1809	British and French Fleets	116

to save the crew of this ship, but the grape-shot from the British ships prevented the boats from getting alongside.

The discrepancies that occur in the time kept by the British ships, and our inability to remedy the evil by a reference to the minutes kept by the French ships, prevent us from applying to any very useful purpose, the following translated extract from the letter written by the officer of the Oc�an<: " During this action (that with the grounded ships), we fired some of our guns from the stern. The flood having borne our ships up for a short time, we ran her on shore a few cables' lengths further up. An English ship of the line tried to come to an anchor under our stern ; but she touched the ground, and was with great difficulty got off. Had this not happened, we should have been cannonaded in a pretty style. " We cannot discover that any of the British line-of-battle ships sent into Aix road had an intention to molest the Oc�an<: but the ship alluded to was undoubtedly the Revenge. This ship, however, did not actually take the ground : she only stirred up the mud with her keel. One fact is certain. The Oc�an<, at the time she was thus menaced, or supposed to be menaced, with an English line-of-battle ship's raking fire, had retired from a spot nearly half a mile nearer to the British fleet : on which exposed spot the French three-decker had lain aground since long before daylight ; where, for four or five hours the ship was heeling very much ; and where, in short, a couple of well-handled frigates, one on each quarter, might have nearly destroyed her.

Even after this opportunity had been lost, five French line-of-battle ships, and one frigate were still assailable, either by fire-ships, or by frigates, gun-brigs, and bomb-vessels. Those ships were the Oc�an<, Cassard, R�gulus, Jemmappes, Tourville, and Indienne, all lying aground at the mouth of the Charente. Unfortunately, there having been no reserve of fire-ships, the fleet was now without any, and the only bomb-vessel present was the �tna. However, three transports were hastily converted into fire-ships ; and at 5 h. 30 m. p.m. Rear-admiral Stopford got under way with the C�sar, and, accompanied by the three fire-ships, and the launches of the fleet fitted to throw Congreve rockets, stood towards Aix road, receiving from the batteries of Aix and of Ol�ron, a spirited but ineffectual fire. At 7 h. 40 m. p.m., Isle d'Aix bearing from north to north-north-east, the C�sar struck on what was supposed to be the south-eastern extremity of the Boyart [Boyard] shoal. As it was nearly low water, the C�sar did not float again until 10 h. 30 m. P.M.; when she swang to the stream-anchor which had been let go. The Valiant had grounded about half an hour earlier than the C�sar, and got afloat a few minutes later, equally without damage. Neither the Theseus nor the Revenge appear to have grounded at all. Upon weighing from her first anchorage, which she did shortly

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