had two astern, and but two on each side. When we rounded to, and the captain asked, are you all ready fore and aft, it was instantly replied, all ready, sir; and on his giving the word well, now then, we fired a whole broadside, two guns at them, bang! bang! and to it we went. The engagement lasted nearly three glasses, by which time we had three men killed, and our rigging very much cut up, and there appeared no hope of escaping, when the captain said to me,' Mr. Ramsdell, I believe we shall have to strike at last; for if they kill many more of our men, we shall have none left to work a gun.' 'I am afraid so,' said I, 'for we can make no sail on the ship.' 'Well then haul down the colours said he;' upon which I looked round, and, behold! we had forgot to hoist them, and had been fighting all the time without any; so, I had to go into the cabin, get the ensign, and hoist it, and we fought another glass, during which we had another man killed, in order to let the Frenchmen see it, before we pulled it down. They boarded us directly from all sides, and were so enraged at our resistance, and at having some of their men killed, that instead of giving us some credit, which if they were brave men, or any thing but privateersmen, they would have done, the scoundrels beat those of us who were left, in such a manner that I thought they would have killed every one of us. I swore then that I never would be taken alive again, by those kind of pirates." I took up my quarters at a very pleasant hotel, and as the ship was obliged to remain from the 20th of August till the 12th of October to refit, I found sufficient amusement at so very interesting a place. Gibraltar has been sufficiently described, and my narration shall be confined to the incidents of the voyage. The governor, as a mark of particular favour, permitted the ship to be hauled into the king's dock to be repaired, and directed that she should be supplied with any thing she should want, and which could not be obtained elsewhere, out of his majesty's stores. This was understood, however, not to be without paying for them; and I think, it cost eight or ten thousand dollars to repair the damages done to the ship in part of one morning. The day after the action, I went on board, to see how the ship looked, and to speak to the crew, several of whom I found with black eyes, and the marks of bloody noses, and on enquiring the cause, was told that having too great an allowance of grog the evening before, they had had a battle royal; but they said it was all for love, and there appeared to be no resentment harboured among them for the consequences. While the ship remained in Gibraltar, greater privileges of passing the gates of the garrison were given to her crew, than to any other sailors; and it was found that men who belonged to other vessels, and who wished to pass the guard at unusual times, on being asked what ship they belonged to, were in the habit of answering," the Louisa." On the 12th of October, the ship being sufficiently repaired, sailed from Gibraltar, bound up the Mediterranean, having two ships of eighteen guns each from Liverpool in company. In the evening of the next day, we discovered three sail of large ships standing across our course; one of them a frigate made a signal which was obeyed by the two Liverpool ships, who hove to for her; but seeing that the direction in which the largest was sailing would bring us along side of her, capt. Ramsdell thought he would prevent any delay by continuing his course, and speaking her instead of the frigate, for which the ships in our company had laid to; he accordingly stood on, and when within hailing distance, took his speaking trumpet to be in readiness to answer a hail which he expected: but no hail was made, and the strange ship which proved to be the Minotaur of 84 guns, was manoeuvred as if with the intention of running our ship down, and which was very nearly effected. It appeared afterwards, that the Louisa was mistaken for an English ship, and that the frigate had communicated by signal that the three were all English, and according to the etiquette to be preserved by merchant ships, to those of his majesty's navy, we should in such case have hauled up for the frigate to examine us. It was with difficulty that our ship avoided the immense bulk which brushed by us, our yardarms being about a level with her quarter-deck. At the same time we were hailed with a long string of most virulent execrations, and asked why we had not hove to for the frigate. Ramsdell was a good-hearted, good-natured fellow; off duty he would scarcely have been known for a sailor; on duty, he felt "all as one as a piece of his ship." His temper was roused by the apparent attempt to run us down, and when this was succeeded by the hail which I have mentioned, he threw his trumpet on the deck, with the greatest indignation, and cried, "I'll be d―d if I will answer such a hail—no, I'll not