The Virginia Gazette

FROM THE LONDON GAZETTE.

ADMIRALTY-OFFICE, Oct. 12, 1779.

LETTER from Captain Pearson, of his Majesty's ship Seraphis, to Mr. Stephens, of which the following is a copy, was yesterday received at this office.

Pallas, French frigate in Congress service.

SIR,

TEXEL, Oct. 6, 1779

YOU will please to inform the Lords Commissioners of the Admiralty, that on the 23d ult. a boat came on board with letter from the bailiffs of Scarborough, about eleven o'clock, that corporation, giving information of a flying squadron of the enemy's ships being on the coast, and of part of the said squadron having been seen from thence the day before, standing to the southward. As soon as I received his intelligence, I made the signal for the convoy to bear down under my lee, and repeated it with two guns; notwithstanding which, the van of the convoy kept their wind with all sail stretching out to the southward from under Flamborough-Head, till between twelve and one, when the headmost of them got sight of the enemy's ships, which were then in chase of them; they then tacked, and made the best of their way under the shore for Scarborough, &c. letting fly their top-gallant sheets and firing guns; upon which I made all the sail I could to windward, to get between the enemy's ships and the convoy, which I soon effected. At one o'clock we got sight of the enemy's ships from the mast head, and about four we made them plain from the deck to be three large ships and a brig; upon which I made the Countess of Scarborough's signal to join me, she being in shore with the convoy; at the same time I made the signal for the convoy to make the best of their way, and repeated the signal with two guns: I then brought to, to let the Countess of Scarborough come up, and cleared ship for action. At half past five the Countess of Scarborough joined me, the enemy's ships then bearing down upon us, with a light breeze at S. S. W. at six, tacked and laid our head in shore, in order to keep our ground the better between the enemy's ships and the convoy; soon after which we perceived the ships bearing down upon us to be a two decked ship, and two frigates, but from their keeping end on upon us, on bearing down, we could not discern what colours they were under; at about twenty minutes after seven, the largest ship of the three brought to, on our larboard bow, within musket shot; I hailed him, and asked what ship it was, they answered in English the Princess Royal; I then asked where they belonged to, they answered evasively; on which I told them if they did not answer directly, I would fire into them; they then answered with a shot, which was instantly returned with a broadside; and after exchanging two or three broadsides he backed his top sails and dropped upon our quarter within pistol shot, then filled again, put his helm a-weather, and run us on board upon our weather quarter, and attempted to board us, but being repulsed he sheered off; upon which we backed our top sails, in order to get square with him again, which, as soon as he observed, he then filled, put his helm a-weather, and laid us athwart hawse; his mizen shrouds took our jib-boom, which hung him for some time, till at last gave way, and we dropped along side of each other, head and stern, when the fluke of our spare anchor hooked his quarter, we came so close fore and aft, that the muzzles of our guns touched each other's sides. In this position we engaged from half past eight till half past ten, during which time, from the great quantity and variety of combustible matters which they threw in upon our decks, chains, and in short, into every part of the ship, we were on fire not less than ten or twelve times in different parts of the ship, and it was with the greatest difficulty and exertion imaginable at times, that we were able to get it extinguished; at the same time the largest of the two frigates kept sailing around us the whole action and raking us fore and aft, by which means she killed or wounded almost every man on the quarter and main decks. About half past nine, either from a hand grenade being thrown in at one of our lower deck ports, or from some other accident, a cartridge of powder was set on fire, the flames of which running from cartridge to cartridge all the way aft, blew up the whole of the officers and men that were quartered abaft the mainmast from which unfortunate circumstance, all those guns were rendered useless for the remainder of the action, and I fear the greatest part of the people will lose their lives. At ten o'clock they called for quarters from the ship along side, and said they had struck. Hearing this, I called upon the Captain to know if they had struck, or if he had asked for quarters; but no answer being made, after repeating my words two or three times, I hailed for the boarders, and ordered them to board, which they did; but the moment they were on board her, they discovered a superior number laying under cover with pikes in their hands ready to receive them, on which our people retreated instantly into our ship, and returned to their guns again till half past ten, when the frigate coming across our stern, and pouring her broadside into us again, without our being able to bring a gun to bear on her I found it in vain, and, in short, impracticable, from the situation we were in, to stand out any longer with the least prospect of success; I therefore struck (our mainmast at the same time went by the board.) The first Lieutenant and myself were immediately escorted on board the ship along side, when we found her to be an American ship of war, called the Bon Homme Richard, of 40 guns and 375 men, commanded by Capt. Paul Jones; the other frigate which engaged us, to be the Alliance of 40 guns and 300 men; and the third frigate which engaged and took the Countess of Scarborough, after two hours action, to be the Pallas, a French frigate of 32 guns and 275 men; the Vengeance, an armed brig of 18 guns and 70 men, all in Congress service, under the command of Paul Jones. They were fitted out and sailed from Port L'Orient, the latter end of July, and came north about; they had on board 300 English prisoners, which they had taken in different vessels, in their way round, since they left France, and have ransomed others. On my going on board the Bon Homme Richard, I found her in the greatest distress; her quarters and counter on the lower deck entirely drove in, and the whole of her lower deck guns dismounted; she was also on fire in two places, and six or seven feet water in her hold, which kept increasing on them all night, and the next day, till they were obliged to quit her, and she sank, with a great number of her wounded on board. She had 150 men killed and wounded in the action; our loss in the Seraphis was also very great. My officers and people in general behaved well, and I should be very remiss in my attention to their merit, were I to omit recommending the remaining of them to their Lordships. I must at the same time beg leave to inform their Lordships, that Captain Piercy, in the Countess of Scarborough, was not the least remiss in his duty, he having given me every assistance in his power, and as much as could be expected from such a ship, engaging the attention of the Pallas, a frigate of 32 guns, during the whole action. I am extremely sorry for the misfortune that has happened, that of losing his Majesty's ship I had the honour to command; but at the same time I flatter myself with the hopes, that their Lordships will be convinced she has not been given away; but, on the contrary, every exertion has been used to defend her, and that two essential pieces of service to our country have arisen from it; the one in wholly oversetting the cruise and intentions of this flying squadron; the other in rescuing the whole of a valuable convoy from falling into the hands of the enemy, which must have been the case, had I acted otherwise than I did. We have been driving about in the North Sea ever since the action, endeavouring to make any port we possibly could, but have not been able to get into any till to-day, when we arrived in the Texel. Herewith I enclose you the most exact list of the killed and wounded I have as yet been able to procure from my people, being dispersed among the different ships, and having been refused permission to muster them; there are, I find, many more both killed and wounded, than what appears on the enclosed list, but their names as yet impossible to ascertain; as soon as I possibly can, I shall give their Lordships a full account of the whole. I am, Sir, your most obedient, and most humble servant,

R. PEARSON.

Abstract of the killed and wounded.

Killed 49

Wounded 69

Amongst the killed are the boatswain, pilot, one master's mate, two midshipmen, the coxswain, one quarter-master, twenty-seven seamen, and fifteen marines.

Amongst the wounded are the second Lieutenant, Michael Stanhope; and Lieutenant Whiteside, second Lieutenant of marines; two Surgeon's mates, six petty officers, forty-six seamen, and twelve marines.

P.S. I am refused permission to wait on Sir Joseph Yorke, and even to go on shore.