Brig of war

“ But the deadly scuds of iron kept flying over and upon our deck, bursting into awful showers of bolt and chain and spike and hammerheads. We saw shortly that our brig was badly out of gear. She began to drift to leeward, and being unable to aim at the enemy, we could make no use of the bow gun. Every brace and bowline cut away, her canvas torn to rags, her hull shot through, and half her men dead or wounded, she was, indeed, a sorry sight. ”

“ You must understand, my friends, that, if the brig we have heard of, is, as I have every reason to believe, a British man-of-war, her purpose is either to watch for our Sea Hawk, and to attack her the next time she goes out of harbour, or to destroy our strongholds on shore. ”

“ We found the brig just ready to haul out into the outer basin, preparatory to putting to sea. She was a fine large craft, and had been built for a privateer in the war-time. Her heavy guns had been landed, but she still carried some eight six-pounders; and as she had a strong crew of fully twenty men, she was well able to defend herself from any piratical craft, or other gentry of that description. ”

“ A large man-of-war, to judge by her size and rig, partially concealed by the brig, was coming down to us, with studding-sails all spread, and the English cross flying at her main.
“We are already under a press of sail—as much as we can conveniently spread,” said the skipper, as if musingly, looking aloft; “and the Englishman will have to give the brig somewhat of a berth. Ah! there comes the enemy—a frigate, as I live!” ”

“ It’s war to the knife, our lives or theirs.”
They soon had abundant evidence that this was to be the case, for before they had much time to think, there was a loud yelling and the brig was surrounded by a gesticulating mob of savages, who advanced, sending their arrows sharply against the sides of the vessel, shaking their war clubs, and making fierce darts with their spears wherever they imagined a white to be crouched. ”

“ When the privateer was within a few yards of the English brig her tall spars were for the first time visible.
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A fusillade of pistol shots rattled through the rigging, but did no serious damage.
The privateersmen crouched below the bulwarks of their taut little schooner until her bow passed over the waist of the brig.
Then, with a ringing cheer, these daring men sprang up and made a simultaneous leap into the Caroline's rigging.
They swarmed to her deck like a crowd of wasps, bent on stinging their victims to death.
Cutlasses were vigorously used. ”

“ My pretty brig is my own. The war is an ugly business, but you know me of old—we are “enemies in war, in peace friends,” all but you, old fellow—I am your friend always, as you know.’
“‘And how will your crew stand the loss of their share of prize-money?’ asked my captain. ”

“ Notwithstanding the fate of the ‘sloop of war’ Lily [15] , vessels of that denomination, inferior in force to a gun-brig, were still suffered to remain in the British navy. One of the ‘cruisers’ of this class was the Childers, a brig of 202 tons, built as long ago as the year 1778; a vessel so unseaworthy as to have been obliged, on more than one occasion, to throw overboard her guns (long) 4-pounders, in order to save the lives of her crew. The brig at length became so crazy, that 18-pounder carronades were found too heavy for her, and she was fitted with fourteen 12-pounders. ”

“ Here, after a succession of south-easterly breezes, we had another taste of "Sandford's luck," in the shape of a calm of two days' duration. On the morning of the third day, we were surprised by seeing, at some six or seven miles' distance to the south-west, a long, low, rakish-looking brig, with her royals furled and courses hauled up, and a pennant flying at the mast-head. Immediately on noticing us, she hoisted an English ensign, and fired a gun. Our boatswain, an old man-of-war's-man, immediately exclaimed that he recognised her as H.M. brig Hawk ”

“ The lower hold of the brig is full of flour, and of nothing else.”
“Ware round, sir—ware round and pass athwart the brig’s wake,” interrupted the captain. “There’s plenty of room now, and I wish to pass as near that craft as we can.”
This manœuvre was executed. The sloop-of-war no sooner filled her maintop-sail than she drew ahead, leaving plenty of room for the brigantine to make sail on her course. Spike did not profit by this opening, however, but he sent several men aloft forward, where they appeared to be getting ready to send down the upper yards and the topgallant-mast. ”