answer, if the ship should be sunk under me for not doing it." At this moment we saw a boat lowered from the Minotaur. I said to him, "they will fire into us, if you don't heave to," (we were then under topsails.) "I don't care," said he, "I'll neither answer nor heave to; they may fire if they please." By this time the boat, manned with fifteen or twenty men, was pulling after us; the evening was growing dark fast. The officer in the boat was continually calling out "Why don't you heave to? Why don't you heave your main-top-sail aback?" It grew dark; we could see nothing of the ships; but the boat close to us pursued with the same calls from the officer of "Why don't you heave to? Why don't you heave your main-top-sail aback?" When we approached the large ship, Ramsdell had taken in sail, and intended to heave to for her. He now could easily by hoisting sail, have left the boat which was in chase; but he would neither add nor take in sail; he merely said, let him come along side if he can. At last, by great exertions the boat was got along side. Ramsdell then or dered the main-top-sail aback, and lanthorm to be brought on deck; "but" said he, "throw no rope to them; let the fellow who commands come on board the best way he can; and suffer no one else to come on board." The officer with great difficulty, scrambled up the side, and exclaimed as he reached the deck, "I never saw English sailors behave in this manner before."-"You are not on board of an English ship," said Ramsdell; "how dared you to hail me in the manner you did?" "Not on board of an English ship," said the officer, with great astonishment, "what ship am I on board of?" "Of an American ship, and if I should treat you as you deserve, I would take you and your boats crew along to the port I am bound to, and there let you find your way back to your ship as well as you could." "Sir," said the officer, "his has been a mistake; we were told by a signal from the frigate that this was an English ship." "And if it were an English ship, had you any right to hail her like a pirate? Go, sir, to your boat, and tell the captain of your ship, that I expected to find an English officer always a gentleman; and if he asks you who formed so wrong an opinion of him, tell him Charles Ramsdell, of the American ship Louisa." By this time guns were fired, and blue lights burnt, and rockets set off on board the English ship, as signals for the boat; and the officer took his departure, in a tone somewhat different from the one he had on his arrival. Here we parted from the Liverpool ships. "If," said Ramsdell "we are to be treated in this manner by every British ship of war that we may meet merely because we are in their company, we had better cut the connexion, and have nothing to do with them." On the following morning, we fell in with a brig from Boston, bound up the Mediterranean, with the commander, who wished to keep in our company, Ramsdell was acquainted. The next morning we saw a vessel standing across our course, which when she approached to within about two miles, appeared to be reconncitering us, upon which the ship laid to for her to come down. When she came within long gun-shot, she showed Spanish colours, and fired a gun, which we answered, by showing our colours, and firing a gun to leeward. We now found her to be an armed ship of 18 guns, apparently full of men. She again stood towards us, and came to at about half gun-shot. I was leaning on the quarters looking at her, when Ramsdell took me by the arm, and said, walk forward a little, the fellow will try to throw a shot between the main and mizen, just over the place where you stand. Directly a gun was fired, the shot of which struck the water close by our stern, and the ship then came along side of us, and sent her boat aboard. Our men were all at their quarters, I had taken my old station, and while their officer went into the cabin to look at the ships' papers, some of the Spaniards from the boat were suffered to come on deck. One CO. of them asked a sailor, in very broken English, for some tobac"Here's my tobacco-box," said the sailor, with a very sour phiz, taking a musket which stood by him, and strking the but of it against the deck. "Is not this," asked the other," the ship that had an action with two French privateers in the straits about two months ago?" "Why, do you ask?" said the sailor. "Because, I know her; I was on board of one of the privateers.” "Ah ha! shipmate," said the tar, "if you know her so well, you had better advise Jack Spaniard to keep a greater offing." The officer, had not been long in the cabin, before we heard some high words. It appeared, that on examining the ships papers, he thought, or affected to think, that there was some deficiency in them, and talked of taking the ship into Alicant. "The less you say on that subject the better," said our captain, bundling up his papers; " Come, sir, I must go on deck; I can't be detained here