1808	Light Squadrons and Single Ships	70

Although, from the damages she had received in her action with the Terpischore, (sic) the Sémillante, after her return to Port-Louis in April, was unable to put to sea as a cruiser, there still remained upon the Isle of France station two French national ships. One was the 40-gun frigate Canonnière, Captain César-Joseph Bourayne, of whom mention has already been made ; the other, the ship-corvette Jéna, of 18 long 6-pounders and 150 men, commanded by Lieutenant Nicolas Morice. This vessel had sailed from Europe as a privateer, but had since been purchased by Governor Decaen to be employed as a national corvette.

Sometime in the month of August, 1808, the Canonnière ,joined the Sémillante in the harbour of Port-Louis ; and on the 5th or 6th of September the British 22-gun ship Laurel, Captain John Charles Woollcombe, arrived off the Isle of France from the Cape ; whence she had been despatched by Vice-admiral Bertie, the new commander-in-chief on that station, with provisions for two ship-sloops expected to be cruising upon the Isle of France station. Not finding these sloops, nor any other British cruiser, off Port-Louis, Captain Woollcombe conceived it to be his duty, till relieved as he soon expected to be, to watch the motions of the Sémillante, then supposed to be the only French frigate in the harbour.

In a day or two after her arrival off the island, the Laurel recaptured a Portuguese ship, bound last from the rendezvous of French prizes in St.-Paul's bay to Port-Louis. On board this ship, as passengers from Bourbon, were some ladies belonging to the Isle of France. The gallantry of Captain Woollcombe induced him to despatch one of his boats with a flag of truce to Governor Decaen, requesting the general to send out a vessel to bring on shore the ladies and their baggage. In the middle of the night the second captain of the Canonnière, as he afterwards proved to be, came on board the Laurel in a flag of truce ; and, having to remain until seven or eight in the morning before the baggage could all be embarked, monsieur made himself thoroughly acquainted with the Laurel's force in guns and men.

On the 12th, in the afternoon, the Laurel chased a ship almost under the batteries to the north-east of Port-Louis harbour, and, discovering the vessel to be a cartel, was about to wear off the shore with a light breeze from the east-south-east, when a sail was discovered on the lee bow steering nearly the same course as the Laurel. The latter consequently stood on, but, from the position of the stranger, could only make out that she was a ship. A difference of opinion prevailed as to her force ; some of the officers taking her for a prize Indiaman, others for the Sémillante, frigate. In a little while the strange ship hove

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