“ On the 29th of April, in latitude 27° 47 ́ north and 80° 9 ́ west longitude, the lookout spied three sails off to the windward. From the cut of the third, a brig, it was easy to mark her as a man-of-war. ”

“ If a vessel is wrecked, or goes ashore, the whole property belongs to the king, and the officers and crew are sent up to his capital. A Hamburg brig just wrecked lost everything, and the captain and crew would have been sent up, had not the king been absent making war for slaves. We found three of the crew on board of an American brig now in the offing. ”

“ For a few moments the brig's crew had the advantage, and pressed their assailants back on every hand, while from side to side flowed the heady current of battle, and the human masses swayed this way and that like an agitated sea; and, with a roar still more terrible than the ocean in its wildest fury ever sent up, shouts of onset, cries of rage or pain, yells, and execrations filled the air, mingled with the reports of pistols, the clash of steel, and the strange thunder of a hundred feet upon the hollow decks. ”

“ Before fifteen minutes, we were well in on the land side of the chase, and had every apparent chance of capturing her without the firing of a shot. Hitherto she had been doggedly silent. But finding now that we had beat her on the tack she had chosen, and seeing no chance of escape but in going off dead before the wind, and spreading the pyramid of light sails in which a brig has always the advantage of a schooner, she put her helm suddenly down, and, throwing out rag after rag, was soon seen speeding away through the twilight like a frightened bird upon the wing. ”

“ We embraced one another with a transport which looked much like madness, and tears of joy trickled down our cheeks, withered by the most cruel privations. Each seized handkerchiefs, or some pieces of linen, to make signals to the brig, which was rapidly approaching us. Some fell on their knees, and fervently returned thanks to Providence for this miraculous preservation of their lives. Our joy redoubled when saw we at the top of the fore-mast a large white flag, and we cried, ‘It is then to Frenchmen we will owe our deliverance.’ We instantly recognised the brig to be the Argus ”

“ On the 19th, at day-light, having passed the night in burning blue lights, firing guns, and throwing up rockets, to indicate that he was in chase of an enemy, he found his brig alone, the thick weather obscuring the frigate from his view. Steering, during that day and night, a course deemed the most likely to meet the enemy, he, on the morning of the 20th, had the good fortune to fall in with the Royalist 18-gun brig. ”

“ The hull of the vessel lay flaming like an immense furnace on the surface of the deep; her masts, and the lower and topsail-yards, with fragments of the rigging hanging round them, sparkling, and scattering the fire-flakes, rose high above it, while huge volumes of smoke ever and anon obscured the whole, then borne away by the strong breeze, left the burning brig doubly distinct, placed in strong relief against the dark vault of heaven behind. ”

“ It was dusk when we came within speaking distance; and, running up close under her quarter, our captain seized the speaking-trumpet, and ordered the brig to strike her colours immediately, or he would sink her. What was his surprise, when, in answer to his hail, three deafening cheers resounded from the brig! Her deck was in an instant swarming with men; and, while our crew were gaping with astonishment, the painted canvas screen disappeared from her side as if by magic, and a broadside was poured into our hull, which made us reel again, and wounded and killed several of the crew. ”

“ At odd times, a brig would be seen dropping anchor in the offing. She was always from across the water, from the old country, as villagers to this day insist upon calling Europe. The manor during these peaceful invasions showed signs of life. Men from the brig went up to the big white house, and remained there for a week or a month. And they were lean men, battle-scarred and fierce of eye, some with armless sleeves, some with stiff legs, some twisted with rheumatism. ”

“ Once we were clear of the brig it was as if the enemy knew full well the precious cargo our boat carried, and understood that only by compassing the commodore’s death could they hope to win the day, for on the instant every gun was aimed at us, and every sharp-shooter on the Britishers’ decks used us as a target.
I may live to be a very old man, and take part in many another battle, but it is not possible I shall ever again find myself in such a deadly shower as was poured upon us from the moment we left the side of the shattered Lawrence. ”