any longer by you:" on which he came from the cabin, very angry, and very unceremoniously leaving the other to follow. The officer, who was in high wrath, at the cavalier treatment, went into his boat, uttering something in Spanish, which I took to be a string of oaths, and saying something in broken English to Ramsdell, which he understood as at heart of firing into us. In the meantime, they in the Spanish ship had obliged the captain of the brig to go on board with his papers, which they detained, but suffered him to go back in his boat to the brig. In this situation, the captain of the brig hailed, and said that the Spaniards had detained his papers, and was going to take the brig into Alicant. Ramsdell ordered four men to jump into the boat. "What, sir," said the first mate, "shall I do, if they detain you?"-" You can fight your ship, Mr. Ben"Oh, then, I know what to do," said Bennet; and as soon as the captain was on board the Spaniards, he ordered the maintopsail to be filled, and ranged along side, within twenty yards of the Spanish vessel, all hands at the guns, and a fellow, who could play on the fife, piping Yankee Doodle. We learnt afterwards, that the captain, on going into the cabin, saw the brig's papers on the table, and seized them without any ceremony. There were several officers, who attempted to stop him; but he drew his cutlass, and forced his way on deck. Here we saw a great bustle, and a number of muskets presented at him, and at the same time heard him hail," Mr. Bennet, fire a broad-side right where I stand." Bennet in a minute would have obeyed the order; but we supposed that some of the men who were hemming him in, understood what he said; for they gave way instantly, and he jumped on board the boat, and was rowed to the ship. As soon as he reached the deck, he hailed the brig"Capt. Davis, I have got your papers; make sail, and if this Scoundrel offers to prevent you, I will sink him." Davis, was very alert in obeying the directions of his friend: no impediment was offered, and both vessels stood on their former course. net!" The conduct of the Spaniard, appeared to be very unjustifiable. The papers of both the ship and brig were all full and fair. A number of Frenchmen were observed on board the Spaniard ; and some of our men suspected it to be a French vessel; but in this I think they were mistaken. She was well armed, and some of our men, who were stationed in the tops, counted upwards of an hundred men on deck. The conduct of Ramsdall, may be considered as rash, but it was successful; and success is sometimes the only difference between the hero and madman. There were many cruisers in our way up the Mediterranean, and I had several opportunities of observing the spirit of our crew. One day, we discovered a sail standing for us. In a little time, she was ascertained to be a brig-of-war, of 18 guns. From her rigging the sailors said she was French. Ramsdell hailed the brig in company, and told the commander to get a considerable offing, in case the vessel coming down on us should prove an enemy. He then took in sail and hove to for her, all the men at their quarters. In this situation the strange vessel manœuvred as if to run astern of us. No colours were displayed on either side. Ramsdell supposing she would cross the stern of our ship, stationed some men so as to wear round at the moment she should do so, by which she would find herself along side instead of astern of us: but at the moment this was expected, she ran along side, close aboard, and hoisted an English flag; but before the flag was displayed, and while she was ranging along side, our sailors said, she is an English brig. She hailed, "Where are you from? Where bound to? What brig is that in company? Have you seen any Frenchmen?" And on receiving answers to these questions, she went off without making any further examination. I afterwards asked one of our sailors, " How did you know that to be an English brig?" "Oh, no Frenchman would run along side of us, as she did." "Well, how did he know our ship to be an American? We might have been a French ship, and had a person who spoke English, on board to answer his questions.' "Yes, that is very true; but he knew we were an American, for no French ship of our force, would have laid to for him to come along side of." I might mention in justification of our men's opinion of the rigging, that on our hailing to know what brig it was, we were answered the Mondovi, which from the name was probably a French built one. At another time, we were chased, very perseveringly, the wind right ahead, from daylight till noon, by a corvette built ship. She tacked whenever we did, and outsailed us. The captain and supercargo of the brig in company, dined that day on board of the ship. By the time we sat down to dinner, the superiority of the vessel in chase could be fairly ascertained from the deck. "The fellow will be up with us by dark," said Rams |