Alexandria Gazette & Daily Advertiser

Extract of a letter from Mr. James Scott, of the schooner Alert, at City St. Domingo, July 4, 1820.

"About 4 o'clock, P. M. Cape Roxo bore about north, 4 leagues distant, discovered two schooners--the one hove too, with her topsail aback, and the other standing about N. E. across the Mona Passage--the latter immediately hove about and stood after us, and when pretty near us fired a double shotted gun, which fell short of us a small distance, and hoisted Aury's flag--we immediately hoisted American colors, and the captain was ordered onboard the pirate (for such we found her to be afterwards) with his papers, which was complied with; and when he got alongside, six men, with the pretended captain came on board of us, and proceeded directly to pillaging our trunks, and every thing else; and even our ensign was cut down by an American seaman, and carried off, leaving an old torn one in its place, all clotted with blood--no doubt, some unfortunate American, who had shared a worse fate than we did, although we expected nothing else every moment from these rascals, all armed with pistols and carving knives, like Spaniards. They took from the captain, supercargo, and mate, to the amount of three or four hundred dollars worth, and had it not been so near night, and a heavy sea running, and having only our batteau, I am afraid that every thing would have gone, and perhaps our lives; for they took, only a few days before, the American brig Traveller, of Gloucester, and sent her captain and crew in the launch, with about six pounds of biscuit; they are all here destitute, and shame be it said, that the captain of the schooner Eliza Ann, refused to sell them a few pounds of hard biscuit, to carry them up to the windward; he even refused them a passage, as I understood from the mate. We should have supplied them ourselves had we not shared the same fate. Will not the government send vessels to detect these pirates?"