“ We hauled down the foresail, as it would only, we believed, drive us the faster to destruction. The brig tumbled and rolled and pitched about in a way that made it difficult for us to keep our feet, and every now and then the seas, washing over the deck, would have swept us off had we not again lashed ourselves to the stanchions near the pumps. These we worked as vigorously as our failing strength would allow. We had resolved not to give in while the brig remained afloat. How we longed for daylight, that we might see where we were, and judge how we could best try to save ourselves! ”

“ Not a heart of our vast crew that did not beat with sympathy for our unhappy victims. Old and young, officers and men, hardy veterans and eager volunteers, all alike owned the impulses of humanity, and stood gazing, silent, spell-bound and horror-struck, on the ill-fated brig and her despairing passengers. At this instant a gray-haired man, whom we knew at once to be her skipper, sprung into the main-rigging of the wreck, and placing his hands to his mouth, while his long silvery locks blew out dishevelled on the gale, shouted,
“We—are—sink-ing!” ”

“ The brig, from her sailing superior to la Favorite, and in consequence of signals from her, kept above gun-shot to windward, and I am sorry to say, from the time it took to exchange the prisoners, and being favored by the wind, she has made her escape. The brig mounts 14 brass 8-pounders, and has on board 120 men. ”

“ The morning broke warm, fine, and sunny, and a shout came from the watch at the beacon, that 'a ship was close in shore!'
We started up from the shelter where we were sleeping. We could scarcely believe our eyes, as with prayerful hearts we stretched out our hands simultaneously and in silence towards her.
Yes—yes! there she was, little more than a mile distant, a gallant brig of considerable burden, with her courses, topsails, and top-gallant-sails set, close hauled on the port tack, on a gentle breeze. ”

“ Blocks creaked above, and the swaying bales and chests, growing for a moment into fiery patches against the sooty darkness behind them, swept over the bulwarks and into gray shadow again, when they were speedily borne down into the gaping black maws of the brig. ”

“ At 30 minutes past noon, in close action within musket-shot, the second brig commenced tiring upon us; observed the Algerine sweep round and haul out of the battle; – she soon after made the signal to discontinue action, which was, however, impracticable on my part. Thus finding ourselves in the midst of the enemy^s squadron, with scarcely a prospect of escape, I resolved that they should not find an easy conquest, and, with the colours of my country displayed in every conspicuous part of the vessel, prepared to defend His Majesty’s brig until the last extremity. ”

“ Leaving the squadron to make the best of their way, the reader must imagine himself upon the quarter-deck of the little brig, upon whose capture they were all so eagerly bent.
A single glance at her arrangements, and those who conducted them, would bespeak her a privateeer; indeed, were that good looking fellow, who has just laid down the trumpet and taken up the spy-glass, attired in uniform, the brig might be easily mistaken for a national vessel. She differs from one in no other particular. ”

“ If she were to receive any damage, and not be able to haul off-shore, she is, do you see, on an enemy’s coast, and all her people would be made prisoners, if not murdered; while the brig has a port under her lee, and can run in even if she gets a good deal of knocking about.”
While we were thus talking, the corvette had drawn still nearer to the brig, and her shot began to tell with considerable effect. Down came the brig’s maintop-gallant-mast, the spars hanging by the rigging. We next saw several hands going aloft to clear it away, when another shot struck the maintop-mast. ”

“ Once more was our double-shotted broadside hurled upon the foe, and then, before our lads had time to run-in their guns, we received the combined fire of the brig and the brigantine in return. Through the sharp ringing explosion of our antagonists’ nine-pounders we distinctly heard the crashing of the shot through the schooner’s timbers, and then—O God! I shall never forget it—the piercing shrieks and groans of mortal agony which uprose beneath our feet! Not a man of us upon the schooner’s decks was injured by that terrible double broadside ”