Pomona struck her colours, and was taken possession of ; and all the gun-boats had previously been blown up, sunk, or driven on shore. The castle continued the cannonade a short time longer, firing red-hot shot occasionally, until the explosion of a part of the battery put an entire stop to the action.

The fire of the gun-boats had been so ill-directed, that the

*  The official account says 16; but the number in the text is from an Havana account in this instance more likely to be correct.

�  The official account says 12. One Havana account says 10, another seven.

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